"Hey, Jack," Daniel slurred as his eyes aimlessly took in the shallow, damp cave they were currently hiding in.
"Yeah, Daniel?" Jack didn't spare a look in his friend's direction as he continued to crouch by the cave's entrance. After a few moments, when Daniel didn't say anything, he did glance at him quickly. "Daniel?" he asked in concern. "You doin' ok?"
"Ummm...yeah. Think m'head...filled...hell um." The slur was more pronounced and his voice sounded disconnected. "I's floatin'."
"What?" Jack questioned while he mouthed what Daniel had said, a few times, in the hopes of understanding him before he asked, "You feel like your head's filled with helium?" He turned around and looked a little more closely at Daniel where he slumped against the back wall of the cave. He duck-walked back there, careful to keep his head down because of the damned low ceiling. He'd already smacked his head on it once and wasn't eager to do it a second time. When he was close enough, he reached out and gently shook Daniel's shoulder. "It's the morphine. I need you to try to stay awake; ok? Can you do that for me?"
"Try," Daniel responded although the softness of his voice and glazed look in his eyes wasn't very reassuring.
They'd made it a half mile from the gate in the direction of the abandoned Naquadah mine they'd been coming to check in the hopes it might yield some of the metal when a Jaffa ambush outnumbered them three to one. Their only option had been to try to make it back to the gate.
All of the MALP's readings had indicated that the planet and mine had been abandoned by the Goa'uld. The Jaffa had either been doing a really good job of hiding or they'd come back after they'd viewed the MALP's readings. They'd been caught with their pants down. If it hadn't been for Teal'c hearing a staff weapon being primed and calling out a warning, they'd be dead instead of holed up in a cave.
By some miracle that Jack wasn't about to question, they'd made it back to the gate unscathed. He, Carter and Teal'c had laid down cover fire while Daniel dialed and sent through his code.
"Jack signaled Carter and Teal'c through while he and Daniel had their backs, but just as Daniel was making a run for it, another Jaffa patrol flanked them from behind the gate and fired on them."
A staff blast caught Daniel on the right hip before he'd gotten more than two steps away from the DHD. The force of it threw him hard against the pedestal before he slammed to the ground with a cry of surprised pain.
Jack had felt his stomach plunge down a roller coaster without him. Daniel was sprawled awkwardly at the base of the DHD and writhed noisily in pain as he clutched his hip with bloody fingers.
He sprinted a few steps in Daniel's direction then threw himself in a headfirst dive at his friend. He grabbed Daniel's tac vest and yanked him into the tree line, firing awkwardly as he moved. He'd been only able to spare the briefest glimpse at Daniel's injury but it had been enough for him to see that the hit hadn't been the full force of the staff blast. He had a feeling if Daniel had caught the full force, his leg probably would have been blown off. Even still, it was a messy wound.
He'd played cat and mouse with the Jaffa through the densely packed forest, half carrying, half-dragging Daniel, until he'd located the brush-concealed cave. Jack knew it was pure luck that he'd caught sight of it and hoped the Jaffa wouldn't have as much luck.
It hadn't taken long to check Daniel's wound, bandage it, and give him a shot of morphine before taking up watch at the cave entrance. It was only a matter of time before Hammond sent backup, all he and Daniel had to do was hope the Jaffa didn't find them and that Daniel's injury wasn't as bad as it looked.
"He glanced at his watch, it'd been an hour but it felt like twenty. "Still awake? He asked Daniel, his voice a hoarse whisper in the cave's cool silence.
"Mmmmhmmm."
Jack heard scrambling behind him and turned to see Daniel dragging himself in his direction. "Hey. What are you doing? You need to stay still or that's gonna start bleeding again." he said but still moved backwards to help the younger man. "You need to say still," he said again once Daniel was now leaning against the wall by the cave mouth. He carefully checked the bandage to make sure there was no new bleeding.
"Cold there," Daniel said as a shiver rippled through his body.
"Got some bad news. It's cold over here too and the rain's blowing in." As he spoke, Jack pulled Daniel's pack closer and pulled out the thermal blanket inside then wrapped it around his friend. "Shouldn't be much longer."
"Think…hurt…m'self," Daniel said with a sigh as his eyes drifted closed.
"You caught a staff blast," Jack explained slowly. "You just stay still so it doesn't start bleeding again and as soon as we're back at the SGC, Frasier'll have you fixed up in no time."
"Uh uh," Daniel disagreed with a shake of his head. "Hurt here." He brushed his hand across the left side of his chest.
Jack caught the motion. "Yeah, you probably got some bruises from when you hit the DHD." At least, he hoped it was just bruises and wasn't cracked ribs. Daniel had hit the edge of the DHD with a lot of force. It would be just Daniel's luck to have cracked some ribs.
"Tired," Daniel complained. "Wanna sleep."
Jack opened his mouth and started to encourage Daniel to stay awake but one good look had him snapping his mouth closed. Lines of pain were beginning to form on his forehead and his eyes were glazed from a combination of pain and exhaustion. Jack didn't have the heart to deny him whatever respite sleep might give him. "Ok, Daniel. Try to get some rest." He helped him to lie down with the pack as a makeshift pillow then wrapped the blanket around him again.
"Wake me...Sam and Teal'c," Daniel mumbled as his eyes drifted closed.
"Yeah. When Sam and Teal'c get here," Jack agreed softly. He brushed the hair back from Daniel's face, grimacing when he found it warmer than he would have liked. "For cryin' out loud. Just what you need...an infection," he grumbled.
Time dragged on as they continued to hide in the cave. Twice, Jack heard Jaffa patrols just outside their hiding place. He stayed poised just to the side of the brush-covered opening tightly gripping his MP-5 and praying they wouldn't be discovered. In the condition he was in, Daniel wouldn't be much help in their defense and Jack knew there was no way he could hold off a patrol on his own.
Next to him, Daniel continued to sleep, occasionally moaning and shifting with pain. His fever continued to rise heightening Jack's concern. He needed to get his friend back where he could get proper medical treatment but as long as the Jaffa were still outside, that meant that the Gate probably wasn't secure and Hammond wouldn't send any search and rescue through 'til that happened.
Full darkness soon fell outside although it didn't make much difference in the cave. Jack knew he couldn't risk starting a fire but he did take a chance by turning on his flashlight. He hadn't heard anyone – or anything for that matter – outside for the past ninety minutes and hoped that meant the Jaffa had finally moved on. He had to take the risk so he could have enough light to check on Daniel.
"You just can't seem to catch a break, can you?"
"Jack?" Daniel questioned as he struggled to open his eyes. He stared up at his friend blearily. "Sam and Teal'c come?"
"Soon," Jack promised. "How you feelin'?"
"Like I tried to box with Teal'c…or maybe you."
Jack wasn't sure if there was an insult in Daniel's statement and decided to take it as face value. "That good, huh?"
"I'll be ok," Daniel hastened to reassure. "It's not bad, right?"
"Just a scratch," Jack agreed not wanting to let on to Daniel just how bad it was.
Daniel let out a sigh. "Janet's gonna use me as a pincushion."
"Probably," Jack lightly agreed. "I bet she'll get out the big honkin' ones just for you."
"Nothin' but the best," Daniel agreed with a fleeting smile. "Water?"
"Yeah, sure." Jack reached to snag one of their canteens, opened it, then propped Daniel up to drink from it. "Easy," he admonished when his friend started to gulp the water causing him to choke. "I'm not takin' it away from you."
Once Daniel was done drinking, Jack helped him lay down again; wincing at each moan of pain movement brought. "There's one more shot of morphine. I can give it to you now or you can wait. It's up to you."
A wave of pain engulfed Daniel, moving from the wound on his hip down his leg and up his side. "Hurts," he forced out through gritted teeth as he grabbed on to Jack's hand and squeezed.
"I guess now," Jack answered his own question once Daniel had let go of his hand. He pulled the shot of morphine out of the pocket of his tac vest where he'd put it earlier and quickly administered it. "Give that a second and it should make it feel better. He offered his hand again and let Daniel squeeze it.
He could tell when the morphine had finally taken effect when Daniel's hand dropped away from his. "Feelin' better?
"Mmm hmmm," Daniel responded after a moment.
"Feelin' no pain," Jack said with a smile taking in the relaxed, disconnected look on his friend's face. He was pulling the blanket back around Daniel again when his radio crackled to life. He nearly sagged in relief hearing his commander's voice.
He hastily put the earpiece in, keyed the radio, and quickly explained the situation and their location in as low a voice as he could. After a few exchanges with Hammond, he signed off. "Help's coming, Daniel," he informed the other man as he leaned over to arrange the blanket around him. "Just hang in there a little longer."
"Go home," Daniel said with a small smile.
"Yeah, home," Jack agreed. He watched as Daniel's eyes closed again and he drifted off to a restless sleep. He hoped it wouldn't take long for the rescue team to get to them. He knew Daniel's condition was getting worse the longer medical help was delayed.
About fifteen minutes after talking with Hammond, Jack heard the distant sound of twin explosions. He knew it was the missiles Hammond said they'd be sending through to secure the gate area. "Yes!" he breathed out knowing it wouldn't be long now. "Hear that, Daniel? We're home free now."
Jack waited by the cave opening listening intently for the sound of footsteps. When it came, it was the sound of Jaffa, though, and not the military boots he'd been hoping for. He backed away from the opening, cursing under his breath.
He kept a wary watch through a small opening in the brush and soon saw the Jaffa whose footsteps he'd heard. With his MP-5 at the ready, he started chanting under his breath for them to hurry on their way. They were nearly past the cave when a noise from Daniel brought Jack's attention to him. It seemed the morphine was starting to wear off and Daniel was waking up – in pain again. "Shhh," he admonished him in as quiet a voice as he could but Daniel grew more restless calling out for Shar're.
When Daniel started struggling to sit up, Jack did the only thing he could think of at that point. He pulled Daniel to him in an awkward, one-armed embrace. He cradled his head in his hand, pulling his face close to his shoulder to, hopefully, muffle any sounds Daniel continued to make. "Shhh," he crooned in his ear. "Need to be quiet"
He felt Daniel's hands come up around his waist, fisting in his jacket spasmodically and knew the position he was holding his friend in had to be causing him more pain but it couldn't be helped. He kept a wary eye over Daniel's shoulder out the peephole watching the Jaffa go by. When the last one in the line stopped right outside their hiding place and cocked his head as if listening to something, Jack was sure they'd been found. He tightened his grip on Daniel, pulling him in closer to his shoulder and the tightened the grip on his MP-5 as well. He held his breath until the Jaffa moved on, catching up with the rest.
When he heard the sounds of footsteps receding, he let out the breath he'd been holding. He started to lay Daniel gently back down but the younger man's grip around his waist strengthened. "No," he mumbled.
"Ok, ok," Jack soothed, settling Daniel against his shoulder again. They still couldn't afford to make any noise that would attract the Jaffa back to them. "I gotcha. You're safe." He gently rocked back and forth, still keeping a wary eye.
For the next twenty minutes, the only sounds were the occasional moan from Daniel and the soft comforting sounds Jack would make trying to soothe him. When he heard gunfire off in the distance, he startled. Whoever had come through from the SGC must have met up with the Jaffa patrol that had gone by. He itched to leave the cave and join in the firefight but his place was here with Daniel giving him whatever protection he could. He had faith that Carter and Teal'c – because he just knew Carter and Teal'c would be with whoever else had come – and the others would be able to hold their own and defeat the patrol.
The firefight proved to be short as the sounds of weapons stopped after not more than ten minutes. A few minutes later, the radio crackled to life and Carter's voice came through. "Go ahead, Carter," Jack said not even trying to contain the smile that broke out when he heard her voice.
"We're almost at your position, sir. Do you know if there are any other Jaffa in the area?"
"Couldn't say. A patrol of ten of them went by us a few minutes before we heard weapons fire. If you got all of them, and whatever was guarding the gate, I think that might be all of them. You still better proceed with caution, though."
"Roger that, sir. We're five minutes from your position."
Jack acknowledged the time then leaned his head toward Daniel. "Hear that. Five minutes and they'll be here. Then it's back to the SGC and Frasier will get you fixed up."
Daniel's only answer was a smile the quickly morphed into a wince of pain.
"Let's get you settled down again so you're comfortable," Jack suggested and started to lay Daniel back down. This time, Daniel reluctantly allowed him. Jack was just pulling the blanket up around him when he heard the sound of footsteps approaching their hiding place and looked through the brush. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw the familiar SGC uniforms. "They're here," he told Daniel and pushed the brush away from the cave opening. "Carter! Teal'c!" he called out seeing them.
As soon as they located where his voice was coming from, Carter and Teal'c hurried over and started pulling the brush away from the outside of the cave. Once the opening was clear, Carter squatted down to look in.
"Took you long enough," Jack complained good-naturedly. "Daniel and I were starting to think of how we could renovate to make it look better in here…maybe knock out a few walls to expand the place."
"Good to see you too, sir," Sam replied with a smile that faded from her face when she caught sight of Daniel. "How is he?"
Jack's good humor died as he turned his attention to his injured teammate. "Not so good. The quicker we get him back, the better. He's lost a lot of blood and he's got a fever. I think there's an infection." He heard a moan coming from beside him and leaned over Daniel, smiling for his benefit. "Hey, Danny. Look who came to visit."
Daniel's gaze wavered in the direction of Sam and the barest hint of a smile quirked his lips. "Hey, Sam. Can't get up," he forced out before groaning and wincing in pain.
"You just stay comfy," Sam replied with a comforting smile although there was a note of unease and worry in her voice. She looked around the small cave. "Doesn't look like much room in here, sir." It as subtle hint that if they were going to have room to get Daniel on a stretcher and get him out of the cave, Jack would have to move out of the way. He was quick to comply. Right now, his one goal was to see Daniel safely in the infirmary getting the help he needed.
"Hey," he said lightly as he leaned down into Daniel's line of sight. "I'm gonna go and stretch my legs for a few and give these guys some room to get you out of here." He gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "You just lay there and let them do all the work, you hear."
"Not gonna go far, right?" Daniel questioned. His blue eyes conveyed a small amount of fear at being separated from Jack.
"Nah," Jack answered and squeezed the shoulder his hand was resting on again. "It's over, Danny. We made it and we're safe." One more squeeze then he ducked through the hole and out of the cave. The rain from earlier had given way to a slow, steady mist and he lifted his face to it relishing being out of the enclosed space. There had been moments when he'd thought that would never happen.
"It hadn't taken long to get Daniel transferred to a stretcher and for the medic Carter had brought with her to start an IV before they headed for the gate." The relief of the rescue made the trip back a blur for Jack and the next thing he knew, they were on the ramp at the SGC and Dr. Frasier was there calling out orders and taking over the care of Daniel. He allowed himself a small smile grateful for the "Napoleonic power monger" as he'd once called her. He knew she'd see that Daniel made a complete recovery.
"Jack followed along behind as Daniel's stretcher made its way to the infirmary." He watched as Janet exchanged soft words with the injured man as they waited for the elevator doors to open and caught the odd look she gave him before turning back down at Daniel.
"What?" Jack demanded hurrying to catch up. "Something wrong? He's gonna be ok, isn't he?"
"Tol' her you had the best hugs," Daniel slurred, obviously in the clutch of strong pain medication once more. Jack was getting ready to protest and point out it wasn't a hug so much as a way to keep Daniel quiet when they were in immediate danger from the Jaffa when the younger man continued, "Jus' like m'dad's."
Jack's protest died on his lips and was replaced by a gentle smile. "Any time, Danny," he said softly as the elevator doors opened and the stretcher was pushed in. "Any time."