Chapter Ten here for you, in all its creepy glory. The jokes are fewer and farther between and a real downer turn. Just a warning that this story includes bad stuff happening to a minor, so if that bothers you, keep a heads up in the author notes for warnings.
Jen, darling, it's finally here, you can stop abusing your poor watch; Major Simi and Mist of Rainbows, thank you again for your reviews and SaffyGirl, I hope I catch you at your computer.
Bar none, the darkest chapter I have written for this, just a heads up. The stuff's hitting the fan and the end ain't even in sight. That's what happens when you watch Underworld: Evolution at 2 in the morning.
Wrote this so long ago it was originally part of INEBG ^_^;
Chapter 10 Red Rum
In which many things go wrong all at once.
Daniel hurt. All over, really, but mostly his chest. He sucked in an experimental breath and immediately regretted it as pain radiated through his abdomen.
"Easy there, Daniel. You've had a rough day." Janet's voice, calm and soothing as ever, washed over him and he relaxed for a moment.
Wait, what was Janet doing there? Where was there, anyway? The last thing he remembered was being shot on P3X-484 and someone taking…
"Victoria!" He was suddenly side awake, bolting upright in the infirmary bed and immediately regretting the action as agony ripped through his torso.
"Daniel, calm down! You're aggravating your wounds!" Dr. Frasier's commanding voice broke through his haze of pain and he sunk back onto the bed limply, panting.
"Victoria…she was taken…couldn't see…" he wheezed, spots flashing before his eyes.
"Daniel, you have to calm down. We know Victoria is missing; Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c are leading SG's 3 and 8 in a search of the area, but you have to keep still. Your sternum is cracked and several of your ribs are broken and need to heal. If you don't calm down, I will have to sedate you."
Only parts of the doctor's speech reached him through the haze of pain and panic and soon the room began to darken, fading out as something cold spread through his arm.
"Fuck! Get back!"
"Shit…Is she awake?"
It was the same voice as before…
"Not fully. Jesus Christ…"
"We need to up the dosage."
She had been moved, the air was different…
"That could kill her!"
"She almost killed us!"
There were more voices this time…Three, maybe four…
"Holy crap, duck!"
Her arms weren't cooperating. They were moving on their own, instinct surpassing cognitive thought.
"I can't get close enough!"
"Gimmie that, I'll do it!"
Her animal side was raging, tearing at her walls and trying to rip free as the other beings in the room circled.
"Distract her, will you?"
"What're you, nuts? Look what she did to the wall!"
"Distracting the girl will do you no good at all; she's not fully cognizant."
A new voice, calmer. The beast snarled at her harness.
"So what, this is a reflex?"
"Precisely."
"Jesus…"
"Some reflex…"
"Magnificent."
"Will someone just dose her before she throws something else?"
"Gimmie that fuckin' thing, I'll do it."
One was moving closer, danger radiating.
"Phil, look ou-!"
Things were moving that she couldn't control. The animal had gained a foothold within her and she could feel it pulling on her limbs like a puppet master, her powers completely under its command.
"Holy shit, is he dead?"
Dead?
"He's not breathing!"
Someone was dead? She couldn't have done it.
"His neck has been broken."
She didn't kill. She wasn't supposed to kill.
"No shit it's broken!"
"Jesus Christ, lookadat!"
No! She didn't kill, THEY didn't kill. It was the bold red line. The one never to be crossed. She couldn't take life, only extend. Nononononononono…
"I think she's calmin' down…"
Killer ran through her mind, filling every corner, overloading every synapse until the beast was drowned by the weight of it, forced to the back like a bad memory.
"Who the fuck cares? She killed Phil!"
..killer.
"Gimmie the needle, quick!"
..KILLER.
Coldness.
"I got her."
"You better call the boss, we can't handle this…"
"That would probably be wise, Newman."
Silence.
Killer…
"Report."
"Objective completed. The package is here at the offworld base."
"Excellent."
"Colonel Heine requests that she be moved."
"Why?"
"Our facilities are inadequate for something of this caliber. She tore through several walls with the gurney and injured four people."
"Any fatalities?"
"One. Phillip Johnson."
"How?"
"She drove the I.V. stand through his neck."
There was a pause. This was the first time he had ever heard them stunned into silence.
"Do you need a stronger tranqulliser?"
"Isaacs says no. Apparently she was still partly under the effects during the incident."
"She through a bed through a wall while unconscious?"
"According to him she was in a semi-conscious state between doses."
"Incredible…"
"Are we going to move her?"
"What choice do we have? Give her the highest dosage that won't kill her and we'll set up here."
"Understood. When will the drop off be?"
"Give us thirteen hours to make preparations. We need to get the force field fully operational.
"So it seems."
"That would be advisable."
"We will contact you or your partner with the specifics."
"Understood."
The line went dead and he had to rub his palms against his pants to rid them of their sweat.
"Peterson, what's your status?" Colonel O'Neill barked into his walkie-talkie; it had been three hours since Carter and Teal'c had returned and so far he and his team had found nothing.
"We got nothing, Colonel. There's been nobody in these ruins but us."
"Makepeace, what about you?"
"No activity at the 'Gate, sir. No-one's come or gone other than Major Carter and Teal'c."
"Redding?"
"Nothing sir."
"Goddamnit!" he growled, kicking a stone. It ricocheted several times before skidding across the floor, stopping inches from its starting point. SG-1 was in the building they had found Daniel in, trying to find anything unusual; they had spent hours combing the surrounding land, only to wind up back where they started with no more information.
"Sir, if it's alright, I would like to go back to the SGC and work on that camera you found," Sam requested.
"Yeah, sure. Good idea, Carter," Jack responded, distracted.
She paused for a moment at the entrance, and turned back. "We will find her, sir."
He looked up tiredly, following the major's retreating form and wishing desperately that he had her faith in the matter.
Teal'c kneeled on the sandy stones, searching for a sign that someone other than his teammates had been present; there had been little rain on the planet, most of the vegetation getting its water from the high humidity, which made the soil around the ruins dry and firm.
Poor conditions for tracking, but he had been in worse.
His mahogany eyes scanned the path to and from the building, paying special attention to the cracks, when he caught sight of a dark smudge. He moved forward, running a finger over the tiny fissure in the stone.
It was dirt, far darker than any in the immediate area, and he scraped a bit out. The grains stuck together, moist, and the I stood, looking for anything similar. A few feet ahead there was another clump, then another; he followed, careful not to disturb the trail, until the stones disappeared and the ground darkened, the forest consuming him.
Once more, Teal'c paused, carefully analyzing the firm soil until a partial footprint caught his eye.
"O'Neill," he rumbled into his radio. "I believe I have found something."
"Nice goin' T. Where are you?"
"West-southwest of the complex, on the edge of the forest."
"Good, I'm on my way."
The I released the device, turning his full attention to the print and minutes later, the colonel appeared by his side, eager for news.
"These prints are relatively recent, similar to the standard issue boots of the SGC," he reported, tracing the edge with a finger and rubbing them together.
"Yeah, so? Maybe one of our guys walked this way."
Teal'c glanced at him, eyebrow raised. "Major Peterson informed us that his group entered and exited via the main entrance. There would be no reason for one of their footprints to be this far from that path." He pointed to the indent, tracing the silhouette. "Also, the size is inconsistent with the depth of the print; this ground is dry, therefore-"
"Even if it was one of our guys, it wouldn't be that deep," Jack finished, looking further into the woods for any sign of the trail.
"Unless whoever made this track was bearing a heavy burden."
"Like a person…"
"Indeed."
"We don't have much time. Our sources tell us that they already know the girl is missing."
"How could they know already? We've had her less than five hours."
"I'm surprised it took so long."
"This could make things difficult."
"The primary plan won't work now."
"Why not?"
"They will be on alert."
"How does that affect us?"
"The second Stargate is under the direct command of Hammond."
"That could pose problems."
"Our man can't get much time there as it is. To make the proper preparations with an increased guard would be impossible."
"Do we have an alternative?"
"We have a possibly viable option; their techs are working on it."
"I would suggest you hurry. We can't afford any more fatalities at the offworld site."
"Yes, sir."
"You, call our man in the SGC and get an update. I want to know what they do."
"Yes, sir."
"And you, keep tabs on our offworld base. The second anything else happens, I want to know."
"Yes, sir."
"Teal'c's following the trail, sir, but it doesn't look like we're dealing with any sort of native population," Jack told the MALP, squinting into the camera as the 'Gate glowed behind it. "Not unless they figured out how to make hiking boots."
"Are you thinking it was the rogue NID team that escaped through the second Stargate in Utah last year?" the general asked, watching him on the monitors of the control room on Earth.
"Seems pretty logical. 'Course, then we have another problem."
"How did they know where you were going to be and when?" Hammond agreed gravely.
"It seems that we might have a security breach, sir."
The general remained silent, pondering the repercussions. "Find out what you can and report back within the hour. We'll contact you if Major Carter is able to get anything from the camera you recovered."
"Thank you, sir. O'Neill out." On the screen, the colonel nodded and walked away, the monitor flicking off as the 'Gate deactivated.
Coming next week:
Chapter 11 Damn You Murphy
In which things are found, dreams are had, drugs are administered and creepers watch people sleep.