Tree. Tree after fucking tree. So many damn trees.
She was angry. So damn angry. Every cell in her body was screaming at her, and a fiery heat surged through her core. Looking around her, she didn't recognize her surroundings. Where the hell was she?
Too many damn trees.
A bird swooped low overheard, brushing her long hair across her cheek. Her eyes glowed, and she felt a warmth in the palm of her hand. Looking down at the ruby, it grew bright red, and she pointed it at the bird, quickly killing it.
Stupid bird.
Her body tingled, and her anger was replaced with excitement and pleasure at herself. She grinned, content that the thing that was a problem for her was so easily destroyed. Now if she could only figure out where she was.
She continued to walk, blasting away vines and squirrels and other wildlife that got in her way. Soon, after much cursing and walking, she arrived at a village. Smoke rose like pillars from the chimneys, children danced around fruit stalls and sang tunes she couldn't understand. She clearly stood out – she was wearing a revealing dress, her breasts exposed, her thighs covered by just a thin garment made of gold, and her hair was slicked back, and she wore heavy jewelry. She was obviously royalty, but instead of bowing to her, the villagers, dressed in nothing by ratty clothes and naked feet, looked on her in suspicion and awe. She should have killed them then.
She walked to the center of the village, marked by a large stone platform. Throwing her long, blonde hair over her shoulder, she stood tall. "Attention, peasants. You will listen to me or you will die," she demanded.
Not many turned to look at her; they kept to what they were doing, with small glances and acknowledgements her way. Her blood began to scream at her again, and her palm lit up.
"You will listen to me!" She cried out, aiming her hand at the support beam of a busy bar. It crashed down instantly, sending the villagers inside scrambling and screaming for an exit. She could see that not many of them made it out, and as their friends and family looked fearfully at her and desperately at the destroyed building, she was proud of herself.
"My name is Hadad, and I am your new god. You will all bow before me, or you will all die." Her eyes lit up, and quickly, the villagers got to their knees. Power surged through her blood, yet she could tell they did not intend to follow her. They glanced at each other, and she heard them whisper. She looked between them and ordered them to tell her what they spoke of. As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt a needle pierce her neck. Furious, she turned and faced her attacker.
"Baal," she groaned, his smiling face standing in front of her, dangling an empty syringe from his long fingers. He activated his arm band, requesting the rings, and they disappeared from the fictional village he had created for her. She remembered kissing him before falling unconscious.
She was shivering. She opened her eyes and looked around. A man was chained to the floor, looked desperately at her, as if he was trying to call out to her. However, she couldn't help but notice the other man, lying dead in front of him, a pool of blood spilling around his body. Her heart raced, and she rushed over to him. She turned him over to face her.
"Baal," she muttered, longingly caressing his face. "Baal," she begged, shaking him.
"Carter?" The man spoke. She looked up at him, suddenly remembering he was there.
"You did this," she challenged him angrily. "You killed him."
The man's face twisted in confusion, but she knew he was pretending. He killed Baal. He did it. Slipping the hand device off Baal's wrist and onto her own, she stood in front of the man. "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about. You killed him, and now you'll die."
"Carter, please, you've got to listen to me," he begged. "I've been chained down here, just like you have."
"I don't believe you," she stated blatantly. She watched as a myriad of emotions crossed his face. Her anger grew, and damn if she wasn't angry, and the ruby glowed in her hand. "You killed Baal."
He looked at her then, and she thought she saw a hint of sadness and love pass through his eyes.
"What was that?" She asked him. He didn't respond, and she smacked him hard with the back of the ribbon device, spit flying from his lips. Blood trickled from his gums and nose, and he groaned.
"I didn't kill him, Carter. You've got to believe me. I'm the good guy. Your name is Samantha Carter and you're my second-in-command. We fight bad guys like these. But I didn't kill him."
She hesitated, but when she saw the hope flicker in his eyes, she grew angry again.
"I don't believe you." She activated the ribbon device, and held it to his forehead. "And you will pay."
Jack struggled against his chains, trying to turn and see who was standing behind him. However, the harder he pulled, the tighter it seemed they held him down. There was no sound for a long time, and Jack looked at Baal in front of him, lying in a pool of his own blood.
After what seemed like an eternity, he heard heavy footsteps approach him. The chain pulled tight against his neck, and the laughter his ear sent shivers down his spine.
"You wish I could have been killed that easily," Baal chided proudly.
"You son of a bitch," he spat.
Baal walked around him, and stood in front of his dead self. He seemed to look curiously at it, and kicked it towards him. "When I made these clones, I didn't expect them to be quite so true to the original. I guess I really am too good at what I do," his eyes glinted.
"Let me just give you a round of applause," Jack said, jingling the chains that held his wrists down.
"Anyway," Baal changed the subject. "I've got some more ideas for us to play with." He looked disgustingly at the dead clone.
"What do you want?" Jack ground out between gritted teeth. He was so not in the mood to deal with another Baal.
"I want to have a little more fun," Baal said, as if it was supposed to be obvious.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"You'll soon find out," he gloated.
Baal walked over to Sam's body, and Jack could see she was no longer breathing. His heart fell into his stomach, and he knew she was dead. As heartbroken as he was for her death, he knew that Baal would revive her, and he almost wished that he would just leave her alone.
Baal released Sam from her restraints, and Jack winced at the bruises and cuts along her naked body. He knew he hadn't actually caused them, but he could still feel her body break underneath him, and he wanted to vomit.
Baal picked her up, and Jack couldn't help but notice how tender he was with her dead body. He thought it a little peculiar, but decided not to make a crack about it in case he decided to use it against him.
"I usually have my guards do this part," Baal stated, but not to him, "but I suppose I will have to get my hands dirty for once."
"Proud of you," Jack spat.
Baal glared at him, and took Sam's body from the room. Jack was alone again for a long time, and he was beginning to think they wouldn't come back.
The doors behind him slid open and a guard walked in, carrying Sam's body. He placed her up against the wall across from him, and Jack could see that her cuts were healed and that her chest was rising and falling. She was alive. The sarcophagus.
"Where's daddy dearest?" Jack taunted the guard.
The guard look at Jack like he wasn't supposed to acknowledge him.
"Awh com'on, it's not like I bite," Jack once again jangled his chains.
The guard cleared his throat hesitantly, and glanced at the dead clone. "Lord Baal has more important matters to deal with."
"Ah, of course. So you get stuck cleaning up his mess? Sounds like a fair trade-off."
The guard spared a second glance at Sam, and then glared at him. "I am proud to serve my god."
"You know he's not a god, right? Just a little slimly snake that thinks he's better than everyone else…." The guard slapped Jack hard against his cheek.
"You will do well not to talk about your god that way."
At that moment, Sam began to stir, and the guard hurried out of the room. Jack's face stung, but he watched Sam cautiously. When she opened her eyes, his heart fluttered a little. Even though he didn't know what Baal was planning, the fact that he was preoccupied and kept Sam unchained was promising for them and their team.
Sam's eyes darted between him and the dead Baal. He tried calling out to her, but she didn't seem to hear him. She shivered, probably cold from her nakedness, but also cold from shock. She approached the clone and laid his head in her lap. "Baal," he heard her mutter, "Baal." She shook him, as if it would wake him back up.
He knew she must have been in shock, but the way she muttered his name shot through him like a bee sting. "Carter?" He tried calling out to her, hoping to shake her from whatever she was going through.
"You did this," she accused, anger making her voice shake. "You killed him."
Jack was lost. He didn't know what to do, but he knew that if he didn't get the situation under control, she was likely to do something dangerous.
"Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about. You killed him, and now you'll die." She stood, and he saw the ribbon device glint on her arm.
"Carter, please, you've got to listen to me," he knew that things were about to get violent. "I've been chained down here, just like you have."
"I don't believe you," she stated blatantly. He saw the ribbon device begin to glow, and he tried to pull against his chains, despite knowing they wouldn't budge. "You killed Baal."
He didn't know if she was suffering from Stockholm Syndrome, or if Baal had drugged her again, or if it was even her at all. His heart ached for his Samantha Carter.
"What was that?" She asked him. He didn't respond, knowing that if he did, it would probably send her even more in denial and anger. However, she smacked him hard with the back of the ribbon device, spit flying from his lips. Blood trickled from his gums and nose, and he groaned.
"I didn't kill him, Carter. You've got to believe me. I'm the good guy. Your name is Samantha Carter and you're my second-in-command. We fight bad guys like these. But I didn't kill him." He knew that he was losing, but he had to try to convince her.
She hesitated, and he was hopeful that maybe she was started to come to. But then he saw the darkness and violence cross her eyes.
"I don't believe you." She activated the ribbon device, and held it to his forehead. "And you will pay."
They were in a meadow, and the sun shined overhead, warming their cold bodies. The grass tickled their toes, and he pulled her into him. "I love you," he whispered.
She giggled, and kissed his chin. "I love you too. I always have."
He smiled, and nuzzled into her hair. He breathed her in, and she smelled uniquely like…well, her. "You know," he stated, "we don't have to go back."
"Yes we do, we have work to get back to. You know, saving the world and stuff."
He sighed. "Do you ever just think that we're putting off the inevitable? That we're risking our lives, and other planets, just so ours will stay safe for a little while longer?"
"But think of all of the other planets we have saved, including our own. Seven years ago, we never dreamed of being where we're at, but here we are. I don't think the destruction of Earth is inevitable and I'm happy to take the risk that I do every day for our planet."
"I guess after all we've done for the Earth, you'd think they'd give us a little leniency."
"How about we just make the most out of the time we do have?" She crawled on top of him, and pressed her lips against his. They were cold, and Jack knew something was off.
"Wait." He looked into her eyes, and they were empty. "Something's not right."
"What do you mean?" She looked hurt. "Isn't this what you want?"
"Yes, I mean…no."
She looked confused, and he brushed her hair back from her face. He noticed a small scar run across her jaw line, and he traced it with his fingers. "When did you get this?"
She looked angry, and batted his hand away. She rolled off of him and stood up. "If you're don't want this, just tell me. You don't have to change the subject."
"Sam, that's not what I meant…" he started, but then the vision began to waver, and suddenly the sun began to burn his skin. He jumped up, the grass like saw-blades against his body, and he looked around wildly for Sam. He saw her, standing in front of him, grinning.
His body began to smoke and bubble, and he fell to his knees. The world around him screamed, as if the wind was howling for him. He held his head in his hands, crying out.
"You are not safe, Jack. You will not escape from me." Her eyes glowed, and he remembered where he was supposed to be.
Suddenly he was back in the torture room, and he heard Carter cry out. He looked up, and she was looking behind him in shock, before falling to the ground. He recognized the recharge of a zat gun.
He heard the hurried steps of military boots run towards him, and then he saw Jacob run towards Sam. He felt his arms being released, but they were numb and useless, and he couldn't move. He felt a tug on his shoulder.
"Jack, we have to go," Daniel called out to him. "SG-6 is clearing our way out of here, but we don't have a lot of time." He looked at Jacob. "How is Sam doing?"
"She's alive," he heard Jacob say. Jacob turned towards him, "Jack, are you able to walk?"
His head was fuzzy and he couldn't figure out what was happening.
"I think he's in shock," he heard Daniel say.
"Shit. We don't have time for this."
"Teal'c," Daniel called over his walkie. "We need you in here. Jack can't walk and someone needs to carry Sam."
"Sam," he tried to warn them. If Sam woke back up, she could make it difficult for them to leave.
"She's fine, just unconscious," they responded, misunderstanding his intentions.
He watched as Teal'c picked up Sam. He carried her like she was nothing more than a doll, and he supposed she probably essentially was. She was so thin, he was scared Teal'c would break her if he jostled her the wrong way.
He remembered the way her bones cracked underneath him.
He felt himself being lifted, and he was leaning against Jacob.
"Don't worry, Jack," he felt Jacob's low voice reverberate through him, "the Calvary has arrived. We'll be home in no time."