When they were alone again, Cassic rushed to the bars nearest Jack and Shaboni. "Are you injured?" her voice worried.
"It's just a scratch," Jack replied leaning his pounding head against the bars.
"What can I do? How can I help you?" Too many hours pressed into the corner of the chamber, hiding and holding perfectly still, had pushed her to near panic. Observing Chiron from her little spot had been excruciating for her. All the memories of her time as his prisoner assaulted her at once, flooding her with every sensation she'd experienced at his hands. She desperately needed something to do. Jack realized that if they didn't find a way to get her out of there soon, she was going to lose it.
He thought about it for a moment then asked her, "If we can get you out of this chamber do you think you can find your way out of the palace and back to Dashou?"
She looked back and forth from him to the door, clearly worried that the Jaffa outside would discover her. Finally she swallowed against the rising tide of fear and nodded. Jack realized they should have tried to get her out before she had witnessed Chiron's little visit. He sighed heavily, weariness settling in.
"We're going to do our best to get all the Jaffa out there to come in here. But when they do, you're going to have to move out quickly…and quietly."
She nodded furiously again. Jack looked up to Teal'c standing in the opposite corner of the cell. He moved forward to stand nearer the petrified woman.
"Cassic of Dashou," he began in full baritone. "You have survived imprisonment by the Goa'uld previously, have you not?"
She nodded again, her eyes wide with fear.
"You escaped your cell and, indeed, this palace."
This time she only nodded once, slowly.
"You returned to your home and gave birth to a daughter, who you then raised, along with your son, without the assistance of their father."
The panic etched on her face began to fade; her eyes softening as the power of Teal'c's words began to feed her courage.
He inclined his head and his eyes softened as he brought it home, "The task that is set before you now is no more daunting than that which you have already accomplished."
Jack grinned a broad grin at his giant friend, "Nicely done! Now, Carter, you and Teal'c are going to get those guards in here. My head is feeling like the loosing egg in an egg toss, so it's gotta be you."
"What'd you have in mind, sir?"
"I dunno…start a fight?"
Sam thought about this for a minute, grinned a devilish little grin then asked, "Can I win?"
Teal'c straightened up to his fullest intimidating height and responded, "Most certainly not!"
Sam indicated to Cassic that she should conceal herself once more, then she bopped Teal'c playfully on the arm, "C'mon."
The sound of yelling and the distinct smack of fists on skin brought the two guards from outside the door. They exchanged confused looks when the small blond woman threw a particularly forceful kick, knocking the towering Jaffa backwards into the wall. He staggered forward and grappled with her, sliding her feet backwards. The guards lowered their staff weapons and ordered the two of them to cease fighting. With all their attention focused on the strange brawl in the cell, they utterly failed to notice Cassic's escape.
Night came and stole all the warmth from the cell. Jack held Shaboni in his lap, her feverish shudders warming him where she lay. Sam and Teal'c had taken spots on the floor at either side of a stubbornly unconscious Daniel. Jack watched as Sam repeatedly reached to his neck to reassure herself that he was, in fact, still alive. No one spoke as the hours began to stretch out.
Long after the torchlight had burned down to a bare flicker Nathan came bumbling through the chamber's doors with his cloak pulled around him. He stumbled into the cell and dumped something on the floor next to Sam. She grabbed it and dug through what appeared to be the colonel's pack. She inventoried the items stashed inside, " We've got our side arms, ammunition, a 'Zat, two knives, some C4, and two Claymores."
"Thank you," she beamed at Nathan. She stashed them under the straw bed.
Nathan turned his attention to Shaboni and Jack. He filled the cup with water then emptied a pouch full of herbs into it. He handed it to Jack explaining, "Asclepius informs me this is much stronger than what he gave her earlier. He believes it will calm her fever, but it will also force her to sleep much longer." He pulled another pouch from beneath his cloak and set it next to Jack, "You must give her this as soon as the sun returns. It will awaken her. Place it beneath her tongue."
He looked to the corner where Cassic had been hiding earlier, searching for some sign of her. Jack realized what he was looking for.
"She's gone. We had to get her out of here."
Nathan's shoulders slumped slightly at this news. He sighed and looked back to the colonel, "I did not believe I would ever see her again. The fact that I was able to hold her once more..." his voice caught. "It was more than I could have hoped for."
"Why didn't you try to escape with her the first time?" Jack wondered.
Nathan's face contorted in sadness, "I had no choice. It was the only way."
"Only way to what?"
"To protect her and the child." Jack thought the young man sounded impossibly old.
"You made a deal with Chiron," he declared, understanding.
Nathan nodded silently then elaborated, "I begged him to allow my wife to return to Dashou. He agreed that he would allow it only if I consented to stay with him…permanently. I will never enter the mines."
Jack had heard enough. He shook Shaboni's shoulders to rouse her from her fitful sleep and gave her the concoction Asclepius had sent. As she sipped at it, Nathan went to Daniel's side. He reached to turn the young man over and found that he was opening his eyes.
"You are feeling better?" Nathan asked. He hooked an arm under Daniel's and helped sit him up.
Daniel gripped his head with both hands, blobs of gray still bobbing in his vision. He managed a shaky, "I think so." Then he asked, "What happened?"
Jack supplied a quick overview, "Well, Shaboni died, then she got better. Teal'c and Carter had a fight. Cassic escaped. Nathan brought us some of our gear, and now we're waiting for sunup." He looked at Sam who was grinning at his description, "Did I miss anything?"
"No, sir, that pretty much sums it up."
Daniel adjusted his glasses and replied, "So, business as usual."
"Yep."
Sometime in the stillness of the early morning hours everyone but Teal'c had fallen asleep. The sound of keys and the whine of corroded metal startled the rest of SG1 awake. Sunlight was filtering into the cell, warming everything. Jack jumped when he realized he'd slept through the hour he was supposed to give Shaboni the herbs that were going to awaken her.
Asclepius was carrying two staff weapons, their MP5s, and their remaining gear. He dropped them on the table.
"You have not administered the stimulant I provided," he chastised.
"We'll do it now," Jack dug the small oblong bundle, about the size of an almond, out of the pouch next to him.
"Now is too late. It will require more time to work than we can spare. If we do not leave now we will be discovered."
Jack thrust the brown bundle under Shaboni's tongue and put a hand under her chin to help keep it in place. Daniel sorted through their belongings and distributed them quickly. He located their GDO and strapped it to his wrist.
"Teal'c," Jack asked in shorthand for Teal'c to carry Shaboni. It would be far more difficult making their way out of the palace with her sleeping, but Jack didn't think she could walk anyway. In the pale light of morning her bare feet looked even more mottled than they had the afternoon before; dark purple, black and blue streaks spreading from the soles all the way around to her ankles. Teal'c scooped Shaboni off Jack's lap and sat her on the table, then leaned down and put his shoulder to her middle, pulling her across his back in a fireman's carry.
They fastened vests, holstered side arms, sheathed knives, and followed their new ally from the dank little cell. Stepping lightly into the maze of corridors, Asclepius led them through the quiet palace. They kept low and clung to the walls as they passed endless intersections. Jack and Asclepius made sure their path was clear as they headed further and further from the chamber where they'd been held, his route far more circuitous than Cassic's. They realized they were not heading for the passageway here they'd come in.
Hearing conversation coming from the direction he needed to go, Asclepius suddenly stopped and motioned for them to get back. They pressed tightly against the wall behind a blind corner. Asclepius slowly leaned forward far enough to get a glimpse of several Jaffa guards standing casually in the corridor. He leaned back and pointed to the others, indicating they should go back the way they came. They were making their way back down the corridor when Shaboni came forcefully and decidedly awake.
A cough reverberated down the hallway and she pushed hard at Teal'c's back, trying to relieve the pressure of his shoulder in her gut. Before she realized where she was or what was going on, a cry escaped her lips. Jack spun on his heels and put a hand over her mouth, quieting her. Everyone paused long enough to assure they were on the same page: the Jaffa were definitely alerted to their presence. The sound of their conversation stopped, and they could all hear their collective footsteps as they moved to inspect the source of the sound.
In the next moment they were running down the corridor as flashes of plasma streaked by them, striking stone and spraying it across their path. There were four Jaffa chasing them and making a huge racket about doing so. As they turned a corner, they took cover and prepared to fight it out. The first two Jaffa to round the corner never saw it coming. The staccato sound of automatic gunfire filled the air around them and the two Jaffa fell instantly. The remaining two took cover behind the corner and fired their staff weapons, covering Jack and Daniel with pulverized debris.
The two groups continued to exchange fire. Jack yelled over the din to Asclepius, "There's gonna be a lot more of 'em in a minute! Can we make it from here?"
Asclepius nodded in affirmation, then stepped out from behind his cover to get a better angle on their two friends. Following his lead, Jack waited until they were both aiming for Asclepius and then stepped out and together the two of them fired a battle-ending volley, killing the two Jaffa quickly.
Teal'c was struggling to keep Shaboni securely on his shoulders. He'd been holding his staff weapon with one hand and her with the other. She squirmed and jerked, trying to free herself from the painful position.
"Let me down," she demanded.
"You are unable to travel at the required speed," Teal'c denied.
"I will be fine. Let me down!"
Teal'c set her on her feet and the sudden sharp pain of it made her head swim. She fought the sensation that the world had been knocked on its side, grabbing Teal'c's arm to steady herself.
"I will carry you," Teal'c didn't think she would be able to walk at all, much less keep pace with them.
She clenched her jaw in determination and declared, "I…will…walk…"
"Let's GO!" Jack called.
Shaboni felt her heart beating hard and fast in her chest. The moment she had awakened she sensed a renewed strength and energy. They started moving again back the way they'd just come. Shaboni took two short steps, testing her feet and finding that the pain was receding. She knew then for certain she could keep up.
They made their way down the corridor where the previous Jaffa had been as quickly as possible. Asclepius led them around a corner, through a door, and suddenly they were in a vast open courtyard. There were columns along all four walls and a great fountain and pool in the center. The lush green vegetation of the forests sprang up in carefully manicured beds all around. Asclepius led them along the wall, behind the columns, towards a door to their left. They were within mere feet of the door when the door across the courtyard opened and again they found themselves under fire.
In the bright light of early day they could see the confused faces of the Jaffa as they realized they were firing on their own commander, and he was returning fire. The momentary hesitation was enough to give SG1 an opening. From around the sides of columns heavy fire mowed them down. As the door opened to deliver more Jaffa into the skirmish, they were able to make it out of the courtyard into the dark corridor beyond.
In the pause between firefights Shaboni demanded, "Gun!!" Daniel reached into his holster and grabbed his 'Zat. He tossed it to her and she caught it easily. They were jogging through the confusing maze of the palace. Shaboni had the sensation that somewhere beneath the rush of adrenalin and utter need to make it out of the palace there was something more. She didn't quite feel herself. She felt bigger; stronger somehow. Practically invincible.
They made it around the next corner before the group of pursuing Jaffa started firing again. Asclepius quickened their pace. They were in the long corridor that led to the front entrance. Jack caught his eye, knowing there were guards outside the entrance. Asclepius nodded to him that he understood the man's question and silently communicated that he had taken care of the problem.
They burst through the high doors that led into the palace to find only two guards at the entrance. When they saw Asclepius they actually joined the group running from the palace. There was no time to ask questions or reassure themselves of their loyalty. They made for the tree line, running as fast as they could. They were almost there when they finally came under fire again.
As the ever-growing group disappeared into the thick forest, trees around them splintered and exploded. Asclepius led them down a well-worn path a short distance, then turned and headed into the thick undergrowth. They made their way as far as vines and trees and ferns would allow, then Asclepius hunkered down behind a massive fallen tree. The rest of them followed suit. They crouched there breathing heavily, trying not to shift or make a sound. The large group of Jaffa chasing them continued to head down the trail, in their haste failing to notice the signs left behind where they left the path.
Several minutes passed as they assured themselves that no others were coming. Then Asclepius turned to the rest and introduced their new companions.
"This is Aleo and Carus. They are my apprentices. When I told them all that I witnessed they pledged to follow me into freedom."
The two young Jaffa bowed their heads respectfully. Teal'c returned the gesture, his back straight, the corners of his lips smiling gently.
Asclepius continued, "They will guard the Chappa'ai. We cannot make our escape there yet." He eyed Shaboni nervously then added, "We will need to find shelter. While we," he indicated he, Aleo and Carus, "can withstand exposure on this world, I have seen many others succumb to its extremes quickly. The closet settlement is Dashou, but it is some distance from here."
They exchanged silent looks of understanding, all eyes falling at last on Shaboni. Sensing they all regarded her as the weak link, she straightened her spine and defiantly insisted, "I will make it."
"Come then," Asclepius stood up. "We must hurry."