A
crack in forever by Roo
Part 2
Jack opened his eyes, slightly comforted at the familiar sight of the ceiling tiles. He turned his head to see if anyone from his team were there. It would only be a moment before the Doc arrived to tell him what was going on, like always. Teal'c stood guard at the end of the bed.
He lay there assessing the damage to his body. All limbs accounted for. He moved one hand and found he was attached to an IV pole which had several bags of gunk hanging from it.
He moved slightly. Ouch. Not doing that again for a while. Back and chest woke up and throbbed. Dammit, the nurse had stuck things in him everywhere. Jeez, surely he was allowed to go the john by himself. He wasn't hurt that badly was he?
"O'Neill, you are awake." stated Teal'c, leaning forward to press the buzzer.
"'Correct." said Jack as Teal'c passed him a beaker of water with a straw in it. Thirst quenched for now he asked,
"Everybody ok? Daniel? Carter? What about the rest of SG13?"
"Major Carter and Dr Jackson have visited, but you were still asleep. They are well. They will return."
Something in Teal'c's tone made Jack ask "What's up?"
"We returned with no injuries. Airman Wells from SG13 is recovering. We defeated the Jaffa on the planet."
"That's good, but what aren't you telling me?" Jack insisted.
But any reply the Jaffa might have made was lost as Dr Warner bustled in.
"How are we feeling today Colonel?"
"We are feeling fine." retorted Jack.
"Any pain?"
"Not so's you'd notice."
"Colonel, it's important! The pain medication will help you heal faster, so don't avoid taking them, please." said Dr Warner patiently, knowing Jack's tolerance and preference for as little pain meds as possible.
"Any tingling in the legs, or arms, numbness?" he continued
"No and No. Can I go home now?" asked Jack out of habit.
"Don't joke Colonel. We need to monitor you for a few days, while you get some rest."
"Is Dr Fraiser on duty today?" Jack asked.
There was a slight pause before Dr Warner replied "No, she isn't on duty today."
"Let's see how things are this morning, Colonel." continued Dr Warner as he began to unwrap the bandages covering Jack's torso. The ceramic plating had done its job but still left him with the outline of the plating, bruising and singed skin.
"Phew what's that smell?" asked Jack, wrinkling his nose.
"Singed skin and ointment." replied Warner.
"'Great."
"Be thankful! It saved you from a life threatening chest wound Colonel." said Warner sharply.
There was a discreet cough, General Hammond stood in the doorway.
"Morning Colonel, glad to see you're in one piece."
"Morning sir." replied Jack wondering what was going on.
"I'll be through in a moment, sir." said Warner as he asked Teal'c to help him roll Jack onto his side to examine his back.
"Hmmm."
"Don't 'hmmm'! What can you see!" said Jack exasperated.
"The blast threw you several feet onto your back according to Major Carter and Teal'c, so you have bruising there as well as the front. I'm checking your nerves aren't damaged. We're also monitoring your kidney functions because of that impact. Although the scans seem to indicate that they haven't been torn." Warner explained.
Well that accounted for the plumbing then, sighed Jack.
"I'll get a nurse to come by and redo the ointment in a minute." Dr Warner scribbled on his chart and then he was gone. Teal'c left too.
"Jack…'" began Hammond.
"'General." said Jack warily, "Is everything alright?" The General looked like he'd been up all night.
"Yes and no."
"We got SG13 out didn't we?"
"Yes."
"We finished off the Jaffa?"
"Yes."
"'Did we get the phaser machine thingy?"
"Yes."
"Then what is it?"
"Dr Frasier didn't make it."
"Didn't make it?" echoed Jack.
"She was with Dr Jackson giving aid to Airman Wells who was seriously wounded. She was hit by a staff blast."
"God. No! Wasn't she wearing one of the new vests?" asked Jack.
"We don't have many of them; and apparently she gave hers to one of her staff nearer the front line. Dr Jackson says it was all over very quickly."
"Daniel?"
"He did everything he could. He was there for both of them. You should be proud of him."
"Where's Cassie?"
"She's here at the moment; Major Carter's keeping an eye on her. As are we all." replied General Hammond sadly.
"God, it's not supposed to be like this! Dammit. After all this time. After everything we've been through…" said Jack angrily.
"I know Jack."
"When's the service?"
"In a few days. A formal ceremony here then a private arrangement later. We've both lost people in the line of duty, and they tell you it's not supposed to matter…" explained General Hammond.
"But it does." finished Jack.
"There's one other thing I have to tell you. Dr Jackson, was videotaping something when Dr Fraiser was hit, it's on camera."
"Jeez, Daniel! Oh God, I'd forgotten all about the film crew! They still here?"
"Yes they are. And they're sniffing around trying to find out exactly what happened. For a while people thought it was you who'd been killed. You had us all worried when you came back through the Gate."
"I need to see that tape sir." said Jack urgently.
"I know Jack, when you're ready." promised the General.