Okay, in recent weeks I have noticed a bit of a decline in the amount of feedback I've been getting for both this and 'Against The Wall'.  For the last chapter of this I had 4 reviews and 3 for 'Against the Wall'. 

I don't write for feedback, I write for myself but at the same time I was wondering if this has something to do with the quality of what I'm writing, what can I say, I have 'Self-esteem issues'.  I know that it's not always convenient or possible to review and I also know that ff is having a few issues at the moment but feedback really does encourage me to write and constructive criticism (as long as it is constructive and not a flame) helps me to write better, if I don't know what I'm doing wrong or right then how can I get better??  So please find a few seconds and let me know what you think...please.  Now I'm really hoping that didn't sound too whiny, I'm honestly not normally a moaner!

Thanks to Naliza, for betaing and for putting up with my depressed ramblings when things get bad.   Seriously, your friendship means a lot!! :)

So, on to your regularly scheduled programming...

*~*~*

Daniel bolted up into a sitting position.  He immediately regretted it as the world starting spinning around him.  His eye was throbbing painfully and very carefully he started probing the area with a finger.  He inhaled sharply as he discovered the area was very swollen and tender.

Looking at his surroundings he realised that it was not the same cell that he had been in before.  To make matters worse he had absolutely no idea how he ended up there.  The last thing he remembered was being hit by Malatesar and then seeing Sam shut in the cell on her own.  He could not explain the gap in his memory and it was causing him some concern.

This new cell was of a slightly different design to the one he had been in before.  The room was significantly smaller and the panels on one of the walls were of a different design.

Whereas the rest of the walls were covered in floor to ceiling panels, that one particular wall was covered in panels which were roughly six inches square, some of which were slightly raised.

Daniel ran his hand across the raised panels, one of them felt different to the others as his hand brushed over the smooth surface.  It felt rough to the touch, almost like sandpaper.

He traced his fingers over the panel, there seemed to be no discernable pattern to its markings.  Running his fingers around the edge of the panel, Daniel found a flaw and so he dug his nails in.  He strained until he managed to prise the panel off, the inside was a jumble of crystals and cables.

Hoping not to electrocute himself or to set off an alarm he started moving the crystals around, a task made much more difficult by the fact he was without his glasses.  After a few minutes he jumped back in surprise as the concealed door slid open and the bright corridor was revealed.

He carefully looked out of the door and saw nothing, just long corridors with the same full length metallic panels lining both walls.  There were no obvious markings or anything that would indicate where Sam and Jack could be.  He blindly played with a similar mechanism on the outside of his cell until he was able to let the door slid shut; he then went in search of his friends.

Walking the long identical hallways he started looking for anything similar to the mechanism he had seen outside his own cell.  When he eventually found what he was looking for he gently knocked twice on the door, unsure of what he would find on the other side.

An identical knock answered back from the other side of door.  Daniel knocked another three times on the door before a quiet voice addressed him.

"Daniel?" came Jack's voice.

"Jack?"

"Yeah.  Open the door, Daniel," Jack said, exasperation evident in his voice.

"Give me a minute."

Daniel played with the mechanism, cursing himself for not having paid attention when closing the door to his own cell.  The technology was nothing like he had ever seen before but after a few seconds the door slid open.

"Nice," Jack said, appreciatively.  "Carter?"

"I don't know, I haven't found her yet."

"Well, let's go get Carter and get the hell outta Dodge."

"No arguments from me," Daniel agreed as he stepped back to allow Jack past him.

They quickly found another cell.  Daniel knocked gently on the door but there was no reply.  With some trepidation Daniel opened the door.  Sam was lying on the floor, her back to the door.  Jack quickly crossed to her and reached out to check for her pulse.  His stomach was churning slightly as he reached inside the collar of her T-shirt.  As he found a strong and regular pulse he breathed a sigh of relief.

He quickly checked her for injuries before gently rolling her onto her back.  When she did not respond, he shook her shoulder and called out her name.  She stirred at his touch and forced herself to open her eyes with only the slightest grunt of discomfort.

"Carter, you okay?"

Sam did not speak but gave O'Neill a weak smile and a thumbs up.

"What happened?" Jack asked with concern.

"I don't know," Sam replied slowly, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"Never mind, we'll get to that later.  For now let's get out of here," Jack said as he helped Sam to her feet.  "So Daniel, have you seen a door marked 'Exit' or any 'Way out' signs?"

"No," Daniel replied shortly.

"Sir, we need to find a GDO."

"Right but Daniel, start coming up with alternatives."

They searched a number of rooms but found no sign of their equipment or their captors, just a lot of alien technology that Sam looked far too interested in for Jack's liking.

"Does this seem a bit easy to anyone else?" Sam asked, looking around the deserted hallways.

"Let's not complain right now," Jack replied but he acknowledged that the same thought had occurred to him.  This feeling was solidified when they came across a door with a sign, in a script which Jack did not recognise.

"Daniel?"

"It says…exit."

"Really?" Jack asked incredulously.

"Yes, it looks like a derivation of…" Daniel stopped as Jack held up a finger to silence him.

Sam managed to open the door.  Jack half expected to find a battalion of heavily armed men on the other side but instead saw a pathway, which appeared to be solidly paved leading into a heavily wooded area.

Jack, Daniel and Sam all shared looks as they left the building behind them and headed off into the woods.

*~*~*

So there it was...