Chapter 4
Rocks. Big rocks, medium sized rocks, and what seemed like thousands of tiny rocks whose only purpose in life was to find a way into her boots. All in all, Sam was finding it hard to believe anybody would consider turning this desolate planet into farmland. They'd been climbing steadily for almost two hours. It was hot, as usual on Dakara, and dry, also as usual, with nothing but rock and red dust as far the eye could see.
Teal'c finally stopped on a ridge overlooking a narrow box canyon, and waited for Sam and Daniel to catch up. The terrain here was mountainous, studded with craggy peaks and deep valleys - a thoroughly unlikely place to hide an alien artifact.
"Teal'c?"
Teal'c tilted his head slightly to one side, eyebrow raised in polite interest.
"I don't see any device."
Sam was startled by the note of irritation in Daniel's normally enthusiastic voice. Then again, they were all hot, thirsty, and cranky as hell. "I don't either," she said.
Teal'c pointed toward the end of the canyon, unperturbed. "It is there."
Daniel squinted. "All I see is more rock."
Sam unclipped her pack and reached inside, pulling out her binoculars. She stared through them for several moments before handing the glasses over to Daniel. "I'm sorry, Teal'c, but I agree with Daniel."
"You will see it when we get closer." Teal'c started to turn away.
"I have a question." Daniel nudged a fist-sized rock over the edge of the ridge with his toe. It skittered down the steep slope, raising a cloud of dust as it went. "Why didn't we use a tel'tak?"
"Do you require rest, Daniel Jackson?" There was the faintest hint of amusement in Teal'c's voice.
Sam felt a laugh bubble up in her chest, and devoted her attention to screwing the top on her canteen, biting her lip to hold the smile at bay.
"No, not at all." Daniel's response was swift.
Teal'c continued to gaze steadily at Daniel for a moment, as though deciding whether or not he believed him. "There is no tel'tak available at this time."
Daniel put his own canteen away and waved Teal'c ahead. "Lead on."
It took another half hour of steady hiking to reach the place Teal'c wanted them to see, and it wasn't until they'd actually arrived that she and Daniel were able to recognize the fact that there was, indeed, a manmade object here. The device, whatever it was, had been built into the wall of the canyon near where it came to an abrupt dead end. Its position several hundred meters above the valley floor meant that the only way to reach it would be by climbing down to it from above.
Sam dropped her pack and rifled through it for the rope and harness Teal'c had suggested she bring. She started to step into the harness, but stopped when she felt Daniel's hand on her arm.
"Shouldn't we get some idea of what that thing is before you go poking and prodding at it?"
She yanked the harness up and started buckling it around her waist. "That's exactly what I'm going to do, Daniel."
"Okay, maybe I should rephrase." He folded his arms and rocked back on his heels. "Teal'c already told us that the device has some kind of markings on it, and there's a fair chance those symbols are in an ancient language. Have you become a linguist in your spare time?"
She shook her head. "You know I haven't."
"Then doesn't it make sense that I should be the one going down first?"
"Perhaps Daniel Jackson is correct," Teal'c said mildly.
Sam blew out an exasperated breath and took off the harness, reluctantly handing it over to her teammate. "Daniel, so help me God, if you start pushing buttons…"
He held up his hands, "No buttons. I swear."
She snorted. She didn't trust him for an instant, but she had to acknowledge that he was right. It really did make more sense for him to go down first. Teal'c took the other end of the rope, wrapping it around his waist and leaning back slightly to better support Daniel's weight. Daniel eased himself over the edge, taking his time to find stable toe holds as he worked his way down the rock wall and then across to a narrow ledge that would allow him to reach the device.
Several minutes passed during which Sam lent her strength to Teal'c's, and Daniel concentrated on his footing. Finally, the rope went slack.
"Daniel?" she called.
"Yeah, Sam. I'm good. Lock the rope, would you?"
Sam nodded to Teal'c, who wrapped the end of the rope several times around a large boulder. He tied it securely before coming over to where Sam lay flat on her stomach, her head hanging over the edge to better see what Daniel was doing. Camera in hand, he was already recording digital images, his free hand moving lightly over the rock face.
"Daniel!" Surely he knew how sensitive some of these things could be. "No buttons!"
He looked up at her. "Sam! Give it a rest! I'm not-"
The rest of his comment was lost in a low rumble as Sam felt the ground beneath her shift ominously.
"Daniel!" Suddenly she wasn't angry or irritated. She was scared. The ledge Daniel was standing on was only just wide enough for his feet, and, rope and harness not withstanding, it wouldn't take much to dislodge him. She looked around to where Teal'c had rolled to his feet in a single smooth motion and was now once again holding onto the rope.
Teal'c's calm voice was almost lost in the grating noise of rock shifting against rock. "Shall I pull him up, Colonel Carter?"
"Just a sec, Teal'c." Reassured that the lifeline was stable, Sam looked back down to see that Daniel had flattened himself against the cliff wall, the fingers of one hand wrapped securely around the rope, the other holding onto something she couldn't see. The digital camera hung freely from its strap around his neck. Luckily, a small outcropping above his head offered protection against the cascade of small stones and rocks that been dislodged by the tremor.
"Not yet, Teal'c. Right now, he's safer where he is." She got a nod in reply as the rumbling finally slowed to a stop. She breathed a tentative sigh of relief. She hadn't known Dakara was prone to earthquakes, but given its geological makeup, she wasn't all that surprised.
Daniel looked up at her, a crooked smile of relief on his face. "I swear, Sam. I didn't touch a thing."
She laughed a little nervously. "Maybe the mountain just prefers a feminine touch."
He snorted at that and went back to his work. A few minutes later, he called up that he was finished, and Sam and Teal'c worked together to pull him back up the steep incline. Daniel took off the harness and Sam reached for it, preparing to take her own look at this new discovery.
"Sam." Daniel caught her arm, preventing her from fastening the buckle around her waist. "I think you should wait."
"Excuse me?" Daniel usually knew better than to try to protect her. She could take care of herself. Besides, this discovery could be important to the Jaffa people, and it seemed to her that –
He interrupted her train of thought. "I just think we should get a geological survey done before we take any more risks. Look, if that quake had happened before I'd gone down there I would have said the same thing. It's too dangerous."
Sam looked over to where Teal'c was coiling up the rope. "It would be exceedingly unwise to linger, Colonel Carter," he said. "This area may indeed be unstable."
She sighed in frustration. They were right. It made sense to get a survey done before they did too much poking around. Besides, from what little she could tell, the machine was turned off at the moment and no apparent danger to anybody.
"Fine," she said finally. "We'll go back. General Landry can decide what happens next." She looked around at the rapidly deepening gloom. "There's no way we'll make it back to the gate tonight, though. Let's make camp."
It was nearly 1130 by the time they reached the gate the next day. Sam adjusted her pack on her shoulders and moved to the DHD beside Daniel, but Teal'c held back.
"I regret that I will not be joining you on your return," he said quietly.
Sam snapped her head up from where she'd been watching Daniel punch in the coordinates. "You aren't coming back?"
"Not at this time."
"And you wait until now to say something?" Daniel voiced the incredulity Sam was feeling. He looked at her. "Is the O'Neill disease contagious?"
Sam shrugged a puzzled shoulder before turning back to Teal'c. "Why?"
"My presence is required here," he said. "I must help my people find a new way now that they no longer serve the Goa'uld."
"What about the mission?" Sam asked.
"I will rejoin you upon your return to Dakara."
"Does General Landry know about this?" Sam knew she was grasping at straws, hoping that Teal'c's sense of duty would work in her favor.
"Indeed," Teal'c nodded, disappointing her. "We discussed the matter yesterday."
"And yet, you didn't tell us."
"I did not see the need."
Sam rolled her eyes at that. What was it with the men in her life all of a sudden?
"So… Is this a permanent thing?" Daniel asked.
"I do not believe so," answered Teal'c. "My place is with the Tau'ri."
Sam swallowed her sigh of relief. Well, that was something, anyway. "We'll miss you, Teal'c."
He bowed slightly in her direction. "And I you, Colonel Carter."
She hugged him, closing her eyes as she was briefly enveloped in a cocoon of secure affection. When she pulled away, she hid the mistiness in her eyes, focusing her attention on her gear until she was sure she could look up without revealing her emotions. Daniel hugged Teal'c as well, the gesture one of masculine affection and respect.
"Dial it up, Daniel," she said, needing a distraction from the lump in her throat. "Let's go home."
