Note: The wolf and bird are not meant to be the Salish spirits from season two's "Spirits". I actually haven't seen that episode yet, although since I have it I should watch it. I have read the transcript of it though, lol. I assure you, not the same beings. Both animals are really animals, sometimes… sort of…
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Sirens assaulted their ears as they exited the infirmary for the second time. Teal'c hadn't been in there near as long as Jack had been, mostly due to the fact Teal'c had Junior to help him out. Although, according to the telltale marks left in his clothing, without some outside help, there was no way the Jaffa would have made it - regardless of the immature Goa'uld. At least that was the opinion of one Janet Fraiser.
"Sir," a guard addressed General Hammond, who had accompanied the two members of SG-1 down to the infirmary. Jack secretly suspected it was to make sure Teal'c allowed himself to be fully checked out. "We're receiving a signal." The guard glanced at Teal'c and O'Neill. "It's SG-1's code."
With that the man was promptly pushed aside as both Teal'c and Jack raced to the gate room, Hammond following in a more dignified manner. They arrived in time to greet a very weary looking Samantha Carter, whose movements gave the impression that she was ready to collapse at any moment. Medics, who had been called down as soon as the confirmation of the code was gained, reached her side within moments and immediately took her towards the infirmary.
Briefly the other three stood there, exchanging glances. Then, with a roll of his eyes Jack made after the medics. He really was getting tired of all this, not knowing what the hell was going on. But at least one more member of his team was accounted for.
When they arrived, they found Carter being examined by Dr. Fraiser. Aside from an overwhelming fatigue, there wasn't anything wrong with her. Tests would be run for safety reasons, naturally, but Sam was able to talk while she was being checked over.
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"I don't remember anything after that. There must have been an explosion," she added glancing down at the ravaged remains of her clothing. "When I woke up, I was in an area that we'd explored on the way to the Marsi village." Sam seemed puzzled as she tried to figure out how she got there.
"So you figured out your way to the Stargate," the General surmised.
"Yes Sir. At first I was going to head back to the Marsi village."
"Why didn't you continue there, Major?"
Sam shifted uncomfortably. It seemed silly, now. She realized that she must have overreacted when she had encountered the animals, but at the time....
"There was this wolf..."
"Wolf?" Jack was suddenly more alert. "Weren't we tracking a wolf?"
"Yes, sir. Sort of anyway. I don't know if we knew exactly what we were tracking. The wolf just came out of nowhere. By the time I reacted to it's presence, it was just..gone."
"So you decided at that point to return to the gate rather than continue to the village?" Hammond persisted gently.
"No, Sir. I still meant to go to the village. I started on my way again when this bird came at me. It was some type of hawk, I think. As impractical as it might be, sir, I believe it was trying to keep me from returning to the Marsi."
While Jack may have otherwise considered the idea ludicrous, he remembered the forest and the malice he had felt standing under the shadows of the trees. He also recalled how ridiculous he felt trying to explain that to General Hammond and Doctor Mackenzie. "There was just something weird about that planet, Carter."
Teal'c, though he remained silent, seemed to radiate agreement.
"So you didn't encounter Doctor Jackson?"
"No Sir."
A silence fell over the room as each present tried to figure out exactly where Daniel could be, and tried not to imagine what harm may have come to him. The latter attempt failed, and a sense of worry crept over them.
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He couldn't see a thing. The world refused to define itself in anything but varying shades of black, but due to the fact there were variances in the depth of darkness it told him one thing: there was a light source somewhere. He just had no idea where. Trying to focus on the problem only served to alert him that he'd been hurt; a jolt of pain shot down his spine to add confirmation to the general discomfort he felt, and he opened his eyes in surprise. Well, at least he knew why it'd been so dark...
Sunlight filtered in at odd angles from the walls, causing his photophobic eyes to narrow in protest. Wait a minute, Walls? Just where was he? The last thing he remembered was walking in the forest.
Still trying to figure that out, he attempted to rise; ignoring the stabbing pain that continued to lance through his entire body. Automatically he turned toward the nearly inaudible sound his brain had detected without his conscious awareness, and froze. Blue eyes locked on red, and the two of them simply stared for what seemed an eternity. Then lethargically, the red-eyed creature laid down in front of the door, watching curiously.
Allowing himself to breathe, he slowly finished sitting up. Instantly Daniel froze again as the massive, snowy-hued, creature in front of him shifted it's body, as though to rise. Fear replaced the pain.
"Do not worry of Ca'eles, he will not harm you."
Twisting his body in order to locate the strange voice, he winced.
"You should not be moving so much, your body has not healed completely." A faint scolding tone immersed itself within the melodious voice and a woman came into his line of vision as she bent down. Reaching over, she gently prodded the area with her fingers before leaning back on her heels to meet his gaze. "It heals well, all things considered."
Glancing up from his abdomen, his face took on a dumbfounded expression. He'd never seen such blue eyes. What he took to be the iris was a deep, beautiful blue. Where the white of the eye should have been, there was a lighter shade of blue. There was an incandescent quality to them. "Who are you?"
"I am called Vala."
"Just Vala?"
The question provoked a small smile from the lovely woman, who rose to her feet with an easy grace. "Vala Kyair."
"I'm Daniel."
"Just Daniel?" The smile broadened in mirth, and Daniel returned it.
"Daniel Jackson."
"Well Met, Daniel Jackson." With that, she held out a cup to him.
Sniffing the steaming contents, he sipped the liquid hesitantly and found the mixture to be tolerable. He took another small drink. Quite decent in fact, even if it was just a tad too hot to be comfortably consumed.
"What is this?"
"A simple herb mixture. It will aid in your healing."
There it was again. "What exactly am I healing from?"
"You do not remember?" Vala seemed puzzled, then shrugged, a mannerism that seemed refined in her. "You were caught in an explosion within the forest. Your wounds were quite severe."
Ah, that was it. He remembered the blast now. "Where are my friends?"
"Those that traveled with you? They have been returned to the Chappa'ai. There was nothing more I could do for them that they could not do for themselves."
"They left without me?" Daniel was on the verge of a pout, he settled for disbelief.
"I encouraged them to believe things would be alright; perhaps that meant they believed you had returned already." Again she shrugged.
"So where am I now?" He glanced around at closely interwoven vine walls and felt the grass beneath his hands.
"You are yet within the forest."
He found himself staring at the cup he held, which was surprisingly empty. It was made from stone, clearly. Beautifully carved, the smooth object was white with veins of red and yellow running through it. Daniel may have continued with such thoughts, but his mind finally finished settling, losing the disarrayed state caused by both the shock of the explosion and the extent of injuries suffered from it. "Wait a minute. What about the monster?"
Now Vala was completely confused, he could tell. But, like before, she did not remain that way for long. He saw understanding light behind those odd eyes and lines of weariness etched into her youthful face. "You were hunting for the Marsi's enemy."
Recalling the feeling of distrust he had of the Marsi, and the doubt he'd held about the hunt, he still could do nothing but answer truthfully. "Yes, we were. Do you have any idea where it is?"
"I believe," she stated flatly, "IT would be me."