P.S. For intensive purposes, this is first time Teal'c will meet the President.
Major James stepped out from under the tent where the ship had crashed into the ground. The medical team rushed by him with a gurney and medical supplies to treat the injured passenger of the alien ship. Taking out his cell phone, James dialled the SGC number and was soon put straight through the Colonel O'Neill.
"O'Neill." He answered.
"It's Major James sir. We've recovered the aircraft, but you are not going to believe who's inside sir." James reported.
"Who is it Major?" He asked, obviously not in the mood for games.
"It's Teal'c sir. We don't know if he's alive or not. Our medical team's working on him now. When we secure the ship and load it into the trucks we'll be heading back to the SGC." Major James informed the Colonel.
"Good work Major. Get Teal'c back here ASAP." Colonel O'Neill ordered, sternly.
"Yes sir."
Jack hung up the phone with a deep, confused sigh. Everything was spiralling out of control. This new discovery just brought more questions for Jack to consider. He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that Jack didn't even hear the familiar squeaking of Janet's shoes enter the room. The doctor had to blink several times, surprised by the sudden apparition of a desk in her infirmary.
"Colonel O'Neill?" she interrupted his thoughts. Jack rubbed his eyes tiredly.
"Hey doc." He replied. Janet eyed him and the desk in front of him suspiciously.
"What are you doing here Colonel?" She asked as nicely as possible.
"Just making sure that I'm here when Carter wakes up. How's she doing?" he asked, the question foremost in his mind amongst his other concerns.
"I was just going to do my examination. You should go get some coffee, this will only take a few minutes." She encouraged him, subtly asking him to leave so the examination could be performed in private. Jack got the message loud and clear, leaving the room and heading for the commissary. Returning ten minutes later with coffee in hand, Jack knocked before entering the room. Janet nodded, indicating she was finished.
"So how's she doing doc?" He asked. Janet looked down at her chart, her face paled with doubt, concern and worry.
"It's not looking good. If she doesn't regain consciousness soon Sam may not wake up at all. Even if she does there is a chance that she could sustain long term, serious brain damage." Janet broke the horrifying news, her own eyes tearing up at her best friend's sombre diagnosis. Although Jack's facial expression didn't hardly change, Janet could see the hope in his eyes begin to dim and, just faintly, she could see a tear forming in his eye. As Janet walked past him to leave the room, she unexpectedly stopped beside him.
'It might help if you talk to her." She suggested, knowing it would make him feel better, and maybe help Sam find her way back to them.
"Thanks Doc." He replied quietly, his eyes gazing over at Sam lying on the bed. Janet left the room silently, the door closed behind her. Jack took the seat beside the bed and took her hand in his once again, willing himself to look at her sickly pale face.
"Come on Sam wake up for me please. I know that I said we'd get through it together back on the planet but I could see you were getting weaker. You would have never let me go, we both know that. So I had to go while you were asleep. I know I tricked you and I'm sorry. What makes me angry with myself is the guilt I feel for not doing what I did sooner. Now because of me, you may never come back." He said, dropping his eyes from her face guiltly.
"But the truth is… I love you too Sam." Jack admitted softly. It took a few moments for Jack to realise exactly what he had just said, and the ramifications of what he had just said.
"Great, I just admitted that I'm in love my 2IC; I'm heading straight for court marshal." He declared bitterly. Jack waited in silence for a few moments, watching Sam for any sign that she could hear him.
"Come on Sam, I need you here with me. They've put me in charge of the whole of the SGC for cryin' out loud. I need you here to make sure I don't screw it up." Jack pleaded with her.
"You in charge of the SGC? Man, we're in trouble." Sam mumbled groggily, flickering her eyes open. Jack silently thanked a higher power before turning his attention back to her.
"How ya doing?" He asked, instantly realiing that it was a probably a stupid question.
"Headache." She murmured softly, reaching her hand up to cradle her fore head. Jack's eyes fell to the blanket, fiddling with a loose strand as he summoned the courage to ask his next question.
"Just out of curiosity, how much, of what I just said, did you hear?" He asked cautiously. Sam waited for Jack to sneak a glance back up at her. Catching his eyes with hers, she smiled softly.
"Enough." She replied, squeezing his hand. Jack blushed involuntarily, and attempted to hide it by ducking his head one again. Sam attempted to clear her dry throat to relieve the embarrassment of the situation, but found herself coughing uncontrollable. Jack grabbed the glass of water from his desk and helped Sam slowly drink some. After draining the cup Sam looked around the room. Her eyes falling on the desk occupying most of the room.
"I moved my office down here temporarily. Make sure I was here when you woke up." Jack answered her unspoken query.
"Where's Daniel and Teal'c?" Sam asked, having become accustomed to seeing her friend's smiling faces whenever she woke up in the infirmary. Jack sighed at the mention of Teal'c's name.
"Danny's in his office playing with his rocks…" he began tentatively, not knowing how to tell Sam about what had happened to Teal'c without causing her to become upset and agitated.
"And what about Teal'c?" Sam pressed Jack for an answer.
"After we went through the Stargate, the Aranians apparently sent a Goa'uld Saboteur Device through the Stargate and destroyed all our base wiring. Teal'c stole Anubis' ship to fly to Abydos and use their Stargate to travel where we were. Until half an hour ago, we didn't know what happened to him. Bu a Goa'uld ship just crashed outside Canon City, Major James just reported in that Teal'c was inside. The medical team is bringing him here ASAP."
"Is he alive?' Sam asked, her voice quivering slightly in fear of his response. Jack shook his head.
"We don't know. Hopefully they'll bring him back here to get fixed up." Jack presumed. Sam nodded slowly, absorbing the information being thrown at her.
"Where's General Hammond? Why were you put in charge of the SGC?" Ahe asked in more of a sarcastic tone then she had intended. Jack pretended to look hurt.
"What? Am I the last person you could ever see running the base?" He questioned her playfully. Sam bit her lip.
"No sir, I didn't mean it like that." She explained hurriedly, not realising that she had slipped back into calling Jack "sir". But Jack had noticed, and he couldn't help but feel a slight tinge of sadness.
"I just was wanting to know why they fired General Hammond." She finished.
"Well, they blamed Hammond for letting Teal'c the ship without authorisation. It was US Government property." Jack reminded her, before thoughts of the General reminded Jack of Jacob.
"Your dad was here a little while ago, but he had to go. Report in with his Tokra superiors." Sam sighed in disappointment, she would have liked to have seen her father. Jack saw the far away look in Sam's and decided to give her some time alone to process everything that had happened.
"So, I'll send the doc in. She'll be glad to your alright. And I'll come back with Daniel later." Jack offered. Sam nodded in agreement, as much as she enjoyed Jack's company, she was exhausted.
"Jack, thank you for doing what you did. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you." Sam said. Jack smiled and nodded, before turning and leaving the room.
Minutes later, Jack jogged into Lieutenant Harris' office, the poor officer once again jumped at the presence of his superior.
"Harris, didn't I order you to relax?" Jack enquired curiously, his tone indicating that he was in a much better mood than he had been during his last visit.
"Ah no sir. You did not make it an order sir. It was only a suggestion sir." Harris babbled nervously.
"Would it make it easier for you if I made it an order?" Jack asked quizzically.
"I'm sorry sir, what can I do for you sir?"
"I want my desk and all the equipment moved back into my office. No rush but before I get here tomorrow morning at 8am sharp?" Jack requested. Harris nodded his head vehemently,
"Absolutely, yes sir." He replied.
"Thank you Lieutenant, oh and relax. That's an order." He added with a smile, as headed out towards his quarters for some much needed rest.
"Colonel O'Neill and Doctor Jackson report to the infirmary immediately." Janet's voice came over the bases' PA system into the late hours of the night. Jack yawned as he dragged himself from his restless sleep. Rubbing his eyes, Jack left his quarters and made his way towards the infirmary. He met up with Daniel in the elevator.
"What's going on?" Jack asked.
"I think they just brought in Teal'c." Daniel guessed, having heard rumours rippling through the base. Entering the infirmary together, Jack and Daniel spotted Teal'c on an infirmary bed; Janet was standing beside the bed writing various details on his chart. The heart monitor beeped strongly, which to Jack and Daniel's great relief indicated that their Jaffa friend was indeed alive. Major James stood near the entrance, watching on as the doctor worked on Teal'c. When he saw Jack, James saluted and handed Jack a tattered and torn rolled piece of parchment. Jack looked down at in confusion.
"What's this?" He asked.
"We found it with Teal'c in the ship sir. We thought it could be significant." Major James explained. Daniel peered at the paper over Jack's shoulder and gasped when he recognised the symbol on the paper.
"That's the symbol of Egyptian goddess Bastet. I was speaking to Thor about the Goa'uld Bastet who has just recently began to expand her forces in the hope of gaining ultimate superiority of the System Lords and the entire universe. She was the Goa'uld that had allied with the Aranians to use them to gain genetic information from other cultures in order to create a kind of super army." Daniel recalled. Jack looked over his shoulder at Daniel.
"Should I open it?" he asked, as if for permission from the archaeologist.
"Absolutely, it could be a message." Daniel guessed with a renewed interest. Breaking the seal and rolling out the parchment, Jack saw three lines of writing that were made up of black symbols.
"Daniel?" He prompted his friend to translate.
"It's a derivation of Egyptian. I think it says something along the lines of "Beware Tauri, you are next."" Daniel translated.
"Next to what?" he asked himself out loud. Jack gestured to Teal'c.
"Next to be killed…or so she thought." Jack replied bitterly, looking over at his friend lying still in the bed.
"You think Bastet's coming to attack Earth like Apophis did?" Daniel asked.
"Maybe. If she is, we're going to need the General back ASAP." Jack affirmed strongly. This was a situation Jack couldn't handle on his own. Jack handed the note to Daniel.
"I'm going to go talk to the President to get Hammond reinstated." Jack said before leaving Teal'c and returning to Sam's room, where his desk still remained. Sam was sitting up in bed when he entered.
"What's going on sir?" Sam asked, being isolated from the rest of the base left her hungry for information.
"They brought Teal'c in. Don't worry, he's alright…for the moment." Jack tried to assure her, picking up the red phone on his desk.
"This is Colonel Jack O'Neill, I need to speak with the President immediately. Yes, I'll hold." Jack's foot tapped impatiently on the floor.
"Why are you calling the President?" Sam asked.
"We've got another Goa'uld baddie, Bastet. She sent a note with Teal'c saying that she's going to attack Earth. I've got to get Hammond reinstated." Jack explained as quickly as possible. He heard a click on the other end of the line as President Lynch answered.
"Hello sir, this is Colonel O'Neill. We have a serious situation here; we have just been informed that there may be another Goa'uld coming to attack Earth. I respectfully request that you reinstate General Hammond." Jack requested, trying to sound as diplomatic and professional as possible. Sam sat in silence and strained to hear what President Lynch may have been saying.
"I'm sorry Colonel, but I can't authorise that. It has to be initiated by the Joint Chiefs." President Lynch explained.
"No offence sir, but Senator Kinsey is not going to reinstated the General. He's tried to shut down the SGC more times than I've change my underwear." Jack argued bitterly. Sam smiled to herself at Jack's rather disturbing analogy.
"You know how it works Colonel. I can't just override the foundation of the government of the United States of America." Lynch stated strongly.
"Sir, the General is the only person in our nation's history to handle anything like this. He's done it before sir, and unless we get him back, I doubt we'll be able to come up with a solution before those big honkin' Goa'uld ships come a knockin'." Jack clarified, becoming more and more agitated.
"I'm sorry Colonel, you'll have to speak to Senator Kinsey. If he approves it, then, and only then, will you get my approval for reinstatement. Colonel, I want George back as much as you do but there are ways of doing this kind of thing." The President insisted before ending the conversation rather abruptly. Jack grinded his teeth in anger, slamming the receiver down into the cradle in frustration.
"I'm guessing that wasn't the President agreeing to reinstate the General?" Sam asked rhetorically.
"No, he said I have to go through Kinsey." Jack answered angrily. Sam rolled her eyes in frustration.
"And he's never going to approve it anyway so it means we are stuck." Sam acknowledged angrily. Jack sighed,
"Yep. Oh heck, we'll get through it somehow we always do. So how are you doing?" He asked, diverting the topic conversation expertly.
"Good. Janet said I should be able to go home tomorrow with a week's downtime." Sam replied.
"That's good to hear." Jack began but then suddenly fell silent. Sam could tell that he wanted to say more, but either couldn't find the words or couldn't force them from his mouth.
"Is there something else sir?" Sam enquired, hoping to get Jack to talk to her. She was almost certain that it had something to do with what happened back on the planet. Probably her spontaneous declaration of love for him, which, until that moment, had conveniently slipped from her memory. Jack looked down at the ground nervously, clearing his throat he decided to say it and get it over and done with.
"We need to talk about what happened…before." Jack found it difficult to say to a very awake and alert Sam. Sam looked away from Jack guiltily; it was the conversation that she knew they would have to have one day.
"Sir, I just wanted to say that I…" But before Sam could finish her sentence, the phone interrupted them. Jack glanced over at the phone in a mixture of relief and irritation for interrupting probably the most important conversation he would ever have with Sam. Picking up the receiver, Jack looked over at Sam's, his eyes apologising for the interruption before answering.
"Hey Jack, Teal'c's awake." Daniel informed him.
"Alright, I'm on my way." Jack said, hanging up the phone and looking at Sam.
"Teal'c's awake, I'm going to go talk to him about this Bastet… thing." Sam nodded, swallowing the words she was going to say to him. Jack could see the disappointment in her eyes.
"We'll continue this conversation later… I promise." He added, sincerely. She smiled in response.
"Tell Daniel to come and see me when you're finished with Teal'c. I need to thank him in person." Sam requested. Jack smiled before leaving Sam to ponder what ifs.
"So Teal'c, tell us what happened." Jack and Daniel were standing beside their Jaffa friend's bed. They could see that he was still weak from whatever had happened to him. Janet was standing on the other side of the bed to hear the explanation herself.
"When I attempted to fly to Abydos in a bid to use their Stargate to gate to P0T 154, my engines failed causing me to fall from hyperspace. I encountered the ship of the Goa'uld Bastet. She captured me, and when I would not join her cause in eliminating the Tauri, she proceeded to torture me until I fell to the ground and remained stationary for sometime. Believing I was dead, she placed me in a transport pod and send me back to Earth." Teal'c described in his usual monotone voice.
"How did you survive?" Janet asked gently.
"I went into a deep state of Kelnoreem only reached by a small number of Jaffa." Teal'c answered.
" So, what your telling us is that you somehow went into Kelnoreem while you were being shocked and that's why you are still alive?" Jack guessed in amazement.
"Yes. When I was but very young, Master Bra'tac taught me of a state of Kelnoreem where it is possible to place the body in a state of hibernation far beyond that of normal Kelnoreem. This state maintains the symbiote inside a Jaffa's body but on the outside the body appears to be, as you would say, dead." Teal'c clarified.
"This is incredible. How come you haven't done this in other situations where you have been injured or hurt?" Janet queried, becoming equally intrigued by this new discovery.
"It is very difficult to reach this state. I have tried many times before but have been unsuccessful. It requires many years of practice as well as a strong subconscious connection between Jaffa and symbiote. Even Master Bra'tac himself had not reached this state during my training with him. If he has since then, I do not know." Teal'c responded.
"Well I'm just glad you're still with us, but we have bigger problem." Jack said, handing Teal'c the letter from Bastet that carried with him from deep space. Teal'c glanced at it curiously.
"Bastet claimed that she would seek revenge against SG1 for the killing of her daughter and also to eliminate them as a potential threat against her." Teal'c recalled.
"Killing of her daughter? We never even knew she existed until now." Daniel argued.
"Her daughter was during our mission to destroy the ship being build by Apophis." Jack remembered the mission well, as well as the subsequent Zaytark test.
"What about it?" Jack prompted Teal'c.
"According to Bastet, her daughter Bes was aboard the vessel. She was overseeing the construction as Apophis' queen." Teal'c clarified. Daniel and Jack looked at each other with an expression of guilt.
"But we weren't to know." Daniel insisted, as if defending their actions.
"It makes no difference. It was by our hand that her daughter was killed. She will want retribution, even if she must kill every person on this world to obtain it." Teal'c knew from the experience of being First Prime of Apophis. He had been to many planets where Apophis had wiped out a whole civilisation in order to exact revenge on a single person.
"Teal'c, you saw the ship she was on and how many Jaffa she had allied with her. Do you believe that Bastet poses a serious military threat to us now?" Jack asked, needing to make a risk assessment to take to Kinsey, even though it probably wouldn't make a shred of difference.
"Her contingent of Jaffa is very small, and I did not see any great weapon of any kind on her vessel. I do not believe Bastet will attack for some time." Teal'c judged, based on what he had seen on his brief stay on the enemy's vessel.
"But when she does it will probably be similar to Apophis. We'll be attacked from space and she will try and establish a wormhole in our Stargate for as long as possible to avoid an evacuation. Just like what I saw in the alternate reality." Daniel described sullenly.
"O'Neill, where is General Hammond. I wish to speak to him." Teal'c requested firmly. Jack sighed, obviously no one had told him about the General's removal as CO.
"I'm sorry Teal'c but the General was fired while you were away." Jack broke the news. Teal'c's eyes widen in surprise.
"For what reason?"
"They found out about you taking the ship and they blamed General Hammond for it." Jack stated briefly, feeling that he didn't need to talk specifics.
"It was not General Hammond that stole the ship. I should be the only one punished for my actions." Teal'c declared in anger. Jack laid his hand on his friend's shoulder.
"I know Teal'c, it's not fair. I just talked to the President and he said he can't reinstate the General without the approval of the Joint Chiefs." Daniel rolled his eyes in a similar way to what Sam did when she had heard the news.
"Which means we have to ask approval from Kinsey, who will never give it us because it would only work towards his goal of shutting the SGC down permanently." Daniel filled in the mental blanks of the conversation. Teal'c's mouth twisted into an expression of distain at the mention of Senator Kinsey.
"I find the mere thought of Senator Kinsey to be one of sheer hatred, similar to that of Colonel Maybourne." Teal'c said, expressing his opinion of the two men quite frankly.
"Don't worry Teal'c, we all feel the same." Jack assured him with a smile.
"O'Neill, will you assist me in meeting with the President to discuss the reinstatement of General Hammond? I feel it is my duty to ensure that General Hammond is reinstated, even if it is necessary for me to leave Earth and return home." Teal'c requested.
"I don't think it will do any good Teal'c. As much as we all want the General back ordering us around and telling us what to do, I don't think it's going to happen buddy." Jack admitted, not wanting to give his friend false hope.
"I must do this O'Neill. If I do not attempt to help General Hammond, I am no better than Senator Kinsey." Teal'c replied stubbornly. Jack looked at Teal'c for a few moments thinking carefully about Teal'c's proposal.
"Alright. And, hey if we don't succeed you'll at least get to see the White House." Jack joked.
"Colonel O'Neill to the Control Room! Colonel O'Neill to the Control Room!" Walter;s voice came over the base speakers. Jack looked up at where a speaker sat on the wall.
"My job is never done," Jack murmured.
"Get better buddy, we'll go see the President tomorrow." Teal'c bowed his head towards Jack.
"I am most grateful to you O'Neill." Jack patted his friend's shoulder; he turned to leave the room but not before delivering Sam's message.
"Hey Danny boy, could ya go see Carter. I think she wants to give you a medal for saving her life." Jack mocked him, moving towards the door. Daniel followed him out of the infirmary.
"So did you two talk?" Daniel asked vaguely. Jack stopped mid stride and turned back with an innocent look on his face.
"About what?" Daniel tried to hide the smile coming to his face. He was laughing at how unobvious Jack was trying to be.
"I know something happened on that planet Jack. I could tell when we got beamed into the room that something had happened. And again when you woke up in the infirmary." Daniel observed. Jack shook his head; he wasn't going to be able to get Daniel off his case as easily as he had thought.
"Like I told you before Daniel, nothing happened." Jack affirmed then walked away from Daniel towards the elevator to avoid any further questioning. Daniel watched after him, his mind ticking over.
Maybe I'll get something out of Sam Daniel thought to himself, taking off down the hallway at a jogging pace.
"Hey Daniel." Sam greeted him happily as he entered the room
"Hey Sam, how you feeling?" Daniel asked, reactively.
"Good. I heard that you and my dad were the ones that got the Colonel and I out?" Sam asked. Daniel smiled,
"Ah yeah." He replied shyly.
"Thanks Daniel." Sam said sincerely.
"We couldn't have done it with Thor, you should be thanking him." Daniel told Sam. She laughed,
"I'll be sure to thank him next time we need him… or he needs us." Sam responded. Daniel took his glasses off his face and cleaned them on his shirt, as something to do with his hands when he asked his next question.
"Ah Sam, can I ask you something about what happened on the planet?" Daniel's voice wavered slightly from his nerves. Sam eyed him nervously, not knowing what he was going to ask about.
"Yeah sure." She agreed. Daniel replaced the glasses on his face took a deep breath before speaking.
"Did something happen between you and Jack while you were on the planet, alone, together?" Daniel asked cautiously, emphasising the last two words in his sentence. Sam's face fell instantly as a reflex, her stomach turning over. Trying to compose herself, she forced an innocent smile to face, just like Jack had.
"Why do you ask?" She posed innocently.
"Well when Jack woke up here the first thing his said was "Sam"." Daniel began, watching Sam's calm expression falter slightly, an indication that his theory was true. But Sam was ready for it. On the outside, Sam attempt to keep up her straight façade, but on the inside, she smiled at the thought.
"So?" she prompted her friend, seeming to not understand where Daniel was going with his questions.
"Well…after that he tripped over saying "Sam" instead of "Carter" twice. Come on Sam, he rarely over uses your first name. It's always "Carter" or "Major"." Daniel actively pointed out. During the first few years of the Stargate Program, Jack used Sam's name every so often. Particularly in tense and dangerous situations, like when Sam had stayed with Cassie in the nuclear silo. But it was only recently that Jack had stopped using it all together. Sam had to admit to herself, Daniel was right. But it was too risky to tell him what really happened between her and Jack. He could be put through intense interrogations if the truth was leaked to higher powers.
"Nothing happened Daniel. I don't know why he called me "Sam" you'll have to ask him." She stated firmly, as with as much conviction as she could muster.
"What about Jack moving his desk down here?" Daniel waved his arm to his left where the abandoned desk stood. Sam looked at the desk at a loss for an explanation.
"I don't know Daniel! You'll have to ask the Colonel, I was in coma remember?" Sam insisted, hoping he would drop the whole conversation, and quickly. Daniel was getting frustrated. He knew his suspicions were right but neither of them was willing to tell him the truth. It frustrated him that his friend's didn't trust him enough to tell him the truth. Although, having lived with the military regulations for the past four years, Daniel could understand why Sam and Jack were reluctant to say anything that could get them or him in trouble. Resigning himself to the fact that what happened on the planet was to remain a secret for the meantime, Daniel gave up his questioning. He dropped his arm to his side and sighed defeatedly.
"Never mind. I've got to go finish translating some artefacts I found my mission with SG 5, see ya later Sam." He said tiredly, waving goodbye as he walked out the door.
THE NEXT DAY…
As Jack entered Sam's infirmary room the next morning he noticed that his desk had been moved back like he had asked.
"That lieutenant does good work." He mumbled to himself. Soon he directed his attention to Sam's sleeping form on the bed, watching the steady rise and fall of her chest.
"Talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity Colonel." Sam murmured, opening her eyes and stretching her long legs out from her body.
"Listening to an insane person is the second, Major." Jack quipped. Sam smiled,
"Yes sir. So where are you off to?" She enquired sleepily, noticing that Jack was wearing his formal dress uniform.
"T and I have a meeting with the President today. Teal'c's trying to convince him to reinstate Hammond." Jack explained, his voice lacked confidence that they would be able to change the President's mind.
"Well good luck sir." Sam wished him.
"Thanks, so what are you up to today? Getting out of the infirmary?" He enquired hopefully. Sam nodded,
"Yes, as soon as Janet discharges me. I'll go back to my office, finish my reports and head straight home." Sam laid out her plans for the day.
"Speaking of which, how about coming over to my place for dinner tonight?" Jack offered, attempting to appear calm, whilst trying to ignore his heart racing inside his chest and his hands shaking where they were clasped behind his back.
"Sure, I'd love to." Sam accepted graciously. Immediately, her heart skipped a few beats in the realisation of what she had just agreed to. Dinner with Jack O'Neill. At his house. With no one else. Just the two of them. Jack smiled in relief,
"Good. Seven o'clock?" Jack suggested.
"I'll be there." Sam assured him. Their eyes met for a brief moment and they instantly knew that his dinner would be more than just two friends sharing a meal.
TBC…