"So… Canada, eh?"
The kid pulled a smiled, but it wasn't in his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, I know, sir. Daniel," the young man paused, contemplating how to word the next part without sounding offensive, "well, he warned me that some people might not like the idea."
Jack nodded, imagining how the wayward archaeologist would warn a fellow geek about him. "Yeah, I'd expect no less of ol' Danny-boy."
Eyeing up the young man, Jack tipped his head to the side and scrounged his memory for the kid's name, but came up with a blank.
'Just as him,' that annoying little voice piped up.
"So…" he checked out the stripes on the kid's shoulders, "you're a…captain?"
The kid grinned and patted his epaulettes.
"I wish, sir! Nope, I'm just a lowly Lieutenant."
Jack raised an eyebrow at the Canadian's pronunciation of his rank.
"Left-tenant? What's that?"
"The proper pronunciation, sir."
Jack eyed the kid up again, this time with a slight grin.
"Is that so, sailor?"
"Aye, sir."
"Smart ass," he muttered, rolling his eyes, much to the kid's amusement.
Goa'uld world
Hate.
It was all he could feel. Even when Nadira was with him, it was the only thing he knew.
They let that bastard Anwar hurt her, torture her!
They left him to die a horrible death and they would pay.
But for Nadira, things were different… and quite the same.
Her own brother, her own brother, had her tortured.
He had her debased in front of the Jaffa, and totally betrayed her trust.
Of course, it caused Daniel to break and finally begin to mold to their plan, but it had hurt her… it hurt her deeply. But then, she should have seen it coming – the bastard had killed their parents and brother without a second thought. Why would torturing another make any difference to him?
She sighed and cradled Daniel's fever-hot head in her lap.
"Daniel, poppet?"
There was no response.
Slowly, she lowered his head to the small cushion and slipped away from his sleeping form. She disengaged the field long enough for her to slip though, then ran off to find her sisters. They had some planning to do.
Earth – cafeteria
The two strangers had been talking for well over an hour before time caught up with them and they remembered what was going on and where they needed to be.
After quick farewells, both hustled off in opposite directions.
Jack heading to the infirmary where he received the good word that Teal'c would recover, but the bad news that he was in a coma and it was uncertain as to when he would wake up.
"It's a miracle that he's still alive, he should have been dead already, but he is quite strong. If the Kelownan's hadn't had that tritonen we sent them, he would be dead for sure."
O'Neill barely registered what the doctor had just said, nodding his head and saying something about it being 'just a lot more paperwork.'
Something odd was going on – this was something new for the Goa'uld to do. They would never let a prisoner go, especially one as important as Teal'c. Even that damned little voice in his head agreed that this behavior was extremely unorthodox. And it only left for more questions. Had Daniel been dumped near death on some random planet? How do these Goa'uld keep tapping into the 'gates?
It was just a swarm of questions in his mind, echoing and bouncing around inside his skull. The buzz of activity was making his head hurt. O'Neill dropped to the ground, holding his aching head in his hands and groaning in pain.
The doctors around him acted quickly in alarm and loaded him up onto a bed and started poking and prodding at his neck and back.
"What the hell's happening, doc," Jack gasped, trying to hold his head but someone was pinning his hands down at his side. "It hurts, oh god! It hurts!"
Goa'uld World
"Why are you trying to defend them – they're the ones that left us to this fate!"
"Are you so sure about that?"
"Of course I am! Why should I believe otherwise?"
"Because they're good people!"
"Oh, sure, and that's why we've both been tortured and held prisoner for almost a year now! They're really great people."
"But why would they leave us?"
"Because they don't care! They never really cared, we both know that."
"What about Janet?"
"They never care about her either, why else would they have sent her out to her death?"
"They were trying to save lives."
"By sacrificing hers."
"What about James? James and all the others from school and the digs?"
"James, joined the SGC, and the others don't know anything about it!"
"So?"
"So, that means that James doesn't care and if they others do, they are in no position to do anything about it. What do you think?"
"That doesn't mean that they're bad people, just that they haven't found us yet."
"Found us! They aren't looking!"
"How could you possibly know that?"
"Because I know them!"
Daniel tossed the cup he was holding across the, growling in fury as the glass shattered.
Nadira frowned and stooped to pick up the shards of glass.
"This fighting will get us no wheres, Daniel. And having a temper tantrum won't get us rescued, either."
The shaggy haired man scowled and the crouching woman and clenched his fists, "you think you know everything, but you don't! I've been with the SGC for years, and I've been friends with them through thick and thin."
"So you think they will rescue us?"
"Haven't you been listening to anything I've been saying for the past two days?"
"Oh poppet," Nadir finished picking up the broken cup and set the pieces down on the little metal tray that held the remains of their last meal. "Don't start up again! Just tell me what you're thinking, finish your thoughts."
"They aren't coming!"
"But Daniel, they will! They're good people, haven't you been listening to anything I've been saying? They'll come!"
Another burst of fury caused Daniel to side check the cell wall so hard that he made a dent in the solid metal. Nadira, terrified by his show of strength and rage, quickly retreated to the far corner of the cell and looked at this tormented young man.
She saw the nearing shoulder length hair, the strained eyes encircled by red lids and wrinkles that come with exhaustion. The scraggly beard, which had at first seemed sexy, was now several inches long and peppered with prematurely graying whiskers.
The remains of Daniel's shirt and vest had long ago worn out, and now were mix and matched with a tunic crudely made out of a salvaged blanket.
All together, the prisoner only vaguely resembled the Daniel Jackson that had been whisked away from the Earth 'gate room. Even his eyes were changed, instead of being kindled with the light of life and knowledge; there was a dull glaze of acceptance, pain and sorrow that only seldom lit with a blaze of raw emotion. Rage, hate, and passion… they were the only sparks to fill his waxy eyes.
Nadira repressed a shudder.
She had done this to the Tau'ri, but know it was up to her and her sisters as to what to do with him. The compassion she had felt for him had grown, yet the threat this alliance between the Toak'ra, Jaffa, Tau'ri and Asguard was too dangerous to ignore.
Akil would be dealt with, but what would they do with this damaged man?
A low growl from Daniel broke her silent reverie and she looked over to the man she had helped destroy.
"I think you're right, poppet," she sighed, sitting down and wrapping her arms around his narrow waist. "They aren't coming."
Earth, Sick Bay
"What happened, doctor?"
Dr Joanne Ritter frowned and patted Lt.Cnl Carter's shoulder.
"It seems there was an adverse reaction to the treatment provided by the Toak'ra," she began. "It was caused by the stress."
Carter shook her head in confusement, "why wouldn't it have worked? It's not like this sort of thing can be rejected by the body, so why wouldn't he be fine?"
The older woman shrugged, "you're guess might just be as good as mine, but from the scans and test we've run, it just looks like there wasn't enough room in his skull. He hemorrhaged and that caused him to blackout.
"He was lucky he was in here when he decided to pop, otherwise he might have died."
"Do you think the Toak'ra can help us out with this," Sam glanced over at the deathly pale O'Neill and felt a wave of guilt crash over her. "This all happened because of me."
Ritter heard Carter's last whispered comment and smiled sadly for the young woman.
She knew what heartbreak was, and she knew how guilt worked too.
This would need work.
Earlier
The sun was setting behind the mountain in a blaze of pink, orange, gold and pale blue, setting the glimmering snow into a wildfire of colour and beauty. Jack passed a beer to Teal'c, who merely glanced at the offered bottle before declining with a small grunt.
"Come on, T! This is the real stuff, not the regular kind. Danny smuggled it in just for the occasion!"
The silent Jaffa allowed the ghost of a smile to cross his solemn features, before returning his gaze to the amazing spectacle before them.
"I do not wish to consume any more of this beverage, General O'Neill."
Jack shrugged and made a little noise that stood in for 'more for me'.
"It is not that I dislike this drink, General O'Neill, it is merely that this particular brand of alcohol is far more potent than the type you normally provide."
Finally, Jacob couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Y' know," he croaked after graining his breath a few moments later, "I miss this."
Jack glanced over at the bemused Toak'ra who was currently nursing a cold one of his own and raised an eyebrow in his own amusement. "You were part of this?"
"Hey, hey, now," Jacob/Selmak leaned forwards from where he sat, "no need to be plain and simple cold, Jack. I meant this… the whole Earth thing. Sitting back, drinking a beer with a few friends. It's been awhile."
"Indeed."
Jack and Jacob both smiled at Teal'c who had silently helped himself to another Molson.
"So where did Daniel get the beer from?"
Jack shrugged, "I think he's got a buddy that made a trip up north and snuck it on base for him. How he got it past, I dunno."
"Well, actually, I stuck them inside an artifact and told the guards not to touch it."
"Daniel! I thought you weren't coming out," Jack smiled, holding out a beer to the well-bundled archaeologist. "What made you change your mind?"
Daniel grinned and joined the three men on their perch, "I noticed that my beer was missing."
Later
'O'Neill, I'm sorry for the pain you are going through, but I'm doing the best I can.'
'It's okay, I know.'
'You never used to feel this way. You seemed to hate people like me.'
'I didn't just seem to hate, Gorran, I did hate… still do for the most part, too.'
'Why do you find me to be different?'
'Well… you're just rather pleasant, how about that?'
'I suppose that is a compliment, so I'll take it, but that still doesn't answer my question.'
'Jeeze, Gorran, I don't know! Maybe it's because you aren't all evil?'
A small breath of laughter and gentle snickering put O'Neill at ease.
'That's a relief, O'Neill… how do you feel now?'
'Numb. Is that supposed to happen?'
'You've experienced this before, why do you need to ask?'
'Well, last time I wasn't exactly willing, is all.'
'Ah, well, I can guess how reluctant you would have been, then to receive this treatment.'
'Lets just say I wasn't too thrilled about it, but what else was there to do? Die?'
'That's about it, O'Neill. And I would like to thank you for allowing the treatment, as I too may have met my end were it not for your allowance.'
Jack shrugged, 'whatever it takes, I guess.'