A/N: Well here I am again. Continually grateful for all the LOVELY reviews. I would have written more of this over the weekend but I had to read the new Harry Potter book! All those people over in that section of will have a whole new set of ideas now!
I'm glad people liked my take on the 'talk'. I didn't want to make it too complicated because I honestly don't think they would launch into monologues or anything like that. You're right, janissima, it's bloody hard to write – but great to read if it's done well! I hope you're not going to be disappointed with my treatment of Urgo, Bookworm37, but essentially he's not the really bad guy. Speaking of Togar, your wish may be granted, Arrant Schemata, but you'll just have to wait and see.
Urgo looked from Sam to Jack, and back to Sam again. He was unable to wipe the massive grin off his face as he saw how close they were, lying in each other's arms on the bed. Mentally making some changes to the main computer in the facility, he directed his full attention to the two officers in front of him.
"It makes me so happy to see you both," he exclaimed, his voice reminiscent of a six-year-old's excited squeal. "And together… isn't this just amazingly romantic?" He was almost bouncing on the couch. "Such a wondrous thing, this emotion you call love!"
Sam looked at Urgo, gobsmacked. Here they were, stuck on some planet, essentially playing the role of lab-rat to a Machiavellian zoologist, and this sentient computer being (otherwise known as an annoying, immature moron) was prattling about romance and love. She couldn't help but feel her cheeks become slightly warmer at the mention of love, and the realisation that not only Urgo, but probably Togar as well had seen their displays of affection. Glancing over at Jack she could see he was also taken aback with Urgo's words. There was, however, an angry glint in his eyes.
"ROMANTIC!" Jack bellowed, ignoring the sharp pains in his head. "In case you hadn't noticed, we're trapped here with NO IDEA what's going on, NO WAY OUT, and I swear to God one more of those TORTUROUS trips down memory lane might just end up KILLING us!"
The effort of shouting so loudly finally overcame him as he sank onto the pillow, nauseous with the pain in his head. Sam must have seen him go a pale shade of green as she immediately stroked his shoulder softly with concern. She seemed to be thinking quickly, something Jack was in no shape to do at the present time.
"Urgo," Sam was careful to speak quietly and to only move slowly and gradually. "This has got nothing to do with understanding our emotions does it?" She didn't wait for a response before continuing – she didn't even look at him, her eyes fixed on Jack. "It's actually torture isn't it?" She risked swivelling her head to face the artificial image who was now sinking into the couch like a sullen child. "And this is actually doing us some damage, right? The nature of these headaches is too specific, too reminiscent of some kind of intra-cranial swelling…"
Sam broke off as she heard Jack inhale sharply, either at her words or in pain. She swiftly turned back towards him, forgetting the pain in her head momentarily and looked meaningfully into his eyes. The shock in his face was evident, apparently he hadn't considered that their difficult reliving of the past could actually be physically harming them.
"She's right, isn't she Urgo." Jack's voice was ragged, and he still didn't look back to the couch, his eyes transfixed on Sam. "Of course you're right, you always are." He added quietly.
"Well, not always," Sam responded shyly. "There was that time-"
"That didn't count," he cut her off, amused she would remain so modest in such a situation. "Alien substance influence, remember?" He kissed her affectionately, smiling at the memory of one of the few times he'd proved her wrong.
Urgo was still sitting on the couch, although he now looked like he wanted to cry. "Alas, this is true." Urgo spoke into the cushion in front of him, unable to face the two people on the bed. "But I have persuaded Togar not to kill you, for now anyway."
"For NOW!" Jack jolted his head backwards before grabbing his head again as the pain increased almost exponentially.
"Shh. Sir, this is getting us nowhere." Sam whispered to him quickly before gingerly propping herself up, half-sideways, on a pillow so she could see Urgo without too much discomfort.
"It's ok Urgo, none of this is your fault." She ignored the muffled protestations coming from Jack. They really had no idea if Urgo was at fault in any way, but there was no sense in threatening the twittering wreck sitting on the couch. "I need to know how bad the damage is… is it just swelling from the over-stimulation of the nerve centres coupled with rapid neurotransmitter depletion or are we looking at something more permanent? I imagine you have access to the computer data..."
"Speaking of access," Jack jumped in to the conversation. "How do we know you're not just here because Togar wants something. I mean, he's watching us right now isn't he?"
Urgo suddenly sat up, his arms appealing to them, his eyes wide open. "No no, Colonel, I assure you. We are alone! Togar has deactivated me," he paused, the familiar mischievous glint returning to his eyes. "He doesn't know that when he deactivates me, I am still linked to the main computer systems. I have been learning all about its functions and am able to exist independently of him now."
Jack looked to Sam for her opinion.
"It's possible sir." Sam let out a long breath as she ran through the most likely hypotheses. "If Togar has at least one of these processors in his brain as well – as he must or else he wouldn't have been able to implant Urgo – well it's entirely likely that much of his consciousness exists in parallel to the computer systems running his facility."
Jack looked from Sam to Urgo, who was nodding frantically in accordance with what she was saying.
"Oooh so smart you are," he squealed excitedly. "So you see we are just talking among friends here!"
"Just because it's possible doesn't mean you're not a lying sack of crap!" Jack retorted strongly, ever suspicious of the sneaky eyes now fixed on him. "How can you prove it?"
"I- wha- would I lie to you guys, my best friends?" Urgo pleaded pathetically.
"Oh no, it's not like you've ever done that before." The sarcasm was dripping from Jack's voice.
"Urgo," Sam decided to interrupt before Jack blew a gasket. "If you really can access the computer, can you remove the security bar on the access panel in the corner?"
Urgo looked shocked that Sam knew where the control panel was. "Why would I do that?"
"Because if you don't I'll see that you're deactivated PERMANENTLY" Jack growled viciously. "Don't think I won't tell Togar what you're up to – and he'll be none too pleased!"
"Alright, alright." He paused for a moment, his eyes glassing over briefly. "It's done. You may now open the panel." Seeing the hesitation in Sam's eyes as she prepared to get off the bed, he hastily reassured her. "Your injuries are not permanent. The rapid firing of your neurons has caused a depletion in nerve reactivity and neurotransmitter concentration. This will heal with time, as will the swelling resulting from the aggressive stimulation of your memories." His voice was almost monotone, resigned to the fact that he wasn't going to be able to 'play' with his 'friends' for the moment.
Sam cautiously rose from the bed, suppressing the urge to throw up as she was struck with an almost blinding pain. Steeling herself against the agony, she moved towards the wall to consult the now open panel. Her eyes were having trouble focussing on the panel as she struggled to remain standing. However the few moments she managed in front of the terminal before she had to flop back onto the bed confirmed a large part of what Urgo claimed.
"He not lying sir," Sam's eyes fluttered open to see a very concerned Colonel leaning over her at the end of the bed. She resisted the urge to kiss him – she daren't move yet, as the nausea was still present, but squeezed her hand in his. "Togar has deactivated him, and there is no data in relation to this room for the last 10 minutes or so – he must have deactivated the monitoring software, both in our heads and around."
Jack looked at Sam in wonder, she had hardly lasted two minutes – two minutes during which he was looking fearfully at a woman clearly in pain and struggling to stay upright – two minutes in front of an alien panel where she managed to get more information out of it than he could from his own computer in a week. He leaned down carefully and placed his lips softly on hers, whispering gently in between kisses. "You… are… amazing… … … let's… get… out of here." He pulled away slightly and saw her nod quickly at him, more determined than ever to from escape their hell to their future.
"Alright Urgo," Jack slowly turned his head back towards the couch, where it appeared Urgo was holding his breath in nervous anticipation. "Mind telling us exactly what's going on and what we can do?"
Teal'c forced himself to remain stoic in spite of the fact that he was immobilised, face down, on what appeared to be very similar to the therapeutic tables used by chiropractors on Earth. An odd sensation of coolness on his back and the slight sting he felt indicated that there was probably a large needle on the point of breaking through.
"I demand to know what you are doing." His cool voice resonated in the almost empty room.
"Ah good. You are conscious." Togar paused at the control panel to Teal'c's side. "I am performing what Urgo tells me is known as a lumbar puncture on Earth." I am extracting fluid from your spine to examine its biochemical properties.
"To what purpose?" Teal'c didn't know what the term meant, but felt it wasn't a good thing.
"Hopefully it will help me in my study," Togar murmured slowly as he continued with his manipulation of the control panel in front of him. The mechanical arm above Teal'c's back began moving again and the needle pierced his skin directly into his spinal column. "You are fortunate I have immobilised you." Togar commented distractedly. "Apparently this procedure can be quite painful."
Teal'c didn't respond, although he thought he heard a slight note of disappointment in Togar's voice at the fact that he wasn't inflicting pain. He remained completely still, looking at the floor below him, every muscle he could move tense, ready to react.
The mechanical arm retracted with the syringe now full of a murky substance. These contents were immediately funnelled in different directions to a set of machines Teal'c couldn't see on the wall behind him. Togar consulted the information in front of him intently, making adjustments and notes occasionally, his expression completely blank.
"Ah ha. It is as I thought." He manipulated a different section of the control panel and watched as the mechanical arm moved back towards Teal'c, this time with a smaller syringe, filled with a clear liquid, within its grasp. The arm descended towards Teal'c back and the syringe plunged into his back, divulging its contents into his spinal column.
"Now, let's try this again." With the smallest glide of his hand, Togar activated the processor within Teal'c's mind and watched as the Jaffa convulsed with the activation of his memories.
Teal'c felt an uneasy sense of calm envelope him briefly before the now familiar sensation of being pulled in every which direction struck. The nauseating sensation of having hundreds of images flash quickly before his eyes destabilised him before it finally stopped at the image of Tanith standing in front of him, conceited sneer on his treacherous face. Teal'c felt like someone had punched him, hard, in the chest while squeezing his symbiote at the same time. The anguish and fury was so intense he couldn't bear to be standing in front of the man who had killed his love and do nothing. He struggled against those restraining him, not hearing the protestations from the Tok'ra or the rest of his team. The image kept going back Tanith's sneering face as Teal'c felt the sheer volume and intensity of his feelings overwhelm him.
Again roaring with the injustice of the situation and the overpowering guilt he felt, Teal'c was abruptly snapped out of the memory. Blinking his eyes quickly, he tried to gain his bearings. There was an intense pain in the back of his head and he felt he would be sick at any movement or sound. Fighting to remain conscious, his breathing was in laboured grunts as he tried in vain to calm his usually manageable reactions. He felt the unusual sensation of tears welling in his eyes as the trauma overtook him. A sob escaped from his mouth as he saw, again and again, the image of the murdering goa'uld in front of him. The muscles in his face twitched dangerously with the effort to regain control, but it was to no avail. He descended into a darkness of despair, unconscious and trapped in his own never-ending nightmare.
"Much better," murmured Togar to himself. "The suppressant weakened him considerably. Although the neuronal damage is repairing much faster than for his companions, the effect was comparable." He looked around the room with a satisfied expression on his face. "This will make a satisfactory method of extracting information from both human and jaffa emotionally-burdened beings."
TBC
A/N: Hey I know there's still a fair bit unexplained, but you all should have a fair idea of the danger now! Urgo's story coming up next time!
Also, I don't know if I've mentioned it, but I was a biochemistry/pharmacology double major in my Science degree, which is where all the medical stuff comes from. The terminology I've used is all real, but not really accurate – although I'm sure there could be damage resulting from overstimulation and trauma in a particular centre of the brain, these are NOT actually at the base of the head, and swelling probably wouldn't result from this (but hey, it fits the story better). Also, a depletion in neurotransmitters would cause crazy mood changes (like in that season 4 ep where Daniel got suicidal – that was accurate of course) but I've chosen to ignore it so no-one can chalk the Sam/Jack moments up to that.
Also, (sorry this note is so long), lumbar punctures aren't really that bad – but they can be very painful if not done carefully… if you ever have to have one, insist they give you a local anaesthetic!
I love all your encouragement, so please don't stop now!