Author's Notes: This story comes before the "Urban Legends", a missing scene to "Wedding Bells Blew". Stargate belongs to Showtime, MGM, Gekko, and Double Secret; Godzilla: The Series belongs to Toho and Tristar.

I don't usually do serials. But since you asked....

Innocent Bystander: Ch 2

Daniel rattled his handcuffs, glancing at the stiff-jawed, green-uniformed men around him. "Don't I at least get a phone call?"

No reply. One soldier fingered the grip of his pistol.

Terrific. The archaeologist leaned back in his folding metal chair with a sigh, letting gravity push his glasses back up. He tilted his head to sweep stray gold hairs out of his eyes, trying not to look at the unobtrusive leather wallet of lockpicks left invitingly on the table. Along with the rest of his effects; change, one pocketknife, a knotted map of New York, and various and sundry other items a certain Air Force Colonel with an IV in his arm had insisted he take with him. Everything except his Cheyenne Mountain pass.

That was currently in the hands of some very disgruntled Army personnel, who apparently were even less happy than usual to find a civilian near their downed ordinance. Even if said civilian worked for the same military and had a higher clearance than most of the people in the Pentagon.

Or maybe especially if.

I should've brought the zat.

Major Hicks strode into the tent, dark brows pinched together in annoyance. "Dr. Daniel Jackson."

"Yes." Daniel drew in a breath. "Major, if you'd just contact General George Hammond-"

"Legally, you're dead."

Oh, yeah. Declared so at least twice now. The actual count was too depressing to think about. "Not as far as the IRS is concerned." Way, way too much time around Jack, Daniel thought, seeing dark eyes squinch in a scowl.

"What's an archaeologist doing in the Air Force?"

"I'm not in the Air Force," Daniel said carefully. He might wear the uniform, he nught all but live on-base some weeks, and he could probably out-shoot half the people in this tent, but he was not military. "I'm a linguist. A civilian consultant. I got lost, I stopped to figure out where I was, and then the ordinance started falling." Oops; should've said missiles. Ordinary people would say missiles. Distract him. "What happened out there?"

Hicks snorted. "Godzilla happened, what else?" Papers rustled in his hand. "Now-"

"Godzilla?" The name sounded vaguely familiar.

The major skewed a suspicious glance his way. "Two-hundred-foot-plus lizard? Breathes radioactive fire? Follows H.E.A.T. around like an overgrown puppy?" Green-clad arms crossed. "Stop me when I'm getting warm, here."

"H.E.A.T.?"

"Tatopoulos' team. Where the hell have you been?"

Off-planet, Daniel thought. Even when he was on Earth, the evening news wasn't his speed. Too much violence. "Who's Tatopoulos?"

The tent went dead silent. "You say you work for the Air Force, and you don't know the Worm Guy." Hicks shook his head. "Dr. Niko Tatopoulos? Used to work for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission? The guy that was supposed to be getting everyone on the ground out."

"He didn't know I was there," Daniel defended the man. A glimmer of recognition was sneaking through. Something about New York, the Chrysler Building....

The major snorted. "Whoever you are, you're not going anywhere until-" A harried sergeant pushed through the tent door, saluted. "What?"

The sergeant drew a deep breath. "He's legit, sir. Pentagon just confirmed it."

Hicks blinked. "Run that by me again, soldier?"

The sergeant thrust forward a sheaf of fax paper. "Fingerprints and ID check out, sir. Dr. Daniel Jackson. Linguist, archaeologist, anthropologist. Civilian consultant to-" the soldier's voice dropped. "Project Blue Book."

Hicks' gaze turned positively stormy.

The sergeant swallowed. "They say... he's supposed to be on furlough right now. But he's due back at work in a day, so they'd appreciate it if we expedited the doctor's trip to the nearest airport. Sir."

Hicks skewered the archaeologist with a look. "If you're on furlough, what are you doing in the middle of a mutation clean-up?"

"I got lost," Daniel repeated, for the dozenth time. "The last time I heard, that was still legal." He rattled the cuffs. "Do you mind?"

Hicks tossed his ID on the table. "Get him out of here."

Rubbing his wrists, Daniel collected his effects. "Major..." He could all but feel the heat of the grudge rising off the man. "Is something - wrong, between you and Dr. Tatopoulos?"

Nostrils flared. "Excuse me?"

Seriously wrong, then. Which didn't bode well for anyone, if Tatopoulos was the determined young man who'd taken that flying manta ray down. "You just... look like you needed to talk." Oops, Daniel thought, feeling the temperature in the tent drop ten degrees. Military, remember? They don't talk, they debrief.

The major eyed him with a gaze that could melt steel. "Stick to chasing little green men, Doctor. It's safer."