What Will It Take? Chapter 39: Planet Du Jour, a stargate: sg-1 fanfic

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Author's Notes: Rewrote and reposted the end of Chapter 37 - nothing major, but I like it better now... :) ...This chapter (39), underwent many, many revisions and I hope that the finished product gives a good feeling for Daniel and Teal'c's ongoing search for Jack and Sam.

Am currently working on the upcoming chapters... this story is now over 300 pages (at Times Roman 12pt font).... and I haven't reached the end yet! Muse has taken the story places that I never originally envisioned, and I hope that it has been entertaining reading.

I want to thank everyone who has sent reviews, the feedback is greatly appreciated.

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Ch 39: PLANET DU JOUR

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For at least the next two weeks, SG-1 would be a team of four again. With SG-9 temporarily assigned to a multi-team mission to a planet with few large or exotic wildlife, Dr. Rider had requested a TDA with SG-1. Lt. Hailey's team, on the other hand, was currently on a two-week leave (that was six months overdue), and the Lt. had volunteered to spend her leave helping with the continued search for the General and the Colonel.

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P1X-172

Water.
Mud.

Water and Mud.
Mud and Water.

Water...dripping, draining, pooling... everything was drenched.
And the rain would not stop!

Cold, wet and miserable.

Every step squelched.

They were soaked through and through. The military-issue rain-gear unable to withstand the intensity of the deluge. Daniel was feeling pretty wretched, but he'd seen wet cats that looked happier than Dragon did right now.

When they did find the missing officers, all four of the searchers vehemently vowed to make sure that one General and one Colonel knew just how wet, muddy and miserable this planet had been!

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P6X-402

Ice.
White, blinding ice and snow everywhere.

Frigidly cold.
So cold that the air seemed brittle and ready to shatter.

At least they were not wet, Teal'c thought stoically as he scanned the surroundings while simultaneously maintaining a protective eye on his teammates.

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P3X-883

Her words were whipped away by the biting wind.

Daniel signaled that he couldn't hear her.

In annoyance the zoologist stepped over to his side and put her mouth to his ear, "I said that I really miss that tropical planet with its sunny skies and sandy beaches."

He gave her an empathetic grin and put his mouth to her ear, "Can't argue with that!"

The rest of the walk back to the 'Gate was without conversation as they resorted to hand signals instead of trying to talk over the howling winds.

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Stepping through the 'Gate and down onto the metal ramp of the SGC, the stunning quiet of the 'Gateroom was a stark contrast to the howling winds of the planet that they'd just left.

"Anything SG-1?" General Hammond asked from the control room.

Three heads shook slightly back and forth in a negative response while Teal'c answered verbally, "We did not find any signs of GeneralO'Neill or ColonelCarter."

"The natives were just as friendly as when we visited them four years ago, however," Daniel added. "They have people scattered throughout the region around the Stargate and they have not heard or seen of anyone matching Sam or Jack's description over the past couple of months."

"They do, however, have several types of wildlife and a few interesting types of plants that I believe merit sending a science team back for an in-depth study," Doctor Rider recommended.

Hammond nodded, "Allright people, get your post-mission physicals and a shower and something to eat. Debriefing in 3 hours.

"Yes sir," and several nods and a short wave accompanied the team's departure from the 'Gateroom.

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P7X-307

Hot and humid.

It wasn't raining... but that was a technicality because the humidity was over 90 and it felt like they were walking through a sauna.

Everything drooped...clothing, postures and attitudes.
Their clothes clung to them.
Even the leaves on the plants hung heavily in the moist air.

And the bugs.
Small ones, big ones.
Noisy ones, quiet ones.
Some were solitary while others moved in swarms or clouds.
More varieties of bugs than Jennifer Hailey remembered on any other planet.

Each of the four explorers was cranky.
Even the stolid, stoic Jaffa.
And all were giving Lt. Hailey a wide berth.

When they reached the pre-determined turnaround point, no one argued in favor of walking another step away from the 'Gate.

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P5X-287

"They are all so different," Jennifer commented as they sat on the top of a small cliff overlooking a dry wash.

"Mmm," Dragon agreed, not needing further explanation from the young officer. "The trips across hundreds and thousands of light years aren't as impressive as the differences in the weather, ecology, climate, wildlife... and natives."

"We can't see or feel the distances the same way we can experience the environments," the Lieutenant observed.

Dragon nodded, "I can't believe how lucky we are to have the chance to explore all of these alien worlds... the only down side is that we can't find any sign of O'Neill or Carter."

Jennifer glanced over and then her eyes dropped to her lap momentarily before returning to gaze out over the cliff. "I probably wouldn't be here if it weren't for Colonel Carter," she spoke softly.

"I know," Dragon replied gently and then continued at the younger woman's questioning look, "Daniel told me about Carter taking you on a mission when you were still a cadet.... something about you having some kind of problem at the Academy. Anything to do with having to deal with the attitudes towards women in the military?"

Jennifer shook her head ruefully, "No actually, it was more of a problem with my impatience," and she shrugged and then added, "I was bored with the standard constraints of the military and the classroom. And... beings that I was headed into an astrophysics specialty, all I ever heard at the Academy was Sam Carter this and Sam Carter that...," and she winced a little in embarrassment.

"So...?" Dragon prompted.

"So then I met her," and the young woman rolled her eyes. "And she's nice! On top of everything else! She's brilliant, she's always the oh-so-proper military officer... and she's nice!"

"It would have been easier if she'd been an arrogant so-and-so?" Dragon offered.

"Absolutely, because I sooo wanted to hate her," Jennifer replied with chagrin and a few moments of silence passed before she added, "She took me offworld to show me why I needed to stay in the Air Force.... Why I needed to suck it up and swallow my impatience until I could graduate and join the SGC."

Teal'c listened to their conversation as his eyes scanned the dun-colored rocky cliffs and the hard-packed ground. Although there were ancient ruins here, they had not discovered any signs of recent civilization anywhere in the vicinity of the 'Gate. DanielJackson was quietly recording his observations in a journal while the women spoke softly off to the side.

Without needing to check his Tauri chronometer, the Jaffa announced, "We must now begin our return trip to the Stargate so that we will arrive at the expected time at the SGC."

The others silently nodded and quickly packed up any loose articles before beginning the trek back to the 'Gate.

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P8X-825

Lt. Jennifer Hailey watched and observed as Doctor Jackson spoke with the Head Muckity-Muck of the local village. Both Daniel and Teal'c understood the local language while neither Jennifer nor Dragon could make heads or tails of it. All that Jennifer did know was that the local men were eying the two women in a way that made both the officer and zoologist wary and watchful.

Although Daniel had yet to pick up on the intense stares from the men, Teal'c was acutely aware of the rising tensions and had placed himself right behind the two women. Jennifer Hailey was not usually a woman who would accept such a gesture from a man, however, her time with the SGC had taught her that there were times when a 6'3" muscle man could be a tremendous asset offworld.

Suddenly Jennifer saw Daniel step back from the Head Muckity-Muck. The archeologist sent a concerned look over at the rest of his team. "Hey guys, I think we should...," and the rest of his words were lost as the scene erupted in movement, gunfire and staff blasts. The natives had some sort of ballistic projectile weapons that were similar to guns, although the bullets were more like inch-long needles.

The four SGC members quickly found cover and returned fire. Rapidly assembling a hasty retreat, Teal'c maintained a rear-guard defensive posture as they scrambled the half-mile back to the Stargate.

Doctor Rider dialed the DHD while the others provided cover fire. Once the familiar light blue event horizon was established, she followed Teal'c's silent hand signals and dove through the "Gate alongside Lt. Hailey. Quickly rolling out of the way, the two women watched as Daniel and Teal'c tumbled through, followed by another barrage of the needlelike projectiles.

"Close The Iris," four voices shouted in unison and the iris quickly spun shut.

An almost musical tinkling reached their ears as the last of the metal needles impacted against the trinium shield. With a final 'slwp', the event horizon snapped off and the 'Gateroom once more fell silent.

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Jennifer leaned back against the thin infirmary pillow. Doctor Jackson lay on the bed to her right and Dragon lay on the bed to her left. Teal's stoically sat on the bed just beyond Dragon's.

Each of them had several punctures or 'piercings' from the needle-like projectiles. Teal'c had received the most. Jennifer knew that that was not because he was the biggest target, but rather because the Jaffa had deliberately shielded the others with his body.

In spite of the large man's selflessness, however, Daniel had four wounds, Dragon had three and Jennifer had six. They all stung sharply, although there was surprisingly little bleeding.

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Hours later and the four sat and lay on the infirmary beds. The doctors had removed all of the needle-like projectiles. Although none of them had apparently sustained life-threatening injuries, the SGC doctors were holding the four overnight for observation as they waited for the results of the detailed blood tests. In addition, the doctors were wary of infection and had started all of them on a standard course of antibiotics. As always, they were fully aware that infections incurred offworld may not respond to standard Tauri antibiotics.

"Daniel?" Dragon called over Jennifer to the archeologist.

"Mmmhmm?" he replied.

"Strike that planet off the List of Galactic Vacation Spots," she sent over sarcastically.

"Allready done," he returned quickly.

"What was their problem anyway?" Jennifer asked querulously.

"A few years ago, their territory was seized and occupied by a powerful tribe that they had not previously encountered before. They have spent the past few years eking out a meager existence as itinerants and... pirates, I think," and he shrugged as he knew that he didn't have all of the details.

"Pirates?" Dragon sighed.

"Basically," he agreed, "And I'm sorry that I didn't figure it out earlier," he apologized.

"The fault is not yours DanielJackson," the Jaffa absolved the archeologist. "When SG-1 visited this world four years ago, the native communities gave no indication of the future that was before them. You could not have known."

"I'm still sorry that I took so long to pick up on...their intentions," and he glanced at the two women.

"They were giving us some pretty intense scrutiny," Jennifer agreed, "but to be honest, I think they were also staring pretty hard at both you and Teal'c. What do you think, Dragon?" and she turned to the other woman.

"Oh, Absolubitively!" the zoologist answered both playfully and seriously. "These two men were most definitely given very thorough visual examinations."

Daniel just smiled weakly while Teal'c refused to even raise an eyebrow.

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TBC

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As always, a Special Thanks to SG-1 Yahoo Transcripts
wwwdotmoon-catchindotnet/transcripts.htm (just replace the dots with periods)
Episode 419 "Prodigy", Transcript by AQ

And, credit also goes to the Episode Guide & Synopses at the SciFi Channel's Stargate SG-1 website

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