Disclaimer: See default chapter
Chapter Five: Over the Edge
Dirt and dust filled her nostrils, the resulting cough bringing Sam out of her stupor. She moaned, every muscle and joint in her body aching with fever, and rolled onto her side.
"Sam?"
Her name drifted to her, and she blinked, trying to bring the world into focus.
"Sam, wake up."
"Jack?" she whispered, her throat as dry as P3X-779.
A hand touched her shoulder, and she blinked again, bringing Daniel's face into focus. "It's Daniel. How do you feel?"
"Like I've lived through half a dozen Zat shots."
He smiled, but there was tension behind his expression.
"Where's the Colonel?" Sam asked, trying to sit up. Daniel supported her back as she came upright, and the dizziness seemed to shift from the front to the back of her head. "Oh, boy..." She swallowed down the nausea.
She realized Daniel hadn't answered, and looked into his face, holding her palm against her own forehead. "Daniel, where is the Colonel?"
"He prepares for battle even as we speak," Teal'c said from her right, and she looked up to see the big man standing over her. He grasped her elbow, and together with Daniel, Sam gained her feet.
Her surroundings swirled, and she leaned heavily into Teal'c, grasping Daniel's hand. She realized that they were no longer deep in the caverns, but at the mouth of a cave. Outside, the sun shone bright again, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. At least the weather had broken. Then her thoughts snapped back to what Teal'c had said.
"Battle? With whom? Why?" She looked between Teal'c stoic expression and Daniel's pained one. "Tell me what's going on," she demanded.
"I don't know what you remember, but we were jumped by a tribe of primitive Goa'ulds..."
"Goa'uld?" Sam spat the words.
Daniel nodded. "The chief of the clan believes that Jack is our... chief..." He threw a glance at Teal'c, seeming to silently ask for help, for which Teal'c raised one eyebrow. Daniel sighed, closed his eyes and waved his hand. "He says Jack is our chief, and challenged him to a fight."
"Why doesn't the Colonel just say no?"
"O'Neill believes his has no option but to battle. The cost is too great."
Sam looked at Teal'c. "Guys, I know my brain is fuzzy right now, but I swear you two are talking in riddles. What is it you're not telling me?"
She stared at Daniel, then Teal'c, who then looked at each other and back at her.
"They're fighting for you."
Sam stared at Daniel. He squinted his eyes and pressed his lips together before explaining further. "When the clan attacked us, you were... uh... sleeping with Jack. On Jack... beside..." Daniel fumbled around the words, and Sam felt her cheeks flush hotter. "The Chief thinks you are Jack's... woman... and he challenged Jack to a fight. For you. Winner takes all."
Before Sam could fully digest the information, and close her gaping jaw, a flurry of activity drew her attention outside the cave. Jack and the man she remembered as the one who dragged her from one of the caverns stood facing each other, both hunched in fighting stances. They moved around each other in slow circles, like two prizefighters. But what scared her the most, what caused her heart to catch in her throat, was how dangerously close they were to the cliff edge. From here, she judged the fall was at least three hundred feet down.
Sam bolted forward, only to stumble to her knees. "Sir! No!"
Jack looked to her, and the expression in his eyes squeezed her heart. It was the same type of look he had given her on the Goa'uld ship when the Tok'ra armbands had stopped working and he couldn't free her.
*I can't lose you now.*
His opponent took the opportunity to lunge at Jack, and they were immediately clenched in hand-to-hand combat. Around her, the other primitives shouted and cried out, raising their fists in the air. Daniel knelt beside her, his arm circling her shoulders.
"We have to stop this..." Sam said, her voice tight to her own ears.
There were no rules to the fight. Last man standing won. Sam held her breath as Jack and the chief exchanged blow after blow. The chief's eyes glowed a sinister white. Sam knew that, even though he appeared weaker than Jack, there would be hidden strength in him because of the Goa'uld that inhabited his body. She watched through burning eyes as the man she loved fought for her.
The chief picked up a large piece of wood, as long as Teal'c staff weapon, but twice as thick, and swung it at Jack's head. Jack dodged, but as he recovered, he was hit in the back of his knee and a loud cracking sound made Sam wince. His knee hit the rocks with a sickening thud and he cried out.
"Colonel!" Sam called out. "Daniel, Teal'c, please! We have to help him!"
"It is not allowed, Major Carter. The fight must be between them, and only them. To interfere would be punishable by death," Teal'c explained, but Sam heard the tightness in the Jaffa's voice. He didn't like it any more than she did.
No, Sam was pretty sure she hated this more than Daniel and Teal'c combined.
The chief gained the upper hand, and crouched over Jack, attacking his head and shoulders again and again with fists fortified by rocks in his grasp. Sam cried, unable to hold back the anguish that ripped her apart.
She gasped, holding her breath as Jack seemed to find a second wind. He grabbed the chief's shoulders and the tumbled together across the rocky crag. The voices of the tribe rose higher, now in protest. The chief tried to swing a rock at Jack's head one last time, but Jack twisted, planted his feet against his opponent's stomach, and powered his body backwards.
Unable to content with Jack's leverage, the chief flipped through the air, and with one long yell, went over the side of the cliff.
Sam stared for several moments, unable to move. Her lungs burned from lack of air and she sucked in a deep breath before scurrying across the rock to Jack's side.
He lay on his bad, arms spread out, with dirt and blood mixing on his face to mar his features. Sam knelt beside him, touching his cheek gingerly. Large drops of her own tears feel from her chin to leave wet circles in the dust coating his skin.
"Colonel?" she said urgently, trying to maintain some level of decorum. "Colonel, please." She wasn't sure what she was asking for, but only hoped someone had the answer.
His eyes opened and he looked up into her face. "Did I win?" he asked, his voice cracked.
Sam smiled and laughed, despite the panic that still pinched her chest. She leaned over and wrapped her arms around him as best she could. He lifted on arm to wrap around her waist and held her.
Chapter Five: Over the Edge
Dirt and dust filled her nostrils, the resulting cough bringing Sam out of her stupor. She moaned, every muscle and joint in her body aching with fever, and rolled onto her side.
"Sam?"
Her name drifted to her, and she blinked, trying to bring the world into focus.
"Sam, wake up."
"Jack?" she whispered, her throat as dry as P3X-779.
A hand touched her shoulder, and she blinked again, bringing Daniel's face into focus. "It's Daniel. How do you feel?"
"Like I've lived through half a dozen Zat shots."
He smiled, but there was tension behind his expression.
"Where's the Colonel?" Sam asked, trying to sit up. Daniel supported her back as she came upright, and the dizziness seemed to shift from the front to the back of her head. "Oh, boy..." She swallowed down the nausea.
She realized Daniel hadn't answered, and looked into his face, holding her palm against her own forehead. "Daniel, where is the Colonel?"
"He prepares for battle even as we speak," Teal'c said from her right, and she looked up to see the big man standing over her. He grasped her elbow, and together with Daniel, Sam gained her feet.
Her surroundings swirled, and she leaned heavily into Teal'c, grasping Daniel's hand. She realized that they were no longer deep in the caverns, but at the mouth of a cave. Outside, the sun shone bright again, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. At least the weather had broken. Then her thoughts snapped back to what Teal'c had said.
"Battle? With whom? Why?" She looked between Teal'c stoic expression and Daniel's pained one. "Tell me what's going on," she demanded.
"I don't know what you remember, but we were jumped by a tribe of primitive Goa'ulds..."
"Goa'uld?" Sam spat the words.
Daniel nodded. "The chief of the clan believes that Jack is our... chief..." He threw a glance at Teal'c, seeming to silently ask for help, for which Teal'c raised one eyebrow. Daniel sighed, closed his eyes and waved his hand. "He says Jack is our chief, and challenged him to a fight."
"Why doesn't the Colonel just say no?"
"O'Neill believes his has no option but to battle. The cost is too great."
Sam looked at Teal'c. "Guys, I know my brain is fuzzy right now, but I swear you two are talking in riddles. What is it you're not telling me?"
She stared at Daniel, then Teal'c, who then looked at each other and back at her.
"They're fighting for you."
Sam stared at Daniel. He squinted his eyes and pressed his lips together before explaining further. "When the clan attacked us, you were... uh... sleeping with Jack. On Jack... beside..." Daniel fumbled around the words, and Sam felt her cheeks flush hotter. "The Chief thinks you are Jack's... woman... and he challenged Jack to a fight. For you. Winner takes all."
Before Sam could fully digest the information, and close her gaping jaw, a flurry of activity drew her attention outside the cave. Jack and the man she remembered as the one who dragged her from one of the caverns stood facing each other, both hunched in fighting stances. They moved around each other in slow circles, like two prizefighters. But what scared her the most, what caused her heart to catch in her throat, was how dangerously close they were to the cliff edge. From here, she judged the fall was at least three hundred feet down.
Sam bolted forward, only to stumble to her knees. "Sir! No!"
Jack looked to her, and the expression in his eyes squeezed her heart. It was the same type of look he had given her on the Goa'uld ship when the Tok'ra armbands had stopped working and he couldn't free her.
*I can't lose you now.*
His opponent took the opportunity to lunge at Jack, and they were immediately clenched in hand-to-hand combat. Around her, the other primitives shouted and cried out, raising their fists in the air. Daniel knelt beside her, his arm circling her shoulders.
"We have to stop this..." Sam said, her voice tight to her own ears.
There were no rules to the fight. Last man standing won. Sam held her breath as Jack and the chief exchanged blow after blow. The chief's eyes glowed a sinister white. Sam knew that, even though he appeared weaker than Jack, there would be hidden strength in him because of the Goa'uld that inhabited his body. She watched through burning eyes as the man she loved fought for her.
The chief picked up a large piece of wood, as long as Teal'c staff weapon, but twice as thick, and swung it at Jack's head. Jack dodged, but as he recovered, he was hit in the back of his knee and a loud cracking sound made Sam wince. His knee hit the rocks with a sickening thud and he cried out.
"Colonel!" Sam called out. "Daniel, Teal'c, please! We have to help him!"
"It is not allowed, Major Carter. The fight must be between them, and only them. To interfere would be punishable by death," Teal'c explained, but Sam heard the tightness in the Jaffa's voice. He didn't like it any more than she did.
No, Sam was pretty sure she hated this more than Daniel and Teal'c combined.
The chief gained the upper hand, and crouched over Jack, attacking his head and shoulders again and again with fists fortified by rocks in his grasp. Sam cried, unable to hold back the anguish that ripped her apart.
She gasped, holding her breath as Jack seemed to find a second wind. He grabbed the chief's shoulders and the tumbled together across the rocky crag. The voices of the tribe rose higher, now in protest. The chief tried to swing a rock at Jack's head one last time, but Jack twisted, planted his feet against his opponent's stomach, and powered his body backwards.
Unable to content with Jack's leverage, the chief flipped through the air, and with one long yell, went over the side of the cliff.
Sam stared for several moments, unable to move. Her lungs burned from lack of air and she sucked in a deep breath before scurrying across the rock to Jack's side.
He lay on his bad, arms spread out, with dirt and blood mixing on his face to mar his features. Sam knelt beside him, touching his cheek gingerly. Large drops of her own tears feel from her chin to leave wet circles in the dust coating his skin.
"Colonel?" she said urgently, trying to maintain some level of decorum. "Colonel, please." She wasn't sure what she was asking for, but only hoped someone had the answer.
His eyes opened and he looked up into her face. "Did I win?" he asked, his voice cracked.
Sam smiled and laughed, despite the panic that still pinched her chest. She leaned over and wrapped her arms around him as best she could. He lifted on arm to wrap around her waist and held her.