I'm tickled at all the reviews, thank you! -hugs-

Chapter 4

Jack's vision was bleary at best, but what he lacked in sight was made up for by the most rancid smell he'd ever had the misfortune of encountering. He groaned, turning on his back— apparently not such a great idea because he swore he heard something crack.

"Alpha six, this is team leader Alpha-one-niner, do you read me?" he grunted into his radio instinctively, not trusting himself to move yet.

"I repeat, this O'Neill, can you read me? Kawalsky, come in, dammit!"

Nothing.

He sighed in frustration, forcing his eyes to get used to the surrounding darkness. There were voices, strange accents speaking in languages he didn't recognize... which wasn't saying much. Whoever they were, they were avoiding him, which was probably a good thing since he wasn't up to making small talk with fellow inmates just yet. Yes… inmates, as in prison. Now that he could infer from the smell— but what the hell had happened?

Gunfire.

That was the last thing he remembered. Kawalsky's team had taken a hit, so SG1 had split up and double backed way before they'd ever reached first position around the enemy base. Lucky them, they'd made it here anyway...

Then he remembered.

"Shit. Daniel… Daniel, you in here!" he called into the musky darkness. A few of the people stared at him wide-eyed, moving away.

"Charming the locals already," he muttered under his breath, turning to his side, and pushing himself up from the frigid dirt floor.

So much for the great O'Neill plan, it had pretty much gone to hell all the way. Those clunky metal wearing morons taken him and Daniel in the process, but at least it had bought Kawalsky's team enough time to get away, and that had been worth it. Hopefully they'd return to the SGC with Carter, assuming she was still alive… she'd gone down with a blast to her chest. That he remembered with frightening clarity.

"Jack! Thank God you're here!" A flustered Archaeologist blundered into his path. Jack couldn't have been more relieved.

"Oh... I'll be waiting for my get-out-of-jail-free card before thanking the big guy for anything. Good to see you've kept yourself alive, Danny."

"It's pretty easy to do when you're unconscious and nobody's paying attention to you. God my head hurts… and I'm slightly high strung at the moment. Why do I feel like throwing myself into a wall?"

"Adrenalin, it'll pass."

"When?"

" Normal people, about one or two hours, you I'm guessing three or four… days. Assuming we don't have another close encounter with those fucking Jedi."

" Jaffa."

"Right, them. Have you been able to contact anyone?" Jack asked.

"No… but that could just mean they're out of range, right? Maybe my radio's damaged. Or maybe they went back through the Stargate… have you seen Sam? She's around here somewhere. I haven't found her yet. I haven't found Sha're yet either, but I'm pretty sure they're both in here somewhere" Daniel rambled, panting slightly from anxiety more than exertion.

"Don't worry about Carter. Last I saw, Kawalsky was helping her. She's probably tucked in the infirmary right now getting an ass full of needles."

"No- Jack, I saw the Jaffa take her too, right after they knocked you out. She wasn't moving… at all." Daniel said, suddenly looking ill.

Jack let the words sink in, realization blowing over him like a freezing gust of air. He nodded, "If that's true, she's dead. Even if she survived the staff blast to the chest, no way she could have lasted this long if she was brought here."

"W-what?"

"You heard me. Now, do you have a GDO?"

"How can you ask me that! Sam's dead— do something!"

"Well sorry Daniel, they didn't cover reincarnation in boot camp, so there's nothing I can do for her. Let it go, I need you to think straight here." Jack ordered the other man who clearly wasn't military. "Now, c'mon, do you have a GDO? Sidearm? Grenade? Really sharp stick? I'm pretty flexible at this point."

"NO Jack! I'm going to find Sam and Sha're— you do whatever the hell you want to." Daniel snapped, disappearing into the small crowd again.

Jack let him go. It wasn't as if there was anywhere to go… but it was best that Daniel didn't find Carter first. The young man had certainly grown a lot during his time on Abydos, but he didn't need to see something like this.

"Hey… Jack O'Neill, Earth, nice to meet you, get out of the way," he said by way of introduction to the various onlookers staring at him.

It hadn't taken him long to find the other colonel— he knew where to look from experience. Valuables would have been scavenged and the body would have been tossed in one of the corners. Somehow they always ended up in corners. He froze for a moment when he saw her, lying on her side like she was merely asleep. The tufts of blonde hair sticking out in all directions might have been charming had she not been lying at an odd angle.

Jack knelt on the dirt ground, just watching her. He knew he had to check her over eventually, but he needed a minute of denial. The bright colored pool of blood she'd been lying in wasn't helping, only added to the reality he knew. What he hated, really hated, was the fact that he'd never be able to return her to Earth, not with the state they were in. She'd be left here once they made their escape. He realized offhandedly that he didn't even know anything about her, if he'd have to help make up a story about her death and explain it to someone she'd left behind. Family.

Reaching out and touching her shoulder, he turned her over, ignoring the red stains down her entire length. As broken as she looked, her face retained a pale glow, chances are she hadn't been dead for long. Had he gotten her back to the SGC, she might have had a chance.

He felt sick... then angry... then ridiculously furious at the woman he barely knew.

"Thanks a bunch Carter, like I didn't have enough guilt in my life already, now I have to deal with allowing you to die. The General will have my ass for this you know... people like you aren't meant to go down like this. You're supposed to go home to your lawyer boyfriend, get married, spawn incredibly intelligent babies, and save the world every Wednesday. For what it's worth, I'm sorry I wasn't watching your back," he muttered under his breath, a little harshly.

The moment gone, he shook himself back into reality, then unstrapped the GDO from her wrist , attaching it to his own. Then he did what he'd done for countless fallen soldiers he'd served with, carefully reaching in to feel for her silver dog tags. They still retained a certain luster, he had no doubt she'd kept the thin plates in fine condition after each mission.

He eased the silver chain up gently and-

"Aahhrgh!"

Jack did a manly version of a scream before wrenching himself back and falling hard on his butt. He cradled his hand wearing a horrified look, but broke out in a fantastic grin nevertheless.

"O'Neill- what the hell, you scared the shit out of me!" Sam snapped, rolling onto her knees and pushing herself up from the floor. She dusted her hands and glared at him.

"I scared you? You bit me! You're supposed to be dead!" Jack laughed incredulous, his heart lurching to his throat.

"Well sorry to disappoint. Were you even going to check before you ran off with my tags?" she asked accusingly, snatching her beloved dog tags back and placing them around her neck again, alomst reverently.

"I-I saw you go down after we reached Kawalsky, I thought you were dead then." Jack said apprehensively, "Daniel told me they'd brought you here— how are you not dead Carter!"

Instinctively, he reached out a hand to her face smearing away the red tracks, only to find a flawless and unbroken skin beneath his palm. He pulled back in confusion.

Sam looked up at him with wide eyes, then glanced down at herself.

Jack knew the signs well, and grasped her arm to steady her.

"Hey- you're okay," he said reassuringly.

"No… I'm not. I remember now, being shot. Why aren't I dead? There's too much blood, I- I have to get this off me."

She wrenched off her jacket, which was drying stiff already.

"Whoa!" Jack exclaimed, seeing a gaping hole in her shirt, distinctly the shape of a circle. The tattered jacket had concealed it before, but now there was no mistaking what he saw.

"Holy Hannah," Sam murmured in surprise.

Tentatively, she slid her hand down her body, her fingers lightly brushing over her torso before growing bolder and testing the new skin. The hollow fear and panic now replaced by a childlike curiosity lighting her eyes. There wasn't even a scratch.

Jack simply stared for a minute... well, maybe it was closer to two minutes. She hardly noticed he was there as she made small gasps of amazement, touching herself in ways that he felt were definitely inappropriate to do in public.

"Carter! As much as I enjoy watching you fondle yourself—"

"Feel this, isn't it incredible?" Sam said in awe, reaching for his hand and pressing it flat against her navel as she interlaced her fingers with his, continuing their now joint exploration.

Jack went slack jawed for a split second before clamping his mouth shut in a way that he sure had cracked his teeth.

"Do you have any idea how advanced this technology is O'Neill? I mean I read Doctor Jackson's report on the sarcophagus, but I never dreamed it would have this sort of regenerative capabilities. I'm guessing that's what they used on me, at least. If we could get our hands on this machine it could revolutionize our approach to modern medicine! I mean, I couldn't have been in there for more than two hours, and my skin's perfect, it's so soft and warm and- hey... what's wrong?"

"Nothing! Everything's peachy. Can I have my hand back now? My other one's getting lonely." Jack explained, thankful that his brain somehow managed the return journey back up to his head.

"Uh- sorry. Shit, I can't walk around like this," she said, abruptly realizing she was less than fully clothed, what with the giant hole and all. She turned back to her sodden jacket, but shuddered and looked away. "Don't suppose you have a spare shirt?" she asked blandly.

"Of course I do. It's right next to the spare toothbrush in the spare backpack, carried by the spare SG team that's about to rescue us any spare second now."

"Thank you Captain Sarcasm. As usual, you have proved yourself completely useless."

"That's Colonel Sarcasm to you."

"Give me your jacket."

"What- no! Do you know how long it took me to get the, to sew my rank onto this thing? Before it just said 'O'Neill', and how boring is that? I mean really, if it doesn't say Colonel on the uniform, then you might as well-"

"Jacket. Please."

He sighed, muttering something about women under his breath as he removed his jacket and tossed it at her.

"Where's Daniel? Kawalsky's team?" she asked, putting it on and rolling up the sleeves. She didn't need to wait for an answer.

"SAM! Jack- you found her, I knew she wasn't dead! Sam, Jack thought you were dead, but I told him you weren't Sam. Jack… Sam… God, I'm relieved you're both okay. I may throw up again." The Archaeologist reappeared, his nerves so edgy that the Colonels barely noticed the exotic young woman holding onto his arm.

"Deep breaths Daniel, I'm glad to see you're alive too… and I see you found what you were looking for?" Sam asked, grinning reassuringly, but keeping a safe distance in case he made good on that vomiting deal.

"Yes- I found Sha're, well, she found me rather, while I was looking for you. I mentioned that already- didn't I mention that? We've been talking to these people, but they're uncooperative, scared, they haven't been here long either. Sha're's helping me communicate with them-"

"DANIEL!" Jack snapped, "You're talking too fast. Slow down or shut up. Sha're, pleasure as always, I don't suppose you know a way out of here?"

She shook her head.

Jack sighed, glancing around the enclosure again, before meeting Carter's eyes. They had had a silent understanding of how mutually fucked they were at this point.

"Sha're," Sam spoke gently, "Can you tell us exactly what happened to you? Why you were taken in the first place?"

"How would she know? She was kidnapped!" Daniel replied almost defensively.

Jack rolled his eyes, "Something isn't adding up here kids. Sorry to point out the obvious, but these people aren't all from here. They're not speaking the same gibberish as each other or wearing remotely similar clothing... and don't tell me you haven't noticed how nobody's particularly... bad looking. It's liked they were selected, and brought here."

Sam and Daniel turned to him, clearly surprised.

"What? I have my perceptive moments!" Jack shrugged, then noticed Daniel was visibly paling.

"Oh, God..." Daniel murmured, "You don't think..."

"Think? No, that's your job. I'm just observing... so what did we just figure out?"

"The choosing, Jack. Of the Gods."

"They're choosing Gods?"

"No, the Gods are choosing."

"What Gods?"

"The Goa'uld!"

"The Goa'uld have Gods?"

"No, Jack, just..."

"Hey! Looks like something's up," Sam cut in.

The heavy doors ground open, revealing a Jaffa. Jack didn't recognize him from the attack, but he was a big guy. He had with him a young woman, who he tossed to the floor carelessly. She was clearly dead— then again, Jack was having an off day with the whole dead/alive thing, so he wouldn't put any money on the observation.

Suddenly, Sha're was trailblazing foreign words with a speed that rivaled Daniel's outburst a moment ago. She reverted to English once he'd calmed her. "Danyel- I too was taken, but the Goddess rejected me. That is why I was returned to be among these people. Please, you cannot allow her be taken also." Share explained anxiously to her husband.

"What?" Sam and Jack asked at the same time.

"From what I understand, the Goa'uld use humans as... uh... hosts, we knew that already. Um, apparently we've been added into the pool of potentials." Daniel stated.

"Lucky us," Jack sighed. "Now was there a 'good news' part to this story, or was this yet another fun fact from the book of things-I-don't-want-to know?"

"Well… they obviously only want the attractive hosts. So Jack, you're in the clear," the younger man said amused.

"Daniel! Point?"

"Well, uh... they're looking for hosts, and they've been through most of these people already. Right now, our problem is Sam."

What? Me?" She asked confused.

"Well yes, from what I can ascertain, it's a female host they require, and well Sam, you're what some may call uh…" Daniel blushed, "Well… you're… sort of…"

"You're a fox." Jack finished off for him.

"What?" Sam blinked.

"You're hot Carter. Sex on a stick and all that. I mean, if you're into the whole tall blonde look of course, which is so outdated these days, but then again these Goa'uld are reliving ancient Egypt in their heads so there's a chance they'll choose your lovely head as a new fishing bowl to swim around in. Trust me, I have a sixth sense about these things, and I can sense trouble." Jack explained thoroughly.

"Look, I know you two must find this situation highly amusing, but this is hardly something to joke about!" Sam frowned, "Now I suggest we set up an ambush at the next change of guards. Maybe some of these people will help with the escape if we convince them of minimal casualty-"

"KREE!"

Collectively, they turned to the Jaffa right behind them.

"Excellent sixth sense O'Neill, really something to write home about," Sam scowled, thoroughly pissed at being taken by surprise.

"Hey— do I just automatically get blamed for everything that happ-"

"KREE!" He yelled directly at Sam this time.

"What! I don't know what that means!" she shot back, raising her hands in the universal sign of please-don't-kill-me-you-stupid-twit.

"Daniel, what the hell does it want?" Jack prodded impatiently, trying to maneuver his way closer to Sam.

"I... I don't know... kree... a greeting, maybe...?"

"Aghh-!"

The Jaffa struck the end of his staff into Sam's torso, Jack barely caught her downfall, easing her to the ground.

"Whoa! Hey, buddy, your mother ever teach you how to treat a woman, or does the drooling idiot trait run in the famil-"

"Desist!" the guard snapped, activating his staff weapon and pointing in Jack's face.

"Thanks, but I'm straight. Honestly do you guys have any weapons that don't look like a giant penises? Don't get me started on those electro hand gun things, it's like you're trying to make up for somethi-"

"SILENCE!"

"Silence. Fine, shutting up now. Nice 'greeting' theory by the way Daniel." Jack muttered.

"You have healed well. I did not think you would survive, but the power of the Gods is strong." the Jaffa told Sam haughtily, as she recovered her bearings and rose to her feet.

"Oh I don't know about that… my guess is that the 'power' comes from a crystalline matrix structure similar to the one that powers the DHD. Your technology is really quite redundant. Of course, you probably don't know much about that. What do you want?"

"You owe me your gratitude, woman! I retrieved you from the battlefield in order to present to my Goddess as a possible host. You shall bow down to her and if you are found worthy, she will enter your body and cause you unimaginable pain before destroying what is left of your mind."

"Well, fuck you too."

"This insolence will not do. While your beauty is acceptable, you are unkempt; perhaps I shall take you now and teach you how to behave before a God..."

"What? Beauty? Her?" Jack snorted, "C'mon, I'm sure the queen snake could do better than Carter here... I mean look at her. She's all pasty and white, and don't get me started on her hair— what little she has I mean. It's such a putrid yellow color- not the kinda thing to see on a Goddess I'm telling you. Have I mentioned the figure? Way too tall, wouldn't you say? The hourglass look just doesn't work—"

"Silence!" the Jaffa snapped again, striking Jack with the back of his hand.

"A slap?" Jack asked incredulous, "Carter gets a staff in the gut and all I get is a slap?"

The Jaffa, more than willing to comply, dug the staff up under the man's ribs, and watched the man fall to the ground with a strangled moan.

"When the time comes, I will summon you." He said to Sam simply, returning to his post.

"Okay, Carter, I distinctly remember breaking your fall when you got hit!" Jack complained, as Daniel clumsily helped him off the ground.

"Yeah, well, you had it coming Colonel," Sam said with a flare of anger, "What the hell was that about? You know he wouldn't have killed me, not when he needed me, but you were completely expendable!"

"It worked, didn't it? He didn't take you with him."

"I'm not debating the outcome- I'm stating that your methods were irresponsible and careless! Who would have been there to get Daniel and Sha're out if we'd both been neutralized. Do you even consider these things before you speak?"

"I wasn't that bad…"

"You insulted his mother and his dick in the same breath!"

"Liked that, did you?"

"God- what's wrong with you!" Sam yelled in frustration, grabbing fistfulls of his shirt by on his chest and giving him a good shake. It would have worked out much better if he hadn't been so tall.

"What the hell are you getting so worked up about? I was doing the classic 'deflect-attention-from-your-teammate' routine, and taking the heat off you!" he countered, grabbing the lapels of her jacket- his jacket, really- and returning the angered gesture.

"Well get it through your head that I don't need you to use your stupid remarks to help me out of any situation!"

"Don't worry about it! Next time I'll just let them haul you away so you can get raped, molested, and turned into a hostess!"

"Host!"

"Whatever!"

"You know what your problem is O'Neill!"

"What Carter? What's my problem? Please tell me, because you seem to have ALL the answers these days!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means I'm tired of your insubordination!"

"Insubordination? You have no right to call me on that, we're both Colonels here, or did you conveniently forget that fact?"

"How could I when I have YOU reminding me of it every five seconds— honestly, if you're that insecure about your rank then maybe you don't deserve it!"

"And I suppose you do? You practically get handed a promotion every time you return from a suicide mission-"

"Uh, Guys...?"

"WHAT?" Sam and Jack growled simultaneously, not breaking their mutual glare of death.

"I think maybe I've found us a way out of here," Daniel said, grinning, "SG1, meet Teal'c…"

Hey, what you call arguing, I call misplaced sexual tension… -grin- So thoughts?