.

As they were dialing the gate address for the Tokra base, Sam thought about the few details that the Captain had related about the upcoming mission. Hopefully, she could make a better assessment of the situation when she got there. If nothing else, she was looking forward to 'touching bases' with the other members of SG-1.

====o0o==== End Part 8 ====o0o====

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PART 9: Doctor's Orders

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After gating to P4X-157, the secret Tokra staging area for the death gliders, Sam followed the Captain to the makeshift headquarters. SGC and Tokra personnel were swarming over the base and everyone was in a hurry. She and the other two pilots followed the Beckforce over to a clump of officers crowded around a recognizable battle-staging table. There were maps, star charts and asundry paperwork scattered all over the large table.

Catching the group's attention, the Captain spoke to the senior officer, "Colonel Sergreem, I was able to find 3 more pilots at the Beta Site," and he gestured respectfully at Sam and the other two officers.

"Major Carter!" Col. Sergreem gave her a broad grin, "Are we glad to see you! Where have you been?"

"It's a long story, Colonel," she returned wearily, but with a small smile in reply to his.

"Well, we can sure use your help, here. Has the Captain brought you up to speed?" Sergreem inquired.

"We've only had time for the basics, sir. I understand that you will be staging an attack against 3 motherships simultaneously…that the Tokra have devised some kind of enhanced warheads…and that you are looking for all the pilots that you can lay your hands on…"

"Yes, that's pretty much it in a nutshell," the Colonel confirmed. "Captain, take care of getting the two Lieutenants into Sortie 3, and let's slot the Major into Sortie 2."

"Yes, sir," Beckforce responded.

"Major, FYI, Sortie 2 is Colonel O'Neill's mission," the Colonel shared with a small smile.

"Thank you, sir," she replied. "Um, and sir, there's something you should know….I sustained some injuries to my back on a previous mission. I'm…sort of AWOL from the infirmary…"

Scrutinizing her more closely, he narrowed his eyes and noticed that her face was pale and that she definitely didn't look like the healthy Major Sam Carter that he was used to seeing around the SGC. "Can you fly?" He asked for her assessment.

"Yes, sir. And to be honest, it sounds a lot better than walking with a pack on…," she smiled ruefully, and he wondered what was behind that. "I'm taking some antibiotics and they had me on some pain meds that I think are pretty much out of my system now. If you have a medical setup somewhere here, I'd like to get some bandages changed before we head out?"

"Good idea," he agreed. "And, Carter, when was the last time that you ate something?" He knew how much her time was in demand and he had been in the commissary enough times listening to O'Neill grouse about his 2IC's lack of ability to make sure that she ate and slept enough. Sergreem also knew that Major Carter was always on call to deal with problems and issues with the Stargate, that she was the first person who they asked to figure out newly discovered alien technology, and that she still somehow managed to go on real missions with SG-1.

At that she looked guilty, "Well, sir, I'm not exactly sure, but I do think it's been awhile." She hedged the answer, not wanting to admit that it had been several days. Unless he was willing to count the IV…

Nodding his head when he got the answer he was suspecting, "Captain, take the two Lieutenants to the airboss for Sortie 3 and then escort the Major to the doc at the infirmary. After the doc has checked her over, show her to the commissary and then report back to me," and then he turned back to her, "And, Major, after you've had something to eat, report back to me and we'll get you set up in a ship."

"Yes, sir," both Sam and the Captain chorused.

As she turned to follow the Captain, she turned back to the Colonel, "Sir, if I may ask, where is Colonel O'Neill?"

"He hasn't arrived yet, but we are expecting both he and Teal'c to come through the gate at anytime," he replied with understanding at her request.

Capt. Beckforce next led her to the impromptu medical tent where he waved at the doctor who was going through some medical supplies. "Doctor Cooper, Major Carter would like to speak with you."

"Captain. Major," the doctor greeted the two officers.

"Doctor," Sam returned and then turned to her escort, "Captain, I'll probably be here for a little while, so why don't you go and take care of yourself for awhile. Get some clean clothes and something to eat."

"Ma'am, the Colonel instructed me to…"

"Captain, I am sure that the doc, here, can give me instructions to find the commissary after I'm done here. I'll meet you back at the command tent, Captain," she gave him a gentle smile to help him accept her orders.

"Yes, ma'am," Beckforce still looked a bit reluctant, but he also really did want to get a shower and a clean set of clothes….

"It's allright, go on," and she gave him a gentle push towards the door, "Give a lady her privacy," with her small grin still in place and the young officer finally let himself head out the door.

"So, Major, what can I do for you?" Doctor Cooper inquired.

Taking a deep breath, she turned back to the doc, "My back was injured on a previous mission and I need the bandages and dressings changed. I also need to get some pain meds to help a bit, but I need to make sure that whatever it is, that I can still fly. I'm going to pitch in as support on one of the Sorties."

"Allright then, how about if you step back here and take off your jacket and shirt and let me take a look at the damage and we can go from there," and he gestured to a privacy screen in the corner as he handed her another of those ever-present hospital gown-tops.

Obediently stepping behind the screen, Sam gingerly took off her jacket, the movements necessarily flexing and stretching her back muscles and tightening against the tape holding the bandages in place. Getting the T-shirt off was more difficult, but she managed by simply taking it slow. And, she didn't have to worry about a bra as the Captain hadn't obtained one when he'd gotten clothes for her back at the Beta Site - but she wouldn't have put one on anyway…She figured it would be several weeks before her back would be able to handle the pressure of a bra strap. Finally slipping the hospital top on so that it opened along the back, she stepped back around to let the doc know that she was ready and found that he was watching for her. The look in his eyes told her that he'd been assessing how long it took her in order to figure out the extent of the damage before he saw it.

Breaking his gaze, "Ready, doc." She wanted to get this over with.

Nodding, he pointed at the nearest cot, "Lie down here and we'll take a look at it."

Obediently, she lay face down on the cot and he pulled the privacy screen over so that they were out of view of anyone walking into or through the infirmary. Next, he opened the back of the gown to take a look at the dressings and she heard his sharp intake of breath. "Major! What the hell happened here?" He was stunned at the extent of the bandaging. Her back was completely covered in overlapping bandages and a few of them were actually wound all the way around her midriff for security.

"Just a few souvenirs from SG-1's last mission, doc," she replied into the thin infirmary pillow. She heard him sigh in exasperation and then she could feel him start to tug at the bandages. She tensed herself for the pain that she knew was coming. She knew that he would try to be as gentle as was possible, but she also knew that he wouldn't be able to make it painless.

It took nearly 10 minutes for him to cut off and remove all of the bandages. When he was done he was horrified at the extent of the wounds. Her back was a mottling of sickly yellow, green and purple bruises criss-crossed by welts and cuts…some of which had been stitched up. Carefully, and trying to be as gentle as possible, he cleaned and sterilized the wounds and then applied some antibiotic ointments. Next, he re-bandaged with clean, dry dressings. She was quiet throughout his ministrations. She tensed and flinched occasionally when he touched or pulled on something and he knew that she was in considerable pain, but she didn't say a word.

Finally finished, he sat back and considered what to say. She really should stay right where she was until they could get her back to the SGC infirmary. Unfortunately, he was a military doctor, and he knew that he was there to support the military operations in progress…and he knew that they needed every available pilot… that they needed every possible ship in order to pull off this hastily assembled offensive against the Go'a'uld. Doctors throughout the ages had wrestled with these conflicting priorities.

"Doc?" his patient inquired, wondering why all of the movements had stopped.

Sighing, he responded, "All done, let me help you sit up," and he helped her up so that she was sitting on the side of the cot. "Why don't I help you get your T-shirt and jacket back on and then we'll talk about what's next."

"I'd appreciate that," she replied gratefully and her lack of argument told him quite a bit about how she was truly feeling. With her still sitting on the side of the cot, he stood behind her and helped her get the T-shirt and jacket back on.

Moving around to face her from the front, he slid the privacy screen back to the side. He sat down on the cot across from her so that they were facing each other and could see that she was patiently waiting for him to speak. "You and I both know that in normal circumstances, I would ground you. There is no way you'd be flying – or even walking out of here, to be honest. I should give you a sedative and confine you to bed rest for at least the next 24 hours." He watched her face closely and she didn't react, she didn't try to object, she just waited for him to continue.

"Major, Doctor?" the Captain had returned. He looked refreshed after a shower and a clean set of clothes. "When I didn't find you in the commissary, I thought I'd swing by and see if I could escort you from here when you are finished?"

Smiling at his enthusiasm, the doctor turned to him, "Captain, why don't you give us another 15 minutes or so and then we'll let you know what's next?"

Beckforce's face showed his concern and puzzlement, but he acquiesced, "Yes, sir," and turned and left them alone again.

Turning back to his still quiet patient, "I'm going to ask you to run through some mobility movements and stretches so that I can get a better assessment of whether or not you can deal with the flight controls." Seeing her nod her acceptance, he kept her sitting on the cot while directing her through sets of movements while he watched and measured her range of motion – and he watched her face very carefully to try and gauge how the pain was affecting her. But she kept the pain from her face.

"Allright, Major, I'm going to have to let you go. I don't want to – I -really- do not want to," and he made sure that he could see the comprehension in her face, "but they need pilots too badly for me to confine you to a bed here. I know full well, that you are undoubtedly AWOL from the SGC infirmary and I figure that you already have at least one of my colleagues very, very pissed off at you." She couldn't keep a little guilt from showing on her face in response to his fairly accurate deduction. The only thing that he'd gotten wrong was the location of the infirmary.

"However, you did make it here, and now that you are here, I know that I can't ground you when they need pilots so desperately." He was repeating himself a bit here, but he wanted to make his point. She respectfully remained quiet and let him state his peace.

"You need to stay on these antibiotics that you have," and he passed the bottle of antibiotics back to her. "You can't take these pain meds while flying," and he held up the bottle of pain pills that she'd brought from the Beta Site, "so I'll get you some that you can take to take some of the edge off the pain in your back. You won't be able to take much, because you'll need to maintain situational awareness in the cockpit." He wasn't telling her anything that all pilots weren't fully aware of but she didn't interrupt or object.

"There are 18 hours before you takeoff. You will get at least 2 square meals – which I will watch you eat right here," and now she started open her mouth to object, "This is NON-negotiable, Major," he didn't give her a chance. "I -will- ground you if I have to," and she didn't say whatever had been on her lips.

"After you have eaten, I will accompany you over to Colonel Sergreem where I will fill him in on your situation. I'll give you about two hours to get your mission information and instructions and then you will present yourself back here to get at least 8 hours of sleep. After that, you can join up with your group and I'll step out of your way – until you get back. You will present yourself to me, personally, when you return. At which point, you will be grounded, Major. No discussion, no debates. Understood?"

Her brow furrowed a bit at his completeness, but she simply nodded. "Yes, doctor," she gave him and he was proud of the respect that he could hear in her voice.

"And, Major, if I do not see you here after you return from the mission, I will personally conduct your next major annual physical…," he threatened. Rolling her eyes, she grinned a little for him and "Yes, doctor," came at him again in a rueful voice.

The Captain returned just then and the doctor instructed him to fetch a tray of foods for the Major and to bring it back to the infirmary. Worried, Beckforce asked, "Um, ma'am, are you allright? Will you be able to fly?"

"Yes, I'll be able to fly, the doctor here just isn't ready to let go of my scintillating company," and she flashed him a smile. "Captain, have you had a chance to get something to eat yet?"

"Not yet, ma'am," he responded.

"Well, then, why don't you pick yourself up some lunch, dinner or breakfast – whatever the time is here – and bring it over and join me? Otherwise I'm going to be eating by myself while being watched by the doc here," she invited.

"Yes, ma'am, I'll be back in a few minutes," and then he called back over his shoulder, "and it's between breakfast and lunch right now, ma'am, so I'm not sure what they'll have available."

"Anything is fine, Captain," she sent after his retreating figure.

He returned about 10 minutes later with 2 trays of steaming military food. Guaranteed to fill you up even if it would never be served in any fine restaurant. The two of them sat amicably eating in one corner of the infirmary tent while she plied him with questions about the upcoming mission.

Thirty minutes later, they all trooped over to the command tent where they found Colonel Sergreem speaking with another group of officers. He looked up expectantly as the threesome approached and a look of concern appeared when he realized that the doctor had felt it necessary to escort the Major on her return from the infirmary.

"So, doc, what's the verdict?" He decided to waste no time.

"Major Carter has extensive cuts and bruises covering her back," and he held up his hand as the Colonel immediately began to ask more questions, "I am clearing her to fly, but only on a few conditions." Going on to spell out his conditions, he made it clear that he expected nothing but compliance. He had the authority to ground her and they all knew it.

"Allright, we'll see to it that Carter complies with everything that you've spelled out doctor," and he gave her a sympathetic look. "Captain, if you would take Major Carter around and get her kitted out, and then take her to Captain Wilson. Major, you will join Capt. Wilson's squad. They will set you up with a plane and bring you up to speed on the flight plans and everything else that you need to know."

"Yes, sir," she and the Captain responded.

Watching them go, the Colonel watched as his Captain immediately began talking animatedly to the Major as they exited the tent. "There goes another one," he said in a low, quiet voice of admiration.

"Another what, sir?" the doctor asked.

"Another SGC officer smitten with Carter," and he grinned and raised an eyebrow at the doctor. "It only took, what, a couple of hours? That young man is quite beside himself."

"She did invite him to have lunch with her," the doctor provided, and then seeing the questioning look on the Colonel's face, he added, "I ordered her to eat lunch in the infirmary so I could make sure that she ate a full meal."

"So, doc, anything else you can tell me? Like how she got injured in the first place?" he asked.

"She didn't give me any specifics, she just said that it was from her last mission with SG-1 and that it had been a few days ago. The rapid-fire events of the past few days, coupled with hopping to different planets each in their own time zone, so to speak, and she's sort of lost track of the exact timing of everything. I expect we won't get it all sorted out until these missions are over and we can all get back to the SGC and compare notes."

"But she's going to be OK to fly, right?" He persisted.

"Her back is covered with bruises, welts and cuts," he went into more detail now for the Colonel than he had when the Captain had been present, "Some have stitches that she received at the Beta Site. They also got her started on antibiotics and she's still got a slight fever, but I think that she's beating that. Her entire back is covered in bandages and dressings. She's in pain, sir, but she seems to have a clear head and her range of motion will allow her to pilot a ship. I've given her some very mild painkillers that she can take over the next few hours and then on the flight back after the mission objectives are complete," he paused and then he continued. "When she returns for the rack time that I've required, I'll give her a mild sedative. After that, and another square meal consumed in my presence, and I will release her to you."

"Understood. And, thanks, doc. You are taking good care of her," he let the obviously worried doctor know that they appreciated his efforts and the ethical quandary that he faced.

==========================

Back in the present, lying in the cave, the pain brought her out of her memories.

She took a few shaky breaths.
She was finding breathing more and more difficult.
Her breaths were rattling in and out of her lungs.
She wondered how high her fever was.

Looking over at the flashlight, she could see that they were very dim now.
They wouldn't last much longer.
She knew that if she was going to try changing the batteries, that she'd have to do it soon.

Slow…painful…shallow….painful….breaths….

Screwing up the courage to try to change the batteries, she decided to take a couple more pain tablets before tackling the flashlight. Again tearing open the packet with her teeth, she let the tablets drop into her mouth and then she negotiated the water bottle so that she had a little water to help swallow them.

That done, she rested.

Slow….painfully slow….shallow….ragged…painful….breaths….

Breathe…just breathe…..concentrate on the air in……and the air out…..

Her meditation practice with Teal'c was helping her concentrate and maintain her focus, although she knew that she wouldn't be able to hold out much longer.

Turning now to the flashlight, she got the spare batteries laid out right next to the light. She carefully planned her next moves. She would leave the flashlight turned on as she unscrewed the top. The light would go out and she'd have to dump the old batteries out and put the new ones in one-handed… and in the utter darkness.

Slow…painful…breaths….and her body shuddered from the pain, the fever and the chills. Pain wracked through her and she squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, willing the rip tide of pain to pass and to die down to just a raging fire.

Slowly, the pain abated a bit. Not much, but it was enough that she felt relief across her body.

Slow, shallow breaths.

It was now, or never, she decided and she picked up the flashlight and unscrewed the top. The dim light winked out leaving her blind in the oppressive darkness.

Carefully, she pried the old batteries out. Moving her hand back to where the spare batteries were, she picked one of them up and felt the battery terminals in the flashlight and then on the battery. Orienting the battery correctly, she snapped the first one in place and then repeated the procedure for the rest of the batteries.

Now came the hard part, screwing the flashlight back together with only one hand.

Bracing the flashlight against her tortured thigh, she bit back the pain, and tried to seat the flashlight top onto the threads and then she slowly turned the top. She felt the threads grab and then the light winked back on. Much stronger than before and unbelievably welcome after the pitch black.

Sighing in relief, she lay back and let the flashlight lay along her side, sending its light at the wall in front of her. She didn't care. It was back on and she could see enough that she didn't feel blind.

Lying there, she went back to concentrating on breathing and tried to ignore the raging fire and pain that was threatening to consume her.

She let her thoughts drift back again to their mission against the 3 mother ships…

==========================

She'd followed orders to the letter. Capt. Beckforce had helped get her kitted out for flight operations. She'd met with the airboss for Sortie 2 and received directions and flight information and plans. Next, Beckforce had taken her to meet with Captain Wilson, the commander of the squad that she was joining.

"Major Carter, it is an honor to meet you," Captain Wilson greeted her.

"Wish it were under better circumstances, Captain," she returned with a slight grin.

"Yes, ma'am. But we all feel very lucky that you will be joining our squad, ma'am," Wilson continued. "And, ma'am, as you are the ranking officer, I officially hand command of Viper squad over to you."

"No, son, you are retaining command. I am just here to pitch in. I was injured on a previous mission and am in no shape to take command of your squad from you. You know your men, you'll lead them. I'll just try and keep up with you young bucks," she informed him.

"Yes, ma'am," and she could see the pride in his eyes in response to her words.

The four members of Viper Squad had then spent the two hours going through flight plans, flight operations, rules of engagement, emergency contingencies, etc. Finally, they wrapped it up and headed off to get some rack time.

Sam found Captain Beckforce waiting for her as the squad meeting wound down. Seeing her looking at him, the Captain came over, "The doctor sent me to escort you back to the infirmary, ma'am," he told her apologetically.

She rolled her eyes and he chuckled a little before he could stop himself. "No problem, Captain, the last thing I'm going to argue about is some rack time right now. Lead the way."

"Major?" Captain Wilson called from behind her, "Um, Major, I..um…I would like to speak with the doctor regarding your injuries…since I am the squad leader, I feel that I should know a bit more before we head out…?"

She regarded him quietly. He was right. He should speak to the doctor about any of his team – he should know what he was dealing with. Normally, he wouldn't have had to even ask, but then, normally, he would have rank on all of the members in his team. "Of course, Captain, why don't you come along with us," and she gave him a look of encouragement to let him know that he was handling his command properly.

Sighing in relief, Wilson fell in beside them as they walked over to the medical tent.

The doctor looked up as soon as they entered. "It's about time, Major. Any longer and I was going to send a few SFs after you…," but she knew he was joking – they weren't that much past his original time estimates and demands.

"These two Captains sufficed just fine, doc," and she turned back to Beckforce, "Captain, thank you very much for all of your consideration. I appreciate everything that you've done."

"Thank you, ma'am," and he left reluctantly.

"Doc, Captain Wilson here is leading the squad that I'm joining. He'd like to get the lowdown on my medical status before we head out. While you two gentlemen are talking, where do you want me to get settled?" Sam asked.

"Right over there would be fine," and he pointed at the cot furthest from the door and against the back wall. "It should be fairly quiet and you can pull that screen over for some privacy."

She also noticed that it was the portion of the medical tent that would be the hardest to escape unseen from. She met his gaze and saw his complete understanding in his grin and raised eyebrow. Rolling her eyes again, she stepped towards the back of the tent, "You don't need to worry about me, doc, sleep is at the top of my list of priorities right now. Captain, don't let the doc keep you up too long, you need some serious rack time too," she warned him with a smile as she turned and left them to talk about her.

"There are meds that I want you to take, you'll find then next to the bed," the doctor sent after her.

She remembered swallowing the tablets and then pulling off her boots, but that had been it…then she'd just crashed out face down on the cot and fallen into a deep sleep.

Sometime later, she felt someone holding her arm and she swam towards consciousness to see the doc taking her pulse. Finished with that, and seeing that she was watching him, he moved the blood pressure cuff onto her arm and took her BP before speaking.

"How do you feel, Major?" he asked.

"Peachy, just peachy," tumbled out before she thought about it. Jack O'Neill was a bad influence and she saw the doctor's look of disbelief. And then she realized where she was. The secret Tokra base. Oh, yeah, they had a mission to fly in a few hours. Looking back up at the doctor, she realized that he was watching her closely.

"Feel a little stiff and sore. Back hurts a bit," she admitted because she knew that she wasn't telling him anything that he didn't already know.

Looking a bit disappointed at her less than informative response, he asked her to sit up and he slowly ran her through the same set of movements that he had earlier. Satisfied that nothing was worse, he took her temperature again. While she was sitting there with the thermometer in her mouth, her young escort appeared again.

"Good to see you up, ma'am," Capt. Beckforce smiled at her.

"Thank you, Captain," she mumbled around the thermometer.

"Major, the doc has instructed me to get you another tray of food from the commissary. Any requests?" he solicited.

She shook her head 'no', "Anything is fine. And, Captain, I would be honored if you'd join me again, if you haven't eaten of course. You'd be saving me from eating here self-consciously under the doc's scrutiny."

"Yes, ma'am," the young man replied and set off happily to the mess hall.

"Careful, there, Major," the doctor cautioned as he took the thermometer from her and examined its readings.

"What..?" she asked in confusion, worriedly looking at the thermometer.

Seeing her puzzlement and where she was looking, he shook his head, "Your temperature is now basically normal, the antibiotics are doing their job," and he paused for a moment while she looked at him quizzically. She'd been following his instructions to the letter and didn't know what he was warning her about.

Smiling at her, "The young Captain there appears to be a bit smitten with you," he elaborated. At first, she showed no reaction, it was as if she were frozen, and then her brow furrowed a bit and her eyes widened and then she shook her head negatively at him. "No, doc, I think you've got that wrong, he's just young and enthusiastic. You should have seen him at the Beta Site. Whoever tasked him for his position did a great job of fitting him to something that he does extremely well."

"Uh huh," was all the doctor returned so she looked away uncomfortably. He smiled at her again, shook his head and left her alone while she finished getting ready to head out.

A few minutes later, the energetic Captain returned with 2 full trays of food and they sat and ate while making amicable conversation. The young Captain was obviously in awe of SG-1 and its legends, but she didn't want to spend her time regaling him with those stories, so she asked him to tell her about himself instead. The time passed quickly for both of them and soon she was giving the doc her thanks for his time and efforts.

"Just remember what I told you about reporting to me personally when the mission is completed. I meant what I said."

"Yes, sir!" she replied with a grin as she headed over to the hangars to join up with her squad as they worked with the air crews to get the planes flight-ready.

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====o0o==== End Part 9 ====o0o====

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