Author's note: Yeah, I pretty much made up the weapon in question. (I
definitely made up the name, which is why it's so retarded) I'm terrible at
making up names I'll probably make up a few more things as the next
chapters come along, so bear with me !
~*~
"The damn door doesn't even have a knob," Shawn muttered glumly as it closed behind Jack and Daniel.
"What?" Fraiser asked from where she was examining Carter.
Shawn shook his head and reached down to scratch Jaffer's ears; well aware he owed the black lab his life. He walked over to the bed, slowly and stiffly – but that didn't mean he couldn't have been some help! - and looked down at Carter.
"Is she all right?"
"Yes. It looks like you're right and she's just knocked out." Fraiser looked at him, noting that he looked a little pale himself. "How do you feel?"
"Fine."
"Fine, huh?"
"Yes."
Shawn looked down and checked the charge on the weapon in his hand, and found it was fully recharged. It would have a good dozen shots of full strength energy before it needed to be allowed to recharge again.
"You know..." A soft whisper caught their attention and they both looked down to see that Sam had opened her eyes. She looked dazed, and slightly out of focus, but she was awake and trying to talk.
"Don't say anything, Sam," Fraiser said, resting her hand on the Major's forehead tenderly.
"He's not... mad... at you, Shawn..." Sam said, looking up at the young man, without moving her head, which was pounding.
Shawn nodded, and smiled faintly. Sam had always been the one to try to explain Jack to him, even when he was a little boy. And she was always dead on. It showed how very well she knew the man. And how much she cared for Shawn, since she had to be hurting like hell, and all she could think of was to protect his ego and feelings from Jack's anger.
"I know, Sam. He gets worried, and he yells." He leaned down and kissed her softly, which caused the Marine's eyes to widen considerably. "Thank you, though."
Sam smiled, and reached for his hand. "What happened?"
"How do you feel?" Fraiser asked her.
"Like I was hit by a truck. Head first. Did you guys get the driver?"
"He's dead," Shawn confirmed. "If Jack hadn't killed him, Jaffer would have."
"Crazy dog."
As if in response to his name, Jaffer jumped up onto the foot of Sam's bed, eliciting a dirty look from Fraiser, which he ignored completely. Sam smiled, painfully, and asked if she could have something for her head, which was pounding.
As Fraiser got her a glass of water and a couple of very strong painkillers, Shawn settled himself on the edge of the bed, although the hand he held the B'kedricti in was still slightly pointed at the door and his attention partially on Jaffer.
"Thanks."
"For what?"
Shawn smiled. "You think I didn't notice you jumping in front of me and pushing me out of the way?"
Sam echoed his smile. "You're important to me, too, Shawn. Jack doesn't have the monopoly on that."
"Obviously."
"Are you going to let him sprawl on you like that, Sam?" Fraiser asked, bringing water and medication over to the bed. Sam looked down at the foot of the bed, where the black lab was, literally, sprawled.
"He's not on me, Janet." Sam said, swallowing the tablets and washing them down with a long drink of the water.
"Why don't you tell him to move?"
"Why? He won't listen to me, even if I do."
"Shawn?"
The young man shook his head. "Sorry Doctor. You want him off; you'll have to wait until Jack tells him to move. He's got his orders, after all." There was still bitterness in Shawn's voice, since he realized that he, too, had orders, and no matter how badly he wanted to disobey them – and he did – he wouldn't.
~*~
"Report."
Jack and Daniel had made it to the briefing room without running into anything or anyone. Jack wasn't sure if he should be relieved or worried about that, though. There had to be more of the slimy bastards around the base, and he'd rather know where they were, even if it meant they were shooting at him.
"Three teams of dogs and handlers are coming down now, Sir," Sergeant Davis reported, holding a cellular phone. "I just notified General Hammond, and he's coming in from his house. His ETA is 30 minutes. No one else has had a run-in with any of the Ashrak, but everyone is on high alert, just in case, and all base travel – with the exception of the General, when he shows – has been suspended."
"It may be that we are closing the silo entry following the equine's escape," Teal'c said, darkly from the corner of the room. Everyone in the room stopped and tried to figure that out.
"Closing the barn door after the horse got out, Teal'c," Jack said, absently, reaching over and taking Walter's cell phone from him. "And you're right. I need to call Dotty, just to be on the safe side."
He dialed the number from memory, and after a few rings, a sleepy voice answered.
"Hello?"
"Dotty?"
"Jack?"
"Yeah. Listen... we have a problem. About 10 minutes ago, an Ashrak attacked Shawn – the older version of Shawn – here on the base. Ar-"
"An Ashrak? Are you certain?" She was wide-awake, now.
"Oh, yeah. We killed it, but we don't know how many more there might be, and we're not positive that at least one hasn't made it off the base. They're invisible."
"Yes, I know. Do you have any Heftarii?"
"Heftarii?" Jack looked at Teal'c as he said the word, hoping for an explanation, but the Jaffa shrugged. He'd never heard it before.
"It's a device that modifies the sound and radio waves in a small area. If you had some, it would negate the Ashrak advantage of invisibility. It interferes with most cloaking devices at the source. Large or small."
"We don't have any." Jack told her, wishing very much that he did. "Listen, Dotty. You need to get to Shawn – the little Shawn – and make sure he's really okay. I'm not sure if I mentioned where he was and if I did, I'm not sure that it wasn't someplace that one of these assassin guys might not have overheard it."
"I'll take care of Shawn, Jack."
"Do you need me to send you some men? I can spare as many as you think will help to keep-"
"No Ashrak can hurt Shawn with me around him, Jack." Dotty told him, certainly. Jack believed her. After all, she was one of the Ancients, right? Probably had a ton of cool weapons. Too bad he couldn't bring her to the base. But that was out of the question. Besides, little Shawn needed her a lot more than Jack did. "Send someone out here, Jack. I have several heftarii, and I will give them to you."
"I'll do that, Dotty. Thanks."
O'Neill tossed the phone back to Sergeant Davis.
"Call Hammond back and send him over to Shawn's house. He knows where it is. Tell him Dotty Adams is going to give him some Atari's that will help us see these Ashrak through their cloaking devices."
Davis started dialing, and Jack looked up as the door opened and two men with two German shepherds walked in, reporting.
"We can't wait for Hammond, though," he told Teal'c, Daniel and the others. "I don't want these guys on the base any longer than necessary."
~*~
"The damn door doesn't even have a knob," Shawn muttered glumly as it closed behind Jack and Daniel.
"What?" Fraiser asked from where she was examining Carter.
Shawn shook his head and reached down to scratch Jaffer's ears; well aware he owed the black lab his life. He walked over to the bed, slowly and stiffly – but that didn't mean he couldn't have been some help! - and looked down at Carter.
"Is she all right?"
"Yes. It looks like you're right and she's just knocked out." Fraiser looked at him, noting that he looked a little pale himself. "How do you feel?"
"Fine."
"Fine, huh?"
"Yes."
Shawn looked down and checked the charge on the weapon in his hand, and found it was fully recharged. It would have a good dozen shots of full strength energy before it needed to be allowed to recharge again.
"You know..." A soft whisper caught their attention and they both looked down to see that Sam had opened her eyes. She looked dazed, and slightly out of focus, but she was awake and trying to talk.
"Don't say anything, Sam," Fraiser said, resting her hand on the Major's forehead tenderly.
"He's not... mad... at you, Shawn..." Sam said, looking up at the young man, without moving her head, which was pounding.
Shawn nodded, and smiled faintly. Sam had always been the one to try to explain Jack to him, even when he was a little boy. And she was always dead on. It showed how very well she knew the man. And how much she cared for Shawn, since she had to be hurting like hell, and all she could think of was to protect his ego and feelings from Jack's anger.
"I know, Sam. He gets worried, and he yells." He leaned down and kissed her softly, which caused the Marine's eyes to widen considerably. "Thank you, though."
Sam smiled, and reached for his hand. "What happened?"
"How do you feel?" Fraiser asked her.
"Like I was hit by a truck. Head first. Did you guys get the driver?"
"He's dead," Shawn confirmed. "If Jack hadn't killed him, Jaffer would have."
"Crazy dog."
As if in response to his name, Jaffer jumped up onto the foot of Sam's bed, eliciting a dirty look from Fraiser, which he ignored completely. Sam smiled, painfully, and asked if she could have something for her head, which was pounding.
As Fraiser got her a glass of water and a couple of very strong painkillers, Shawn settled himself on the edge of the bed, although the hand he held the B'kedricti in was still slightly pointed at the door and his attention partially on Jaffer.
"Thanks."
"For what?"
Shawn smiled. "You think I didn't notice you jumping in front of me and pushing me out of the way?"
Sam echoed his smile. "You're important to me, too, Shawn. Jack doesn't have the monopoly on that."
"Obviously."
"Are you going to let him sprawl on you like that, Sam?" Fraiser asked, bringing water and medication over to the bed. Sam looked down at the foot of the bed, where the black lab was, literally, sprawled.
"He's not on me, Janet." Sam said, swallowing the tablets and washing them down with a long drink of the water.
"Why don't you tell him to move?"
"Why? He won't listen to me, even if I do."
"Shawn?"
The young man shook his head. "Sorry Doctor. You want him off; you'll have to wait until Jack tells him to move. He's got his orders, after all." There was still bitterness in Shawn's voice, since he realized that he, too, had orders, and no matter how badly he wanted to disobey them – and he did – he wouldn't.
~*~
"Report."
Jack and Daniel had made it to the briefing room without running into anything or anyone. Jack wasn't sure if he should be relieved or worried about that, though. There had to be more of the slimy bastards around the base, and he'd rather know where they were, even if it meant they were shooting at him.
"Three teams of dogs and handlers are coming down now, Sir," Sergeant Davis reported, holding a cellular phone. "I just notified General Hammond, and he's coming in from his house. His ETA is 30 minutes. No one else has had a run-in with any of the Ashrak, but everyone is on high alert, just in case, and all base travel – with the exception of the General, when he shows – has been suspended."
"It may be that we are closing the silo entry following the equine's escape," Teal'c said, darkly from the corner of the room. Everyone in the room stopped and tried to figure that out.
"Closing the barn door after the horse got out, Teal'c," Jack said, absently, reaching over and taking Walter's cell phone from him. "And you're right. I need to call Dotty, just to be on the safe side."
He dialed the number from memory, and after a few rings, a sleepy voice answered.
"Hello?"
"Dotty?"
"Jack?"
"Yeah. Listen... we have a problem. About 10 minutes ago, an Ashrak attacked Shawn – the older version of Shawn – here on the base. Ar-"
"An Ashrak? Are you certain?" She was wide-awake, now.
"Oh, yeah. We killed it, but we don't know how many more there might be, and we're not positive that at least one hasn't made it off the base. They're invisible."
"Yes, I know. Do you have any Heftarii?"
"Heftarii?" Jack looked at Teal'c as he said the word, hoping for an explanation, but the Jaffa shrugged. He'd never heard it before.
"It's a device that modifies the sound and radio waves in a small area. If you had some, it would negate the Ashrak advantage of invisibility. It interferes with most cloaking devices at the source. Large or small."
"We don't have any." Jack told her, wishing very much that he did. "Listen, Dotty. You need to get to Shawn – the little Shawn – and make sure he's really okay. I'm not sure if I mentioned where he was and if I did, I'm not sure that it wasn't someplace that one of these assassin guys might not have overheard it."
"I'll take care of Shawn, Jack."
"Do you need me to send you some men? I can spare as many as you think will help to keep-"
"No Ashrak can hurt Shawn with me around him, Jack." Dotty told him, certainly. Jack believed her. After all, she was one of the Ancients, right? Probably had a ton of cool weapons. Too bad he couldn't bring her to the base. But that was out of the question. Besides, little Shawn needed her a lot more than Jack did. "Send someone out here, Jack. I have several heftarii, and I will give them to you."
"I'll do that, Dotty. Thanks."
O'Neill tossed the phone back to Sergeant Davis.
"Call Hammond back and send him over to Shawn's house. He knows where it is. Tell him Dotty Adams is going to give him some Atari's that will help us see these Ashrak through their cloaking devices."
Davis started dialing, and Jack looked up as the door opened and two men with two German shepherds walked in, reporting.
"We can't wait for Hammond, though," he told Teal'c, Daniel and the others. "I don't want these guys on the base any longer than necessary."