A kind reader pointed out that I had made Lola Ferretti too whiny for a military wife. Although that certainly wasn't my intent – I really just wanted to show their love and closeness I've tried to fix that a bit in this chapter! (kudos to the strength and courage of the spouses and families of those who serve)
"Jack?" Daniel's worried voice finally broke through the fog in his brain. They'd stopped to take a five-minute rest and he'd obviously zoned out.
"Yeah", he said, straightening up. "I'm okay, just tired."
"You gonna make it Jack?"
Daniel never would give up, thought Jack with irritation. "Yes, I'm going to make it Daniel. I was just resting my eyes!" The raised eyebrow, a perfect imitation of Teal'c, made Jack scowl. "Let's go", he snapped, moving out at a rapid pace.
Of course he couldn't keep it up for long and was soon breathing heavily. He refused to slow down though, too obstinate for his own good. It was only when Captain Kinross tripped and fell that he stopped.
"Wait up Jack", Daniel cried. He rushed over to the Captain and helped her up. "Are you okay Sophie?" he asked worriedly.
"I'm fine Dr. Jackson, just embarrassed", she replied, dusting off her clothes.
"No need to be embarrassed", he replied, glaring at Jack. "The General was going way too fast for the terrain!"
With a small grimace Jack realized he'd let his pride get in the way. "Sorry", he said softly. "Just anxious to get there."
"I know Sir", Sophie answered with a smile. "Me too."
With that they all started out again, this time at a much more sedate pace. They'd been walking for hours and the sun was beginning to go down in the western sky. With the mountains on the horizon, darkness would come much sooner than on the flat lands.
"Do you think we'll make it before dark?" Daniel asked. He was worried that Jack, with his wounds still not completely healed, would find traveling at night difficult.
"Maybe", O'Neill replied, squinting up at the sky. "We're getting close; maybe 45 minutes out. We'll just have to watch where we're going."
"You don't want to wait until morning?" Daniel argued. "It'll be safer."
"For walking yes, but it's going to get awfully cold and damp and we don't have any supplies. No, I think we should keep going. The darkness won't make any difference once we're underground anyway."
Jack had timed it almost perfectly. It was 50 minutes exactly by the time they reached the spot he was looking for. At least Jack told them it was the right place. As far as Daniel and Sophie could see, there was absolutely nothing there.
"It's over here", Jack said softly, just in case. He walked over to a large pine tree with a huge, misshapen base. He began to clear out some of the bushes around the tree when he suddenly stopped. "Someone's been here recently", he said, still quietly.
"How long ago?" Daniel asked, coming over to where Jack was standing. He squatted down and looked carefully at the ground, seeing almost instantly the boot print in the dirt.
"Just a few days at the most", he replied. He looked more carefully. "Whoever it was wore combat boots", he added.
"Are you sure?" Daniel peered down at the print.
Jack turned and gave him a disgusted look. "No Daniel, I'm not sure. I've only worn the damn things for 25 years – I certainly wouldn't recognize a print when I saw one."
"Sorry!"
"It's okay", Jack sighed, knowing he was bad-tempered because he was tired and felt like crap. He really wanted to just lie down and rest! "Come on, help me with this stuff." He continued to clear the brush away until a small trap door was revealed.
"You still think we should go in?"
"Don't have much choice Daniel. We certainly can't sit out here and it's not like we have a lot of other options."
"Will we be able to see in there Sir?" Kinross asked.
"There used to be emergency lights – not great but better than nothing. Let's hope they're still working. If not, well, we're gonna be the blind leading the blind!"
The two men worked together to pull up the door as it was solid metal and very heavy. Jack knew he couldn't have done it on his own, not with just one arm. Once it was open he knelt down and peered into the shaft.
"Good", he said, relieved. "The lights are working." Both the other two could see the faint green lights. Although they didn't offer much in the way of illumination, they did allow the would-be 'rescuers' to see down into the shaft. Unfortunately, they could only see the first 50 feet or so after which it was too dark."
"Okay, let's try and hide the fact that we were here and then get moving." All three of them worked to erase their footsteps – at least for the 20 feet or so around the entrance. They then replaced the bushes as best they could. Once they were finished, Jack sat down and stuck his feet over the side. "Let's go. I'll go firs -"
"No", Daniel interrupted. "I'll go first. With your arm hurt you need someone in front of you."
"Daniel, who's in charge here?"
"You are, until you start making ridiculous decisions. Look, if you lose your grip who's going to help you? No, I'll go first, then you, then Sophie."
"Daniel, if I lose my grip I'll just take both of us out!"
Daniel thought for a moment, knowing that what Jack said was a likely possibility. After a couple of seconds he had a thought.
"Take off your belt", he said to the older man. Jack raised his eyebrow.
"But my pants will fall off", he smirked.
"Jack, come on!" While he was talking, Daniel had reached down and removed his own belt. Jack fumbled a bit, trying to do it with one hand, but when Daniel reached out to help he swatted him away.
"I can do it myself Daniel! I've been undressing for years!" When he'd finally finished he looked at Daniel, a question on his face.
"Give it to me", the other man answered. Taking Jack's belt Daniel buckled his to it, effectively making one very long belt. "I'm going to wrap this around your waist and then hook it around the ladder. It'll help support you as we descend."
Impressed in spite of himself, Jack just nodded and did what Daniel said. He couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. Daniel had learned well!
While Jack was thinking about his friend, Daniel had swung his legs over and into the shaft. He found the rungs of the ladder and quickly but carefully climbed onto it. "Okay Jack", he said as he moved down, "you next."
Jack grumbled but knew Daniel was right. This was going to be difficult although the belt would help. He carefully lowered himself down, hindered by being able to use only one hand. Sophie helped as much as she could and Daniel watched carefully from below, guiding Jack's feet onto the rungs.
"Okay, just hold on Jack, I'm gonna attach the belt." Jack stood on the ladder, pressed as tightly as he could against it. He already felt the stress on his good arm as it held much of his weight. "There, how is that?" Daniel asked.
Jack allowed himself to lean back a bit and felt the belt bite into his back. It did help though, and he knew it would make a huge difference as he began to descend. He just prayed it would hold. "You didn't buy your belt at Wal-Mart or anything did you Daniel?" he asked.
"No Jack – it's a very good leather belt, don't worry."
"Good!" He glanced down briefly and was both glad and worried that he couldn't see farther into the shaft. "I'm going to try and move down. You'd better go down a few rungs yourself." Jack looked up at the face of a worried Captain Kinross. "All good down here Captain. Can you make it down?"
"Yes Sir", she replied in a strong voice. She sat down and swung around onto her stomach. Feeling for the ladder with her feet she finally found it and lowered herself slowly to the top rung. "What about the door?" she asked.
Jack didn't like the idea of closing it behind them. It gave him a feeling of claustrophobia however he knew it would be dangerous to leave it open. It didn't afford anything in the way of light anyway as the sun had now set.
"Close it Captain. Just be careful! Don't let it hit you on the head. It'll knock you out."
"Yes Sir." Clearly uncertain of how to do that with a heavy door she just looked at it until the General's voice sounded again.
"Do you have a belt Kinross?" he asked.
"Yes sir."
"Then take it off and loop it around the inner handle. Then, get down as far as you can and pull the door after you."
She nodded, realizing that would work. Of course it meant she had to get out first so she lifted herself up and leaned over the edge. With a quick pull she was on the outside again. It took only a few seconds to do what the General had suggested. Within five minutes they were on their way down, the trap door closed behind them.
The first few dozen feet weren't bad and Jack figured he could make it. The initial problem came when he realized the belt was stuck. Peering closely at the ladder he realized it was fastened to the wall of the shaft and the belt couldn't move down.
"Hold up Danny. I have to undo the belt." It turned out that every 20 feet Jack had to stop and do the same thing which slowed them down tremendously. After a couple of hundred feet his arm was shaking from the exertion and he was sweating.
"You managing okay Jack?" Daniel asked as he began to feel drops falling on him. At first he'd thought that water was getting into the shaft but then realized it was the sweat pouring off the General.
"Yeah", gasped Jack, unable to say anything more. They all knew it was a lie, but since there was nothing they could do Daniel simply nodded and kept going.
"Just tell me if you decide to pass out or something, okay?" Daniel called up after a moment. Jack just grunted.
By the time they were three quarters of the way down, even Daniel and Sophie were feeling shaky.
"God, couldn't … they …. have …. put an ….elevator in or …. something?" Daniel panted.
"This is … the Air Force … Daniel", Jack replied. "No … budget!"
A few minutes later Daniel looked down. This time, he saw what looked like the bottom. Thank God! It was about time.
0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0
"Someone's coming Sam", Reynolds said quietly. She nodded. She'd felt the strange buzzing feeling even more in the last couple of hours.
"I know. Is everything ready?"
"Yes. All the explosives are in place and there's a team waiting. Whoever it is won't get far."
"We're sure it's not Ferretti's team?" she asked, although she knew in her gut it wasn't.
"Yes. They would have used the signal if it was them." They'd arranged for the 'away team' to send down a prearranged code word, written on a piece of paper and tied to a small rock. It was primitive, but effective. So far, no note had been received.
"Okay, at the first sign of threat open fire. If it looks like the intruders are gaining ground, get the team out and set off the explosives! We can't let them get in."
"I know." Reynolds gave a casual salute and a grin and headed back to the tunnel. On the way he passed Lola Ferretti, clearly headed to the secure room where the kids were being kept until the danger passed.
"You doing okay Lola?" he asked.
She smiled and nodded. "Just fine Mike. I'm going to sit with the kids."
"Yeah, I figured." He stopped for a moment. "Lou will be just fine you know."
"Yeah, I know", she smiled again. "I had one moment of weakness, which I'm embarrassed about – not the thing for an old Air Force wife like me - but I'm okay now. He's doing what he should be doing and I'm just gonna pray he comes back in one piece."
Reynolds nodded and smiled in return, impressed, as always, at the strength displayed by the families of those who served. "Good luck with the kids! I think you have the hardest job."
"Yeah", she laughed. "Sometimes I think dealing with the aliens would be easier!"
For some reason, his conversation with Lola Ferretti had cheered him up. It certainly reminded him of why they were doing this – and strengthened his resolve not to let the enemy in at the gate!
They'd been waiting, hidden by the entrance to the shaft, for well over an hour before they heard the sound of people, or aliens, descending. The intruders were quiet, not saying anything, but they could hear the movement of shoes on the metal rungs of the ladder.
Hidden close by were SF Frank Ellis, Airman John Peters, Siler, and Teal'c. Sam had wanted to be here too but Reynolds had told her she needed to stay with the others.
"We need a second line of defense Sam, in case the enemy gets by us."
She'd reluctantly agreed and now sat with Cassie, Chloe, Stephanie Reynolds and Felgar. The other adults including Lola, Teresa Soto and Dr. Lam were with the kids. All in all, she decided, looking around, it was a determined yet untried group of people. She just prayed that Reynold's team would be victorious.
"Here they come Colonel", Teal'c whispered quietly. Mike Reynolds nodded and signaled silently to the others. Everyone watched carefully, their hearts beating but their eyes steady, waiting for the enemy.
"Okay, I'm down. Come on – carefully." Daniel was whispering. His upper body was still in the shaft, even though his feet were on the ground. He was exhausted and wanted nothing so much as to collapse. He wondered how Jack had managed to make it down with just one arm!
"Coming", a faint voice could be heard by those waiting. Since the intruders were speaking in a whisper, it was impossible to tell who they were. The waiting team was relieved, though, by the fact they were speaking English. They were clearly human.
"I've got your legs. There's a drop of about three feet from the bottom rung. Just undo the belt and lower your leg slowly."
The listeners could hear a 'grunt' and then heard a short cry as whoever was lowering him or herself obviously fell the last few feet. Based on the legs and feet it was a man, decided Reynolds, although it could be a big woman, he supposed.
"You okay?" the first voice asked.
"Think I … sprained an … ankle!" the second voice sounded weak and shaky.
"Here I'll help you sit down."
"Careful!" That second voice spoke. "Are we sure there's no one here?"
Everything stopped as the intruders listened carefully. Everyone in the room froze, not even daring to breath. After a second the first voice spoke. "Everything's quiet and it's dark. I'm pretty sure no one's here."
"Pretty sure?" the other voice said. It was soft, but full of sarcasm.
"I'm sure." There was a pause and then, "Sophie, just hang tight for a minute. We're gonna get out of your way and I'm gonna help the General sit down and then I'll be right back."
A faint "okay" could be heard. The two in the shaft bent down to exit the shaft. The waiting team all lifted their weapons and aimed directly towards the intruders. Reynolds felt like everything was standing completely still. As the two immerged he aimed carefully with his weapon.
"Ow, be careful Daniel" a familiar but completely unexpected voice split the silence in the room.
"I'm trying Jack, but you're not helping!"
"JACK! Oh my God – stand down everyone, stand down!"
Jack and Daniel stopped dead as they listened to weapons being lowered and put onto safety from all corners of the darkened room they had entered. A light suddenly turned on and the two 'intruders' covered their eyes.
"Yup", said Jack, "No one here at all!" Finally, when his eyes had gotten used to the light, he turned to Reynolds and allowed himself a big grin. "Hey Mike, whatcha doin' down here?"
Reynolds grinned in return, hardly believing what he was seeing. "Just checking for rats Jack – gotta watch em you know." With that he walked over and slapped Jack on the back. Not noticing the other man's wince, he turned to Jackson who still had his arm around the General.
"Dr. Jackson, welcome to our humble abode. It's good to see you!"
"Good to see you too Colonel." He then watched as the others came forward. Both men were grinning from ear to ear, even though they looked ready to collapse.
"It is good to see you O'Neill, Daniel Jackson", Jack looked over to see Teal'c standing beside them, an uncharacteristic smile on his face.
"Teal'c! Buddy!" Jack struggled out of Daniel's grip and turned towards his Jaffa friend. He held out his good arm and Teal'c grasped it and drew him into a man-hug. The big man then turned and did the same with Daniel.
"So Jack, Daniel", Reynolds asked. "What brings the two of you here?"
"Two?" Daniel suddenly looked around. "Crap!" Walking over to the shaft he stuck his head in. "Come on Sophie. There are some people here who I'm sure will be happy to see you!"
A couple of seconds later she'd dropped down to the floor. When she realized that 'friendlies' were waiting at the bottom she beamed. Everyone started giving and receiving hugs and soon the mood was almost party like.
Jack was finally able to speak. "We heard things weren't so great here so we thought we'd come and check." He looked around the room, his expression growing serious. "Is this everyone?"
"No indeed O'Neill", Teal'c answered. "There are a small number of us but there are more waiting."
"We were the first line of defense Sir", Siler spoke up.
"What were you going to do?" Jack asked, glancing at all the weapons.
"Well", answered Reynolds, "First we were going to shoot you and then we were going to blow you up." He paused, "But we changed our minds."
"Thank God!" Jack laughed and then swayed, feeling like he was about to pass out.
"Jack needs to sit down. He was hurt and he's still recuperating." Teal'c instantly walked over and draped Jack's good arm around his shoulders. It was obvious, from the way it was bound, that his right shoulder and arm weren't working.
"Let's go. The others will want to see you and then you can tell us everything Jack", Mike said. He was worried about O'Neill who was looking increasingly pale.
The 'intruders' and the home team headed out to where the others were waiting. No one had told the newcomers who else was at the SGC and Jack was too frightened to ask. No one had mentioned Sam and he prepared for the worst.
They arrived at a closed door. Reynolds stopped Jack. "Signal", was all he said. He reached around and knocked a pattern on the door. After a second they could hear the door being unlocked and it slowly opened.
Reynolds walked in. "I've brought some guests!" was all he said. Jack, held up by Teal'c, then entered.
"UNCLE JACK!" a voice shrieked and the next thing he knew a body threw itself against him and arms were suddenly crushing him. Teal'c stepped away although stayed close.
Jack looked down at the young woman wrapped around him and smiled. Thank God, he thought, she'd made it.
"Hey kiddo", he said softly, returning the hug. "How are you doing?"
"Better now", came the muffled and teary reply. "I'm so glad you're here!"
"I'm glad too", he answered, kissing the top of her head, which was all he could see. At that moment he glanced up, looking straight into two blue eyes, awash in tears.
"Sam!" he said softly. "You're okay!" He felt his heart leap and begin to pound madly. He was so relieved, so overjoyed, he didn't know what to do. If he wasn't careful, he knew, his emotions would spill out for everyone to see.
"General!" she answered softly. For some reason, which he refused to ponder, her one word brought him crashing down. That was right – he was 'General O'Neill. He could feel the internal sigh – things hadn't changed.
To hell with that, he suddenly thought. No one's gonna think anything of it – and if they do – who cares! As Cassie pulled away he grinned and held out his one arm. "Come here!" he said to his favorite all time 2IC.
With a sniff and a small smile, Sam ran over and threw her arms around her General. As he held her tight she felt, for the first time since the attack against earth, that everything might just be all right.
"It's good to see you Carter", his soft voice said in her ear.
"Same here Sir, same here!"
Thank you LAIsobel for the ideas surrounding the reunion scene! This was for you!
