Chapter 12

It was edging toward dawn and the weather had cleared and warmed considerably, so much so, Sam got out of bed to open the sliding wall.

Jack turned his head to look at Carter as she slid back into the bed. He tried again to have that oft started conversation.

"Why did you decide to…?"

"What? I was too warm."

"No…why did you, you know…ah… decided to move on?"

"I'm not leaving the program."

She couldn't be that dense, his voice was a little edgy with exasperation. "No…I meant Pete."

"Oh... I…I…it was a set up…my brother's friend. I was lonely, scared of winding up alone. It just kind of snowballed out of control. I tried to talk to you but you wouldn't…"

"When?"

"That morning at your house"

"I was going to die Carter. Did you really come to talk? What do you think would have happened if Daniel and Teal'c hadn't showed up? Did you think I should have gone for the pity fuck and then leave you with the pathetic memory of a man loosing his mind?"

"It wouldn't have been pity, not on my part."

"Weren't you already going with him? It not something I'd want someone to do to me."

The pup squirmed out from between them sensing the tension.

"After you made general, you were so cold, so aloof."

O'Neill continued her thought.
"You mean a bastard. I was lonely, too. Couldn't have what I wanted, couldn't even ask. Made me angry and without the chance of combat all I could take it out on was everyone around me."

"I'm going to break the engagement."

"Why?"

"I… do you really want to know?"

And she turned toward him, staring at him in the darkness and the image of Pete sitting on the edge of her bed came into her mind. It was in the middle of the night and he was asking her 'Who's Jack?' The very graphic dream she was in the midst of flooded her mind. 'Who is Jack, indeed?' that was the question she needed the answer to.

She leaned over and kissed him on the mouth. At first he was too surprised to respond. But that did not last long; he slid his arms around her and pressed her to him, kissing her hard and deep. His split lip opened and when she tasted his blood she pulled back. She was hurting him again. She pulled back physically and emotionally. She went to pace on the balcony trying to think, trying to understand why every single response of her toward him was wrong.

All Jack saw was the look of shock and what he thought was disgust on her face and the instant surge of hurt turned to anger. Was he so damned repulsive to her? To hell with her; he didn't need her, he didn't need anyone. He'd get on his own two god damned leg and get on with life. He'd get the hell out of here and back to the base, back to his command. And put this messy part of his life back into the dark hidden recesses where it belonged.

He lurched off to the shower just to get away. Jack exited the bathroom in a towel but the water from his shower streaming off of him. He staggered and lurched toward the bed where he sat down heavily. Sam grabbed two more towels put one across his back and knelt to dry his legs.

"Don't"

She looked up to see the pinched expression on his face. Was it that the thought of her touching him disgusting to him?

"Please don't kneel in front of me, too much like the god damned Goa'ulds. I can do that myself."

He looked more like he was about to keel over.

He snatched the towel from her hand.

The stillness of the morning was broken by the sounds of the resumption of the air battle. With the possibility of invasion Jack decided to meet the enemy with his pants on.

"Where are my clothes?"

"Sir I don't think…"

"Damn it Carter."

"They're still mending your uniform and left these for you."

She said handing him the home spun shirt and pants, though on O'Neill the pants resembled his baggy long fishing shorts. She tried not to smile when he finally struggled into them and glowered at the fit.

He needing something, anything to do, grabbed the sopping towels and limped to the bathroom to fling them over the rack.

Jack was hobbling back from the bathroom when the bombardments intensity increased. The ear shattering whine of an engine filled the room as he looked out to see a Death Glider, streaking out of control, aiming right at them. He grabbed Sam pulled her back, turning, he threw her down and covered her with his body.

She heard the whining of the engines and the look on his face as he barreled into her, turning her around in the process. She could see their death over his shoulder.

Her backside hit the floor, as did his knees, as he slipped an arm behind her head and shoulders to soften the landing. Her arms circled his chest falling with him.

Her arms flew around him trying to keep from falling as he slammed into her and cradling her head and back as they crashed to the floor.

His mind filled with the thought that, try as he might to shield her, they would both die from the impact or from the burning fuel.

It terrified her to see his eyes squeezed tight expecting to be torn apart. The noise was overwhelming as she looked behind them to see the spacecraft fill the entire expanse of the balcony window. At the last possible second it veered slightly and impacted with the floor above.

The pilot, in one last desperate effort, raised the nose of the glider and it impacted with a shattering blast, with the rock face fifteen feet above them. The horrible sound of metal screeching and screaming down the cliff wall began as the glider scraped down twenty five feet of the escarpment. And then catching on a tree it began to cartwheel out of control as it burst into flames. The twisted burning hulk sunk into the sea in a cloud of steam, the flames quenched.

His cheek was press firmly to hers as he cradled her head. She grasped handfuls of his shirt. He pulled back to look at her causing his hips to press hard into hers.

The fact that they were alive amazed him. He began to breathe again as the adrenaline rush began to subsided although he could feel his heartbeat drumming in his ears.

"Carter, you all right?"

She pulled him back, her hand on the back on his head urging him closer, his mouth on hers.

Then they heard the frantic barking.

Jack attempted to get up but the pain in his knee, the one to connect with the stone floor first and bore the main force of their combined weight, refused to cooperate. He managed to leverage himself off of her, lurching to his feet as debris clattered off his back. There was damage in the hall way with shards of the wall and ceiling on the floor burying the small boy. O'Neill, with Carter's help, quickly uncovered him to find the boy slightly bruised but proud to have a part in the great battle. O'Neill pulled the kid into the room while Sam closed the balcony partition. Jack pulled down the mattress placing it against the edge of the bed and sat them all with their backs to it to protect them. The boy sat between Jack and Sam with the pup in his lap.

The rest of the battle was fought high in the skies with little or no more debris falling into the fjord. Carter noticed that Jack was abnormally quiet not answering the young boy's questions about the air battle. She talked to him but he just grunted in reply. So she peered around the child to see the ashen man. His hands were bleeding from the jagged rocks he pull off the boy, his leg was bleeding where the stitches had torn, the shirt clung to his chest where the burn was again raw and his knee was swollen twice its normal size.

She reached for the pain medicine but he refused. Instead he grabbed for the nearest weapon, voices and the clank of Jaffa armor and heavy boots could be heard in the hallway.

O'Neill shoved the boy behind him as he struggled to his feet to meet the enemy, Carter at his side.

Jaffa, the warriors of Stord, and Daniel and Teal'c crowded into the small room.

Teal'c strode forward.

"O'Neill"

"Hey Jack" Daniel called from the back

Jack smiled and lowered his weapon as he realized what was going on.

"O'Neill, these are the Jaffa who have free themselves from servitude to the false god Bassett. They were sent to acquire naquadah and trinium ore but decided to take over the Ha'tak and join our alliance of Free Jaffa. They have slaughtered Apis, Bassett's underling and defeated those who refused to see the truth."

Teal'c was down right happy; however, to those who didn't know him and to most who did, his visage was both solemn and regal.

Looking at Jack, Daniel somehow did not see his bleeding hands, trembling from the last flush of adrenalin; he didn't see the bruises; he didn't see the swollen knee; he didn't see the ashy skin tone.

He did notice the pants that barely skirted Jack's knees.

"Hey Jack, nice pants."

O'Neill glared at Daniel, started to smile but lost all facial expression as he began to sink to the ground.

Teal'c just had time to reach out and catch Jack as he collapsed.