"They found someone!"

Chad's announcement came sometime in the mid morning, and instantly everyone was in the command tent, gathered around the radio.

"Alive?"

"Yup. Murray. He's not hurt at all, they say, and they say he was with the other two, who are. But he knows where they are, and are leading the search teams to them, now."

The message was rushed, but Sam hung on every word.

"How long until they get to them?"

"No clue. They don't know how long he was walking, but the dogs have the trail now. We won't lose it, Major."

"Thank God."

"Amen."

"You said the others were injured?" Fraiser asked, stepping forward. "We need to get a medical team to them."

"We can't do anything until we know where they are, and how badly hurt they are."

Chad looked over to Hammond. "The snow is probably stable enough that we could risk a helicopter. I don't suppose-"

"We'll have one ready and waiting for your word," Hammond promised.

Kindell nodded, and turned back to his radio, but there wasn't much traffic that he needed to follow. Mostly it was word from one team to another that they'd found the missing people, and to head back to the lodge or the base command, whichever they were closest to.

There was relief in the air at the base Command center. None of them knew how badly injured the other adult or the boy were, but they'd been found! And that was something. The fact that they were alive – even if not so sound – was the topping on the proverbial cake.

~*~

"They found Murray!"

One of the Search team members had blurted the news almost before the message ended, and everyone in the lodge looked up, at the word.

"Is he all right?"

"Where?"

"Hush!" Shelby wanted an update, but couldn't hear over the other questions flying around. If everyone would be quiet they'd get their news that much faster. Everyone hushed, including the other search and rescuer people.

"He's leading the others to Andrew and Jack..."

There was a cheer of happiness, but they all hushed again when Shelby raised her hands for silence so she could hear what was next.

"Murray's not hurt, but he's telling the rescuers that Jack and Andrew are, but we don't know what's wrong with them until they get to them. The..." There was silence while they waited for the next message to come over the radio and for the searcher to pass it on. "The military is going to send a helicopter to get them out when we find them."

"Where are they going to take them?" Shawn asked, sitting up. "We have to get there."

"We'll have to wait."

The rescuer nodded, giving Shawn a sympathetic look. "We'll have to take you guys out by snowmobile until they get the road cleared – and I know none of you want to wait that long."

"Of course not."

"We'll have to wait you guys," the search leader said gently. She smiled, though, relieved. A relief they all felt as well. "We've waited all night, we can wait a little longer. At least everyone's been found."

~*~

"So what color... is the father of the puppies?" Jack asked.

"Black, like Shadow..."

"Why are all the puppies brown?"

"They're not. They're yellow... and two are black, like Shadow. The brown ones are called chocolate labs..."

Jack couldn't help the confused look on his face. One that Sam and Daniel knew well, but that Andrew hadn't seen before.

"Shouldn't they all be black?"

"Nah... you never know what color..." he paused, listening. 'Do you hear something, Jack?"

Jack didn't hear anything past the ringing in his head, which was throbbing painfully and had been for the last 12 hours. He shook his head, but listened as carefully as he could. He still didn't hear anything two minutes later when the first of the dogs broke through the roof of their little cave and landed squarely on Jack's legs. He tried to push the dog off, glad to see it but immediately recognizing the danger from above, and was trying to reach out to protect Andrew's legs as much as possible when another dog came crashing through as well, this one landing with a yelp of surprise on Jack's chest.

The Colonel yelped as loudly as the dog did, and clutched his chest, bringing his knees up protectively in case another one was coming after its buddies.

"Dogs!"

The two dogs were the only ones that came through the snow, although there were obviously more whuffling around above them. The two that were there swarmed Andrew, licking his face and whining, and the boy forgot his injuries in his relief at seeing help arriving.

"Jack! They're rescue dogs! Teal'c must have found help!"

O'Neill didn't answer. He couldn't answer. The last blow had been painful enough to take Jack's breath away completely, and he couldn't do anything but gasp and hold his chest, waiting for the pain to fade into something more manageable. As he heard voices yelling for the dogs to get back, Jack lost the battle with the pain. It wasn't fading. If anything, it was getting worse. Whatever the dog had done when it landed on him had been worse that what the mountain had dished up, and Jack felt himself blacking out.

"Jack?"

He heard Andrew calling his name, but he was beyond being called back. Not even the sudden fear in the boy's voice could jar him free of the blackness that was calling him, promising him comfort and rest. He'd done what he could, and that had to be enough...