TITLE: Survival of the Fittest
AUTHORS: Divine Joker and Tricia Byrne
RATING: PG13 (violence)
SPOILERS: Itsy-bitsy for Space Race and Avenger 2.0. Of course, I guess anything after Fragile Balance is fair game. Part 1 through 7 are pretty much assumed reading to understand where this is coming from.
SUMMARY: Typical meet and greet for SG1 minus Sam? Of course not!
Samantha Carter's smile beamed as she awoke. The feel of Jack nuzzling her neck and softly caressing her stomach was the best thing first thing in the morning. Sam nestled deeper into his embrace, not wanting to move.
"I'm gonna have to get up soon." he whispered into her neck, kissing it gently.
"I know," she whispered back, "Just let me draw it out a bit, okay? We don't get that much time anymore, and I'm temperamental and as big as a whale, I need to feel loved."
She felt his smile against her skin. "You're only seven months pregnant, Sam, you're going to get bigger."
"Ugh, that's not what I want to hear right now." She attempted to gently roll so that she was on her back and could face him. "I'm glad you could arrange for over-night duty the day before your mission."
He kissed her forehead, his hand never wavering from her stomach as 'junior' – as the team had now come to call the baby – did somersaults in response. "It was nothing, although I think Teal'c helps me to stack the draw pile."
The baby kicked and Sam groaned slightly.
"Hey, I think he likes this."
"'He'?" Her eyebrow rose in question. "Do you know something that I don't, Jack?"
He smiled, "A father knows these things."
"Oh, I see," she rolled her eyes, "I think 'she' is more likely."
"Uh, oh… I feel a friendly tussle coming on." He grinned, kissing her cheek. "He," he said emphatically.
She narrowed her eyes. "She."
"He."
"She."
Jack paused. "You know I'm going to win this, right?"
She huffed in amusement and nodded. "Only because I don't have the patience for it."
Jack tried to placate her by gracing her with a kiss. Then, glancing at the bedside clock, he groaned.
"Briefing's at 0830, Colonel. Better get your ass in gear." She whispered playfully, keeping his hand in place as their child gave another enthusiastic kick.
"Yes, *Major*." He kissed her one again, this time deeper. "Are you going to head in with me, or stay here and take it easy for a little while?"
"And miss seeing my *team* off? Not in this lifetime." She pulled him forward for another kiss. "I do wish you didn't have to go, though."
"Hey, it's a simple meet and greet, what could go wrong?"
Shoving him out of the bed and toward the bathroom she groaned, "Jack, don't even joke like that. It's really not funny."
He stood in front of the bathroom, wrapping his arms around her gently holding her stomach in his hands, his head leaning on her shoulder. "It's okay, you know."
"Huh?" She half turned slightly confused.
"You don't have to try and hide the fact that you hate me going out there without you watching my 'six'. I can understand it. It's the same feeling I get when you get sent somewhere without me – especially when Felger and alien races across space are involved and my slightly pregnant 2IC is right in the thick of things."
She blushed. "I didn't know I was pregnant then, Jack."
He cocked his eyebrow. "That makes a difference?" He kissed her cheek and then pushed her forward into the bathroom. "You've been going out there for four months that I *have* known that you're pregnant… that's enough to make my blood pressure skyrocket."
"Ah, but I've had you to cover my ass." She grinned cheekily.
"So you have," he conceded. "When I'm not looking at it." He ducked her swinging palm.
He found her an hour before departure, buried in her lab. Two or three bouquets were bunched together in one corner, adding a splash of color to the otherwise mundane grey of the walls. She didn't seem to know they were there, though, so close was her nose to the computer screen.
"So this is what you'll be up to while I'm gone?" he asked playfully, his fingers automatically picking up a bear - idly he noted it was *his* bear - and running his fingers through it's short fur.
She glanced at the animal and then smiled at him. "It's what I've been doing since I've been kicked off the rotation. It's what I do."
"You really need to get out more, Carter."
She giggled, glad that he had taken her mind off of the mission that the guys were heading off on. "I think that's what got me in trouble in the first place, *Sir*."
"Um… right… So… 'Junior' is going to be good for Mommy while *Uncle* Jack is off saving the planet, right?"
Smiling, she met his eyes. "I think 'Junior' and I will be just fine. Besides, it's only two days. I can handle two days. Just make sure everyone stays in one piece. I don't need to be sharing a hospital room with any of you when 'Junior' does decide to make an appearance."
"Meet and greet, Carter. Besides, what better way to break in the Marine?"
Sam rolled her eyes. "I don't think you need to 'break' anything, Sir. We both decided that he would be the best."
Jack cocked an eyebrow as he watched her continue to read whatever it was on her screen. "Doesn't mean I have to like him, Carter."
She turned her eyes to him and smiled smugly. "That 'rough Colonel' routine only works on the lieutenants, you know. And it sure as hell isn't going to work on Frank."
"Frank?"
"That's his name, isn't it?" She smiled, her eyes returning to the screen. "Besides, I put him on to your scheme."
"Aww, Carter, you ruin all my fun."
She snorted but decided not to comment, especially when she caught the smug, taunting grin on his face.
"Well, I have to go get my pre-mission physical from the *lovely* Doctor Fraiser, so let me run and I'll catch you at the gate room."
She met his eyes, knowing that they had purposely taken a few extra minutes this morning to spend together and say goodbye, and smiled. "Sounds good, Sir, I'll see you there."
Jack leaned over, making it appear to be a friendly conversation in case anyone walked by. "If anything comes up, Carter, and I do mean *anything*, have the General or Janet get through to us somehow. None of us want you to be alone, me especially."
Cautiously, she placed her hand over his, "I'll be okay, really. I'll just miss you. Now you better go, Colonel." She squeezed his hand gently in affirmation.
He flashed her one of his boyish smiles and headed out of the lab and toward the infirmary.
He spent the better part of the next hour, trying to avoid the piercing gazes that Janet was casting in his direction. He was getting the uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach that Janet knew *exactly* who the father of Sam's child was.
He thought she was being awfully mean with those needles.
But he bore it - with less than normal complaining - and dressed again, even casting a small smile in her general direction before he turned out of the infirmary.
He casually cast 'hellos' and 'heys' in the direction of passing airmen and lieutenants, but for the most part, was lost in his own world of Sam, their child and its impending birth.
Two months.
Jesus.
They'd barely pulled through their act for the last couple of weeks, much less for another two months. He was itching to run through the halls with a silly, proud grin on his face as Sam stood and indulged his eccentricities with a grin on her face and her palm on her stomach.
He wanted to be able to tell Janet, and Hammond, and Daniel, and everyone else that he was the father of Sam's child – of their child. He wanted to be able to kiss her when he saw her in the gate room and said goodbye to her for the next two days. He wanted to be able to be there with Sam during each and every exam and ultrasound that she had to go through.
He rubbed his hands over his face and finished packing the things from his locker. Closing the door he suited up and headed out to the gate room.
He entered the room and saw her standing there with Daniel, Teal'c and Frank. She was smiling and laughing at something one of them had said and Jack couldn't help but look at her and her figure and think that he'd never thought she looked more beautiful.
"And here I thought they told us we weren't supposed to get Carter excited. I walk in and you guys have her laughing like a hyena."
"Hyena, sir?" Some vague comment that he had made to her last night about how much he loved to hear her laugh made him want to rethink his statement. She pinned him with a glare and he tried to blow it off with a playful grin. She cocked her head in mild forgiveness and then indicated Frank. "It was him."
Frank just smiled smugly at Jack; to which the Colonel in him justified the responding grimace. He readjusted his pack and looked up into the control room to see Hammond standing there with his arms crossed and a small smile on his face.
The 'gate began to turn and he looked over his shoulder to see Sam looking at him intensely, her arms crossed defensively before her as she tried to look calm and collected in the face of his leaving. His demeanor softened and he watched her for a few seconds as the fifth and sixth chevrons engaged.
As the wormhole locked and shed the room with its wavering blue light, it hit him that he was leaving her on Earth, by herself while he went to another planet. It wasn't just a phone call home.
He stepped up to her, a brave smile on his face. "Don't save the world while I'm gone."
The smile that graced her face lit up the entire room as far as he was concerned. "I'll do my best not to, Sir."
He looked at her, watching as she gave Teal'c and Daniel a friendly hug; Daniel made some comment about not being able to get his arms around her soon, and marveled over how well the pregnancy looked on her. Jack knew he was going to miss that look over the next forty-eight hours.
Waving over his shoulder he looked forward into the swirling abyss of the event horizon, he resigned himself to not looking back, keeping his composure and not letting anything slip. He would never look at the Stargate that he wouldn't think of her, and in forty-eight hours he would be home. Teal'c had over-night duty the day they got back, which guaranteed him a few minutes to 'check-in' with the mother-to-be and make sure she was alright and satisfied that he was okay.
Shaking his head once, he stepped through the worm hole, emerging to the bright sunshine and expanse of trees that he'd become so accustomed to.
Sam snapped back to herself with the sucking of the wormhole disengaging in front of her. She heaved her shoulders in a sigh and turned on her heel, exiting the 'gate room and passing several sentimental smiles from the SF's on duty.
"Sam!"
Quick steps accompanied the harried call and Sam sighed again, waiting for Janet to catch up.
"So, you saw them off?" She smiled, the ever-present clipboard slipping under her arm as she looked at Sam.
Sam just pursed her lips and nodded, the feeling in her gut indicating that Janet didn't want to let Sam vent about the fact that she had to sit this one out. She knew her friend had more on her mind, and given the last diagnosis that Dr. Clark had given her on her 'worrisome blood pressure,' Sam could guess that her next destination wouldn't be her lab.
Janet didn't even say anything as she went with Sam into the elevator and watched the Major put in the floor for the infirmary.
Janet rolled her eyes; Sam just smiled.
"I know you too well, Janet."
"Not to sound motherly or anything, but we need to keep an eye on your vitals, Sam. It's one of the reasons you've been grounded. High blood pressure isn't good at any time. It's especially troublesome for a pregnant woman. I don't need any problems with this pregnancy, do you have any idea how hard it would be to ever look those three men that just stepped through the wormhole in the eye again if I let something happen to you?"
Sam tried to suppress a giggle. "I'm not arguing, Janet. Let's just get this over with so I can get some work done while the guys are gone and not hovering every thirty seconds."
"I promise it won't be long or painful, Sam."
They exited the elevator and made the walk to the infirmary. Sam was slightly dismayed to notice that she didn't really have to walk slower so that her friend could keep up. Her pace had slowed considerably under the extra weight.
Entering the infirmary and automatically heading toward her usual bed, she caught a glimpse of her figure in the mirror. The maternity uniform that she had started wearing a few months ago really didn't do much to hide anything, but she found herself happy to be wearing it.
"It feels good, doesn't it, Sam?"
"Huh?" She turned to Janet, unsure of what she meant.
"The whole feel of pregnancy," she waved her arms to encompass Sam's entire form.
Blushing, Sam shook her head. "Yeah, as much as it's a change to everything, it feels really good."
Janet smiled back at her and Sam settled awkwardly onto the bed, holding out her arm for the contraption to start its work. She sighed impatiently, subjecting herself peacefully had saved her minutes of arguing with her friend in the hallway, but it still irked her to have to submit to the checkups.
Especially now that Jack was out in the field.
If she could occupy her mind, she knew that the time would go faster, but if her blood pressure was still high, she knew with a certainty that Janet was going to send her home… doctor's orders.
Janet caught her eye.
"It looks good on you, Sam."
Still feeling the blush in her cheeks, Sam looked away. "That's what Daniel was saying too."
Janet shook her head with a chuckle. "That man's a teddy bear."
Sam raised an eyebrow, catching the slight flush in Janet's cheeks. "Oh?" Maybe she could get the doctor back on her heels and away from talking about her pregnancy and obvious question about to come up. However, it backfired and the doctor took the adage 'The best defense is a good offense' to heart and went with the initiative.
"So, does the father have a history of high blood pressure? Heart disease? High risk pregnancies?"
Sam used her free hand to run over her face. "Janet, haven't we been over the list of known medical history?"
Sighing, Janet looked at her friend. "Sam, I respect your privacy. I understand that you have your reasons. However, your blood pressure continues to remain elevated, and there are many aspects of high-risk pregnancies that can be linked to the father's medical history. It would help to know a bit more about him."
"Janet, I've never had long in-depth conversations with him about his family's medical history, but to the best of my knowledge there is nothing serious there." She closed her eyes and sighed. "That's just going to have to be enough."
Janet blinked. "You've never had? Or you never had? You said you weren't in contact with him anymore."
Caught off guard, Sam thought over her last words.
Shit.
Shitshitshit.
She wanted to slap her forehead, but that really would have triggered Janet's suspicions. Frantically, she thought of a way that she could gracefully get through this without doing something irrevocable to endanger their ruse.
Janet looked at her expectantly and Sam felt something tumble in the bottom of her stomach.
"Uh… I've been… talking with him… lately," she tried lamely, knowing that it was going to take a hell of a lot more convincing to get the doctor off of her tail.
"And?"
"And what?" Sam fought back, suddenly annoyed. Although, given that Janet had stayed off of her questions for a good four months, Sam really couldn't be all that surprised that the curiosity had just gotten to be too much. "He doesn't have a history like that, Janet. I'm sure that if he had he would have told me something about it. Especially once I told him of the high blood pressure."
"You told him that?"
"Why wouldn't I? It's his child too." She spoke harshly.
"Sam, if you have to explain the blood pressure to him… what if it's because of the naquadah in your blood that it's there? He won't get that."
"So, who says I have to tell him that could be the reason? This happens in normal pregnancies too, you've said… so why should I have to explain my 'unique' physiology?"
"Sam, I'm concerned. You're my friend, but you're also my patient. It's hard to draw a line sometimes."
"I know, Janet. But I would prefer to keep things the way they are. He may know about the pregnancy, but it hasn't been determined how active a role he'll play. Right now, it's just a little too odd and complicated for both of us."
Once again, she had managed not to lie, exactly. She knew Jack wanted as active a role as he could possibly get, with their positions that might be a little difficult. Everyone knew how great he was with children though, and their close friendship would make 'Uncle Jack' an integral part of the child's family. It wouldn't take long before a child was bound to slip about how many nights 'Uncle Jack' seemed to stay, and how 'Uncle Jack' liked to kiss Mommy. While years ahead, the thoughts flittered through her mind as if the events could occur tomorrow.
Janet shook her head, but went about her business. Sam could tell by the set of her shoulders and her stiff walk that she was holding herself back. Sam sighed. It was never going to get easier until they knew the whole story.
The band went around her arm and Sam held her peace, knowing that with Janet on edge, this could get dragged out if she so desired. It tightened and then began to loosen.
Janet paused, looked at the numbers and looking at Sam, pumped it up again.
Janet shook her head at the end of the next one again.
"Sam, it's not getting any better."
Sam's shoulders fell in resignation. She really hadn't been doing anything extraneous to her scientific duties in over a week. She narrowed her eyes in thought, wondering if she felt any different than she had a week ago.
Besides the fact that Jack was now out on a mission without her, she didn't think that her stress was any worse.
Sam shrugged. "I don't know Janet. I'm just working in my lab."
Janet smiled tightly. "It might not be work related, you know. Conversations with the father… holding it in… wanting this to be different… could all be adding up unto your shoulders."
Sam almost laughed. If anything, 'conversations' with the father were the only relaxing aspect of her week.
"I guess, the guys going off on a mission without me isn't helping either. They're my family, Janet. I'm worried about them."
Janet put a reassuring hand on Sam's shoulder. "Sam, you need a break, you need to relax. This isn't going to just get better on it's own, and it could have some serious repercussions if it does get worse. I'll let you go back to work, but you need to relax. Why don't we call it an early night tonight? We can have dinner and a relaxing movie, then all go to bed early. Cassie is really looking forward to you staying for the next few days."
Sam nodded a bit reluctantly. "Alright, Janet. But no inquisition, okay? Just leave the questions out of it."
Janet nodded. "The line is clearly there, Sam. I'll do my best to keep it."
At least it was a beautiful day on Planet Far-Away-From-Sam, he sighed.
Shaking his sentimentality off like a cloak, Jack glanced through the clearing, noting the underlying brush and a path breaking through it and leading off to the left.
"That's our trajectory, boys." He said, pointing to it.
He fell into step next to Teal'c and had to smile at the instant conversation that arose between Frank and Daniel. Jack really didn't mind the fact that Frank was a Marine, or that he was taking Sam's place, but playing the hard-assed Colonel had it's perks, and he didn't want to miss out on it. Besides, it wasn't like Daniel or Teal'c took a lot of his bad moods seriously anymore.
"How is Major Carter doing, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked with perfect ease.
Jack had gotten over the shock of talking with Teal'c about Sam's pregnancy. The Jaffa had the perfect way of talking about it that allowed Jack to speak as the 'friend' that he was. Nothing was inferred, and nothing was spoken to ruin the situation.
"She's good, Teal'c. Doc Fraiser said that her blood pressure's a little high and that's why she was taken off of the rotation for good. She's going to be stuck in her lab, and I think she's going to pretend to hate it."
Teal'c cocked his head in understanding. His eyes scanned the forest for a few moments and then, "The pregnancy… looks good on her?"
Jack huffed in agreement. "Yeah, that's it. And too true… too true."
O'Neill scanned the horizon, it was just a simple meet and greet – just like he'd told Sam – but he was always on the lookout. Today, it was probably more for a sense of normalcy rather than any feeling of unrest.
"This pressure in her blood, it is dangerous?"
Jack's smile was slightly unexpected on his part. "It can be. They're trying to play it safe."
"I am sure Doctor Fraiser will take every precaution to instill Major Carter's well-being."
"Yes, Teal'c, I'm sure she will."
"Yet, those close to her will be… concerned… regardless."
Jack shook his head, there was just something about the way the guy worded things. "I guess you could say that. She's going to be all right, Teal'c."
"That I believe, O'Neill."
A high piercing whistle shattered the relative silence of the forest and Jack saw Teal'c jerk out of the corner of his eye. No sound emerged from him, but he grabbed Jack and pulled him to the nearest tree.
"Jack!"
Daniel's voice seemed muffled and he glanced over to see Frank huddled before Daniel behind a fallen log, fifteen feet from where he and Teal'c were stuck. Something caught Jack's attention and his eyes moved to the front of the log to see a long, narrow arrow still quivering in the log.
"Meet and greet, my ass," Jack muttered, his P-90 coming to the ready and risked a glance around the tree.
"I do not believe that they would appreciate that, O'Neill." Teal'c said in a completely straight voice.
"Funny, Teal'c. Real funny." His finger squeezed on instinct at the sight of movement twenty yards in front of them. His blood began to pound as adrenaline flooded his system and his focus narrowed to pinpointing the movement at such a distance.
His shots were echoed by Frank's and the occasional explosion from Teal'c's staff weapon, but Jack knew within moments that there was no way that the four of them would be able to fend for themselves in such unfamiliar territory.
Within seconds he had taken a full stock of their surroundings. There was little to no cover and nowhere for a defensive stronghold other than the small amount of safety they currently had and the possibility of whatever the woods on the opposite side of the path may hold. "Teal'c, we need to create a path to get out of here. There's no way through, we need to head back to the gate."
The shots continued over their heads and they returned fire. Jack saw a form fall behind several trees and silently wondered how many there were to replace that one. He shimmied back trying to determine the best path for retreat when the feeling of hot electricity shot by so closely as to singe the hair on his arms. He watched in slow motion as the blast from Teal'c's weapon continued past him and hit another form huddled ten feet from Jack.
The low grunt told him Teal'c had been hit. Jack turned in his huddle to see the big man grasping the shaft of an arrow stuck in his upper leg. Jack called out to him over the noise of the confrontation, "Stay put, Teal'c. We'll take care of it and get you back to the SGC."
"I do not believe that would be the best course of action, O'Neill."
Jack turned and made a dash for the cover of the woods on the opposite side. Daniel had taken the cue and followed, with Frank heading over to grab Teal'c while O'Neill laid some covering fire.
"Colonel!"
Frank's call came a split second before the searing pain lanced over his frame and he stumbled against a nearby tree. Shock flooding his mind, he looked down to see the nub of an arrow protruding from his right hip. One shaking hand went to it, feeling the pain flash over his nerves as it moved within him.
Another knock spun him on his heels and he lurched away from the tree before falling to his knees as he lost feeling in his legs.
"Jack!" He saw Daniel moving back along the floor to him and knew with undying certainty that Daniel had to leave. Pain receded from the forefront and Jack looked behind to see tens of natives buzzing in the forest.
"Daniel! Go! You need to go and get the others."
"Others? Jack, I'm not leaving you here." He stopped behind another tree and froze as another arrow notched itself in the trunk.
Jack fell forward onto his hands, but kept his eyes on Daniel. "You *can't* carry me, Daniel. My legs aren't working." Jack eyes drifted closed, only now realizing that they must have put something on the heads.
Idly, he thanked God for Tretonin and that Teal'c would be okay.
He'd look after Sam.
Jack twitched on his hands and knees and numbly clutched the arrow in his thigh. He looked up at Daniel. "Get me help, Daniel."
The rushing screams of the natives overwhelmed and he was pleased to see Daniel lunge off in the way of the Stargate, after Frank and Teal'c before the graying at the edge of his vision weighed him down and pulled him into unconsciousness.
Sam was sitting in her lab examining the latest readouts she had taken on her latest adjustments to the naquadah reactor. Of course, Janet and Doctor Clark had forbidden her from getting too close to it, but Siler had helped out a lot in that department.
"Unscheduled off-world activation."
The klaxons sounded and Sam felt her heart rise up to her throat. Mentally she ticked off the number of teams that were off-world at the moment, and she knew that the activation could be for any one of them, yet somehow she knew that after only being gone for about two hours, it was for SG-1.
The readouts fluttered to the floor as she got off her stool and headed for the gate room.
"Medical Team to the Embarkation Room STAT."
Sam felt her heart sink as the second page came through. Her hands were shaking as she gripped the door handle to the lab and made her way to the elevator. She needed to know, she needed to be there, she needed to see them come through, no matter what that meant.
She entered the gate room as three orderlies were raising Teal'c onto a stretcher. Daniel was standing at the base of the ramp talking to the General. He finished and made his way over. "Sam…"
She could barely look at him, "Daniel, where's Jack?" She knew it was the first time she had ever called the Colonel by his first name in front of anyone, but she didn't care.
"Sam…"
"Where is he, Daniel?" She could feel the tears welling as she met his eye.
"We're going to go back for him, Sam. We won't leave him behind, we'll bring him home."
Her entire world seemed to be shrinking in around her. Everything came down to one small point in front of her, where all she could see was Daniel looking at her with mournful eyes. He knew that Jack and her were close, she wondered if he was still blind to the reality of how close they were. Then her world seemed to wink out, and she distantly thought she heard Daniel call out for Janet before sound also ceased to exist in her world.
He'd been staring at the same branch making up part of the door for the last half hour. It didn't help that whatever the people had put on those arrows was preventing him from moving in anyway whatsoever. He'd heard plenty of people moving passed his prison, speaking in a language that he didn't know but recognized as Goa'uld; so far, no one had come to check in on him.
His mind was still foggy with the last minutes of awareness, but he was positive that he had seen Daniel disappear into the forest with Frank and Teal'c.
Seeing as no one had come for him yet, he must not have been unconscious for too long.
Something snapped outside of his cage and he looked up to see a shadow standing in front of his door. Some words were spoken and then a harsh rasp of a lever was pulled and intense sunlight filtered into his cell.
Above him stood a tall and imposing man, looking down on him with a stern glare.
He barked something.
Jack didn't understand and couldn't have spoken or shrugged his ignorance if he wanted to. He saw the fist descend for the second it took to hit him, but he couldn't do anything. He lay on the cot and took the full brunt of the punch.
The man spoke the same sentence again.
Again, Jack could neither respond nor do anything to block the coming assault. The fist hit him square in the gut and he would have sworn he felt a rib crack under the pressure.
Jack's hands were grabbed, he was yanked off the cot and thrown to the floor. He felt helpless, the only action he could take to close his eyes as his head fell towards the floor of his cell – he couldn't even raise his hands to lessen the blow.
Reopening his eyes, he tried to move his tongue, hoping to dislodge some of the sand and dirt that had become encrusted in his mouth. It was worse than any hang-over he had ever experienced. His tongue felt swollen and thick, and solidly stuck to the roof of his mouth.
Big, thick, strong hands grabbed him by his underarms and dragged him across the floor of the cell and into the blinding sunlight. His head hung limply toward his chest and he cursed his already throbbing legs for any further pain they could be held responsible.
Looking down, he noticed that the arrows had been removed, although any bandaging had consisted of only dirty and discarded cloth. His captors obviously weren't all that concerned about the possibility of infection, apparently they didn't plan on keeping him around long enough to worry about it.
Jack closed his eyes and took a deep calming breath, realizing that feeling was beginning to return…
And suddenly wishing that it wouldn't.
He felt the burning in his gut first. Followed slowly and aching close by his hip and then his thigh. His arms stung with pins and needles as his nerves began to register that his captors were cutting off his circulation, but he still couldn't seem to find his voice.
He grunted.
A fist slammed into the side of his face and he decided that he would wait until he had full control of his faculties before he tried that again.
He took yet another full breath, using everything within his mind to stem the burning creeping up through his veins to wrap tightly around his throat as his captors juggled and dragged him across a courtyard and into a larger room.
"What is your name?"
It took Jack a minute to realize that he could understand what it was that was being asked of him. He blinked and took a moment too long to realize that he had to answer the question.
The goon behind him hit him solidly upside the head. "Answer him."
The world spun and Jack fell forward onto his hands, trying valiantly to ignore the overwhelming burn emanating up his spine.
Jack coughed out a cry before he found his voice, weak as it was.
"Picard. Jean-Luc. Captain." He took a quaking breath, knowing for sure that at least one rib was broken. "And to whom do I have the pleasure?"
"That is none of your concern."
Jack sighed, he just so loved one-sided conversations.
"Why did you bring a servant of Apophis to our peaceful world?"
Peaceful? Jack seriously thought someone needed to send through an updated version of Webster's for these people to have a look at. "Servant of Apophis?"
A wooden rod or stick of some sort struck him across the stomach and Jack landed to the ground, doubled over. Jack coughed several times before he was able to right himself again, propping himself up in a squatted position.
Nope that wouldn't do.
He attempted to stand, to take the pressure off of his ribs but was put back to his knees with a swift swipe at the back of his thighs. The sting lasted for only a few moments before he realized that his wound had once again been opened under the hit.
He grit his teeth.
"Do you serve Apophis?"
Jack saw red. "You're doing this to me cause you think I serve Apophis?" He wheezed out a painful cough and spit blood onto the ground. "You keep this up and you're going to kill the man who *killed* that snaky bastard."
That caused the man before him to freeze and Jack knew that if he played this right he would be able to gain some what of an upper hand.
Or completely piss him off.
"Apophis is dead?" Jack could only nod feebly. The man before him said something in another tongue and one of the guards disappeared. "What god do you serve? Why would a Prime of Apophis betray his god?"
"They're not damned gods!" Jack barely forced it out before he was wracked with a cough that bent him double to the dirt floor. "And I serve no god." He whispered.
The man that had been asking all the questions gave several orders in the language that Jack was certain was Goa'uld. Then the man that had dragged him out from his cell, flipped him over his shoulder and trotted off towards the woods. The pain that shot through Jack's chest was immense as the bouncing rattled his bruised and broken ribs around.
He wasn't sure where they were, or how long they had traveled, though he was fairly certain he'd lost consciousness at least one time since they'd left the village.
They dumped him in the middle of the woods, he couldn't be sure if he was even remotely close to where the battle had all started, and where they had captured him. He wondered if a rescue team had even been sent through for him, or if they'd been met with resistance as well.
He hoped that if something had happened at least Teal'c would have the good sense to break it to Sam gently. He knew, without a doubt, that she would be more than well looked after. He just wished that, somehow, no matter what ended up happening in the end, he could see their child be born.
"Jesus, Sam."
Janet was bent over her as her eyes fluttered open. The grey darkness of the infirmary didn't help her to focus on her friend, but that wasn't the first thing that she reacted to.
"Jack." She sat up, her hand moving immediately to brace against her stomach. Her panicked eyes moved to Janet's. "Where is he?"
Janet stepped back, shaking her head. "They haven't found him yet, Sam. Jack…" she paused, her head cocking to the side and then she cleared her throat as she continued. "The Colonel wasn't at the scene anymore and Teal'c said that most of the tracks went off in different directions to throw off the trace."
Sam was horrified to see that she was beginning to shake.
"It was only a meet and greet, Janet. Why would they possibly take him?"
Janet's cool hand rose to her forehead and Sam shrugged it off. Her heart hammered in her chest and she pictured some of the worst scenarios that could possibly arise from this situation.
Jack, dead or dying helplessly in some rotten village; alone. Jack, bleeding, dying.
Always dying.
Never seeing his child; their child.
Her heart broke.
"He can't leave us, Janet." She whispered into her hands.
Janet's eyes widened. "Sam?"
Sam's hands covered her eyes. "I don't think I can do this without him, Janet. This is like my worst fear coming true."
"Sam, lean back. You need to stay in bed and relax, or your worst fear will get even worse. I'm confining you to bed rest. You'll be staying here in the infirmary until further notice. If this continues you could lose the baby, Sam." Janet sighed deeply.
Janet's hand moved off of Sam's shoulder and went to move away, but Sam reached out and gripped it. "Janet, please." She swallowed, closing her eyes. "We didn't want to hide it from everyone, really…"
"Sam, if you really thought you were hiding it from anyone that really knows you, you're crazier than I thought. Did you think none of us would notice how *he* always got the overnight duty right before you were separated, or how he would look at you when he thought no one else was looking? Some of us knew, and I knew sooner or later you would tell me – I just wish it wasn't like this." She squeezed Sam's hand, "We've asked for some help, the Tok'ra are sending one or two people to help scout out the planet. I'll keep you posted on anything I hear, but the best thing you can do is try to relax." Janet released the hand and picked up Sam's chart, making a few notes. "Doctor Clark will be in soon to give you a check-up, please, don't make us have to sedate you."
Sam lay back on the bed, a stray tear winding its way down her cheek to soak into the pillow.
Four months of hiding, when they weren't even really hiding. She could have told Janet at the beginning and things would have gone the way that they already had.
And her stress?
Well, as soon as Jack came back, her stress would revolve around waiting for the baby to come.
He'd passed out again.
He woke to find his face buried in the mossy forest floor and the dirt and grime coated his mouth. He blinked hard, hoping to get rid of the grey at the edge of his vision but succeeded only marginally. He felt it coming back and knew without a doubt that if he didn't move now, it was very likely that he would bleed to death in that very spot.
The first two attempts were aborted as his torso convulsed under the clamp-like pressure around his ribs.
He coughed up blood and collapsed back to the ground.
Slowly, he began to build his resolve. He'd been through worse – much worse – and survived, managed to get home. Now, he really had something to get home to. Not only was Sam there, but he had a child on the way, and he'd wished for nothing more than to get home to see the birth of that child.
Getting to his knees was agony. The muscles in his stomach and chest continued flexing and tightening around the sore, bruised and broken ribs. His breathing came in short, quick gasps mixed with coughing fits. He spit more blood onto the forest floor and shook his head. These were not good signs.
Hesitantly, he started to inch in the direction of a clearing, hoping to be able to determine his whereabouts and return to the Stargate. He didn't care if he had to crawl the entire way.
The closer he got to the clearing, the more he adjusted to moving without upsetting his midsection, the more confident he became in his ability to walk part of the way. Using a long branch to help hoist him up, he then leaned on it like a crutch and meandered into the open field.
His thigh was numb; and while he was eternally grateful of the fact, he knew that it wasn't a good sign. Standing, though it allowed him to move faster and with less pain, had also revitalized his circulation and he could see that the puncture wound in his hip was bleeding again.
And the sun was setting.
Closing his eyes, he took a deep, slow breath and concentrated on his memory of coming out of the Stargate. The sun had been high, yet still slightly to the south and brief memories of it during his stay in the village coagulated into the solid hypothesis that the Stargate should be off to his left.
How far it was from here, he didn't have the faintest idea, but he was going to have to get there somehow.
It took him nearly an hour to get across the field and into the line of trees on the other side. By the time he entered their cover, he was surrounded by the night of the planet and the darkness was leeching away any resolve he had to keep moving and not give in to the intense desire to sleep.
Sleeping while bleeding, exhausted and dehydrated was a sure way to die.
And he wasn't about to die.
"Sam…"
The fitful sleep that she'd fallen into after speaking with Janet was disturbed by a comforting, gentle touch on her arm, accompanied by a man's voice.
"Jack?" Her voice was barely above a whisper as she struggled to open her eyes. She felt so tired and truly worn out, all her eyes wanted to do was stay closed. She blinked several times finally getting them to cooperate and open.
"Sam, it's okay. We'll get him back." Jacob smiled down at her. "Trust me, if it's the last thing I do, I'll get him back."
She smiled but thought her father sounded oddly annoyed. "Dad? What is it?"
Jacob swallowed, and she knew he was a bit uncomfortable. "I can't believe it's been four months, Sam. God, you look so much like your mother…."
She couldn't help it, and she didn't have the energy to stem the tears that stung the back of her eyes. "Dad?"
She didn't want to sound so lost. She was strong, she was a Major in the Air Force, she'd faced Goa'uld System Lords…
She watched through blurred vision as Jacob sat on the bed next to her hip and took a hold of both of her hands. She could tell that he was lost in the memory of her mother and the fact that she herself was in distress. He blinked and Sam wasn't surprised to see his own tears begin.
"It's only been a day, Sam. Jack's a survivor, a mean spirit." He squeezed her hands tightly. "Teal'c and Daniel came back a couple of minutes after I got in. They said they'd been to the village they had been heading too, but their leaders denied that they had attacked anyone within the forest." His head bowed for a moment and then he grimaced. "Teal'c says that he doesn't believe them."
"Teal'c was shot, too, Dad. How's he going out again?" Sam choked out around her tears.
"Stubborn as a mule, that Jaffa. Has to take extra bandages along to keep the bleeding down. Janet almost had a seizure when he said he was going out again."
"I can imagine. If this keeps up almost all of the SGC will wind up in the infirmary before I have this baby." She closed her eyes, blinking back any further tears that wanted to come forth.
"You rest, Sam. You're going to need it." He went to get off the bed but was stopped by her hand reaching out and clasping around his wrist.
"Dad? Does everyone know?"
Jacob gave her a questioning look, before he seemed to catch on. "Sam, no one is saying anything that hasn't been said before, and I'm certainly not confirming or denying anything about my daughter's private life. Besides, I think they know better than to ask."
Sam breathed a small sigh of relief, "Janet wouldn't say anything."
A raised eyebrow was her initial indication. "Which she apparently didn't cause you didn't know that she knew, did you?"
"No, she hadn't said anything to me. Does she know that you both told me?"
Sam lowered her eyes and shook her head. "I hadn't planned on bringing her into this, it just kind of came blurting out earlier."
"Under those conditions, Sam, it's not surprising." He bent down and graced her brow with a kiss. "You sleep and I'll wake you myself as soon as something new happens."
She nodded feebly and allowed her eyes to close in exhaustion for a few seconds before she looked once more at her father. "Dad?"
He turned at the doorway.
"Thank you for coming."
He just smiled and turned the corner.
He had taken to counting his steps to stay awake. He'd found himself falling asleep on his feet only two hours ago and now was hitting 9567 steps.
Or lurches.
He'd just taken 9568 when he paused. His head cocked to the side to try and find the origin of the sound and suddenly he was moving faster.
He lost count of his steps and he painfully fell to his knees at the edge of the creek and frantically cupped the cold water into his mouth and over his face. He had no canteen and no idea how much further he would have to go to hit the Stargate. He would have to make do with what he could get here.
Jack quenched his thirst and used some of the water to clear off his face and skin. The grime and sweat that had become caked on couldn't be too good for his wounds. He did the best he could at cleaning off some of his BDUs and ripping strips to wrap around his injured leg. The possibilities of the water containing more contaminants than the dirt briefly crossed his mind, but he chose to ignore it and take his chances.
After resting for a few minutes, and drinking some more water he was glad to find himself feeling a bit rejuvenated and ready to continue. He groaned as he hoisted himself to his feet once again and pressed on.
It was totally dark now, and he was using the stars as his map. It wasn't an easy feat since he'd never been on this planet at night, but he kept telling himself that he knew which way to go. That somehow he would get back to the gate.
While no longer thirsty, he was weak. His legs ached, the injured one throbbed. His ribs were painfully sore, even breathing was becoming an arduous task. The blood flowing out of his wounds had slowed, but not stopped. Jack knew he needed medical attention, and the sooner the better.
He trudged on.
He found himself moving from tree to tree and resting against their rough housing. His breathing was out of his control and it was beginning to beleaguer him as he forced himself to keep moving.
The branch that he had been using as a crutch has cut into his arm a long time ago, but compared to the numbness and throbbing of the other various places on his body, it didn't phase him.
He kept moving, his eyes occasionally mapping the sky to make sure that he was still following the same star in the direction that he wanted to go.
What step was he on?
His attention was so lax, movement ahead of him nearly passed him by. The bobbing lights flickered behind trees as the people holding them kept moving through the woods.
There and there. There.
Jack blinked and instinctively bent in their direction. He opened his mouth to call to them, but the roughness from coughing up blood and other things had left him without his voice.
Desperation ran through his veins and he lurched forward, blind to his feet. A twig snapped, a rock rolled and Jack screamed as he fell against the log, the lancing pain from his ribs and legs whiting out his eyes and swallowing him in a merciful blanket of unconsciousness.
"Sam…"
She recognized the voice of her father and knew that if he was waking her up he must have some news for her. She struggled to wake up, not liking the drugged, groggy feeling that seemed to have settled over her.
"Dad? What is it?" Her eyes opened and she found herself staring into his grim face. Immediately, she was awake. She shot up in bed, faster than she should have and tried to shrug off the sense of vertigo that swept over her.
"They've found him, haven't they? Is he? Oh, my God, is he all right?"
"Sam, relax," Jacob tried to ease her back into a reclining position on the bed. "They have found him, they're on their way back to the gate now. He's been hit, Sam, and he's apparently pretty bad off, but he's alive. Janet is prepping the OR now."
"Is he conscious, Dad? How bad do they think it is? What does he need the OR for?" The questions tumbled out of her faster than she could even think of them. Her mouth felt like it was on automatic. My goodness, if this was what she was like before no wonder she'd blurted everything out to Janet.
Finally, Sam allowed her father to push her back onto the bed and sighed heavily.
He was alive.
"Sam, that's all I know. Teal'c was carrying him cause he'd passed out. They should be back within the hour." Jacob sat on the edge of the bed and looked down on her. "There's nothing you can do right now, Sam. And I think Doctor Clark should take another look at you. You're looking peak-ish."
Sam could barely control her urge to throw her father aside and go stand by the gate.
And then, Doctor Clark was standing beside her father and clucking her tongue, forcing her back down onto the bed and immediately going about checking up on her. Sam resigned herself, very reluctantly, to the presence and necessity of the exam, but couldn't keep her eyes off of the digital clock in the corner.
Jacob sat next to her. "Staring at it isn't going to make it go any faster," he chided gently.
"I can't just sit here, Dad."
"But you're damn well going to, Sam." Urged Doctor Clark as she finished her exam and stood next to her, her hands on her hips. "Your blood pressure is bordering on dangerous, Sam." Her voice softened as she held up a hand to quiet Sam's protests. "I know that you're worried, and you have every right to be. But this baby is in serious danger if you can't wait this out."
Sam felt her father take her hand. "I'll stay with you here, Sam."
Sam flopped her head back into the pillows with a frustrated sigh. This was ridiculous. She wasn't the type of woman that stayed in bed and waited for things to happen. She was the one out there doing things. The one that made things happen, solved the problems and took action.
She was not used to this, nor did she like it. And it was all Jack's fault – when he made it back alive she was ready to kill him herself.
She groaned and looked to Doctor Clark, "Is there any chance I can at least get my laptop in here? I need to be able to *do* something."
The woman eyed her suspiciously, "I suppose we can allow that, but I'm hooking you up to a monitor. We need to keep track of this. I don't know about you, but I don't feel like delivering this baby any earlier than we absolutely need to."
Sam closed her eyes; that wasn't something she wanted at all. As much as she was ready to ring Jack's neck right about now, she would do anything that needed to be done in order to protect their child.
Besides, she wanted Jack to be standing next to her when that time came and he sure as hell couldn't be doing that if he was going to be on the operating table. She didn't want to miss out on swearing at him and cursing him for putting her in that situation…
A small smile tugged on her lips as she tried to relax into the bed.
Soft feet approached the bed and she opened an eye, surprised to see Daniel standing there. Then she realized that she must have fallen asleep because her father wasn't sitting in the chair anymore.
"Sam…" he whispered, standing next to the bed and taking a hold of her hand.
"You brought him home, Daniel?" She said softly, keeping the intimacy of the moment.
He blinked slowly and then nodded. "We brought him home, Sam."
"That's good," she smiled and squeezed his hands in reassurance. "Thank you, Daniel."
Daniel smiled, holding her hand.
"Now I can kill him."
Daniel's eyes bulged, then he smiled. "I think that's a little extreme."
"Daniel, I'm bedridden till after the baby is born. This is what you guys do to my blood pressure. I'm on calcium supplements and have to take aspirin every day now. I'm stuck here."
Daniel snickered, "Sam, it's not the end of the world. Just think about it, when you're feeling a bit better, and Jack is able to be released the two of you can go home and take care of each other."
Sam slapped him playfully on the arm, "That's not funny, Daniel. I'm serious." She rolled her eyes seeing his smirk. "How bad is he?"
"He'll be okay, Sam. He's Jack. He'll bounce back as good as new."
She nodded and smiled at him. "How long have you guys been back?"
"Janet went into surgery about an hour ago. Her first glance said that it would take a few hours… but that was mostly his knee, which he screwed over thirty seconds before we found him."
She huffed. "Fitting." She shifted slowly on the bed and felt her eyes beginning droop again. "Damned pain killers." She mumbled.
Daniel smiled. "It's alright, Sam. I'll come and wake you when it's over."
Sam, feeling safe that Daniel and Teal'c and *Jack* were back, let the slumber trap her.
"Major Carter?"
Teal'c's soft baritone was an easy tone to wake up to, Sam decided, but it wasn't what she was wanting to hear.
It would do.
"Hey, Teal'c."
She smiled weakly. "How are you doing? I remember seeing that you were hit too, and you still insisted on going back out there to find him. From what I understand you nearly threw Janet into a seizure."
"I am adequate, Major Carter. The Tretonin will expedite the healing process and I will be fine once again."
"That's good to hear, Teal'c." Her eyes lowered slightly, she knew that Teal'c had been the one from the very beginning to figure them out. Or maybe he had just been the only one to not bother going along with their little charade. But did she want to come right out and ask him how Jack was doing?
"Colonel O'Neill's surgery went well. They will be bringing him in to recuperate shortly."
Sam's head shot up. She hadn't even needed to voice the question. There were times when she would have sworn the man was psychic. She looked over and shook her head. "Bringing him in? Teal'c, you can't be serious?"
"Doctor Fraiser thought it might be beneficial for both of you."
She had to suppress the urge to grin and pump her fists; instead she just looked at Teal'c and nodded. "I think she's right."
He stood next to her for a moment and then, with the sound of the wheels of a gurney already echoing down the hall, he stepped away from her line of sight and let her watch the bed get wheeled in.
She couldn't stop the hitch of the breath in her lungs at the sight of him, pale and unconscious on the bed. The livid bruises stood out on his cheeks and one of his eyes was completely swollen shut. She could hear the rattle of his lungs over the squeak of the wheels and tears stung her eyes.
"Janet?"
The doctor stood next to the bed and nodded, knowing that Sam would have to know what exactly was wrong with him.
"He's got three broken ribs and a punctured right lung. Both arrow wounds are slightly infected, but nothing a good dose of antibiotics won't cure. Sprained wrist, many… many cuts and bruises… and one recently repaired knee. For the fourth time." She added under her breath. She caught Sam's eye. "A lesser man wouldn't have survived that day, Sam."
Sam couldn't quite explain it, but it all seemed to calm her a little. "So, nothing out of the ordinary then?"
Janet smiled, "Pretty much par for SG1. Something you should be well acquainted with."
Sam returned her friend's smile. "Yes, all too well acquainted with it."
She watched as they set Jack up in the room. His ribs seemed to be wrapped, but not confined. His leg secured so that his knee could heal. An IV drip was hooked up to his arm, most likely delivering much needed fluids and antibiotics. As horrific as the scene would have been to most, it comforted Sam just in his presence.
Janet and the nurses left the room and Sam drifted into a restful, comforting sleep.
She awoke a few hours later and laid there, just watching him. His presence alone seemed to comfort and calm her. He was home, he was reasonably safe, and he would be there for the birth of their child.
Sam's hand drifted to her stomach. He kicked against her hand as if sensing something different with her. She didn't know when it was that she began to think of their child as a 'he,' because God help her if he was as precocious as his father. However, it was comforting to think of a little Jack O'Neill.
He kicked once more and then settled and with a sigh at the bit of discomfort in her lower back, she allowed the drugs to work into her system and lull her into sleep.