Halls of Osiris
Part
6:
Apollo leaned his
head back against the wall next to the cell door listening for the sounds of
activity on the far side. He glanced
again at the dimly glowing face of his chronometer. If he was correct, the guards should be changing shifts right
about ---
The sound of
marching boots echoed in the corridor outside the tiny cell, as the squad of
Jaffa approached, then came to a stop outside the door. The guards on duty
issued what he assumed was a formal challenge, the squad leader responded, and
two new guards took the place of the old. The squad moved on as one man to the next duty station. In some places, end of shift was a weak
point in the guards' routine. Not here.
A sound from
across the cell caught his attention, and Apollo looked over at his cell- mate. Daniel shifted uncomfortably in his sleep
then settled once more.
Apollo was beginning
to be seriously worried about the man. Daniel had apparently used up a
considerable amount of his reserves trying to learn to communicate with him; the
Earthman had not awakened for several centauri, and he was running a
temperature.
Alright, I'm
probably getting ahead of myself here. Just
because the symbol on his uniform happens to be the same as that of the planet
we've all spent the last two yahren searching the galaxy for, that doesn't mean ----
But what if it
did? What if Daniel Jackson was exactly
what he and Adama and the rest of the Fleet had been searching for all this time? Daniel could be the answer to all their
prayers. If he lived long enough.
*********
Daniel moved again
and blinked to clear his vision. His
head was still pounding. He rolled onto
his back and brought one shaking hand up to his eyes. He frowned and stared at his bruised but completely bare wrist.
The manacles were gone.
He swung his head
around and tried to sit up --- regretting it immediately as his vision swam.
He felt hands on
his arms and looked up at Apollo, who had moved to crouch in front of him. For a moment Daniel couldn't place this
person, then his memory kicked in.
"Apollo." He swallowed to moisten his dry throat and
allowed his cell- mate to help him into a sitting position. "I'll--- I'll be
okay. Give me a minute."
Once the room had
stopped spinning, Daniel raised his head and looked questioningly at
Apollo. He raised his freed hands. "You?"
The warrior
grinned a little and reached into the pocket of his flight jacket, pulling out
a piece of his uniform's insignia. The long
pin that normally hooked it to his collar was bent out of shape.
"You picked the
locks." Daniel glanced back at the chains
hanging from the wall beside him. "I
must have really been out of it."
"You were,"
Apollo agreed.
"What happened
while I was asleep?"
Apollo sat back
on his haunches. "The Jaffa have
changed guard twice, and we've been fed. You hungry?" He indicated a shallow bowl half-filled with a
yellowish-grey mass. A flask lay next
to it.
Daniel
grimaced. "I'll pass on the stuff in
the bowl, but is that water?"
Apollo pulled the
flask closer and watched as Daniel took it in trembling hands, managing to
spill as much as he drank as he raised it to his lips. The warrior reached out and steadied the
other man's hands gently.
Daniel snatched
his hands away, practically snarling, "I can do it myself!" The flask slipped from his grasp and fell to
the floor, its contents flowing away. He
lowered his head into his hands. "Oh,
gods. Apollo, I'm sorry. I'm sorry." His head pounded more heavily and he leaned further forward, cradling it
protectively.
Apollo watched
the man as he sat, head in hands, rocking slightly. "Daniel --- what's going
on? What's causing this?"
Daniel chuckled
softly and raised his head carefully. Too much. He pressed the heel of
his hand into his eye in an effort to relieve the pressure in his skull.
"You said before
that you had been interrogated. Did
that cause this --- sickness?"
"In a way."
Apollo waited.
Daniel
sighed. "Apparently, Dren'ac got a
little carried away with the last interrogation. I must have been close to
dying. I think they used a sarcophagus on me." Noting the confused expression on his companion's face, Daniel waved a
hand vaguely as he explained, "The sarcophagus is a Goa'uld 'healing' device. Normally
it wouldn't be a problem, but with repeated use the effect is addictive. I
found this out the hard way a few years ago."
Apollo's
expression segued from confusion to dismay. "So, this is ---"
"Withdrawal."
"Wonderful."
"Ya think?" Daniel muttered in English. At Apollo's puzzled glance, he waved
again. "Never mind. Just an expression. Not important."
Apollo ran a
nervous hand through his hair. "We can't
stay here," he whispered to himself.
Beside him,
Daniel laughed softly. "No? I was thinking of having a decorator in next
week."
The warrior shook
his head at the joke. He moved to speak again, but Dren'ac's voice silenced him.
"Tau'ri! Kree! --- "
Daniel rolled his
eyes and interrupted with a spate of guttural sounds. He spat the last few with obvious contempt then glanced at
Apollo. "I told him to just get on with
it. --- and I ---questioned his mother's --- species." He gave a wry shrug.
Both men tensed
as the door was unlocked and opened. Apollo glanced at Daniel, and hissed, "The chains---"
"Too late now," Daniel
muttered back. Even so, he backed up to
the wall slightly and reached behind him to hide his freed wrists.
Two men entered
the room and glared at the prisoners disdainfully. Daniel gasped softly then carefully
schooled his expression. One of the Jaffa slipped past them to pull Apollo roughly
to his feet and to one side. He started to fight the guard's hold but subsided
at a small shake of Daniel's head.
The smaller of the
two men stepped forward and caught Daniel's chin, forcing his head up. Daniel gave a defiant jerk but said nothing. The man released him, wiping his hands on
his tunic as if he had touched something distasteful, then turned to the second
man and barked something in a strangely inhuman voice.
So this is a
Goa'uld.
Apollo studied
the two men carefully, acquainting himself with his new enemy. They looked human,
but Daniel had told him what they really were --- semi-aquatic parasites that
lived in and took over a human body.
Arrogance colored
every gesture. Even their choice in clothing
was designed to impress the viewer with their power; they practically gleamed
with gold and precious stones, but they wore nothing that could be construed as
protective or even particularly convenient. The message was that they had no need to concern themselves with such
things, even here.
The taller Goa'uld
seemed surprised by whatever Shorty had said. The tone of his reply was decidedly argumentative. Shorty wasn't having
any of it. He pulled himself up to full
height and shouted, gesturing emphatically. His eyes—literally-- flashed. The other
looked nervous for a micron, then bowed sharply and motioned to the Jaffa.
Apollo was shoved
hard against the wall then released. The
Jaffa and the second Goa'uld left the cell. Apollo tensed again, ready to make
the Goa'uld pay for this mistake.
"Apollo! No!" Daniel called softly. He was --- smiling.
Apollo stopped,
uncertain of what to do next.
The Goa'uld knelt
in front of Daniel and bowed his head for a micron. When he raised it again he
looked at Apollo, meeting his eyes with a calm, steady, human gaze.
Jacob Carter
turned back to Daniel and shook his head, calling up his best fatherly
tone: "Daniel, what are you doing here?
Haven't I told you to stay out of
places like this?"
