From the Ruins

Part Three

"I hate it when this happens," Sam whined three hours later.

Daniel stared at the puzzle.  Only one piece was missing.

"Maybe it got buried further in the sand," Jack offered running his fingers along the floor.

"We've looked everywhere, sir."

"Well, this is apropos," Daniel said bitterly.

Sam stopped crawling around, sat back on her heels and looked over at Daniel.

"Daniel?" Jack asked with concern.  They had all been waiting for Daniel's fragile relaxed mood to break.

"This!"  He gestured violently to the puzzle.  "This puzzle is a mirror for this-." His eyes suddenly lit up.

"Daniel?" Jack crawled closer to him.

"That's it!"  Daniel scrambled to his feet and sprinted to where he had left the journals.  His excitement caused him to grab them too hastily and drop them on the way back to his teammates. 

"I can't believe I forgot.  Of course.  I should have realized what was missing."

"What's missing?" Sam asked.

"The other journal."

Sam, Teal'c and Jack exchanged confused glances.

"My parents always kept a separate journal for personal notes. Anything they didn't understand. Any theories they might want to flesh out later. That one's missing."

"So, they may have written more about that glyph in this other journal." Sam said.

"Exactly. Jack, I have to find it."

"Why was it not with the others?" Teal'c asked.

"I don't know. But if these journals were here then that one has to be around somewhere too, right?"

"Maybe," Sam said tentatively.

"Do you have any idea where to start looking, Daniel Jackson?"

"Well, no, but-"

"This is a pretty big place," Sam said. "Pretty empty too."

"I realize that, but-"

"Look, Daniel," Jack interrupted gently. "We're not trying to be negative, but what if the other journal wasn't left here?"
"Why would it not have been left here?"

"I don't know. Maybe your parents didn't want someone else to read it so they kept it with them. Or-"

"Jack, it's here. They wouldn't have taken it and left the others."

"Then why wasn't it with the others?" Jack asked softly.

"I…don't know." Daniel said defeated.

"I'm not saying we won't try to find it, Daniel. I just want you to be aware of the possibility that it's not here. Ok?"

Daniel nodded.

"We'll start looking first thing in the morning."

"What?  Why not now?"

"Because it's past our bedtime."

"I'm not tired," Daniel countered.

"Actually, I'm not tired either, sir."

"It's past 0100, and we're all tired," Jack said glaring at Sam. 

"But-"
Jack held up a finger.  "End of discussion," he said slipping under his blanket.

Sam and Teal'c followed suit.

"Some discussion," Daniel mumbled.  "Your side got more time."

"Oh!"

"What is it, Major Carter?" Teal'c and Jack sprang up.

"I found it. It was under my blanket," she said placing the last piece in the puzzle.

Daniel lay down trying to convince himself that was a good omen.

Twenty minutes later, Jack woke to a sound he couldn't quite place. "What is that?"

"Sounds like humming," Sam said and yawned. "I think it's Daniel."

Hearing his name, Daniel started awake. "What?"

"What were you humming?" Sam asked.

"Was I humming?"

"You were, Daniel Jackson."

"Oh. I was dreaming. It's this song my mother used to hum to me. I'd completely forgotten about it. Sorry."

"That's ok," Jack said. "It was kind of…"

"Soothing," Sam offered.

"Indeed," Teal'c added.

"Yeah.  But I'll stop."

"No, it's ok."  Jack assured him.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Good. Because I may do it again without realizing it."

"Daniel."

"Yeah?"

"Humming ok.  Talking not."

"Sorry."

***

Jack jarred awake.  He thought he had heard a crashing sound but he must have dreamt it.  Nope.  He heard it again coming from the back of the room.

"Oops."  More crashing.  "Ouch.  Damn."

Oh, for cryin' out loud. Jack looked at his watch and sighed.  0430. He got up and crept across the room. Two more lights were out making the back of the room almost completely dark.

Daniel sat beside an overturned shelf and its scattered contents cradling his left hand.

"What happened?" Jack whispered.

"I must have bumped into the shelves when I crawled out of the passage.  It's so dark, I could barely see. Even with my flashlight." Suddenly he realized he wasn't alone. "Jack!"

"You woke me up," Jack growled. "Now, what happened to your hand?"

"I think the shelf landed on it." 

"Let's see.  Hold the flashlight up."  Jack took Daniel's hand and examined it. Two fingers were bruised.  He pressed to make sure they weren't broken.

"Ow."  Daniel pulled his hand free.

"Daniel what the hell are you doing?"

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought maybe I could-"
"Find the missing journal?"

"Yeah."

"In the dark? Alone?"

Daniel lowered his head. "Yeah, I know.  Not the smartest thing I've ever done."

"Ya think?  Look, daylight's in about an hour and a half.  Try to stay out of trouble until then, and the rest of us will help. Ok?"

"Yeah, ok."

"Is Daniel Jackson injured, O'Neill?"  Teal'c asked when Jack returned.

"He's fine.  If you're done kel-no-reeming, keep an eye on him will ya?"

"I will."

***

Despite their early start, by late afternoon they still hadn't found the missing journal.  Daniel had posed that the passages were the most logical place to look because they were so far unexplored by the team. Sam had agreed. Daniel and Jack were going back over one of the passages for the third time. Teal'c and Sam were doing the same a few passages over.  There was so much sand in here that Jack was beginning to wonder if anything could be found once it was lost.

"Daniel," he said gently.

"It has to be here, Jack."

"There's so much sand," he explained trying to be patient.

"I know it's here.  Don't ask me how I know. I just do."

Jack sighed and wiped sweat from his brow.  "Ok.  One more sweep and we really need to take a break.  Maybe Carter can figure out a better way to search in all this sand. And a better way to see."

"Ok," Daniel reluctantly agreed. 

Jack let Daniel continue down the passage as he sank onto the ground.  He let his arms flail out and his hands sink into the sand.  At least his left hand.  His right hand didn't sink.  It landed on something hard near the bottom of the wall. He felt around an area he could swear he had already been over. Twice.  There was definitely something there.  "Hey, Daniel," he said digging a book out of the sand.

"Yeah?" Daniel answered distractedly.

"This what we're lookin' for?"

Daniel fell as he tried to run and crawl at the same time. Jack took the flashlight while Daniel opened the book. Daniel recognized the handwriting immediately.

***

"Saam!"

"I'm sorry, Daniel. The power is interfering with the generator. I'm going to have to do some reconfiguring."

"Well, how am I supposed to read?"
"You'll just have to wait until I'm done. Sir, please hold the flashlight still."

"Well, how long is it gonna take?"

Sam pulled a wire loose and sparks flew. "Ouch."

"Carter?"
"I'm ok."

"Sam?"

"What?"

"How long?"

Sam sighed. "I don't know."

"Can't you estimate or-?"

"Daniel."

"Jack-"

"Leave Carter alone."

"Sir, the flashlight."

"Sorry."

"You know, Daniel. The more light I have, the sooner I'll be done. Then you can get back to reading."

Daniel thought it over.

"Hold on, Major. Let's move this closer to the door. There's still a good bit of daylight left. You could go outside and use it to read, Daniel." Jack and Sam carried the generator to the door.

"Yeah, and have Amon try to get me to join them for yet another party."

"This helps, sir. But I need more focused light for close up work."

"Grab another flashlight," Jack told Daniel. "The guy just wants you to have some fun in your life."

"Well, I don't want to have fun right now.  Besides, I tried that earlier. It was too distracting out there."

"Daniel, you're distracting me," Sam growled. "I wish Teal'c was here. He'd be quiet."

"Carter?"

"I'm sorry, sir.  I'm hot, and the sand I spent the day crawling in is sticking to me all over the place."

"Understood.  Daniel, either help or go outside."

Daniel sighed. "I'll go find Teal'c."

"Thank you," Sam said when Daniel was gone. "He's a great friend, great to work with. And his intelligence is incredible. But sometimes he can be so…"

"Irritable? Single-minded?"

"Frustrating."

"You require my assistance Major Carter?" Teal'c asked.

"Found him," Daniel said as he and Amon entered the temple. "Almost ran into him actually."

"Hey, Murray. The power is interfering with the generator, and I'm trying to reconfigure it. But I need more light." She bit off the urge to add "and some peace and quiet."

Amon gasped. "What has happened?" He turned in a circle taking in the crumbling walls and the darkness.

"I will require your flashlight, Daniel Jackson. O'Neill's as well," Teal'c said as he made his way to the back of the room to his pack.

"We uh, figured out the curse," Daniel told Amon as he followed Teal'c and fumbled for his pack.

Teal'c found his flashlight and held it up for Daniel.

"Thanks," Daniel said handing Teal'c his flashlight and reaching for Jack's pack.

"What do you mean, you figured out the curse?" Amon asked coming up behind Teal'c.

"It's kind of hard to explain," Daniel said handing Teal'c Jack's flashlight.

Teal'c removed a length of rope from one of the supply packs and returned to the generator.

"Good idea," Jack said as he helped Teal'c bind the four flashlights together tightly.

"We sort of deactivated then reactivated it, actually. Or something like that," Daniel added looking to Jack uncertainly.

"Perfect," Sam said as Teal'c held the makeshift lamp above the generator. "Colonel, don't go too far. I'm gonna need somebody to help reattach these wires. Murray won't be able to do it one-handed."

"Ok," Jack replied moving over to Daniel and Amon. "What Daniel means is the curse is mechanical."

"How can that be?" Amon asked.

"Uh, we don't know exactly," Jack said glancing at Daniel.

"All we know is it works," Daniel said.

"You are no longer safe here," Amon said in alarm.

"I think we'll be ok," Daniel said quickly.

"No. You and your team must sleep in my tent for the remainder of your stay."

"Amon-" Daniel started.

Amon turned to Jack. "What if the ceiling caves in while you sleep?"

"I'd figured on sleeping outside," Jack said. "But as long as you're offering."

"Jack?"

"You are most welcome in my tent," Amon said with finality. "And most safe."

"Look, we appreciate the offer-" Daniel tried again.

"Yes, we do," Jack said staring at Daniel pointedly.

"It is not an offer."

"Ok, you can't tell us what to do," Daniel snapped. "This is our mission."

"Whoa, Daniel," Jack said. "Amon, could you excuse us a minute?"

Amon nodded, and Jack beckoned for Daniel to follow him outside.

"Jack, we're not really going to do what he wants are we?"

"Yes, we are. And what's with the attitude? Usually you're the polite one, and I'm the obnoxious one. At least with company."

Daniel crossed his arms and looked away.

"Well?" When Daniel turned and stared at him, Jack threw his hands in the air. "Daniel, part of the ceiling fell already. Remember that?"

"Yes. I was right under it. But I got out of the way in time. What's your point?"

Jack huffed. "My point, Doctor Jackson is the same as Amon's. What if the ceiling falls on one of us in the middle of the night? How will we get out of the way if we're asleep?"

Daniel thought about that and looked down. "What if the ceiling collapses while we're gone and we can't get back in?"

"We have to take that chance." Off Daniel's look, he added, "It's better than being crushed don't you think?"

"If we can't get back in, we won't get to the armory," Daniel said.

"That would definitely be a great loss. But not as great as our lives."

"Then we would have come here for nothing," Daniel spat.

Jack gave him a hard look. "Decision's made. Whether you like it or not, you're gonna live with it." He walked past Daniel and turned back at the doorway. "I don't think we came here for nothing. And I don't think you do either. Because for once you get happy memories. Memories of your parents doing something they were good at and enjoyed. And you get to reconnect with someone you obviously used to admire, " he finished and walked back inside.

Daniel stood there for another minute thinking, then turned and walked back inside.