Chapter Two

It Just Won't Quit

Jack awoke abruptly, bolting upright, gasping for air as he moved.

"Holy….. CRAP!" The words burst from his mouth as he realized just where he had awoken. Never a good sign to wake up in a sarcophagus. Jack groaned.

"You are fully restored. Please exit the sarcophagus."

Jack turned to see a purple-skinned, blue haired alien extending a long, slender hand to him. "Who are you?"

"Your only hope of survival."

Jack frowned, shook his head, and slowly stood up. As he stepped out, he regarded the alien with wary eyes. "Where am I? Where's my team?"

"One of your teammates is here, the others… I do not know their fate."

"And here is…?"

"The Zigaran prison. I will take you to your teammate. She is being held while the Zigaran Grand Marshall attempts to negotiate with your world. That is also the reason you were revived. They are hoping to acquire weapons in exchange for your lives."

Jack shook his head emphatically. "Not gonna happen."

"Then you will be delivered to the Goa'uld. As slaves." The alien indicated for Jack to follow him. "If you make any attempt to flee or resist now, they will simply kill you again. Please, cooperate now, and I assure you, you and your companion will escape this place."

Jack took a moment to weigh his options before resigning himself to temporary subservience. He didn't have enough information to act. Yet. And he needed to see… her. Carter. She had survived this far, somehow. He only hoped the same could be said for Daniel and Teal'c, wherever they were. He turned and followed the alien out of the chamber.

"So… you got a name?"

"You may call me Etep."

"Etep. All right. Where are we going?"

"I was ordered to take you in for interrogation once you were conscious. I will take you to see your companion, first."

They walked through a narrow, dimly lit corridor. There were no doors, no windows, only blank walls that stretched on infinitely, and the passageway was only just tall enough to accommodate O'Neill's height. After several minutes, Etep stopped. He extracted an oblong crystal from somewhere within the folds of his multi-layered cloak, pointed it at one wall. After a moment, an opening appeared. He turned back to Jack with a tilt of the head, directing the Colonel inside.

As soon as Jack crossed the threshold, the opening disappeared, the wall behind him becoming solid once again. Jack glanced round the small room for a moment, until he spied Major Carter curled up on a cot in one corner of the tiny compartment. He was at her side in a heartbeat.

Much to his knees' protests, he crouched beside her, resting one arm alongside hers. With his other, he reached out to cup her neck. "Carter?" She didn't stir. He gave her a slight shake. "Carter! Wake up!" His sharp command was belied by his gentle voice. Still, she showed no indication of coming to. Slowly, hesitantly, he moved his hand up along her throat, brushing across her cheek. His fingers raked lightly across her short blonde tresses; they looked golden in the dim light of their cell.

Suddenly, she gasped sharply, bolting upright on the cot. When she saw him, her eyes grew wide, almost wild, as she registered his presence.

"Colonel!" She threw her arms around him in a fierce, even desperate embrace. "Oh my God… you're… but you were dead!" The words tumbled from her lips in a frantic rush. "I saw you… I held you… How? How can you be here?" She clung to him like a lifeline, nearly choking him in the process.

"Sarcophagus," he mumbled. Jack shifted her around so he could sit on the cot beside her. As he settled back, she pulled him in closer, burying her head in the crook of his neck.

"Easy, Carter. I'm here." He stroked her hair gently, offering what comfort he could. When she pulled back an eternity later, he was surprised to see she hadn't been crying. He gave her a small, warm smile. "Feel better?"

"I can't believe you're really here!" Sam swallowed hard, her throat burning from choking back so many emotions.

"How long have you been here?" He still had his arms wrapped around her, and she hadn't unwound her arms from his neck yet, either.

"Here in this prison? About a week, I think. Here on this planet… closer to two." Sam stared into Jack's eyes for the longest time, her expression slowly softening. "You're alive!" Her voice was scarcely above a whisper now, and her mouth was so close to his, he could feel her breath mingling with his. It was a heady combination, fogging his mind, making it difficult, if not outright impossible, to think straight. Then, before he could manage another thought, she committed that final, single act that sent them both tumbling headfirst over the point of no return. She kissed him.

Not once did he think of pulling away. The idea that it was wrong never crossed his mind. Only one thought raced through his brain, over and over like a mantra. She tastes like heaven…Her lips grazed across his softly, her tongue flicking out to taste his lips. It was a slow kiss, more gentle than a light spring shower, but underneath simmered a passion barely held at the reins. It was a kiss that left no doubts, a kiss free of reservations and hesitations.

Suddenly, without warning, Jack was jerked out of the embrace.

"Sir!" Sam called out in sheer terror.

Jack looked up to see to large guards holding his arms.

"Come. The Grand Marshall wishes to conduct your interrogation personally." Without another word, Jack was unceremoniously hauled out of the cell. Sam collapsed back down onto the cot, desperately afraid she wouldn't see him again.

Some hours later, the cell opened again, and Jack was tossed in, left to collapse in a heap on the floor. The opening sealed shut without so much as a grunt from the guards. Sam ran to Jack's side. She rolled him over and checked his pulse. She let out a small sigh of relief that it beat strong and steady beneath her fingertips. For a long time, she simply sat on the floor holding him, cradling his head in her lap.

Jack came to slowly, his memory fuzzy at best. The last thing he could clearly recall was…kissing Carter. He mumbled something unintelligible over the memory, alerting Sam to his growing coherence.

"Sir?" She raked a hand through his hair. A low murmur of appreciation escaped his lips. "Take it slow, Sir. I have a pretty good idea what they put you through, and it's going to take some time for the effects to subside."

He tried to sit up, in spite of her protests, but he quickly appreciated the wisdom of her advice as his head started spinning out of control. He dropped his head back into her surprisingly comfortable lap.

"What the hell did they do to me?"

"I don't know, exactly. But I'm pretty certain they used some powerful drugs during their…interrogation process." She resumed her comforting strokes across his scalp. After a brief internal debate, he decided that the best course of action would be to lay back and enjoy, such as he could through the blinding headache that was ensuing. Eventually, it subsided enough that Jack braved another attempt to sit up. The pounding started getting louder again as he rose, but once he was fully upright, it settled back to its former dull roar.

Sam moved to his side and slipped an arm around his ribcage. He half crawled, and was half-dragged across the floor to the side of the small cot. Slow, and none-too-steady herself, Sam hoisted Jack up onto the thin mattress. He fell back, exhausted from the effort. He kept his arm around Sam, though, and wordlessly urged her to join him. With no hint of protest, Sam gently lowered herself onto the cot, stretching her body out alongside his.

She rested her head on his chest; the cot was so narrow, the only way for her to fit was to lie partially on top of Jack. He wrapped his arms around her and she sighed, melting into his warm, protective embrace. She felt as much as heard his heart beating strong and steady beneath her ear. She let the steady rhythm carry her away, her mind drifting further and further from the reality of the dark prison cell.

He's alive!

He was dead, undeniably, hopelessly dead, and yet, here he was, alive! When he died, she had shattered inside, her heart and soul battered into splintered fragments. His death ripped through her, tore her very mind apart. Grief consumed her, devoured her whole, and left an empty, broken shell in its wake. She remembered those days only as a foggy, gray blur.

She was haunted by guilt, shame, and regret; guilty of letting him die, of not protecting him, ashamed of not saving him, regret for withholding her heart from him. She had failed, and her failure cost Jack O'Neill his life. The cost to herself was her very own soul. A part of her died with him. She had no idea how to live without him, without that part of herself that he took with him. On and on, her mind spiraled away, a plague of tumultuous emotions. She allowed no release; no more tears were shed after that first hour she learned of his passing. She simply retreated into herself, locking everything tighter and tighter in a dark corner of her mind.

Until one day… the very day of the attack and her subsequent capture, she inexplicably snapped out of it. Major Carter was back in control, for a brief moment. She remembered feeling strong, in control, and a persistent voice in her head, which sounded suspiciously like Jack O'Neill, telling her everything would be okay.

Then all hell broke loose, the world collapsed around her, and she'd awoken a lonely captive in a dark, windowless, door-less prison cell. Her fighting spirit only held out until that first interrogation session the day following her capture. After that, she gave up hope, and began a slow spiral into the very deepest pits of despair. There would be no chances for escape, no rescue would find her, and her team, her entire team was gone… lost… dead.

When the soft touch of a warm hand caressing her neck had awakened her, she had thought she was dreaming. Seeing him crouched beside her, she panicked. For a horrifying moment, she was certain she had begun hallucinating. She reached out to him, only believing he was real when she made physical contact. She clung to him like a lifeline, desperate and needy. How close he had held her! How warm and real and very much alive he felt!

She was completely amazed and overwhelmed by the relief that coursed through her as the reality of his presence slowly penetrated her weary mind. They had been given another reprieve, another miracle. He had somehow cheated death again. And once more, they had another chance to change things between them. Sam had spent days believing that chance was lost forever; she had never been so glad to be wrong. She decided then and there, she couldn't let one more moment pass without making sure he knew exactly where her heart lay. She swallowed her pride, choked back her pounding heart, and took action.

Man, oh man, what action it had been! A kiss to end all kisses, the all-too-brief contact had been everything she had dreamed of and more. She could still feel his mouth on hers, and as her tongue darted out to lick her own lips, she swore she could still taste him. She released a sigh of contentment as she nuzzled a little deeper into the crook of his neck. Jack's arms tightened around her in response.

"I'd give a penny, but I'm a little short right now."

Sam chuckled softly, her breath tickling his throat. "Just… thinking. In other circumstances, this would be rather… nice."

"Yeah, well… we really should do something about the décor in here."

Sam giggled, wiggling a little next to him. "Let's start with a bigger bed."

"I like the way you think, Carter." She shifted her leg again, and he groaned. "Umm... sorry, it's not my side-arm this time…"

Sam froze for half a heartbeat before she hitched her leg slightly higher.

"Are you trying to kill me, woman?"

"Not at all, sir."

Jack shifted, rolling to his side to face Sam. "We're gonna get out of here."

Sam frowned, looking to the blank wall that occasionally became a doorway. "Do you really think that's possible?"

"When I first came to in that sarcophagus, there was someone there… Said his name was Etep, said he was going to help us escape."

"You believe him?"

"Not sure. But I think it's reason enough to keep our eyes an ears open for an opportunity. First chance we get, we're getting the hell out of here."

"And when we get out of here?"

"We get to the gate and go home."

"Not much of a plan, sir."

"That's all I've got for now."

Sam was quiet for a moment, summoning up her courage before she asked in a soft voice, "What about after we get home?"

Jack regarded her with a pensive expression. He reached up to brush a stray lock of hair off her brow. "What about it?"

Sam looked away, as she was suddenly afraid to meet his eyes. "I don't know if I can go back… to the way things were before." She paused, swallowed hard. "Before you… died. I don't think I want to."

Jack's hand trailed down to hers, their fingers intertwining in a tentative embrace. "Things have been… building up for a while, haven't they?"

"Over seven years." She finally braved eye contact once again. Her face was set, resolute. "Seven years of being the good soldier, following the rules, doing the 'right thing'. I mean—we've saved the world, and several others, too, how many times now? Don't we deserve a shot at some happiness?"

Jack smiled. "You'd think, wouldn't you?" He pulled her back into his arms as he lay back down on the tiny cot.

Sam propped her head up on one arm and looked down at Jack. "I don't want to waste anymore time on a 'someday-maybe'. I'm sorry it took you being dead for me to get it through my thick skull, but… I know, without a doubt, that I need you in my life, Jack. I'm lost without you." She dipped her head down and captured his lips in a sweet, gentle kiss before settling back down in his arms. She rested her head on his chest once again, and let the steady beating of his heart lull her to sleep.