A/N: Well, aren't you all in for a treat? Chapter 4 came quickly! I just wanna say a quick, but heartfelt, thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far and offered any suggestions and whatnot. I really appreciate it and hope you all continue to enjoy the tale.

A/N #2: (Ah, oops) I forgot this earlier, as I so seldom use it, but this chapter does have a guest appearance of the infamous "F-bomb". Would've warned ya'll sooner, but I didn't realize I'd forgotten until I was already at work.

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Now, presenting:

Chapter 4

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Electromagnetic interference, Jack thought to himself, Of course. Naturally, he had realized that the meteor shower was probably responsible for their radio problems, but he had somehow overlooked the possibility that it had messed with all their other equipment also. The Air Force officer decided he had too much on his mind. After all, thanks to a recent Chicken Little happenstance, he'd lost contact with half his team as well as the damn gate. Not only that, but Jack knew there was a bit more wrong with his eyes than a little dust. Judging by the look on Daniel's face, he also knew. That was about twenty minutes before. Speaking of Danny... Jack glanced at the blurry figure ahead of him.

Daniel shifted his backpack, yet again. His left side was really bothering him, now, and breathing had become a bit difficult. He was probably sweating a bit more than the exertion or temperature warranted, also. The archaeologist wondered if maybe he had eaten something he shouldn't have, because he was feeling rather nauseous. A little voice in the back of his mind was trying to tell him something, but he wasn't able to make proper sense of it through the fog inside his head. He stumbled slightly.

"Daniel?" Jack immediately called after him. "You alright?" Daniel had burst into a short fit of coughing. Finishing, he drew a hand across his mouth, mildly surprised to find a thin trail of blood smeared across the back of his hand. Coughing up blood could only be bad, he realized a bit hazily. On the other hand, if they didn't get back through the gate in time, he'd be screwed, anyway. Furthermore, he was concerned about Jack's eyes. So, he lied.

"Yeah," he called back. "I'm fine."

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It was just as Sam had feared—the electromagnetic interference from the storm had knocked out all their equipment. Hell, it had even drained her watch battery. Fortunately, the gate probably wasn't more than an hour out and familiar geographic structures assured her they were heading the right direction. Not that she had been overly concerned about that. If there was one thing Teal'c was good at finding, it was usually the stargate.

Currently, the Jaffa walked a few feet to her right, keeping her easily within the range of his peripheral vision. Both realized that, even with the aid of the crutch, Sam shouldn't be putting any weight on her injured limb—and she certainly did her best not to. Teal'c further realized that the blond-haired major would do her damnedest to get to the gate on her own, which was why he had made her the crutch in the first place. He could understand such a desire, so he did not contest it.

"Teal'c," Sam spoke up suddenly. "I'm sorry, I gotta stop, again."

"There is no need to apologize," he told her, helping her take a seat on a fallen tree.

"Thanks," she said. She was clenching her teeth again, a likely indication that the medication was wearing off. The woman met his gaze, her blue eyes too bright with pain. "I'll be ready to go in a few minutes." Teal'c simply sat down beside her, the statement having been made more for her own assurance than for his.

Sam was grateful for the companionable silence. Teal'c always knew when to speak and when to just be there. The throbbing in her ankle spiked in intensity as she shifted her weight and she closed her eyes to try to shut out the pain-induced fog. Now was definitely one of those 'just be there' moments.

After several minutes and another dose of painkillers, the Air Force major felt ready to go again. "Let's get back," she told her teammate as he helped her back to her feet.

"Agreed," Teal'c intoned, waiting until she gained her balance before stepping away. They continued on their way towards the gate, the Jaffa keeping a watchful eye on his teammate and Sam moving along with a hop-step motion that left her shoulder and uninjured leg feeling tired. It wasn't as smooth as it would have been with two crutches, but in the thick foliage, the extra crutch would have made movement much more difficult.

So, she moved forward, doing her best to keep weight off her injured limb. After all, what else could she do?

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The pain had started out negligible enough, but now... Now, it was beyond distracting. Which, now that he thought about it, was probably a large part of the reason why it had taken until now for him to realize that they were definitely not heading toward the gate.

Jack looked over as Daniel began to cough. That had started about forty minutes ago and was getting worse. Something had to be wrong—the man was never this quiet and his sense of direction was nowhere near this bad. Granted, neither was his, and Jack mentally kicked himself for not paying closer attention. He made his way towards the increasingly blurry figure that was his friend, nearly tripping over something in his path as he did so.

Daniel stopped and rested a hand against a tree. He felt lost. Where were they going, again? Right. They were going to meet Sam and.. and Teal'c at the stargate. Something about a storm and the sky falling. And why was, uh, Jack following him? Did he usually follow him? He didn't, did he? Or did he? Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose. The world had started to do slow circles around him making him feel dizzier than he already was. He was really starting to feel sick...

And suddenly, it seemed his whole body convulsed and he doubled over to heave bile onto the ground rather than wear it down the front of his tac vest. There hadn't been much to the content in his stomach, but it was enough to convince him that he probably wasn't dealing with some alien flu.

"Danny!" Jack was at his side a moment later, hand on his back. "Daniel, you alright?" He sounded so urgent... why did he look so worried?

Daniel closed his eyes in an attempt to string together a coherent thought before speaking. "I think I might... I mean, it seems maybe—probably... No, it's, um. Jack, I-I think there's something wrong with me." Despite his apparent inability to talk right, the man had managed to sound eerily calm, considering the fact he was vomiting blood.

"Ya think?" Jack responded, but his tone was softened considerably by his concern. "Here, lay down," he told him.

"But, but, we're s'posed to meet Sam an' Teal'c at the... um, the, uh... yeah," the archaeologist protested weakly, allowing the older man to take his pack and maneuver him into a supine position, moving a few branches out of the way so he could lay flat. Jack pressed two fingers gently against Daniel's neck. The younger man's pulse was too quick, as was his breathing, and his skin was moist and cool to the touch.

"Aw, fuck," Jack muttered, the cursed directed at himself. Why hadn't he insisted on examining the man sooner? He elevated Daniel's feet with one of the packs, before using his jacket and their two emergency blankets to cover him. "Looks like they'll have to send someone back for us," Jack told him. Daniel studied his expression for a moment. Was that fear he saw on his friend's face?

"I'm sorry," he murmured apologetically. "I, uh... I'm always causing problems." He shivered involuntarily.

"Well, this time it's not your fault," said the colonel, his throat tightening. "Just... hang in there, Danny-boy. I'll get you out of here." The older man silently prayed that he hadn't just lied—that, somehow, help would be on its way sooner as opposed to later. His mind taunted him with how monumentally screwed they were. Just as he had feared, Daniel was bleeding internally and was going into hypovolemic shock. What's more, with his flash burn making his vision increasingly worse, Jack knew he would never make it the gate on his own in time to save his friend.

It was up the others to make it back and send help—if they were even still alive...

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To be continued...

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A/N: Do kindly let me know what you think so far. Or wave, or... something. Really, I like to hear your thoughts, suggestions, and whatnot.