"O'Neill – I would speak with you." Ailani stood outside of their hut accompanied by two of the elders of the tribe.
Jack gave Sam a quick look, his brow raised, and moved to open the door. "What is it Ailani?"
"We request your presence. Teina has asked to speak in front of the elders. He claims you are spreading lies about him and that you attacked him."
"He's saying I attacked him? And when was this – before I was stabbed, when I was unconscious – or afterward?"
"He indicated it was today."
"Today?" Jack glanced at Sam and shook his head. He had a feeling things were going to hell very quickly. "I didn't touch him. Except for a brief visit to the facilities – uh – latrines, I haven't left the hut."
"That is not what he says. Come, you must join us."
"Mmm – and if I don't?"
"That will be an acknowledgement of your guilt."
"I have a feeling I've already been found guilty", he muttered. "What about Samantha?"
"Women are not allowed to speak in front of the elders. That is for their husbands and fathers."
"I see. Well then, let me speak with her first before I go." Jack turned around and slammed the door in Ailani's face and pulled Sam to the far side of the hut.
"I don't like this Sir", she whispered.
"My either. Look, as soon as I've gone gather all our things together and make your way to the outskirts of the village. Go over to the big rock – you know, the one we passed on the way to the beach. Wait behind it. I'll try and make it there as soon as I can and then we'll head to the gate."
"But Jack – you're not well enough."
"I'll have to be", he said gravely. "I have a feeling we're in danger here."
She nodded, recognizing the truth of what he was saying. "What about a weapon?"
"Give me a zat." She retrieved one of the weapons and he put it in his waistband. He then made sure his shirt was bloused out over top. He hoped that the bandages around his torso would hide the extra bulge. "Okay – be careful Sam."
"You too Jack." She leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "And don't irritate them!"
He grinned and moved towards the door. He gave her a casual salute and opened it, to find an angry looking Ailani and the two other villagers waiting.
"Come – the elders are waiting."
"Hold your horses", Jack muttered. He felt it was in his best interest to pretend to be weaker than he actually was. Making the enemy underestimate him was one of Jack's favorite strategies.
He limped along behind Ailani, letting out a few hisses and some strategic groans. At one point he stopped and bent over, making it look like he was winded and dizzy. One of the men grabbed his arm after that as if to steady him. "Thanks", he told the guy, adding a charming smile. Might as well try and make a few friends.
From the man's scowl he didn't think it had worked. Oh well – hopefully he and Sam would be out of here soon anyway. Making friends with these people wasn't at the top of his to-do list.
They arrived at the center of the village – an open space with a fire pit – presently unlit - in the middle. It looked as if all the men of the village, at least all over the age of about twenty, were present.
In the very center, in front of the fire pit, sat Teina. Just behind him was a group of some of the younger men. By the way they were talking and laughing it was clear they were aligned with him. Jack's eyes narrowed. Something was definitely going on in the village. He wondered if Ailani had any idea, or if his loyalty to his brother was blinding him.
It became very obvious, within minutes of the session starting, that the villagers were clearly on the side of Teina. Like many primitive peoples they were wary of strangers, willing to believe their own against all evidence. Jack questioned whether it was even worth it to mount a defense. Not quite sure what the outcome was supposed to be, he decided to exercise patience – for the time being anyway.
"As you have heard O'Neill, the charges against you are serious." Ailani stood after his brother and a few of Teina's cronies had finished weaving an unlikely tale of a plot against the village by O'Neill (a demon) and his woman Sam'ata. "What do you say?"
"What do I say?" He looked around at the faces of the men of Ati-Makani. "I say that Teina lies and that you are willing to believe him regardless of the evidence, or lack thereof. I have done nothing to hurt anyone in this village. In fact, the only person who has been hurt is me and you seem unwilling to investigate that honestly." Jack stood carefully, again making it look like he was weak and in pain.
He turned slowly, to look at Ailani. "When I first saw you Ailani, I was impressed at the fact that you seemed to be a wise and fair ruler. I see I have been mistaken. I also pity you, because your brother and his friends are the ones plotting against you. I am now going to return to my wife."
"STOP!" Teina leapt up and raced towards Jack. "You cannot leave. You have been accused of a crime, and everyone can see you are guilty. I call on the men to sentence you to death for what you have done!"
"What have I done Teina? Do you see anyone in this village that has been hurt? No, you are trying to hide something by killing me. Now move out of my way."
"Ailani!" Teina cried. "You must stop him."
Ailani looked unusually indecisive and Jack could see that it was disturbing to the villagers. He'd managed to sow some doubt, but he was sure that soon they'd all turn on him. Fear of strangers and the unknown was a strong catalyst for hate and violence.
"O'Neill", Ailani finally called out. Jack stopped and turned slowly.
"What?"
"You – I have to protect my people."
"Of course you do. But sometimes the biggest threats are not from the outside, but rather from rot on the inside." He then began to walk slowly out of the circle. Although he made it look like he was simply concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, in actual fact he was carefully observing everything that was going on. He was pretty sure that Teina would try something, although possibly not now, not with all the men watching.
Jack headed back towards the hut he and Sam had been using. Fortunately no one followed him, although he could hear lots of loud arguing. He was pretty sure that any minute a group of men would come and grab him and possibly Sam. They had to get out before Teina riled up the villagers any more.
As soon as he was out of sight of the men he circled around one of the huts, which appeared empty and headed towards the trees. He hadn't seen any of the women, and wondered if they were staying inside their homes or if they were all together somewhere.
He made it into the trees and began to move towards where he'd planned to meet Sam. They needed to make their way to the gate, but it was a two day journey and he knew that, although he was better off than he'd appeared to the villagers, he was still weak and there was no way he could outpace any who tried to follow. Unfortunately they'd have to try and hide out for a few days and make their way in a round about fashion.
He found Sam right where he'd told her to be – of course. If there was anyone he could trust it was the best 2IC he'd ever had. She silently handed him his pack, giving him a quick once-over to make sure he was okay. "Come on", he whispered. "I don't think we have much time."
She nodded and followed him as he headed away from the village and from the trail to the gate. She didn't say anything, trusting he knew what he was doing.
As they moved the sounds from the village grew fainter. Hopefully they'd keep arguing and – if they were really lucky – they'd decide against doing anything to their guests, although Jack figured that was unlikely.
They kept moving for over two hours without speaking and Jack was growing tired. He was actually surprised at how well he was holding out. He'd healed remarkably quickly from a rather severe injury.
He finally stopped and blew out a breath of air. "Let's take a breather", he said softly, dropping his pack to the ground and following it with his body. He leaned up against a tree and sighed. "You okay Carter?"
"Yes Sir, I'm fine. How about you?" She sat down beside him, while grabbing a canteen and handing it to him. "Drink."
"Yes Ma'am", he grinned and took a long swig of water. "I'm fine. Tired and a bit sore, but better than I thought I'd be."
"Adrenaline", she told him. "You'll hurt tomorrow."
"Ever the optimist Carter!" He stopped for a moment and listened. So far they hadn't heard anyone following them, but knew they still had to be careful.
"So what happened back there?"
Jack again admired what a great officer Carter truly was. She must have been dying of curiosity but instead had simply followed his orders, waiting for the right moment before finding out what was happening.
He told her briefly what had transpired. "It won't be long before Teina has them convinced we really are demons. He's got a group of followers too. I don't think Ailani has any idea the trouble he's in."
"Do you think they'd assassinate him?"
"Mmm hmm. Teina is a vicious customer and definitely power hungry. There's also something weird going on there, but I can't tell what it is."
"Sir!" Sam held up her hand. "I heard something", she whispered.
Jack nodded and quickly and quietly got to his feet. He held out his hand and helped Carter to stand. They pulled out their zats and moved back into the denser jungle, taking their packs with them and making sure they didn't leave any telltale signs of their presence.
A few moments later and the sounds grew louder. There were a number of people coming up on their tail so both of the officers stood frozen, hoping to escape detection.
They must have some good trackers, thought Jack, because he and Carter had been as careful as possible to leave no signs. He was also surprised at how quickly the men, whether Teina's or Ailani's, had come upon them. They must have been travelling quickly.
"But what if they get away", a voice was heard to say.
"They won't. I have Ari, Hiro and Ponui heading towards the circle. They will find them and kill the man. The woman I will keep – for now", Teina laughed.
"You do not think he has already contacted his god?"
"No – he was too ill and I ensured he stayed that way, although I wish I had killed him! No – his god will not come." Teina sounded certain and that seemed to appease whoever was with him.
By the sounds coming from the jungle Jack thought there must be six or seven people, including Teina. He was curious as to what had happened at the village – and why the men were here. He had breathed a sigh of relief – a silent one – when he realized they thought he and Sam had headed towards the gate. So the fact that they were here was just coincidence.
"Whom do you think he serves", another, younger, voice asked. Whoever it was sounded rather frightened.
"Possibly Apophis or Heru'ur – but whoever it is, it is one who is the enemy of our God. When the Lord Ra returns, we shall tell him that we kept our world for him and that we serve only him and he will reward us!"
"Teina?" It was the young voice which spoke again. "How do we know Ra will come? He hasn't been back since the time of our ancestors."
There was a sharp sound, followed by the sound of a groan and a whimper. "Do not ever doubt our God!" Teina practically shouted. "Do that again and I shall kill you!"
"I am sorry", the voice answered, sounding breathless and almost in tears. "I did not mean to doubt him. I honor and worship him."
"See that you do! Now come, we must get to the temple and collect the implements of destruction. It is time our people learned who is their master!"
Jack and Sam waited silently until the men had passed and it was safe to speak. They both let out the breath they'd been holding. "Whew! That was close", Jack said.
"Mmm – and they weren't even looking for us. I wonder where they're going?"
"Well, the instruments of destruction must be weapons. I expect they're planning a coup!"
"What should we do?" Sam asked.
Jack closed his eyes a moment and then sighed. The last thing he wanted to do was to get involved in some dispute between brothers. But he knew he couldn't let Teina kill his fellow villagers, including his brother – and probably his nephew. He stood up straight and looked to Sam.
"Let's see where they're going. Maybe we can figure out a way to stop them."
The two former Air Force officers moved out onto the trail to follow the villagers. They watched carefully, not wanting to suddenly come on one of them or to end up in a trap.
Jack found himself getting tired after another hour of walking. He wasn't sure how much energy he had left. He lifted his hand, to declare a short break, when a sound to his right startled him.
He swung quickly and lifted his zat – to see another one pointed directly at him. Fortunately his aim was better – and faster – and the native went down in a flash of light. The zat blast directed at him hit the tree beside him – and stunned the poor snake which had been slithering up its trunk.
Sam had also drawn her weapon and was doing a careful search to see if there were any other men in sight. After a moment she nodded. "All clear", she whispered.
Jack nodded back and made his way to the native. He recognized him as one of the young men who had sat behind Teina. "Damn", he grimaced as the guy began to wake up. Not wanting to kill him, Jack used the old-fashioned method and hit him on the jaw, knocking him out again. He then quickly tied him and gagged him. "Let's go."
The two officers made their way, with extreme stealth, through the jungle. They stayed off the path in order to avoid any further ambushes. It was only a few minutes later that they came on the 'temple'.
"Crap", Jack whispered. He recognized those symbols. This really was a temple to Ra. He thought back to that episode, so many years ago now, which had started this whole thing. He'd killed the snakehead then, but it seemed as if the guy wanted to keep coming back to haunt him.
They watched carefully, but couldn't see anything. Teina and his men must be inside. After a while Jack signaled that he was going up to the temple to check it out.
"Sir!" Carter hissed, her eyes huge.
"I'll be okay", he mouthed. "Watch my six."
She grimaced and shook her head, but a raised eyebrow and a small grin caused her to roll her eyes and nod. Jack O'Neill would be the death of her one day.
Jack slunk forward, every sense on the alert. All his weakness and tiredness had left. In its place was the rush of adrenaline, which kept him going – and alive – and had through many other dangerous missions.
He managed to make his way right up to the front of the temple – where the single door stood. It was open – in fact there was no actual door, but a simple opening in the wall. Jack held his zat in front of him and stood to one side of the opening, his body pressed against the cool stone of the temple.
He took a deep breath and then swung in front of the door, keeping low. Nothing happened, so he took two steps forward, staying alert for any change.
Sam watched as Jack moved into the building and felt her heart begin to race. Why was he doing this? Her eyes scanned the entire area around the temple, but so far she didn't see or hear anything out of the ordinary.
A moment later and Jack had disappeared inside the temple. She said a short prayer for errant Colonels and continued to watch.
Jack was in a long corridor, although there were a number of alcoves down the side. There were torches placed sporadically along the walls, although there wasn't enough light to illuminate the corridor completely. He was grateful because if need be he could hide in one of the alcoves.
As he walked – his eyes carefully checking out every nook and cranny – he couldn't help but wonder at the Goa'uld. They had some of the most incredible advanced technology, but couldn't seem to figure out electric lights. They lit most things with torches, which was really crazy, especially in a space ship.
Suddenly he stopped as he heard the sound of voices ahead. He continued to creep forward, but slowly and even more carefully. The light grew brighter as he approached the end of the passageway. He could see that another corridor branched off at 90 degrees from the one he was in and that's where the light was coming from. He stopped and knelt down. From that vantage point he carefully stuck his head around the corner.
Shit! Inside a large room – in the middle of which sat a stone altar – were five men from the village. Laid out in front of them, on that altar and on another table off to the side, was an array of weapons, including zats and staff weapons. He could also see a communications device, a hand device – hopefully no one could use that – as well as other Goa'uld produced objects.
The men were talking and laughing – while collecting the weapons and readying them to take back. Against these weapons Ailani and his followers would have no chance.
He slowly stood and backed away. He needed to get out of here and get to Sam. He didn't know if there was much they could do, although so far there were only five. The odds were pretty good and much better than he or Sam usually faced.
He made his way back down the corridor and towards the entrance – and Sam. He thought briefly of her and was thankful that she was with him – although that thought made him feel guilty.
Just then he heard a noise – a loud noise – coming from up ahead. Crap! Someone – lots of someones were heading his way.
He looked around frantically and found the darkest alcove he could. He dove into it and pressed himself against the wall. He held his breath as the sounds grew nearer.
Jack watched as the first Jaffa passed his position. He wanted to curse, but continued to stay frozen, barely breathing. All it would take would be one glance to the side and he'd be toast.
In the end he counted twenty Jaffa – and all of them were wearing Ra's insignia. Who the hell were they? Ra had been dead and gone for years, and most, if not all of his Jaffa had either become free, or had sworn allegiance to another god. Something fishy was going on.
Once he was sure that there were no more coming, a very shaky Jack made his way back into the main corridor and moved towards the outside. Again he thought about Sam, but this time it was to pray she was all right and that she hadn't been discovered. If he were to find her lifeless body – stop that Jack, he told himself. There's no point thinking that way.
Sam had heard the Jaffa before she saw them. She'd known instantly who was coming – having spent years hearing the clink of Goa'uld armor. She slid quietly back into the trees and waited while the troop passed her by.
Oh God Colonel! Her eyes closed briefly as the Jaffa entered the temple. There was no way they wouldn't discover him. What should she do?
Wait. She knew she had to wait and see what would happen. Jack had a way of getting out of tight spaces. Maybe his luck would hold this time as well.
Two of the Jaffa ended up staying outside to guard the temple. She frowned. If Jack did make it out, he'd walk straight into the two guards. With a soft curse she began to make her way closer to the temple. She had to take them out.
Jack was almost at the door and his physical exhaustion and still to be completely healed wound started clamoring for attention. He just needed to make it out in the open, and he'd be safe. And Sam would be waiting there for him!
He stopped before leaving the temple, knowing it was highly likely that the Jaffa had placed guards out in front. It showed how inexperienced Teina was that he hadn't thought of it.
His palms sweaty and his breath coming in short gasps, Jack knew he had to take a chance and just go for it.
With a deep breath he dove out the door, flipping around mid-air and landing on his back, his zat drawn and pointed towards where he hoped the guards were placed.
Instead he almost shot Sam, who was standing over the unconscious – or dead – body of a Jaffa.
"It's me Sir!" she said quickly.
"God Carter – you scared the crap out of me."
"I scared the crap out of you?" she asked incredulously. Her mouth opened and he jumped in, speaking before she had a chance – purely as a matter of self-preservation.
"Yes, let's not dwell Sam – instead let's get the hell out of here. I expect they'll be out soon."
She nodded and the two made their way quickly back into the jungle. They'd barely reached the trees when they heard a shout.
"Damn it! Let's go Carter!" The two began a race through the jungle, the sounds of pursuit loud behind them. This wasn't an unusual situation for the two, but unfortunately, this time they weren't close to the gate, nor did they have the first idea where to go. They were simply running for their lives.
Jack lost track of how long they'd been running. All he knew was his lungs were about to explode, he could see little but black spots that were chasing themselves around in his eyes, his chest felt like someone was sticking a hot poker through it and his legs were burning and cramping continuously.
He glanced briefly at Carter, who looked about like he felt. Still the Jaffa kept coming – their little snaky juniors giving them a resilience and endurance that far outstripped that of the humans.
He was sobbing for air and knew they couldn't go on much longer. Maybe they should turn and fight. They'd both die, but at least they'd go out in a blaze of glory. He started to slow down, which brought a panicked look from Sam. "Sir?" she heaved. "What are you – doing?"
"We – can't – outrun them – anymore Sam. I say – we stand – and – fight."
"No - Sir", she said. "Keep - going. We aren't going to die – not here – not now!"
He appreciated the sentiment and gave her a smile, but he knew it was no use. They had nowhere to run.
He glanced ahead to a small outcropping of rock. It looked like there was a shallow cave – more of an indent in the rock than a real cave – but it looked as good a place as any for a last stand. "Over – there", he pointed.
She looked and nodded. She knew, as well as he, that there was no hope. With a smile she reached out and took his hand and together they ran towards the rock.
They heard the Jaffa getting closer. It would only be moments now. Jack faced his comrade – his friend – the woman he cared about more than he should.
"I love you Sam", he told her. "I should – have – told you – before."
Her eyes filled with tears and she sobbed. "I – love you – too."
He smiled and reached out and pulled her to him. However, because of his exhaustion he was unsteady and stumbled. In order not to fall and to take her with him, he steadied himself by putting his hand on the rock beside him.
There was a rumble and it slid away. Both of them tumbled inside and then the rock closed behind them.