When All Else Fails
Chapter Twenty One
Disclaimer: Nope, the show still doesn't belong to me. However, the members of the SG teams that are not SG-1 are figments of my imagination, as is Lieutenant Fehr, who will once again make a short appearance.
A/N: Yeah, Thoth does sound nasty, doesn't he? But, that's why I chose him in the first place, because of who he was in Egyptian times. Anybody who judges people (be they dead or alive) has to be either really mean, or just plain high and mighty. So... I'm gonna establish that my Thoth is a combination of both.
Hopefully the action will start in this chapter.
Warning: Minor character death to follow.
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As far as she, and all the others with her, could tell it had only been a little over half an hour since the large, menacing Jaffa had informed them of their impending judgement and obvious fate when what appeared to be a knocking noise came from behind the wall which consisted of a small, bared window at it's very top. Sam's heart fluttered with hope for a moment before she became suspicious of the noise- who knew what could have caused it. She could be setting herself up for disappointment by thinking that Jack could have found them, so she immediately told herself it could easily be an animal of sorts. Nonetheless, the clattering sound had caught Teal'c and Daniel's attention, as well, because both of them made their way to where she was sitting, right under the small window.
"What was that?" Daniel asked. Like she knew.
Her reply was a simple shrug as she pulled herself to her feet. "The window's too far up for any of us to be able to see out of it..."
Like they didn't already notice that.
"Perhaps I could be of assistance," Teal'c suggested.
"What, like put me on your shoulders? What if Scowl comes back?" Scowl being what she had nicknamed the first-prime of Thoth, they had yet to catch his name.
"There's enough of us to block his vision for at least a second or two... enough time for you to get down," Captain Bridges, 2IC of SG-4, supplied.
Sam glanced around the room with a sigh, just as the knocking noise broke through the air. If they didn't do something about it soon somebody else was going to notice the noise. "Alright, just... crowd around Teal'c."
The order was clear and all the airmen did as they were told, standing shoulder to shoulder around Teal'c, blocking the view of whoever could come through the door. Sam opted not to get onto his shoulders, but instead to have him get on his hands and knees so she could stand on his back. That would provide her with enough height to see through the bars of the window and figure out what was causing such noises on the other side of the prison.
She couldn't see much, it was dark enough to make even seeing the bars nearly impossible, but as she peered out into the night movement caught her eye. Too big to be an animal, not big enough to be a Jaffa, and from what she could tell clutching on a automatic weapon. "Who's out there?" She called out as quietly, but demanding nonetheless, as she could.
Whatever had been moving stopped suddenly and turned, "Colonel Carter?"
The lump in her throat went back down, "Yes- who is out there?"
"SG-10, ma'am," the voice replied. "We've come to rescue you."
"Well, you'd better do it quick," she ordered. "Thoth is on the planet."
"Ma'am?" the voice questioned.
"He's a Goa'uld, airman. Is General O'Neill with you?"
"He's with SG-5, Colonel." he informed her. "Searching for you."
"Well–" she couldn't say anymore because Captain Bridges signaled that the door was beginning to open. As quickly as she could she climbed down from Teal'c's back and he got up from the floor, then the wall of airmen spread across the room. When Scowl made his way to the cell door they were all where they should have been, and he knew nothing different.
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Lieutenant Matthew Eugene Fehr was snapped out of oblivion by the ringing of a telephone. Nothing too important, not like an unauthorized off-world activation, or intruder alarms, but nonetheless it brought him out of his peaceful, dreamless sleep. A curtain was drawn around his bed and he momentarily cursed whoever had done so, leaning forward and pulling it open.
Doctor Brightman was speaking in a hushed voice to whomever had phoned, and had yet to notice his consciousness. As she talked he slid out of bed, being careful not to make noise or call attention to himself. When he had both feet planted firmly on the floor she hung the phone up and turned around, catching him in the act of sneaking out. He cursed under his breath and waited for her berating.
"Lieutenant Fehr," she scolded, "you should be sleeping."
"Well... this is the third time I have woken up, so it's obvious that's not going to happen." he shrugged, still standing. "I want to do something... to help."
"There's nothing that you could do at the moment that would help SG-1," the doctor informed him "Now, if you want to help yourself then I suggest you get back into that bed and go back to sleep. The more you sleep, the sooner you get out of the infirmary."
He scowled, knowing full well that she was right, and sat back on the bed. "What time is it?"
"Just after 2330, they've been gone for nearly four hours." she grabbed a clipboard from her side and checked something off.
"No contact since then?" he questioned, anxious to know what was happening.
"None, Lieutenant. And, I don't expect for there to be any until they've found the captured teams... and are home. Do you think General O'Neill would take the time to make a call back to Earth to let them know they'd turned up empty?"
Another scowl, yet again she was correct. "No, ma'am."
"That's what I thought. Now... get some rest before I have to make you."
That smartened him up quick. The last thing he wanted was another shot.
A sigh escaped his lips as he laid back in the bed, "Yes, ma'am."
Within minutes he was once again slipping into oblivion- though this time, it was anything but blissful.
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"General O'Neill," his radio crackled. He looked at his watch, it was only 2338. "This is SG-10... we've found them."
That was all he needed to hear, SG-10 had gone to the right of his direction, and he immediately turned that way. "We're on our way."
"You'd better hurry, I think something's happening."
"Copy that," he replied. "O'Neill, out."
Signaling to SG-5 they headed to their right as quickly as they could.
Hope was temporary, he knew better than to assume that now that they had been found things would run smoothly. He didn't know anything about their captures, but if they were Goa'uld then he didn't need to know anything else. They had to get to their captured teams, and fast.
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Scowl walked into the room, proving once again why he had been nicknamed as such. Something was different this time, however. Somebody was with him. Somebody who's eyes flashed as soon as he stood before the bars of their cell.
Thoth.
Almost snickering, the Goa'uld's eyes darted around the cell. "Tau'ri warriors," he all but laughed, "you are weaker than I had imagined."
Sam bit back a comment, the last thing she wanted to do was piss this one off. Scowl, sure, he couldn't do anything without his masters approval. But, the actual master... well, only Jack was that confident.
Thoth's eyes once again scanned the room, as if he was sizing up its inhabitants. When his beady green eyes fell upon Dr. Craig he smirked, pointed him out, and turned to his first prime. "That one," he growled.
Scowl opened the door and entered the room. The others around her turned to her for confirmation, but she shook her head. They wouldn't be attacking him, there were other Jaffa with Thoth, and they had staff weapons. She did, however, step forward as the large first-prime grabbed a hold of the Doctor- the smallest in the room. "No," she demanded, "take me instead."
She'd be damned if she let somebody be tortured on her watch.
Thoth grinned, "You will have your time."
Shit. "He doesn't know anything."
"I will be the judge of that."
Fuck. The last thing she wanted to hear coming out of his mouth was anything involving judgement. "I know the most."
"I will also be the judge of that," he looked at Scowl, who still had Craig in his clutch. "Take him away, Ri'dek."
Ah, so Scowl had a real name. Ri'dek drug Craig out of the room and pushed him out the door, Thoth and his Jaffa fan club followed. Sam looked around the room, her stomach rising in her throat. This was not good, not at all.
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Thoth and his band of merry men were gone for all of ten minutes before they came stampeding into the room once more, and Sam's stomach jumped into her throat again.
Dr. Craig wasn't with them.
Ri'deck once again opened the cell door and barged inside, with his trademark scowl present. He glanced back at his master, as if asking a question. A sick grin appeared on Thoth's face and his beady eyes darted around the room, landing on Daniel.
"Him," he said cryptically. Before Ri'dek could get to the archeologist, however, Sam stepped out in front of him protectively.
"No," she all but growled. "If you're going to take anybody it's going to be me."
Ri'dek scowled and began to push her aside, but Thoth called out to her first.
"Why are you so anxious to be judged?" he questioned, an amused smile appearing on his face.
"I'm not," she replied. "But if it's going to be anybody, it should be me. I'm their leader."
"You are a female," he stated.
"Really?" she barked. "I hadn't noticed."
Thoth chuckled, "Lively. I enjoy that in women." He turned to Ri'dek, "Do as she wishes."
Instantly she was forced into his strong hold and being dragged out of the room. Glancing behind her as she went her eyes found Daniel's and she nodded. Don't worry about me, they said...
Get out.
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"Were is Craig?" she questioned as Ri'dek proceeded in chaining her against a wall.
"Craig?" Thoth questioned. "He is not here."
"Yeah, I knew that," she spat out. "What happened to him?"
"He would not revel what I wanted to know." Thoth stated, nonchalant.
"He didn't know anything important," she growled.
"Unfortunate for him." He grabbed a
90 from the table beside him. "Interesting choice of weaponry... So flawed, yet so dangerous. Painful."
Sam didn't have anything smart to say, so she stayed quiet. Again, the only person with enough gall to mouth off in such a situation would be Jack, and thankfully he wasn't in her position at the moment.
"One shot alone is powerful enough to kill..." Thoth continued, studying the gun. "Or, discrete enough to only wound- with much distress from the wounded. Causes blood to flow freely, bones to shatter, muscles to tear. Even stop a beating heart. So many options..."
Biting down on her lip her eyes shifted, looking around the room. There were two doors, one that she had come in at and one to her right. Not that such would do her much good, as she was chained around both ankles and wrists. Oh yeah, she wasn't going anywhere. But, it was just her and Thoth. If somebody were to come and attempt to rescue her...
"Where is Doctor Craig?" she asked once more, hoping for a straight answer.
"He is no more," Thoth said with a sigh. "His judgement is complete."
"You bastard," she sneered, tugging at her chains. "Why?"
"He was found unworthy," he set down the gun and turned to her. "You can only pray that you are not."
Lieutenant Colonel Samantha Carter felt a stab of pain in her chest. Craig was dead, and it was all her fault. She had let him die on her watch. If they had taken Daniel, who knows what Thoth would have done to him. Or any other member of those teams she was leading. With a set scowl she stood back against the wall and waited for whatever Thoth was going to throw at her.
Jack had better hurry. She didn't have much time.
None of them did.
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A/N: Yeah, I know that I said action again. But, well... it's taking time! Anyway, sorry it took longer than I expected for this chapter to get done. I took Thursday off, just because I had been writing all week. Then Friday I was skiing and Saturday I wrote the first half, then went to a basketball game and then a friends house. It is currently 1 am on Sunday morning and I am updating this just for you guys! I hope that you like it. More to come soon.
