Mirror Mirror
Part Four
This was not good.
This was so not good.
The hall was large and reminiscent of various halls into which SG-1 had been dragged to face Goa'uld System Lords. The décor certainly never changed. Why gold anyway? It was so...so eighties. Tacky and overdone. Passe.
Carter-Ammonet paced up and down the dais, wide blue eyes concentrating on a point several feet before her. "It is most intriguing," the snake-head declared, gripping Daniel's chin between her thumb and forefinger and yanking his head around – the better to study his face. "You say there was a woman who resembled this host and a man who looked like the former First Prime?"
"Yes. They seized the First Prime," Daniel-Klor'el told her. "They hope to have turned him to their cause and to use him to leave this place." The pale eyes narrowed as he regarded Jack. "They are human?"
"It would appear so," Ammonet mused. "The resemblance is remarkable..."
"Perhaps they are from...somewhere else..."
Jack had to admit it was freaky, watching and listening to not-Daniel and not-Carter have a conversation. Watching the way Klor'el moved his arms and the stillness of Ammonet as she considered the situation, Jack could definitely say that something of the host survived. He'd seen those mannerisms in his team-mates more times than he could clearly remember.
Of course, the outfit was not Carter and the robes and jewellery were most definitely not Daniel. The ribbon device was a bit of a giveaway and as for the voices...
He hoped Carter and Teal'c were somewhere safe. He hoped they'd managed to convince his double to play nice and get over five years of rooting for the Goa'uld. He hoped they wouldn't come in on some cockamamie rescue mission – and he hoped they would.
Heck, he knew they would – it was the SG-1 motto: No-one gets left behind.
Damn. Taught them a little too well...
"Where do you come from?" Ammonet demanded of Daniel, blue eyes flaring gold. Daniel had a horrified expression in his eyes as he looked up at the Goa'uld, betraying his discomfort at being confronted this way by a familiar face.
Actually, the whole thing was giving Jack a bad case of the creeps. All his team-mates' brilliance of mind in the hands of the Goa'uld... He restrained a shudder.
Daniel's mouth twisted, but he kept quiet, much to Jack's relief. At least Daniel wasn't trying his: 'we're peaceful explorers from a planet called Earth' stuff in this place.
"What are you? Who are you?" At the continued silence, Ammonet turned furiously to Sha're. "Sha're! Takat le!"
"Takat ne honida!" Sha're replied, not a little stubbornly. From the sound of it, the snake-head wouldn't be getting much information from her. Klor'el swiftly crossed to her side and brutally dug his fingers into her hair, yanking her head back hard enough to overbalance her.
Automatically, Daniel turned to help the young woman up, only to be struck by Ammonet's fist. Jack winced at the solidity of the sound of metal hitting bone. "That was unwise," the Goa'uld told him coldly. One slim hand lifted, pointing the palm of the ribbon device directly at Daniel's head.
Daniel had a grimace on his face, evidently waiting for the oh-so-familiar beam of light to start emitting from the ribbon device, frying his brains to pulp. His eyes sought Jack's and in his friend's eyes there were a lot of memories. Bad memories.
Memories of having his brains fried by anyone from Apophis to the Ammonet who had possessed Daniel's own wife. That had to be hell, Jack decided, to look up into the eyes of someone you loved and watch them – or at least something which looked like them – slowly kill you. And now another version of Ammonet was going to fry Daniel's brains – but the face they would watch contort with vicious amusement at his death would be Carter's.
Jack really hoped Carter and Teal'c weren't coming back for them. The place was crawling with the snakes and their lackeys and one shol'va Jaffa and a Tok'ra ex-host weren't going to make a lot of difference – even with SG-1 odds.
At least the end would be relatively fast for the archaeologist. Death by ribbon device would probably be a pleasant alternative to death by entropic cascade failure. Dr. Carter's 'cascade tremors' hadn't been fun to watch. They'd probably been hell to experience – and this was Carter they were talking about: Little Miss Stiff-upper-lip-I-can-take-it-like-a-man.
Caught up in fear and concern for his team, Jack didn't see Ammonet turn towards him until he felt the burning agony of the ribbon device in his brain.
Heat. Aches. Tension. Pain.
In all of six years, he'd managed to avoid actually having his brain fried by a ribbon device, although he'd observed the process more than once – usually on Daniel. He'd never thought it looked like something he'd want to do in his spare time and this merely confirmed it.
Carter-but-not-Carter's expression was of malevolent glee as the device continued boring its way into Jack's head.
It was like someone was pushing red-hot needles into his brain. Slowly. Then pulling them out again. He was certain his brains were dribbling out his ears. It sure felt like it... He rather thought someone had disconnected his brain from his body...and now it was wandering off... Certainly it was getting harder...to think – not that he'd...been all that good at it...anyway...
His thoughts bled slowly into the woodwork of his mind, fading into the background as the...woman who looked like...someone he used to know...but somehow wasn't...focused that thingy...on his...
"Mistress!" A voice cried out from the back of the room and the gold glowy thing shining in his eyes turned off. Relief. He hated having flashlights shone straight into his eyes – it was almost as bad as going through post-gate inspections with all the poking, prodding, questions and...
Someone spoke in Goa'uld behind him and he tried to think of what the new voice could mean. Or what the clank of armoured feet getting fainter portended. But right now, thinking was only like wading through sticky stuff. Thick sticky stuff...sweet sticky...molasses. Yes. Molasses. Or Jell-O. Strawberry Jell-O...
A little part of him was yelling at him to get his act together. Another little part of him was trying to put a nice thick black blanket over the yelling part of him.
He ignored them both, opting to sway gently as the world erupted into action around him.
There was the hiss-whine of an electrical discharge close by him. Someone bellowed something and he saw the hand with the ribbon device raise until it was nearly level with his head. Then Daniel lunged in from the right, tackling her about the waist before she could send the energy pulse through the ribbon device.
Good thing you remembered the shield's deflection capability is directly proportional to the amount of kinetic energy directed at it... The memory popped randomly into his head as he watched Daniel take out the surprised snake-head with a very neat right hook to the jaw. He almost cheered.
Go, Daniel!
Jack tried to get to his feet and help his friend. The younger man shouldn't have to deal with this kind of thing, that was Jack's job. Protect the people like Daniel and Carter and leave the brilliant minds to do their stuff... However his body was only just reconnecting to his brain and still wasn't fully obeying his commands. He tripped and sprawled in an ungainly manner on the stairs. Oh yeah, this old Bird Colonel still had it in him to make an idiot of himself. No problem.
The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
Frustration ignited within him as he began to move – slower than he wanted, but it was better than doing nothing and standing still. A hand grasped his shoulder and he was about to turn and throw it off, when the deep voice of his team-mate stopped him. "O'Neill?"
Time returned to normal at that instant. There was the sound of zat fire in the background, but Jack once again had control of his body – although he had a headache fit to split his skull.
He blinked as he rocked back on his heels. "Teal'c?" Putting one hand to his forehead, he groaned. "Ow! Those things really hurt..."
"Jack? Are you okay?" Daniel appeared at his shoulder.
"Fine, Daniel." He grimaced, "Apart from feeling like I've got a mothership in my skull...yeah..." Pressing the heel of his hand on his forehead wasn't helping, but he retained enough wit to add: "Good hook."
A wry smile tugged at the corner of the other man's mouth as he patted Jack's shoulder. "I had a good teacher, Jack." Then he went off to help Ska'ara and Sha're restrain Daniel-the-other.
Jack felt the warmth of the compliment. He'd spent hours in the gym teaching Daniel to duck, dodge and weave. And while the archaeologist would never be Rocky – or even Jack O'Neill – now he knew enough about fist-fighting to at least keep himself upright and only moderately bruised until the cavalry arrived.
And speaking of arriving cavalry... Jack glanced up at Teal'c and tried to peer around the big man, "Is Carter there?"
"Here, sir." She stepped out from behind Teal'c and her eyes flashed to the centre of his forehead, "Headache?"
"Oh, yeah." He dragged himself to his feet, more by force of will than anything else. "Do they issue one-pound tablets of Tylenol?"
Her mouth twitched and her eyes twinkled. "I'll suggest it to the quartermaster as an addition to the standard SG-packs, sir."
"You do that, Major." He grimaced as he turned and his knee let him know – quite charmingly – how much it hurt. "So who've we got on our side then?"
"Master Bra'tac and yourself have agreed to help us get through the gate," Teal'c told him with stately cadence.
"Roll out the barrel, 'cause the gang's all here, huh?" Jack straightened himself up with some effort and met the very direct gaze of Jack O'Neill.
Whoa, freaky.
His – what was the word Daniel had used earlier? – his counterpart looked much the way Jack had six years ago – except younger. About ten years younger than Jack looked right now. Certainly at least twenty years younger than Jack felt right now.
"You look like crap," the other man said.
Yeah, he looked like crap: like he really needed to be told that! Jack looked over at the Jaffa O'Neill with a twist to his mouth. "Thanks. Good to see that some things don't change."
Master Bra'tac's voice cut into O'Neill's reply as the two men stared off: "Teal'c, your intentions are to get these people to the Chappa'ai?" That got Jack's attention.
"We're gonna take 'em through somewhere to where the Goa'uld can't follow. A protected planet."
The old Jaffa warrior's eyebrows rose, "By the Asgard? You realise that the Asgard do not suffer the Goa'uld. They will never accept Klor'el and Ammonet."
"Yeah, that's kinda the point." Jack glanced over to where Daniel was helping tie up Klor'el again. Behind him, Carter and Teal'c were restraining Ammonet. "The place they'll be taken to will de-Goa'uld them and they'll just have that protein thingy remaining." He rolled his shoulders, stretching aching muscles. Sometimes he kinda envied Teal'c that snake in the belly thing. Must be nice to wake up and feel fine – no old bones and creaks and aches...
...like the Jack O'Neill who eyed him off from a few feet away with an expression that had some serious lemon in it.
Huh, I guess waking up to discover you're your own worst enemy isn't the best way to start your day.
"So," the other-him said, conversationally. "SG-1, huh?"
"Yup." He cautiously bent his knees and heard the familiar crack. They were gonna ache like all hell tonight when they got home, but they were still in working order. "Best damn team in the SGC."
"I'm sure." Did he look like that when he was being sceptical? Surely not.
"Jack?" Daniel's call took his attention. "What are we going to do with Sam...I mean – Ammonet-Sam?"
Command. It was a helluva job. Especially when you were trying to think through brains cooked to scrambled-egg texture. "Take her through the gate, I guess. Get rid of her snake."
"I guess that I'm a no-go through the gate with them."
"Not with Junior in there." Jack indicated the other man's pouch and the other-him grimaced.
"'Junior', huh?" O'Neill glanced around the room and Jack followed his gaze. Daniel was crouched beside Ska'ara, Carter had gotten to her feet beside the prostrate Carter-Ammonet and was looking over at him with her brows arched: Are we getting a move on, sir? Then his counterpart drawled: "So are we gonna stand here admiring the view all day?"
Jack pulled his eyes away from the sight of his 2IC with the lingering sense that he'd been caught doing something wrong. He hadn't been meaning to stare at Carter – the way O'Neill hadn't been meaning anything more than 'what happens next?' – it was unfortunate that the statement could be taken both ways given the subject.
Resettling his armour on his shoulders, Jack considered the situation for a moment. Deception was kinda out the window – two of everyone walking down the hall was sure to clue someone in to the fact that not all was as it seemed. "How far is it to the gateroom?" He asked O'Neill.
"Gateroom?" The scepticism was definitely becoming annoying. He would really have to change that when they went back home.
"It is not far from here, O'Neill," Bra'tac told him. "But it will be heavily guarded."
He'd hadn't expected differently. Really. It just would have been nice to have an easy time of getting out of one of these situations for once. "Look, you and..." he glanced at the other version of him, "...O'Neill are big around here – can't you just order these guys somewhere else?"
"Looks suspicious," O'Neill offered. "Can you create some kind of a diversion?"
Jack returned a sour expression, "We left the C4 at home. But if you have any of those Jaffa grenade thingies they'd come in handy." They'd have to split the team. Daniel to go with Ska'ara and Sha're and the snakes to the gate, maybe send Teal'c along to accompany him. Jack would have preferred to keep an eye on Daniel himself, trusting Carter and Teal'c's combat competence to draw fire. But he and Carter had been trained in the same methods of drawing fire, making them a natural team for this kind of work and Teal'c and Daniel worked well together.
Bra'tac and O'Neill exchanged glances, "There will be some in the storeroom."
"Great, is it far from here?"
"Jack?"
"Daniel, you and Teal'c are taking our friends to the gate. Get them through to Cimmeria, then make for home. If you get into trouble then radio us. Carter and I will be playing tag with the Jaffa."
"Jack..." Peachy. Daniel was going to protest.
"Daniel. We came here to get them to safety – that's what we're doing." Okay, so the plan didn't count on having a palace full of Jaffa on their tails, but...these things happened. "Carter and I are the diversion, Bra'tac and O'Neill order the Jaffa to follow us, leaving the gateroom free. We get them though, we regroup, we get the hell outta dodge." He looked at O'Neill. "So where's this storeroom?"
"Sir, I think it's better if Bra'tac shows us the storeroom. The First Prime can arrange for the corridors to be cleared by sending the men..."
"I know how to clear the corridors, thank-you, Capt...Major." The tone of voice was brusque and dismissive and Carter arched a brow at the abruptness of O'Neill's words.
Jack was now amazed that the only thing Carter had done upon their first meeting was to offer to arm-wrestle him. With a commanding officer who had this kind of attitude towards her, he was surprised she hadn't asked for a reassignment within the SGC in the first month. Mind you, Carter could be as stubborn as...well, as himself and her determination to 'prove' herself to her new CO had probably gotten her through the initial rough patch.
"Right. Bra'tac, Carter, let's go... Teal'c and Daniel, get them through the gate and buzz us when you're done. Meet you at the mirror."
"The mirror?"
"Daniel can explain." Jack didn't want to waste the time explaining to his counterpart as he went to the door. If the man was anything like him...and the man was exactly like him...then it would take hours to explain – and he probably still wouldn't fully understand at the end of it. Not that he needed to understand, of course. As long as someone he trusted – in this case, Carter and Daniel – understood it all, then Jack was okay with that.
However, O'Neill didn't know Carter at all and hardly knew Daniel. A week spent fighting for your life on another planet might make for some good bonding exercises, but wasn't really much good for getting to know someone. Five years ago, he'd had respect for the bespectacled Dr. Jackson, but not really any affection. Affection came later – along with exasperation, irritation and amusement.
"Take care, guys," Daniel added.
Jack gave his team-mate his best cocky grin, "Hey," he said, mock offended, "It's me!"
As he turned back to Master Bra'tac and Carter, waiting for him at the entrance to the room, he caught her end of the 'look' she'd exchanged with Daniel at his levity and indicated the door. "After you, Bra'tac." He observed the second look passing between his team-mates and growled, "Are we staying or going, Major?"
"We're moving, sir." She indicated him first, "I've got body-shield capability on this thing. I'll take rearguard."
Body-shield capability? Now where did she get...? Then Jack realised that she must have stripped Ammonet's ribbon device from the snake's hand. Good move, Major.
He moved out, circumspectly, aware of the churning in his stomach and the considerable odds against them.
They were in another reality, on another world, in an enemy stronghold filled with foot soldiers. They were trying to get to a high-security room with two slaves and the second and third most important Goa'uld in this place. He and his 2IC were in the company of a Jaffa warrior and trying to make enough of a distraction that the Jaffa would chase them instead of their team-mates. Then they had to get back to the room with all the junk in it, find their own reality through the mirror and get back home, all in one piece and leaving no-one behind.
Piece of cake.
----
The Jaffa guarding the gate had been taken by surprise with two well-thrown grenades and a couple of zat blasts.
Teal'c stood guard with O'Neill as Daniel Jackson dialled the gate. First Prime O'Neill that was. It was not difficult for Teal'c to believe his friend had climbed rapidly through the Jaffa ranks. Once indoctrinated into the mindset of a loyal Jaffa, O'Neill's qualities as a commander would have ensured his rapid rise through the ranks of Apophis' soldiers.
"So am I anything like him?"
The question was frank and direct. Curious, as O'Neill had always been – even if his curiosity did not always take the same route as Daniel Jackson's.
"There are many similarities, O'Neill."
"But a lotta differences, too, right?"
"Of course."
Their attention was briefly distracted by the flare of the gate and Daniel Jackson glanced from the gate to the two Goa'uld's glaring at them. "You can go through the gate of your own free will, or we can shoot you and toss you through."
"Apophis will come after us," Ammonet snarled, twisting Major Carter's face into a haughty fury. "Do not doubt that!"
Without being told, Teal'c knew that neither Klor'el, nor Ammonet would walk through the Stargate of their own accord. Ska'ara seemed to sense this also, for he shot first Klorel/Daniel Jackson, then Ammonet/Major Carter with his zat gun. "Dan'yel," he said in Abydonian, "You have explained to me this Hammer of Thor. I would go through the maze with them, but Sha're..."
"I go where Dan'yel goes," Sha're declared stubbornly.
"You go where you will be killed!" Ska'ara snapped.
"And if I shall be killed then why will you not also be killed?"
"Uhh...guys, I think the important thing is to get them through the Stargate – before they wake up and the wormhole closes down."
They paused in their argument and Ska'ara shot a brief glare at his sister before he nodded. "Will you help me carry him through, Dan'yel?"
Daniel Jackson nodded. "Just a moment..." He went to stand before Sha're and spoke gently to her, "I know it is forward of me to ask, but...may I hold you once?"
A tense moment passed and then Sha're stepped close into Daniel's arms. He enfolded his arms around her with great tenderness and kissed her gently on the top of her hair. There was a poignant sadness to the moment that Teal'c felt strongly. His own actions had denied Daniel Jackson any form of farewell to Sha're in their own universe.
"So...what happened to his wife?" O'Neill's inquiry was very soft.
Teal'c looked back out the door. The memory was unpleasant at best – another of many memories he carried as his burden. "Ammonet took her as her host at the time when you, Major Carter and Daniel Jackson were caught on Chulak. Several years later, the Goa'uld within her was trying to kill Daniel Jackson when I killed her."
"Oh." O'Neill considered this. "I guess he wasn't real happy with you."
"I was not expecting him to forgive me."
"But he did?"
The comment was most unlike O'Neill who was well aware that Daniel Jackson had forgiven Teal'c. Then Teal'c turned his head to look at the man and remembered who – and what – this O'Neill was. Without the five years of knowing Teal'c and Daniel Jackson and Major Carter, without the memories and experiences which had made Teal'c's friend the man he was. "He did."
"O'Neill."
"Ska'ara." There was a pause as the young man looked at the old soldier, "I'm sorry about...everything."
"You were not yourself."
"For five years?"
"The demons twist the souls of those with whom they come into contact. That is their nature." Ska'ara pointed at the pouch hidden beneath O'Neill's mail. "I do not blame you, O'Neill, nor should you blame yourself."
O'Neill looked both relieved and pained, "Thanks, Ska'ara." He held out one hand. "Take care of yourself and the others."
"I will. Take care of yourself, O'Neill." The young man took the hand offered him and shook it in the way of the Tau'ri. Then he made O'Neill a salute. It was very different from the fluid and precise motions Teal'c had seen his O'Neill and Major Carter perform to General Hammond, but the spirit of it was there. And O'Neill responded in kind.
Ska'ara went to Daniel Jackson and together they hauled the limp form of Daniel Jackson-Klor'el of this reality through the wormhole to Cimmeria, with Ska'ara vanishing into the Stargate and Klor'el's legs following after. Daniel Jackson stood at the top of the steps, his face illuminated by the glowing blue surface of the event horizon.
"Good luck, guys," O'Neill murmured softly as the wormhole vanished from the Stargate, the last shreds of energy dissipating into the air, leaving faint traces of ozone behind.
Daniel descended the stairs and regarded the two men. "Primary objective achieved. Let's head back to the artifacts room. Have we heard anything from Jack and Sam?"
"We have not." Inside his helmet, Teal'c clicked his radio once. "O'Neill?"
"They might have gotten caught, you know."
First Prime O'Neill got a very direct and questioning look from Daniel Jackson for that statement. "Whatever happened to Mr. Glass-is-half-full?"
"He spent five years with a snake in his belly."
"Better that than five years with a snake in his head."
There were some things, Teal'c reflected, which did not change whatever reality you were in. He pressed the button on his radio again, "O'Neill?"
After a few seconds there was a return click, "Teal'c? Are they through?"
"They are. Your diversion has been successful."
"Well, Carter's coming up with a pretty big finale...we should be able to meet you..." There was a brief silence, then: "...in the sunwards ring-room – wherever that is."
"I am aware of its location. We shall see you there and proceed to the artifacts room."
"Good. O'Neill, out."
"Teal'c, out."
The two men were staring at him and Teal'c took a moment of satisfaction in their surprise. "Daniel Jackson, in your persona as Klor'el, you shall follow me. O'Neill, as First Prime of Apophis, you should walk behind Daniel Jackson. We have some way to travel from here."
"And what about your friends?"
"Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter are resourceful and inventive. They will elude capture and create diversions to draw attention away from our goal," Teal'c stated. "They will be meeting us in the sunwards ring-room."
"Is he usually like this?" O'Neill asked Daniel Jackson, curiously.
"Not always." From the tone of Daniel Jackson's voice, he was a little surprised at Teal'c's initiative. From O'Neill's question, it appeared that he, too, was surprised.
Smiling as the helmet enclosed him and the armour's sightings started up, Teal'c reflected that he usually allowed O'Neill to lead during SG-1 missions. It was O'Neill's prerogative as the commander of the team and, if anything, Teal'c understood the concept of a chain of command.
But it had been some time since he had commanded men, leading them into battle; and while Teal'c was glad he no longer had to lead the armies of a false god into a war where countless lives would be lost – and worse, wasted – there was a part of him which missed the comradeship and companionship of others of like minds. These feelings had been brought home to him during his brief time among the Jaffa warriors K'tano-Imhotep had gathered together. He respected his friends among the Tau'ri, had shared much with them and found in O'Neill a brother of like experience and like mind. Yet he still occasionally yearned for the companionship of his own kind – for people whose culture was his own and whose ways were not foreign – and to whom his ways were not foreign.
It did not matter. Teal'c had long ago chosen his path in the knowledge that it would be difficult and solitary. He would walk it to the end. His friends would be there with him and for him and perhaps they could comprehend a little of how much he had lost in being declared shol'va, but he would never expect them to fully understand.
He glanced back at his companions to see if they were ready to leave. Daniel Jackson was about to switch on his voice-distortion unit and the First Prime O'Neill gave him the thumbs-up.
They moved out.
End of Part Four