TO HAVE AND TO HOLD.
By LetitiaRichards
Category: Angst, AU, Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance.
Season: 5
Spoilers: Divide & Conquer, Desperate Measures.
Summary: Jack and Sam finally make that all important decision to be together, but unknown to them at that time, their love and loyalty will be put to the test.
Chapter 1
A hand reached out and shook his shoulder.
"O'Neill!" the urgent plea called, seemingly from far away before it finally penetrated his consciousness, and he fought to open his eyes.
Slamming his eyes shut again against the brightness of the sun, Colonel Jack O'Neill sucked in a ragged breath and groaned. Then fixed the one eye he'd managed to drag open again, onto the concerned face of the muscular Jaffa almost filling his sight.
"Te..." was as far as he got before a coughing fit left him breathless and in much pain. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth and he swallowed harshly against the nausea that rose up from the coppery tang in his mouth.
For a moment, Jack closed his eyes, trying hard to recall what had happened. As the memories flooded back he forced both eyes open and he strained to ask about the rest of his team.
"Carter? Daniel?" he gasped, leaving himself drained. Black spots were dancing behind his eyes as another cough he couldn't avoid, surged from his damaged lungs. "The natives?"
"The villagers appear to have gone. We are alone," Teal'c answered the last question first hoping to assure his commander that they were relatively safe at the moment. Though they would be vulnerable if they should return. "However, Major Carter and Daniel Jackson were slightly injured too."
Teal'c was down on one knee beside the prone form of his friend and had quickly pulled the ruined and bloodied jacket apart to find the extent of the damage. The black T-Shirt that Jack wore underneath it was saturated with his blood. Lifting it away as gently as he could, Teal'c could see the exact spot where Jack had been shot by the weapon which one of the local natives had fired. The wound was ragged and open, exposing pieces of lung and bone to the elements. It didn't appear to be as bad as a staff blast but that didn't mean it wouldn't prove just as deadly. The loyal Jaffa pressed a field dressing over the area trying to stem the flowing crimson tide, succeeding only in wrenching an agonised groan from the wounded Colonel, who writhed weakly under the pressure.
"How badly?" Jack gasped after a minute or two when he was able to draw breath again.
"They will soon recover O'Neill. Daniel Jackson received only a minor wound to his leg and a few bruises, and I believe Major Carter is suffering from a concussion. I, however, was merely stunned and have since recovered with the aid of my symbiote. Though we need to return you, my friend, to the SGC in order for you to receive urgent medical attention."
"Ya think?" he wheezed, silently thanking god that Sam had escaped serious injury and that Daniel and Teal'c were okay too.
A dark shadow moved across the brightness, blocking the sun and offering some shade to his sensitive eyes. Jack's gaze drifted upwards to the source of his relief, to see Major Samantha Carter hovering over him. The sunshine framing her head, turning her blonde hair into a golden halo. He thought he was seeing an angel as she'd never looked more beautiful than she appeared right now; whole and alive. She lurched a little, then dropped beside him awkwardly, rather too quickly; and he vaguely wondered how much her concussion had contributed to her rather sudden rapid descent.
Sam steadied herself and fought off the dizziness which had brought her to her knees, and gazed sadly down at the man who had helped her face the uncertain future so recently. He'd been there for her, and she'd come to love him for his strength after he'd suffered so tragically himself in the not so distant past. He had become her wall, shoring up her resolve when she felt at her weakest; her rock on which she could rely; her anchor in any sudden storm, and he seemed perfectly happy to be there. Now though, he needed her, so she took his hand in hers, watching closely as he struggled for breath, supporting him while at his weakest and desperately willing him to live.
"Sir?" she whispered, leaving the real question in her thoughts unuttered.
Jack tried to answer that he would be okay considering how bad he must have looked, but the words gurgled and died in his throat, stifled in another rising bloody cough. After that he merely nodded tiredly when the coughing had ceased and he lay limp, exhausted and in pain.
He could see a trickle of blood as it made it's way down the side of her face. He would have wiped it away with his fingers; he'd give anything to be able to gently brush her soft blonde hair away from the ugly gash, but all he could do was observe it for a moment, his arms too heavy to lift to grant her any comfort. Instead by sheer willpower he forced his shaky, almost unresponsive fingers to squeeze with the lightest of pressure to the hand holding his, and then he turned his sluggish attention back to her face. Judging by the expression in her eyes, he could see she was concerned about him, the fear for his life reflected right back at him, draining the usual bright blue irises to a pale grey, but all he could do to reassure her was to offer her a weak smile before another cough assaulted him, smothering him with fresh agony and then the darkness swept in and claimed him once more.
Daniel had limped over to stand unsteadily behind Sam, placing his hand lightly onto her shoulder in order to steady himself.
"Jack!" Daniel cried. It was his first glimpse of his friend and CO since the attack and he was shocked by his appearance. "God! What did they do?" he cried as Jack fell into unconsciousness.
"O'Neill was wounded when one of the natives' shot him. He has sustained severe damage, and we must return him to the SGC at once," Teal'c stated calmly. His unruffled air, soothing and practical in the present crisis.
"Why?" Daniel asked, still puzzled as to why the natives had suddenly turned on them. "Why did they do it? I...I don't understand!"
One minute the locals had appeared very friendly and were talking with fervent enthusiasm over becoming allies in the fight against the oppressors. Daniel was making progress in leaps and bounds; the next, the natives had attacked. All was smiles, then all hell let loose. Jack was the first to go down, perhaps because he kept saying that he had a bad feeling about the meeting. He was closely followed by Teal'c and then Sam, and by no means last but not least, Daniel himself. The natives knew what they were doing. Taking out the leader, therefore the biggest threat to their safety, first, then work down the order of intimidation.
Daniel sighed heavily; all of this was his fault. If only he'd listened to Jack. His CO had warned him to be more cautious, not to trust the natives so willingly. But Daniel had always been that way inclined, and had gone in with childlike enthusiasm and had been blinded by their apparent acquiescence. He and Jack had often argued over his too trusting nature. Today he'd all but refuted Jack's words of warning, and this time his misguided trust had come back to bite him in the ass, or rather Jack's. It was he who had been so right; and he who had paid the highest price of them all. Now look where they were! Sam had been slightly injured, so had he. Teal'c appeared to be fine, but Jack?
After the attack, the natives had returned to their village, totally unconcerned and united in celebrating their prowess.
Daniel had watched their withdrawal through his pain; not one of the aggressors had glanced back at the damage they had wrought.
Jack, being his usual cynical self, was mistrustful of the armed warriors they had met, and it was he who had suffered the greatest; he'd been shot with a lethal looking weapon, that had obviously packed quite a punch to have taken him down so suddenly without the slightest chance to protect either himself or his team. The inhabitants of the planet had taken nothing from the downed team's equipment, and had left nothing behind but pain and distress in their wake. The whole thing was a complete mystery.
Teal'c slid his arms beneath his warrior friend's limp form and scooped him up from the blood stained hard ground, then the despondent team trudged back as quickly as they could to the Stargate, and thus, home.
TBC