The next two segments. Should have a couple more in a few days.
Jack sat on the ground rubbing his temples. Teal'c observed him from the opposite side of the fire. He'd watched as the colonel's face showed more and more strain throughout the day, until he'd finally called a halt much earlier than usual.
Daniel and Sam had each asked once if he was all right, and had been answered with a short "fine". They were now sitting side-by-side on a log, munching on their ration packs. Every few minutes they would look at the colonel, exchange glances, and go back to their dinners.
"Jack, would you just take some Tylenol?" Daniel finally spoke up.
"It's just a headache Daniel."
"I know headaches. That is not a headache."
"Fine, so it's a migraine. I'm fine. It's been hanging around all week."
Daniel sighed and shrugged his shoulders. Sam shook her head but stopped when Jack glared at her.
Teal'c frowned at his friends. "Why did you not go to Doctor Fraiser? There is no need to endured pain when it is avoidable. Especially if you have had this 'migraine' for a week." It seemed extremely illogical to refuse any pain medication when it was so easily available.
"I'm not going to run to ol' Doc Fraiser every time I have a headache, Teal'c. Besides, she's got enough things to handle right now. She doesn't need me whining about a headache and cluttering up the infirmary."
Teal'c had to agree with that. The week before, SG-6 had returned severely wounded. While one member had been released on sick leave, the other five were still unconscious and in critical condition. One of the young lieutenants would never walk again. There was a 50/50 chance the commander wasn't going to make it. Teal'c started to understand what this was about.
Jack was picking at his food. It looked exactly like something you'd expect to find on an alien planet. The pain was getting worse, bringing nausea with it. He groaned and pressed the heel of his hand between his eyes.
Sam put down her dinner and reached for her pack. She dug around for the first aid kit and pulled out a bottle of Tylenol. Checking to make sure it was the one she wanted, she tossed it on the ground at Jack's feet.
Jack glared at it. It didn't seem right, that this little bottle of pills could make his pain disappear. "I don't want it."
Sam picked up her dinner again. "Major, I'm fine."
"Yes, Sir."
"Oh for cryin' out loud. It's just a headache. It's not like I'm dying."
"I know Sir," she said softly. They stared at each other. Daniel watched them and smiled slightly. Teal'c hoped the major would make O'Neill listen to common sense. He didn't know how, but he sensed that somehow to two Air Force officers were communicating without words. It lasted for several minutes before Sam nodded slightly and continued eating. Jack sighed and picked up the bottle.
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Sam and Daniel were already sitting on the ground when Jack appeared dragging Teal'c with him. He nearly fell over Daniel's outstretched legs before his flashlight picked up their pale faces.
"Geez Daniel, I almost landed on you. Why didn't you two bring a light?"
"We did Jack, we just aren't using it. You can't see the stars with a flashlight. And you're blinding us at the moment…"
"Right, sorry. So how's the view?" Jack flopped down beside them and leaned against the side of the mountain. The air was frosty and he stuck his hands in his armpits.
"View's great Sir. I was just looking for Abydos. It should be in that quadrant tonight. And that one there is P7Y-838," Sam said pointing to a star directly above them. Jack looked at it and nodded. Sam always tried to find the planets they'd been to, although it sometimes took her several pages of calculations.
Daniel was standing up now, and turning in slow circles, straining to see into the darkness. The lights from Colorado Springs were clearly visible, and he spent several minutes staring at it. Teal'c moved over to join him. "DanielJackson, what are you doing?"
"I'm looking, Teal'c. Just looking."
"But there is nothing to see."
"No, that's not true. You just have to use your imagination a little. That town is full of houses. Full of people. They have no idea what's happening. No idea how lucky they are to be living on a free planet."
"It's beautiful, isn't it," Sam spoke up from her place on the ground. Her teeth were chattering slightly from the cold. Jack turned to look in her direction. "It sure is. And we're the people they picked to defend it? Some one screwed up."
Daniel and Sam laughed at that. "I think we've been doing a pretty good job, Jack. It sure is worth it."
"Sure is, Danny. Got that right."
Daniel sat down again but Teal'c remained where he was. "O'Neill. I believe I will return to the base now. I am in need of rest."
Jack nodded absently. "Sure, Teal'c. We'll catch up to you later."
Teal'c bid the others good night and started down the mountain. He wasn't sure who had started it, but it had become something of an SG-1 tradition. After a rough mission, when something went wrong, the team would one by one find their way up to the top of the mountain. After a few coincidental meetings, they'd decided to make the climb as a group. Teal'c had once asked Colonel O'Neill why they did it. The colonel had paused and thought about it for a while. When he'd finally answered, he was staring off in the direction of the Stargate.
"To remind ourselves why we're doing this. So we know that everything that happens here is worth it. Every person we lose, every line we cross. It has to be for something. For Earth, for all the earths out there. It's so we remember." And Teal'c had nodded his understanding, and joined them.
He'd reached the guard post now, and signed his name. The guard glanced at him, then peered into the darkness. "They still out there?"
"Yes. They will return shortly."
The guard shook his head in disbelief. "Those guys are crazy. There's two feet of snow on that mountain, and they go wandering around in the dark. What the heck are they doing?"
Teal'c smiled a little, but didn't answer. This child would not understand. But Teal'c did. He turned to take a last look at the planet that had adopted him and that he fought to save. He understood very well.
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