"How many times have I told you not to stray?"

"But Papa, I didn't think-"

"Of course you didn't! Neither of you do! I do not—the village does not lay down these rules just to thwart you. How long would you have wandered the forest had I not found you?" Giadus grumbled angrily and scanned the side of the cliff for any sort of shelter. In truth, fear fuelled his harsh words. He had heard the strange thunder, recognized the direction it came from. He knew of the danger they might face; he and his children needed to get back to village at first light, but he could not risk sleeping out in the open. Not without knowing what had stepped through the Great Circle. It shook him to the core to know how close the twins had come to find the cursed object.

"Papa, you're hurting me."

He could hear the fear creeping into Merta's voice as he pulled her along. Good. Maybe for once she would realize that her actions had consequences. He knew his daughter well enough to know that she had badgered and browbeaten Kaius into coming. He loved Merta, but was by no means blind to her failings. He knew he had spoiled her after the death of his wife, but he hadn't been able to stand the sight of tears. "Papa, I want to rest. I am tired," she sniffed, wiping at her face.

He was stronger now.

"Come Merta, we need to go faster." He heard a grunt and the snapping of a branch from his back. "Kaius? Are you well?"

"Sorry Papa. I stumbled."

"Hurry." He knew Kaius would heed. The boy was the opposite of Merta, quiet and shy where she was loud and ostentatious, and practical where she had flights of fancy. More importantly, he listened. He knew of their danger. If only the child had more backbone this would not have happened.

The three of them weaved through the edge of the forest, scanned the cliff over for entrances, and returned to the cover of trees when they found none. Together, they raced against the oncoming night for shelter.

"Iya!" Kaius cried out as he stumbled again and winced as pine needles dug deep into the palms of his hands. He rolled, rubbing his hands against his tunic to brush them off, and frowned as the material began to stick to his palms. He rubbed his hands together, trying get rid of the tree sap, spitting to help clean them.

When the task had been finished as best it could he began probing the ground, searching for the object he had tripped over so he could doing so again. He cursed under his breath as his fingers touched yet more sap, the substance causing dirt to stick to their tips, but kept up his search. He would clean his hands when he was done.

Then he felt something hairy.

He clamped down on his tongue to keep from crying out again. The last thing he needed was Merta shifting the story so it was about him being afraid of the dark, or dead squirrels or how ever she would. Steadying his nerves, he went back to his investigating, his fingers brushing against hair, then skin. Finally they found a feature that identified the animal.

"Papa!" He cried out louder than was wise.

Then realization struck.

There was no sap.

"PAPA!"

***

"O'Neill." Teal'c's voice cut through the forest like a knife through hot butter, clearly reaching the Colonel's ears.

Jack huffed a bit as e got to his feet, dropping the greenery he had picked and stretching out his knees to hide his growing frustration. They had begun the search at first light and found nothing. But that was the good news. The real trouble was brewing in the sky. The dark clouds that had been gathering since dawn were beginning to rumble, threatening to wash away all signs of what had happened.

Jack patted his gun, stalking through forest, trying to relieve the growing tension. He was just stiff from sleeping in a forest. That's all. Just from the forest.

"O'Neill," the large Jaffa nodded as the man approached, "I have located a clue as to what happened to Yugi Mutou." He didn't sound happy about it. Well, Teal'c never sounded happy, but it was unusual for him to sound this unhappy.

Jack followed Teal'c's line of vision.

"Ah, Dammit!" Jack sunk to his knees, staring down, then looking back up at the tree. "Dammit," he whispered again.

"It appears to be blood."

"Yeah, Teal'c, I can see that." Jack took of his cap, wiping it against his brow. Blood had crusted to the rough bark, the russet color beginning to fade. There wasn't much on the tree, but there was enough. More had splashed across the soft moss of the forest floor. A lot more. He slipped his hat back on, trying to put a positive spin on this. At least the blood would leave some sort of trail for them to follow, give them a direction to follow.

A single raindrop threw itself down from the heavens, splattering against the Jack's hat—a sentry for all the drops about to follow.

***

The wind shrieked through the trees, rooting up leaves and other debris while the rain came down in curtains, enshrouding the forest. Animals dove for cover and those unwise or unlucky enough to have not found any suffered the wrath of the storm. Lightening rent the sky in twain as thunder shook the sky, the forest shivering beneath the storm.

He pressed himself against the tree, struggling as the avaricious fingers of the wind snatched at his clothes, trying to tear the soaking garments from his numb body. Even under the pine, the rain drizzled down like a million waterfalls caught on an emerald mountain.

He tucked his chin deeper into his coat, shivering to try and get warm. The only heat came from his temper, which was roaring at full blast. Someone was going to pay for this. He would make sure of that.

***

"Okay, sir." Sam's voice crackled through the radio. "Have everybody stand back."

Jack waved his hand and the pathetic, shivering figures around him cleared the gate. Seconds later the U. A. V. buzzed through the gate. Jack turned, watched as it struggled to rise into the sky.

The small plane screamed as the wind tore and jostled it like a plastic bag before slamming it into a tree. Its small fuselage snapped and debris scattered every which way in the violent breeze.

"Carter!" Jack's tone was tense, edgy.

"I'm sorry sir!" Sam bit her lip with distress. "The winds are too strong! We don't have anything built for these conditions!"

"Then build something!" Jack snapped into the device. "Dammit, Carter, we've got a man in this! He's unarmed and injured! We need you to come up with something!"

He bit back another curse as the voice broke through the radio again. This one was filled with much more twang than the Major's. "Colonel, there is nothing we can do. You're orders are to guard the gate. We'll send supplies through to make this easier, but you and your people are going to have to wait out the storm if you are to have any hope of finding Mr. Mutou."

"General Hammond!"

"Jack," the General sighed, "I understand, but I don't want to have to send a team through to rescue you. Sit tight and we'll send another U.A.V. when the weather clears."

Jack swore as the gate blipped out and cut off contact with his home world. He didn't have time for this! Yugi didn't have time for this! The kid was out there bleeding somewhere.

And it was his fault.

Jack bit his tongue as bitter guilt swept over him. The kid should have never been involved. He should have gone home, back to his people, to his friends. He could have snuck the kid out from SG-1's nose before the negotiations had started, handed the boy over to the allies who obviously had enough power to hide the kid. Even afterwards there had been many opportunities to set things right.

Instead he had made things worse. Jack had been the one to push Hammond into giving the kid a chance in the field. It hadn't been hard to badger the General into it. Jack had known George for a long time. He knew the man's buttons. And he had pushed mercilessly to get what he thought was right. If the SGC was going to steal this kid's future it should at least have given him something amazing in return. The kid was obviously clever, his little stunt with Daniel had proven that, and when people weren't trying to destroy his life he seemed friendly. Hell he was downright chipper. And the kid was Goa'uld proof. He was already immune to one of the greatest threats in the galaxy. It made him a perfect field agent.

Jack's first doubts about whether this was the right course—whether he had done this for the kid or if he had merely done it to assuage his own conscience—had come the first time he had checked on his progress at Basic Training. The report that flitted its way into his hands was filled with concerns about Yugi's balance. Angry scribbles recounted every instance where the kid's clumsiness had reared its ugly head, every time the boy and tripped and fallen and thus endangered his fellow recruits.

It hadn't been hard to figure out what was going on. After all, Jack saw Yugi all the time. The boy was living on base; a condition set forth so none of his allies took the liberty of taking him home. The kid was nothing if not graceful, his small frame constantly ducking and dancing out of the way of those who didn't notice him. The boy moved with the grace of cat.

But Jack had once again found himself unable to do anything for the newest member on base. He met the kid at the mess hall, asking for updates from the boy himself whenever he had the chance. The kid had nothing but good news. He was making friends, he was doing well, he had managed to make it through a few more mission reports. He said nothing bad about anything.

So Jack had helped the only way he could. And it had helped a bit. He had seen how brightly Yugi had lit up at the graduation ceremonies, shaking off the shadows that had plagued him at the sight of Colonel, who had made sure to dress in his nicest uniform, wearing all of his medals. He even went to the trouble of polishing a few.

Jack shook his head, rain sloshing off the brim of his hat. He hadn't done enough. The kid was out there. He was probably freezing, probably in the hands of some Russian thug. Jack had a full clip for whichever bastard had leaked word of the kid and he intended to empty it at the soonest available opportunity. But first Jack had to find the kid. He would. And the kid was going to be all right. He had to be.

Jack didn't want another pointless death on his conscience.

***

He could feel the hands dancing across his frigid skin. It was only through their warmth that he even realized that he was cold, the tips leaving little puddles of heat that were quickly dissolved by his body's dropping temperature.

The fingers dissolved into a rough material, one that rubbed itself against his delicate frame. The material soon vanished. Once again he was aware of heat. It licked at him. But even as it warmed his out his in was left cold.

He shivered.

The movement filled his body with sensation. Heat burst from his knee, from his wrist, from the various cut and scrapes along his face. Pain. Pain he could handle. Pain was familiar. Pain helped explain what was going on.

That's right. He had been attacked. Yami had fought the man.

Yami!

The thought sent the boy careening back to reality. His mind blindly groped for the spirit as his fists wildly swung at the hands grasping him. Panic set in with realization.

*Yami!* His mind screamed, searching for the door to the spirit's room. He could feel the rough hands grabbing at him, trying to restrain him. His retreated, desperately wrapping themselves around the millennium puzzle. He didn't want to be here. He wanted to be safe.

Voices. He could hear voices. He yelled at them in his own tongue, just wanting them to go away. A hand touched his naked chest. Tears leaked from his closed lids, eyes scrunched tight as he frantically soul searched. He threw them open when a cup touched his lips.

"No! Let got! Please! Stop please! Yami! Yami help!"

The faces around him were pitiless smudges. He could feel the contents of the cup being tipped into his mouth; taste the bitter liquid as it burned down his throat. Hands held his head so he couldn't twist, couldn't spit out the vile concoction.

As he swallowed he felt the world dissolve. Desperately he called out one more time.

"Atem!"

Not even the shadows answered.

****

Yeah, I used the word twain. Made my day. ;p

U. A. V.-Unmanned airborne vehicle.

This chapter is a bit shorter than the rest. I just couldn't pick up where I needed it and leave it the same chapter. C'est la vie. I'm sure you'll cope. On that note I've also been trying to recheck my work. I reposted the last few chapters sans grammar errors (most of them anyway) and would like to apologize for them.

Oh-REVIEW! I know you're out there. This site does have a traffic record. You keep favorting and adding to your alerts. Review please. I live for feedback! Even if it's negative! As long as it's intelligible!

For those of you that have, thank you very much! As you can see it make me more productive! I'll try to have the next chap up soon. See you there!