Chapter 2
Teal'c's baritone voice came over the radio. "SG1, come in. Is there a disturbance?"
Jack tapped his radio. "Teal'c, what's the situation at the camp?"
"I have returned SG8 to Earth so that they may continue their medical investigation," Teal'c rumbled. "And I have returned with the truck and supplies."
"Great." Jack replied. "Can you meet us at the village? Fraiser's been kidnapped. Just GPS our location."
"There's no--" Sam started.
"There is no satellite in orbit," came Teal'c's voice. "But I believe I can follow the road you took."
Jack shook his head. "Right."
Sam covered her face with her hands. "Crap." She moaned. "This is all my fault. I shouldn't have--"
"Carter." Jack grunted. "Shut up. You weren't the only one. I gave the order, based on Daniel's assurances."
Daniel, his cheek still bloodied, studied the ground. "He's right, Sam. It's my fault." He inhaled. "I got Janet kidnapped."
"That wasn't the point I was trying to make." Jack frowned. "Point is, knuckleheads... Cockiness and... What was the other thing?"
"Bravado," Daniel moaned.
"Accountability," Sam sighed.
"Kant." Andk wailed.
"Boundaries!" Jack bellowed. "Stop letting your personal feelings interfere with this mission so that we can get on with rescuing Janet."
Daniel and Sam exchanged a look.
A roaring sound heralded the arrival of Teal'c and the truck. The four boarded. "Daniel," Jack asked, "I assume Andk here can tell us what the hell is going on?"
Daniel pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Yes..."
"Good." Jack settled in next to Teal'c and began filling him in on the incidents of the morning.
Daniel glanced at Sam. "Personal feelings?"
"Who knows? I don't have any." Sam cleared her throat. "You?"
"Nope." Daniel slouched down in the seat. "He called her Janet."
"I noticed."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
They walked to the gates of the walled city. The sun was high in the sky and the snow glistened like diamonds in the bright light. Andk had informed them that the city was Nkin, the capital of a powerful enemy. Daniel had speculated that the Nkin-dwellers controlled most of the civilization, and that D'rn's people were outcasts.
Andk explained that the raiders had been slavers, and that the slaves were usually sold at auction every year at this time. He presumed figures as great and powerful as SG1 would have no problem buying Janet back.
O'Neill did not share his faith. They had expected Janet and Daniel to join them for a peaceful breakfast, and something had gone wrong. Something was bound to go wrong again. Daniel and Sam were to speak to the slaver directly, in the hopes that by offering a dark horse bid, they could have access to Janet. O'Neill, Teal'c, and Andk would take the more industrial side of things, and attempt to break into the palace where Janet was being held.
The truck had been ditched a kilometer outside the city, and now they entered through the unguarded main gates, heavily cloaked against the cold. "So, where's this fortress?" O'Neill asked Andk. "Palace. Stronghold. Whatever."
Daniel translated, and Andk pointed north.
"Holy...moly." Jack breathed, as he followed Andk's hand and took in the familiar sight of a peak of a pyramid.
Daniel removed his glasses, rubbed the lenses on his shirt, and put them back on. "The Goa'uld."
"Indeed." Teal'c murmured.
"I knew something would go wrong," Jack grumbled.
People stared, but did not seem alarmed, as SG1 wandered deeper into the city. UAV maps had indicated a population of several hundred thousand, so while they could not entirely blend in, O'Neill hoped they would not be the biggest event of the day.
Daniel was frowning. "How does this change our plans?"
"Well," the Colonel said. "Maybe Teal'c should go in with Carter? A more-Goa'uldy presence?"
"We don't know if they're even... Goa'ulds, or just squatters. And they may recognize Teal'c as the shol'va. Better to stick to the original plan."
"Yeah, that always works." O'Neill sighed. "Carter, how do you feel about this?"
"You want me to just march into a Goa'uld temple, with naquada in my blood, and ask to buy a suspiciously militarized Tau'ri?"
Daniel winced. "Well, actually, she's not...militarized..."
Jack and Sam stopped walking and turned to stare at him. Teal'c raised his eyebrow.
"D'rn's wife had some native clothes. Janet... kind of had fun putting them on."
"Janet had fun?"
Daniel cringed. "She was going to wear them to breakfast, just to see the looks on your faces."
O'Neill started walking again. "So she looks like a slave? For crying out loud...We have to get her out of there."
They were in the shadow of the temple. Andk whispered something to Daniel, gesturing at Carter.
Carter frowned. "What?"
"He's reminding me that women aren't too... equal, around here. So you should do your best to, you know, pass."
"You know I hate it when you say that."
Daniel looked down.
"These are Goa'uld, Carter." O'Neill interjected. "A little prudence, at least?"
"We don't even know they're Goa'uld."
"How are we going to buy Janet?" Daniel changed the subject. "With what?"
"What's valuable?" O'Neill asked, looking at Andk.
Andk pointed at the temple.
"Gold?" Daniel asked Andk.
Andk blinked.
"Um..." Daniel took off his glasses and showed Andk the polished gold trim.
Andk nodded vigorously, then pointed again to the temple.
"Ah, the international currency," O'Neill said.
Sam glanced at him.
"Universal. I meant 'universal'." Jack shrugged. "Okay, Daniel, go back and get the gold. Teal'c, you drive him. We'll stay here and scope out the fortress."
Teal'c look pained.
"What is it, buddy?"
"I do not wish to drive again." Teal'c frowned.
O'Neill raised his eyebrow. "Why not, buddy?"
"With the constant acceleration and the open nature of the vehicle..." Teal'c explained. "...It is cold."
"Jack," Daniel started, cutting off the Colonel's attempt at appealing to Teal'c's manhood, "Maybe you should come and brief General Hammond on what's going on here."
"You mean, tell him we lost the Doc in a bet?"
Carter cringed.
Daniel nodded.
"And then tell him she's been kidnapped?"
"Hey, look on the bright side," Daniel said. "Maybe he'll authorize force."
"Because that's so his style." Jack sighed. "All right. Major, you and Teal'c are on intel duty. See Fraiser if at all possible. Figure out how we're going to approach these guys...And who these guys are. We'll... go get our wallets."
"Yes, sir." Carter exhaled.
Teal'c inclined his head.
"Let's get back to the truck, Danny. 10 hours, we're thinking?"
"More like 12."
"Yikes."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
"What?" Hammond bellowed. His voice carried across the briefing room, the force of it causing O'Neill and Daniel to wince simultaneously.
"It was a cultural exchange, you see--"
"I am sure, Doctor Jackson," Hammond said, "That losing the Chief Medical Officer of the top program in the Air Force in a bet violates some sort of protocol!"
"Yes, General. You see--"
"Point is." Jack cut Daniel off. "She's being held hostage now."
Hammond rubbed his head. "And not by the people who won the bet?"
"No, sir."
"You see--" Daniel tried to explain.
"That's enough," Hammond cut him off.
Daniel looked down.
O'Neill squared his shoulders. "I recommend we take SG3 in and get her back, sir."
"You know I'd rather not use force unless it's absolutely necessary," Hammond said.
O'Neill protested. "They attacked us, sir."
"They attacked the people you were with. They didn't even see you, if I'm to interpret the debriefing correctly. Let's get Doctor Fraiser back with as little bloodshed as possible."
"Then the only alternative," Daniel interjected, "Is to trade."
"Which means giving up valuable archeological finds." Hammond sighed.
"Well, maybe they want gasoline, or C4, or running water, or something," O'Neill commented.
Daniel brightened. "That's right. D'rn did want to trade the Stargate for weapons."
Hammond glowered. "Not helping your cause here."
"General Hammond to the control room" boomed over the speakers. "Incoming radio transmission from the planet," Harrigan's voice reported.
"Must be Carter," O'Neill said, and the three men scrambled downstairs.
"Report, Sergeant," Hammond said, as he walked toward the speaker.
"Got Major Carter for you, sir." Walter pushed a button. "Receiving, Major."
"Sir," crackled Carter's voice. "They aren't Goa'uld. We've seen no Jaffa, no parading, no worshippers, and neither Teal'c nor I can sense a symbiote."
"Well," O'Neill said, folding his arms. "There's a point in our favor."
"We haven't been able to get inside the fortress yet..."
Hammond looked over his shoulder at O'Neill. Jack cleared his throat.
"...It's heavily guarded. Perhaps 100 foot soldiers..."
"Probably a way to keep the locals employed," Daniel speculated.
"...But we've got a solid map, including infrareds that show us where the women are being held, sirs. Just five, and judging by what we've observed in the city, they're all for export. Apparently we're three days away from the annual summer festival... Intel is much easier now that everyone speaks English..."
O'Neill blinked. "Summer?" He mouthed to Daniel.
Daniel shrugged.
"...We think the plan is viable, sirs."
O'Neill leaned over the microphone. "Is that the 'We get caught in order to get inside the prison' plan? Because, you know, I'm tired of those..."
A sigh came over the radio. "Not as long as you bring the gold."
"See you in five hours," O'Neill said brightly.
Hammond, still red-faced, turned to O'Neill. "Do you realize how valuable Doctor Fraiser is to this facility?"
"More valuable than me, sir?" O'Neill grinned.
"Exactly."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Carter adjusted her robe and exhaled forcefully, white breath clouding in the cold air. "Why me? Isn't Daniel more suited to this sort of thing?"
Daniel rubbed the bridge of his nose. "The last time I was trusted with infiltrating anything, I ended up insane and tossing Fraiser across a room."
"Yup. Military regulations. You've been trained. Besides, Andk says you look more like the natives. I mean, the other natives. The Narn."
"The Nkin."
"Right. And I need Daniel to read stuff, as we bust the girls out. Remember, the gold is just a diversion. We're not waiting until market day."
"Festival day."
"You know what I meant."
"Fine." Daniel handed Carter a sack. "You know what to do?"
"I think so." Carter sighed. "Are we sure Teal'c as my bodyguard is a good idea? Does Andk mention, you know... people who look like him?"
"It's a gamble. We're gambling." O'Neill reminded her.
"Christ," Carter exhaled.
"We're betting that they've seen Jaffa before. So Teal'c's gonna be bait that there's something more than gold here. To keep this warlord interested so he doesn't just kill you and take your purse."
Carter blanched.
"Watch your back, Carter. The attack on D'rn's people was well executed. Probably planned for months. He's not going to let two meddling kids screw up his big plans. Whatever they are."
"You're such an inspiration, sir."
Daniel squeezed Carter's shoulder. "Good luck, Sam. We'll be a radio call away."
"I will not be." Teal'c reminded them. "I will be even closer."
Carter graced the Jaffa with a relieved smile, and they turned to walk into the city of Nkin.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
"You're a day early. I host an exclusive dinner for the most important buyers tomorrow night," said the warlord Rdek. "But since you don't have your own people to put you up, I'm glad I could be of assistance." He smiled in a way that was meant to be charming, but only made Carter feel nauseous.
"I appreciate the hospitality. Since the accident, we've been pressed to replace my handmaiden."
"Of course, of course." Rdek turned a gold goblet in his palms. He had not stopped pawing at it since Carter had pulled it out of her sack, as a token of good faith. "This year," he said, "I have five girls. Of course, their prices are high. I believe that if good stock is rare, it will be sought after."
"Supply and demand," Carter murmured.
Rdek looked at her with surprise. "Exactly."
"Still," she folded her hands and put them on the table. "I think I can make a reasonable pre-emptive bid, comparable to what you'll get at auction. I only hope to be offered consideration."
Rdek smiled. "I understand. We've not had any people from your province in several years. Not since the avalanche closed the pass...?"
Carter smiled pleasantly. "And another avalanche cleared it, just this fall during the melts."
"Of course." Rdek inclined his head. "The weather has certainly been turbulent this year. I know your journey was long, and with the accident... I wish to show you that Nkin is an accommodating friend."
"Of course." Carter smiled.
Teal'c smiled.
Rdek stood, his hand still clutching the goblet. "I need to attend to some duties pertaining to the festival. My guard will show you to your rooms. Perhaps you can join me in an hour for dinner, and then I will introduce you to the merchandise?"
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sam sat on the edge of her bed in her suite. Teal'c leaned against an ornate dresser. He had an adjoining room.
"That seemed too easy," Carter contemplated.
"Perhaps his mind was truly on other things, and he only recognized that we were a day early."
"He would know every single customer, and we don't have the trappings of Entare."
"Then perhaps he was blinded by the gold."
Sam rested her chin in her hand. "Maybe. He did seem awfully enamored of our sample." She reached into her pack for the radio and activated it. "Colonel?"
"Go ahead, Carter."
"We're situated for the evening, it looks like Rdek bought it."
"Glad to hear. We'll be nearby, but we'll stand down until further notice. This whole town belongs to Rdek. His name is on everyone's lips, and apparently, he's not too feared, for being a murdering warlord. He keeps the order, and has been for so long that people don't recall rebellion. Any recognition of Teal'c?"
"No, sir." Sam glanced at Teal'c. "Rdek just treated him like any other bodyguard--just assumed he was invisible. He says tomorrow night there will be a party so that the big bidders can have a look at the merchandise." She cringed.
"Oh, goody. Any news on Fraiser?"
"We'll know in a few hours, and check in then."
"All right. Over and out."
Sam glanced at Teal'c. "So rounding up the local migrants is just routine for him."
"I do not like to see anyone enslaved, Major Carter."
She reached over and rested her hand on his forearm. "Me either, Teal'c. We won't let this rest."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Rdek, torch held aloft, led Carter and Teal'c down a narrow curving stairway. Two guards followed at a discreet distance. Sam could only think of a dungeon. The walls were cut stone, and the air was damp. Cells receded into the walls, some sealed with reinforced wood doors, others with iron bars. Teal'c was frowning at the emblems chiseled above each alcove, and Sam squinted quizzically at him.
"Ra," he whispered discreetly, as Rdek moved away to light the torches lining the corridor.
Sam pursed her lips. "At least we know where he is."
Teal'c inclined his head.
"Here we are." Rdek gestured to a guard, and a door was opened. On the outside, there was damp brick and mold, but inside the large cell there was candlelight in receded alcoves and a natural spring. The air smelt of cinnamon and sweat. Five women huddled at the back of the room. "We keep them together," Rdek explained. "It helps with their socialization."
Sam scanned the room as neutrally as possible. She spotted Janet's reddish-brown hair, and D'rn's wife tucked into her arms. Since the women were together, Sam found it easy to evaluate Janet under the guise of detached interest.
"You know, of course, that they don't speak our language. They're foreigners. That always requires a bit of training. We would never enslave our own people."
"That would be barbaric," Sam murmured sympathetically.
Rdek nodded. "We choose only the best stock. These are not wild women. They're often the daughters of tribal leaders. Smart. And they've been raised into royalty."
"I think, Rdek, that my gold has been well-spent so far." Sam forced herself to smile.
Rdek brightened. "Guards. Separate the women, so we may have a better look."
A woman screamed as a guard grabbed her arm, and Sam had to choke down nausea. Janet stood on her own, drawing D'rn's wife with her, and then reluctantly stepping back.
"Now, it would be improper to allow you first pick, but perhaps you would like the night to examine one of them, if the gold..."
"...is right?" Carter finished. She drew a gold-linked bracelet from an inner pocket, and offered it to him. The bands were encrusted with diamonds, and the jewelry was worth a fortune on Earth--if it had not been sitting in a vault in Area 52 for two years.
Rdek's eyes widened. "I have never seen gems like those before."
"Let me show you..." Carter smiled. She walked to the stone wall of the cell, and dragged a diamond tip against it, leaving a mark in the rock. When Rdek took the bracelet from her fingers, he saw that the diamond had suffered no damage.
"Remarkable." He looked at Carter, and for the first time his congenial manner slipped and greed, or desire, shone in his eyes. She felt a surge of fear.
"More where that came from," Carter said nonchalantly. "Maybe it can be a new line of business for you. Like I explained before, we're short on people. After the avalanche, there was an illness. We could not turn to our trading partners for help. Now that the pass is open again, we're in a position to throw ourselves on the mercy of our neighbors."
"Of course." Rdek bowed, and gestured to the women.
Sam stepped up, and gestured to Teal'c. They started on opposite ends of the row, and made a show of examining each slave. Teal'c opened the mouths of the women and examined their teeth. Sam knelt and felt their calves for sturdiness. She passed over Janet, not looking in the woman's eyes, and made a show of liking D'rn's wife, until gesturing at Janet again.
"She's much smaller than the others," Sam suggested.
Rdek cleared his throat. "Yes, she was extraneous to those we culled this year. However, her features are exotic enough I believe she may serve as a novelty."
"I think you may be right. She may be suited for Entare's needs in the refineries. May I have her for the night and then perhaps evaluate the rest when the others arrive tomorrow?"
"Of course." Rdek smiled politely. "Will your...guard... be taking one also?"
Carter raised an eyebrow. "Don't be ridiculous." She turned toward the open doorway. "He'll remain outside of my chambers tonight. It's not that I don't trust you, it's just a personal comfort thing when I travel."
"Of course. We all like to surround ourselves with the people we trust." Rdek responded. He gestured, and Janet was seized. She struggled, and the other women began screaming. Rdek sighed and quickly led them from the cell and to the stairs. "She'll be bathed and taken to your chambers. Would you care to join me in the parlor for tea and games?"
Carter blanched at the mention of games. "No, please do not think me ungrateful... It has been a long journey. I would prefer to turn in, and spend tomorrow in Nkin."
Rdek nodded. He was running the bracelet through his fingers, feeling along the bumps of the diamonds. He would only remember Carter when he got tired of his newest toy.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
When the warlord had taken Sam and Teal'c away, Janet sagged against the damp, mold-covered wall at the back of her cell. The cool stones held her up as her knees wobbled.
D'rn's wife stood next to her. The woman's expression was impassive. She, too, had recognized Sam, but also recognized nothing had changed. They were still prisoners.
Janet had convinced herself she was the only survivor. She realized now that had been a defense mechanism--concentrate on the present. Survive. Don't dwell on the past. Stay alive.
Sam was outside that door, breathing in and out. Janet's instincts told her to fling herself against the door separating them and claw at the wood until she got through. Hopelessness was so much easier than waiting.
She glanced at D'rn's wife. The woman was staring impassively at the door. Janet could see the lines of tension in her face. She imagined they mirrored her own. Waiting for rescue was harder than waiting for death.
Janet began to pace.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
As soon as the door closed, Janet stomped toward Carter. "You. This is all your fault."
Sam cringed, scurrying backward on the bed. "I'm sorry, Janet."
"You're sorry?" Janet knelt on the edge of the bed.
Teal'c watched the two women.
"I'm sorry." Sam repeated. "We thought--We..." She looked away from Janet's glower.
Janet exhaled, and seemed to get a grip on her emotions. "Does this happen to SG1 on every mission?"
Sam opened her mouth, but it was Teal'c who answered. "Yes."
Janet stopped inching forward, and turned, sitting with her legs dangling over the foot of the bed. She pulled her flimsy silk robe tighter around her small form. "It was the worst moment of my life, you know," she said. "When Rdek's men came... There was so much blood. I see the results of blood. But I never see it... so freshly spilled."
Teal'c took a step closer. Sam sidled up, placing her hand on Janet's back. "We wouldn't leave you."
"I know." Janet said somberly. "I know protocol. But when I saw D'rn fall... He's dead, isn't he?"
Sam nodded. Teal'c inclined his head.
Janet inhaled sharply. "When you weren't brought with us... I figured you were dead, too. That Rdek had wiped out the village."
"He only targeted the chief's tent," Sam said.
"That was new information." Janet's voice was choked, and she was tense under Sam's hand. "I thought it was all over. My life. Stargate. Cassandra. I thought--"
Sam wrapped her arms around Janet. "We're indestructible."
Teal'c knelt in front of Janet and placed his hand on her thigh. "We have been in worse situations."
"You." Janet corrected. "You have. Not me. I just deal with the aftermath. Not the...during."
"Radio the Colonel." Sam said over Janet's head to Teal'c. "See if he can get us out of here tonight."
"What?" Janet sat up straighter. "We can't leave the others."
"Janet..."
"No." Janet turned, so she was level to Sam's face. "We're not just going to leave them."
"We will not." Teal'c affirmed.
Sam reached up and cupped the doctor's tear-stained face. "We have a plan. Don't worry. We always manage to save the entire universe, not just our favorite part of it."
Janet grinned at Sam. "You're saying, trust you?"
"Trust me."
"You lost me in a bet."
Sam dropped her hand. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay." Janet put her hands on Sam's shoulders. "You came to rescue me."
"I did." Sam leaned forward and rested her forehead against Janet's. "Think nothing of it."
Teal'c began speaking to O'Neill over the radio.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
"Has Chen made any progress on the disease?" Janet asked once they had settled into an ornate canopied bed.
Sam smiled to herself. "Doc Fraiser, always thinking of others, even though she's been kidnapped."
Janet rolled onto her side to poke Sam in the ribs.
"I think it is pretty clear Rdek's responsible for it. It'll be good to take him out."
"Take him out?" Janet furrowed her brow. "So SG1 is a bunch of assassins?"
"Janet." Sam's eyes widened. "He killed D'rn. He...God knows what he would have done to you."
"Vengeance is...petty. I don't want anyone to hurt anyone for my sake."
"Okay." Sam answered softly.
"Okay?" Janet squinted at her friend. "That was too easy."
"Sometimes it's nice to be reminded of what's really at stake. When I go back to the SGC, and you're there, taking care of me... It's like I'm human again. Not just a soldier."
"I like taking care of you," Janet murmured. "It's strange, seeing SG-1 like this. You've been so... together. So Mistress of Entare." She laughed when Sam turned over at the title, pressing her face into the pillow. "You're not like this on Earth," Janet finished.
"I'm not?"
"You're so unflappable right now. I've seen you..."
"Flapped?" Sam grinned, turning her head, her face still pink from blushing, to look at Janet again. "You're different, too."
"Me?" Janet wrinkled her nose.
"You're unflappable on Earth. You command your domain. You're...scary." Sam smiled sheepishly. "When I come through the 'gate, I know I can just turn myself over to you."
Janet looked down at her hands. "I'm out of my depth."
"Well, when I'm out of my depth... I just help you." Sam answered.
Janet exhaled. "So what do you need?"
"Escape routes." Sam reached over the side of the bed for her pack and pulled out a notebook. "Tell me everything you remember about the pyramid."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Teal'c had returned from his own explorations, contributed to the map, negotiated plans A and B with Carter and O'Neill, and was now in a state of kelnoreem outside of Carter's door. He brought his own candles off-world, but the Nkin had plenty to contribute to his meditation.
Sam snuggled drowsily against a pillow, still wearing most of her gear underneath her robes.
"You always sleep in that?" Janet murmured, face down on her side of the bed.
"Yup." Sam grinned, her eyes still closed.
"So you get pretty rank."
"It helps. Especially outside. Natural camouflage."
"Great." Janet mumbled. "Aren't you supposed to be ravishing me, Ms. Stinky?"
Sam opened her eyes and looked at Janet's small, prone body next to her. "Jack said... you like me."
"I did." Janet shifted on the blankets. "Until you got me embroiled with slavers."
"I'm sorry--"
"Don't." Janet rolled onto her side and faced Sam. "I was just teasing."
Their gaze held. Sam bit her lower lip. "Why didn't you ever say anything?"
"Didn't I?" Janet's smile widened. "You know... I keep you close even when your 'assistance' violates all kinds of medical protocols. I took an active interest in physics. When Cassandra came, I thought maybe things would happen naturally. They didn't. So I figured..." She lifted her shoulder in a shrug. When Sam was silent, she continued. "I didn't even know if you were--" Janet cleared her throat. "And I'm not allowed to ask."
"I am." Sam exhaled. "For as long as I can remember."
Janet reached out with the arm not pinned underneath her and rested it on Sam's abdomen. "What are you thinking?"
"I'm thinking about what you said before, about Rdek, and I'm thinking about Cassandra." Sam closed her eyes. "When I had to confront Jonas Hanson, I couldn't kill him. I should have plugged the bastard." She sighed. "But I couldn't do it. I couldn't go there--couldn't be that person." Her stomach muscles tensed under Janet's hand. "I would kill for Cassandra. Not just that... " She covered Janet's fingers with her own. "I'd fight to preserve her world. Keep her safe from people like... Rdek. What he does, here, is a threat to her."
"I understand." Janet shifted closer to Sam. "Everything changes when you become a parent."
"A parent." Sam let out a derisive laugh. "You don't think I'm evil?"
"No." Janet pressed her forehead against Sam's shoulder. "You may have lost me gambling, but..." She poked Sam in the stomach, eliciting a short laugh. "... You came and rescued me. You sweet-talked Rdek for me. When I thought you were dead." Janet's voice caught. "You could have walked away."
"We don't leave our people behind," Sam said mechanically.
"No." Janet whispered. "You don't leave your people behind. And there is nothing you will stop at for us. You've become that person you were afraid to become. And thank God."
Sam rolled over, away from Janet, drawing Janet's hand with her and keeping it against her stomach, so that Janet was soon pressed against her back, holding her. "You're the same, Janet. You never stop fighting."
Janet snuggled against Sam, slipping her free arm under Sam's pillow. "I'm glad we have something in common."
Sam chuckled, and linked her fingers through Janet's. Safe for the moment, they went to sleep.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
"Carter, come in." The radio crackled.
Sam groped for the radio on the bedside table. A pre-dawn grayness filtered through the drapes. Janet slept beside her, the small figure flung diagonally on the bed to take up as much space as possible. "Carter here," she rasped.
"Everything okay today?" O'Neill's chipper voice asked.
"Peachy." Sam sat up, pushing blankets off her shoulders. "What's up?"
"We need more time to evacuate D'rn's people and clear our escape route."
Sam glowered into the dim room. "How much time?"
"Possibly another day."
"Sir!" Sam yelled, and then immediately winced, glancing to see if Janet was still asleep. "Sir. Tonight is the big Slaver's Ball. It would be convenient if we were gone before then."
"Understood, Carter. If you come up with a way to deal with these 200 guards before we do, feel free to share."
Sam gripped the walkie-talkie, an unexpected wave of fear overtaking her. She, Janet, and Teal'c were trapped, surrounded by an army, and relying on others--Rdek's charity or O'Neill's skill--to survive the day.
"Carter?"
Sam rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Go ahead, sir."
"Daniel wants to say hi."
Sam smiled to herself in the dark room. "Hi, Daniel."
"Hi! How are Janet and Teal'c?"
Sam felt a hand on her leg, as Janet groggily hauled herself up and reached for the radio. "I'm fine, Daniel. Sam rescued me. Well, Sam got a one night free trial with the slave of her choice."
Jack's voice came over the radio. "I'm looking forward to hearing about that in your reports."
"The sooner you get us out of here, the sooner you'll hear the juicy details," Janet purred sweetly into the receiver.
"Got it, Doc." O'Neill said. "Over and out."
Janet stretched. "So we're stuck here?"
"Looks like." Sam shrugged, setting the radio back onto the table.
Janet flung herself back on the bed. "Great."
Sam grinned. "Think you can take being my slave for a few more hours?"
"I'm just afraid I'll laugh uncontrollably at an inappropriate moment."
Sam snorted. She leaned over Janet, looking into her face. "When Rdek sees you, you have to look ravished."
"Hm. How good are you in bed? Will I be despondent or satisfied?" She stretched under Sam's body, faking a satisfied expression.
Sam's face broke into a smile. "Trust me, you'll like it."
Janet chuckled.
Their eyes met, and Sam swallowed nervously. "Should we...talk about last night?"
Janet reached up and touched Sam's face, studying her serious expression. "Do you want to?"
"I..." Sam leaned into Janet's touch. "I want you to know I'm open to...whatever. Or...whatever not." Janet's thumb brushed her chin and she closed her eyes. "This probably isn't a good time, anyway."
"No." Janet murmured. "Probably not."
Sam opened her eyes. Janet was watching her. The first rays of sunlight pierced the blinds and touched Janet's face, flashing in her dark eyes. She continued caressing Sam's cheek, wanting the link between them, wanting the warmth under her fingers.
Sam leaned closer, her gaze intent on Janet's lips. She laughed. "This isn't quite what I imagined."
"Oh? What did you imagine?" Janet dropped her hand.
Sam put all her weight on her right arm and clasped Janet's fleeing fingers with her left hand. "I didn't imagine a woman in my bed, ever, while I was still in the Air Force. Much less on another planet, surrounded by bad guys."
Janet squeezed Sam's hand. "Did you think of me, at all?"
Sam's face and neck turned red as she answered, quietly, "I didn't dare." Her breath brushed Janet's lips. Janet looked at her intently. She untangled her hand from Sam's and cupped the back of her neck.
At Janet's urging, Sam descended. She brushed a kiss against Janet's cheek, exhaling against the warm skin, leaving a damp imprint of her lips, and then lifted her head.
"What are you waiting for?" Janet played with tendrils of blonde hair.
Sam grinned. "I'm nervous."
"Don't be nervous."
"Okay."
Janet tipped her head back and pulled Sam down to her. Their lips met, warm and wet. Janet nuzzled each corner of Sam's mouth. Sam exhaled, hot breath caressing Janet's cheeks, and then pressed her lips to Janet's again.
Janet wrapped her arms around Sam's neck and hugged her. Sam chuckled into Janet's mouth, slipping her tongue out to swipe Janet's bottom lip. Her body rested half on Janet's, creating delicious pressure that caused the smaller woman to sigh into the kiss.
When Sam drew back, Janet tilted her head on the pillow. "Does this happen on all your missions?"
"Sometimes. But I've never wanted it. Not even when it was..."
"Women?" Janet squinted, amusement touching her features.
"Yeah." Sam confessed. "See, there's this woman who has been raising my daughter. I like keeping tabs on her."
Janet rubbed Sam's back. "Oh? So I'm just a surrogate?"
"You're the only one I trust." Sam rolled to Janet's side, keeping one arm looped around her waist.
Janet turned her head and smiled. "I can live with that." She pursed her lips. "So what do we do now?"
"Well," Sam drawled. "We're in a bed. In a very romantic castle..."
Janet laughed, her voice light. "You rogue. What do we do, mission-wise?"
"Ah." Sam nodded. "We wait."
"Just...wait?"
"Yup." Sam tapped her fingers on Janet's belly. "Until Colonel O'Neill gets back with 'the plan'"
Janet grumbled, "If I wanted to sit around for hours, I'd have become a cop."
"At least they get doughnuts," Sam said sympathetically. She rested her chin on Janet's shoulder. "I suggest sleep. Since we don't know if the Nkin have coffee."
"Coffee," Janet moaned. She reached up and clasped Sam's hand. "This complicates things."
Sam looked down at their fingers. "Yeah. Is that okay?"
"I think so." Janet pulled their hands up, and pressed a kiss to Sam's fingers. Sam wriggled closer. "Would you...Sam..."
Sam lifted her head.
Janet closed her eyes. "I want you to kiss me again."
Sam descended, her lips finding Janet's. Janet made a sound, soft and keening, that caused Sam to lean into the kiss. She darted her tongue between Janet's lips, finding Janet's warmth waiting for her, accepting her.
Janet's next sounds were lower, coming from the back of her throat, and the deep moan elicited a whimper from Sam, who drew back to kiss Janet lightly. Their mouths sloppily and softly met, tasted, and parted, before Sam settled again at her side. "Rest. More kissing when you wake up."
Despite being a slave held by a soulless warlord on a frozen world, Janet was content, enveloped by Sam's body heat. She closed her eyes, with Sam's promise tugging at her lips.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
A knock came at the door. The sun was higher in the sky, sending light persistently through the heavy drapes. Sam groggily rolled away from Janet and called, "Come in."
Teal'c entered. "Major Carter. Doctor Fraiser."
"Hey, Teal'c," Sam said, smiling as she wriggled into a sitting position.
Janet opened one eye and blinked at Teal'c in greeting.
He inclined his head. "I trust your night was uneventful."
"Yup. Yours?"
"Indeed. Though I felt eyes upon me at various times, I was not interrupted. Rdek has sent a servant this morning to invite you to..." Teal'c frowned.
"Brunch?" Sam suggested.
Teal'c nodded.
Janet's stomach rumbled.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sam had washed her face and arms, denying Janet's help. At the insistence of a guard, Janet had been taken to a bath, and smelled like potpourri by the time she was brought to lunch with Sam, Teal'c, Rdek, and several noble guests of Nkin.
Janet looked at the men and women at the table, sans SG1, and could only see murderers and slavers. Even though she had exacted a promise from Sam not to retaliate, she was afraid of the men at the table, and the fear made her tremble even when Sam's knee casually brushed her leg.
Rdek tapped his glass with his fork. "To a prosperous festival."
Sam raised her glass. Teal'c looked straight ahead. Janet studied her hands.
Platters of food were brought, and Sam accepted a ladle of soup. She glanced at Teal'c, and then at Rdek.
Rdek smiled. "I understand. Please, I can only hope it builds our trust." He was wearing the diamond bracelet Sam had given him.
Sam inclined her head, and offered her bowl to Teal'c. He took a spoonful of soup, tasted it, and nodded. "It is quite...tasty."
Sam accepted the bowl and smiled at Rdek. "He doesn't say that often." Her words were an attempt at apology.
Rdek accepted the gesture. "The best Nkin has to offer."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sam was in a lounge with the other guests. She sat away from the main cluster, and Janet was at her feet. "What was that all about?"
"The food?" Sam asked.
"Mm hm."
"Sometimes they slip poison or some sort of truth serum into the meal. Teal'c's symbiote can handle it."
Janet's eyes widened. "Does that happen often?"
"Nah." Sam grinned. "Most of the time it's MREs or nuts and berries."
Janet cringed. "No wonder Zantax is my main pharmaceutical expense."
"Exactly. Then there's Daniel, who'll eat anything put in front of him, alien or crawling or puce."
"We're trying to clone his gastrointestinal DNA," Janet quipped.
Three clicks came from Teal'c. Janet and Sam looked at him. Three clicks repeated, the sound emanating from his belt.
"Excuse me," Teal'c said, and stepped out of the lounge. Rdek and some of his court watched the large man go, but refrained from commenting to Sam. They were across the room, close to the fireplace. Sam was at the window, near the escape route.
Teal'c returned. Sam looked ahead, pretending to follow Rdek's animated charades by the mantle.
"O'Neill says he will be ready in one hour. He suggests taking out the other merchants with a concussion grenade and using a dart on Rdek, and then freeing the slaves."
"What about the guards?"
"O'Neill says not to worry."
"Okay." Sam sounded skeptical.
"He will click three times, then twice, then three times again when they are ready."
"The usual signal."
Rdek drew their attention with a gesture. "I apologize," he announced to the room, but I must go into Nkin to take care of final arrangements." He bowed. "You understand."
After he had gone, some of the guests moved closer to Sam.
"It has been so many years," one warlord, Daraal, said to Carter. "Since we have seen anything from Entare. Your guard and your stones are...most unusual."
Carter smiled politely. "We've been refining our metalworking techniques. Teal'c's skin is the result of the foundry gases."
Daraal's entourage murmured excitedly.
Teal'c frowned.
"And Rdek tells us you have already purchased someone, before the auction. Unprecedented!"
Sam smiled, touching Janet's head. "Rdek took sympathy on me."
"Of course," Daraal said. "He's such a kind man."
"For the right price," Sam replied.
Daraal graced her with a genuine smile. "I am relieved to see you speak the same language as we do, despite being from so far away."
"Quite fluently," Carter assured him.
"Rdek's stock has been thin of late," Daraal said, lowering his voice. "And I must say, your choice is not impressive."
Janet managed to remain still, but Sam could feel her tensing under her hand.
"Perhaps the court of Entare is as weak as their slaves," another courtier suggested, and the room erupted in laughter.
Carter smiled thinly. "In Entare," she said, "Size doesn't matter." She tangled her fingers in Janet's hair and drew the woman's attention toward her. Sam gave Teal'c a signal and he moved to a sideboard where oils were laid out. He selected two and brought them to Janet.
With her head turned away from the rest of the room, Janet glared at Sam, as if to say, 'You can't possibly expect me to wash your feet.'
Sam tightened her grip on Janet's hair.
Teal'c smirked, and Janet got a glimpse of the First Prime he had been before he was forced into American egalitarianism. She made a note to ask him how many times his feet had been washed.
Sam turned her attention back to the group, discussing the hardness of diamonds as Janet drew off her slipper. Janet massaged Sam's foot, using her medical knowledge to manipulate the muscles and dig her fingers into the calluses. When she rubbed her thumb against the sensitive pads of Sam's toes, the soldier shuddered. Janet moved up, under Sam's parted robe, to cup her calf. Sam stretched her toes toward Janet.
Janet bit back a smile and picked up a bottle of oil with her right hand while massaging the arch of Sam's foot. The nearness of Sam's naked skin, the trembling she felt under her fingers, and the scent of the spice suspended in the oil were intoxicating. She felt herself getting wet as she poured the oil on Sam's ankle and watched it drip over the slope of her foot.
Sam swallowed loudly, not daring to look at the woman at her feet, but curling her toes, reaching out toward Janet. Janet put the bottle down and used both hands to rub the oil into the skin. Sam opened her mouth, her lips forming a moan, although no sound came out to draw unwanted attention. Janet stroked the sole of Sam's foot, tracing a pattern in the oil. She shifted, so her own heel pressed against her center.
Teal'c clicked three times.
Janet exhaled.
Sam slipped her foot back into her slipper.
Teal'c clicked twice.
Sam stood, reaching into her robe.
Teal'c clicked three times.
"Pardon me," Sam said, pulling Janet to her feet and walking to the door. Teal'c pulled the pin from a grenade, rolled it into the center of the room, and shut the door on surprised faces.
The three strode down the corridor as a boom echoed behind them.
Teal'c pulled the radio out. "We're on our way to the dungeon."
"Meet you and your charges in the main hall in four minutes." O'Neill came over the radio.