Teal'c sat in the corner and observed the stillness. Once again they had been left alone. The blood on the floor from Jack's leg had dried and left a deep red stain on the cold floor. Teal'c looked over at Jack. His chest was moving. He was alive. Teal'c was thankful for that much. As Teal'c looked over at Jack he began to stir. "O'Neill!" Teal'c said, waking Jack up with a start.
"What the hell?" He muttered. Then remembering, he looked down at his leg. "Ah crap!" He pushed himself up with his hands and tried to stand. The repressed pain resurfaced and he yelled out before falling and sliding back down the wall, biting down on his lip, and cursing at no one and nothing in particular.
Jack closed his eyes and tried to ignore the pain. He was interrupted by the sound of footsteps. "Now what?" he leaned forward to get a better view as a Jaffa entered the room. He looked familiar. Then it became clear to Jack. He was the one who had shot Daniel. Totally ignoring his painful leg, Jack pushed himself up. "Damned son of a bitch!" he yelled. The Jaffa ignored him and walked over to the side. Jack watched him closely as he moved to press the button that would disengage the force shield. "You come in here and I swear I'll kill you," Jack said darkly, just loud enough for the Jaffa to hear him. The Jaffa dropped his hand and looked Jack in the eye.
"My name is Tal'Mah. I am Tok'ra"
Jack shook his head and almost laughed. "Why should I believe you?"
"It is true." Was the simple reply.
"You shot Daniel. You killed him!"
Tal'Mah sighed. "Daniel Jackson is fine. I took him to the sarcophagus. By now he should have completely healed."
Jack sat back down and attempted to absorb what he had just been told. Alive? Daniel is alive? Tal'Mah obviously had other ideas. "We must leave quickly. I do not know how long it will be before we are noticed." He disengaged the force shield and walked over to Jack. With Teal'c's help he pulled Jack up to stand.
Tal'Mah looked at Jack, a serious look on his face. "If I am caught helping you escape, it will endanger the Tok'ra greatly. You must leave quickly."
"Hey! Wait a minute!" Jack almost shouted as Tal'Mah began to turn away, "We came here to rescue a friend. We're not leaving without her."
Tal'Mah nodded. "Major Carter, Jacob's daughter. I am sorry for your loss, but no more can be risked than already has been. I am sure you understand."
"The hell I do! Look, you better make a decision now, because with or without your help we're not going back to Earth without Carter." Jack yelled.
Tal'Mah gave in and sighed. "Very well. I shall show you where she will be, but any more than that I cannot help you. My companion was tortured and killed by Anubis when it was discovered he was Tok'ra. He did not give away my position but I cannot risk that happening now. Do you understand?"
Jack nodded, as did Teal'c. Tal'Mah nodded in response and walked to the door, making sure no one was nearby. Teal'c helped Jack to follow as Tal'Mah continued down the corridor.
As Tal'Mah lead the way, Jack saw how much he was keeping Teal'c back. His leg had lost all feeling and was being dragged behind him as Teal'c struggled to keep up with Tal'Mah. Jack stood still. "Teal'c?" Teal'c stopped and looked at Jack.
"We must move quickly, O'Neill."
"No, Teal'c. Go on without me. I'm only holding you back."
Teal'c ignored Jack and tried to keep moving, but Jack pulled back again. "Damnit Teal'c I'm giving you a direct order. Go!"
"You will surely be killed."
"Yeah, Teal'c. Thanks for reminding me. But it's either that or I hold you back and we're both killed there's no chance of getting Carter back to Earth. Now go!"
Teal'c paused for what seemed like an eternity, before reluctantly letting go of Jack and continuing to catch up with Tal'Mah. Jack stood for a few moments until he was sure Teal'c had gone, before slowly turning around to get out of the corridor. He made his way into a nearby room and leaned on the wall before sliding down to the floor. This is it. This is where I'm going to die. He closed his eyes and shut out all feeling within him, welcoming the blackness that came with seriously overdue sleep.
A voice shook him awake. It seemed familiar, yet at the same time, like a stranger. He looked up from the corner where he sat. "Carter?"
Nephthys crouched down beside him. "You just don't get it do you? She's gone. Forever. I tell you this and still you do not learn." She paused. "You are of no use to me. Perhaps I should just kill you now, let my host watch as she sees her own hand be the one that ends your life."
"I thought you said she was gone."
Jack's comment was answered with a sour look from Nephthys. She looked over his face, a smile slowly spreading across her own features. She swiftly raised her hand over his head, the ribbon device wrapped around her wrist and the stone glowing softly. Jack closed his eyes and blocked out the sounds and sensations around him, but no matter how hard he tried, the burning pain crawled through his head like a raging fire. His breath caught in his throat and his eyes opened wide. As the pain seemed at its most intense, it came to an abrupt halt. His eyes shut tight. For a moment Jack thought that his life was over, but there was no light, no pearly gates and no fires of hell. He felt the ground beneath him and heard shouting. Slowly, he opened his eyes and scanned the room. Several Jaffa lay dead or unconscious around the room and Nephthys was staggering before him. Something inside told him everything was okay, and he found himself drifting off to sleep, and felt the sensation of being lifted up and carried away.
A/N: Please review! Only one more chapter to go! Please please please review!!
