A/N - Thanks to all who have reviewed, followed, or favorited. It keeps me motivated! Now, on with the show...

Chapter 2

Even through closed eyes, Jack could tell that it was entirely too sunny. For a moment, he thought he must be on vacation, as a light ocean breeze and the sound of peaceful waves threatened to lull him back to sleep. In the next second, though, the struggle in the jungle immediately came back to him, complete with a vision of a wicked smile and blood red eyes staring down at him. He bolted upright in the bed in which he'd been lying, trying to get his bearings as his eyes adjusted to the bright light. In an instant, Daniel and Teal'c were by his side.

"What happened?" he asked them both.

Daniel responded first. "I...I don't know. One minute, I was fighting some...thing in the jungle; the next minute, I woke up here."

"I, too, had a similar experience," added Teal'c. "However, I remained conscious long enough to observe a great number of people enter the forest carrying torches. The fire seemed to turn back the creatures that were attacking us."

Jack looked around the room. It was large and contained several beds. If Jack were to guess, he'd say it was an infirmary of some sort. The walls of the room appeared to be made of stone, and sunshine streamed in from great open windows high up one wall.

"Where are we?"

Daniel rubbed the back of his neck. "I think we're in a fortress or castle of some sort on the coast."

A sickening feeling struck Jack, and his face darkened. He glanced quickly around the room, then stared directly at his two teammates. "Where's Carter?"

Teal'c exchanged a look with Daniel. "We do not know, O'Neill."

Jack jumped off of the bed, swaying a little as he attempted to get to his feet. He fought back a rising sense panic. "I saw those creatures drag her off into the jungle. I have to find her."

He pushed past Teal'c and made his way toward what appeared to be the exit, but Daniel stepped in front of him and placed a restraining hand on his chest. "Wait a minute, Jack. We don't know where to look. Teal'c's already told the people who brought us here that she's missing. They've got a group searching for her now."

"Not good enough, Daniel," Jack growled. "She's my..." he stopped short, and reconsidered his words, "my responsibility, and I'm not going to wait around here doing nothing while some strangers try to find her."

Just as Jack had resumed his march toward the open doorway, a young woman and two men entered, one of the men carrying an unconscious Sam. All three of the strangers were tall and toned, with dark hair and olive skin. The larger of the men laid Sam on a bed, and Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c hurried over to her side. The man who brought her in looked up at the Jaffa. "We got to her before the savages could take her into their cave." At that the woman shuddered.

"Is she injured?" Daniel asked the second man, who was busy examining Sam's body. He was presumably a doctor, though he couldn't have been more than twenty-five years old, thought Jack.

His examination complete, he looked up at Daniel. "She appears to be unharmed."

The woman was holding her hands up to her mouth. "She has not been violated?" she whispered, her voice laced with fear. At that Jack jerked his head up to look at the doctor with narrowed eyes. The sick feeling was back.

"No," replied the doctor. "No, I believe you got to her in time, Sukumar."

Jack didn't care for the somewhat smug expression that graced Sukumar's face, but he was too overwhelmed with relief to dwell on it. He pushed his way toward the head of Sam's bed. He reached out as if to touch her brow but then thought better of it. "Why is she unconscious?" he demanded of the doctor.

"The savages use the root of the cassova plant to induce unconsciousness, making even the strongest of us easy prey. It does not cause permanent damage, but it can take awhile to wear off. She is otherwise uninjured and should regain consciousness any time now."

Daniel stepped forward and addressed all three strangers. "Thank you. For saving her - for saving all of us - and bringing us here."

"Yes," interrupted Jack, "where is 'here' anyway?"

The man who had carried Sam into the room answered. "You are on the island of Beimini, in our village on the coast. You are safe here; the savages keep to their caves and the dark cover of the jungle. They will not venture into the city. I am Sukumar, leader of this island. This," he indicated the woman standing by his side, "is Giyana, my sister. And Tano you have most likely realized is one of our most able physicians."

"It's an honor to meet you all. I am Daniel Jackson." Ever the diplomat, Daniel indicated each of his team members in turn. "This is Jack O'Neill, Teal'c, and the woman you brought in is Samantha Carter. We are travelers, from a planet called Earth..."

"Earth!" exclaimed Giyana. "Tell me, did you travel through the ring of stone? Are you followers of Jocahu as well? Have you come seeking eternal life?"

Sukumar grasped his sister's arm and shot her a warning glare, while Jack and Daniel exchanged slightly puzzled looks. Before either could ask any further questions, though, Sam began to stir.

"Easy, Carter," Jack said, as she tried to sit up.

She rubbed her forehead. "What happened?" she asked, her voice rough.

"You are lucky to be alive," Giyana replied immediately. "If my brother hadn't rescued you, you would surely be dead."

Sam's gaze followed Giyana's to Sukumar. "Yes," he agreed, nudging past Jack to approach Sam, earning him a scowl from the military man. "The savages are known to feed on those they capture, often torturing and raping their victims before killing them. It is rare for one to come back from being taken unharmed." As he spoke, he picked up Sam's hand and held it in his, causing the scowl on Jack's face to deepen further.

"Thank you," Sam said sincerely, though she gently pulled her hand from his grasp.

"What exactly were those things that attacked us?" Jack asked.

"Giyana," said Sukumar, his eyes still trained on Sam, "perhaps we should provide our guests with accommodations for the night, so they can fully recover from their ordeal." He turned to Daniel, completely ignoring Jack. "We can discuss what brings you to Beimini and answer any questions you may have tomorrow."

"Um," Daniel stalled, as he shot a sideways look at Jack. He knew their leader was about to say someting that would likely get them booted off the planet or imprisoned - or worse. "We'd appreciate that, Sukumar," he continued quickly, cutting off the caustic statement was undoubtedly on the tip of Jack's tongue. "Thank you."

"Yes, thank you," Jack added lifting his chin a bit, his voice tinged with sarcasm, though only the members of his team noticed.

Once Sam was on her feet and Jack was certain she was uninjured, Giyana indicated that the four of them should follow her. They made their way through the building, noting the layout as they walked. The construction was some sort of gray, porous rock, and the design was surprisingly airy, with most of the hallways open on one side to a large interior courtyard. Wide doorways leading to various rooms lined the other side, each with large windows providing unobstructed views of the ocean or the rest of the village, with the jungle behind.

"This reminds me a bit of Tulum," Sam whispered to Daniel.

"A little," he agreed, "but the architecture isn't right, and I see no other indication of a Mayan culture." He stopped walking for a moment and stared at Sam. "Wait a minute. How do you know about Tulum?"

She shrugged, smiling slightly as she continued walking past him. "Cancun. Spring break, 1989."

"Oh," he muttered.

"Sounds like my kind of anthropological excursion," Jack stage whispered in Daniel's direction, waggling his eyebrows.

They stopped in front of a large room, and Giyana indicated that it was for Daniel and Sam. She then hesitated for a moment, looking back and forth between Jack and Teal'c. "I suppose you would like...separate rooms?"

Daniel attempted to cover his snort with a cough, while Sam bit the inside of her cheek. Teal'c merely raised a single eyebrow.

"Actually, we all prefer to stay in one room," Jack replied sharply. Aside from being irritated by Giyana's various assumptions about his team, he didn't trust any of the people he had met so far and was not keen on being separated.

Giyana's eyes widened slightly. "I'm sorry; these rooms are usually designed for only two at most..."

"That will be fine, Giyana," Daniel inserted quickly. "Perhaps you have two rooms close together?"

She directed them to two adjacent rooms with balconies overlooking the ocean, though she couldn't hide her startled look when Jack followed Sam into the first, leaving Daniel to share his room with Teal'c.

"I will have someone bring you food and drink. Please, rest tonight, and we will discuss the purpose of your visit tomorrow." With that, she turned to leave through the open entry, pulling the door closed behind her. Jack noticed with some interest that there was no lock.

He looked around the room and had to admit it was quite beautiful. The doors to the balcony were thrown wide open, revealing a seascape that looked like something out of a travel brochure. Below them, a white sand beach dotted with swaying palm trees led to crystal clear blue-green water. Several yards out, Jack could see a large barrier reef beneath the waves. Tropical flowers adorned the interior of the room and clean linen sheets dressed a single, large bed that dominated the center of the space. It suddenly occurred to him that the entire set up reminded him of the honeymoon suite at a pricey beach resort.

Jack sighed to himself. This could be a problem. Ever since their confessions during the zatarc incident, he had been careful to avoid sleeping in the same tent with Sam. Knowing that she felt the same way he did was simply too much of a temptation. This time, though, he just couldn't resist seeing the look on Giyana's face when he walked into the room behind his beautiful and much younger Second. But as he watched the slight movement of her hips as she strolled out onto the balcony, he began to rethink the wisdom of sharing a room with her, and this room in particular.

He shook his head to clear it. Ah well, it was too late to turn back now. Taking a deep breath, he joined her on the balcony, and the two of them watched the waves lap the shore in a comfortable silence.

After a few minutes, she spoke. "Beautiful, isn't it, sir?"

"It is," he agreed, "but don't you think there's something about this place that's a little...off?"

"You mean like killer zombies dropping out of the trees?"

He laughed. "There is that." He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "You sure you're okay, Carter?"

She turned to face him. "I'm fine, sir, really. I don't remember anything that happened after I lost consciousness, but I don't think those...things hurt me in any way." She shrugged. "I guess I have Sukumar to thank for that."

"Ah, your hero," replied Jack wryly, looking back out over the water. "Seems to have taken an interest." He raised an eyebrow at her. "By the way, I predicted that would happen, did I not?"

"Sukumar is clearly a politician of some sort; I believe you said he would be a scientist," she smirked.

He shrugged. "Same difference. I don't like politicians either."

Sam looked at him with mock indignation. "Either? I thought you'd at least warmed up to the scientists, sir."

"Only archeologists," he deadpanned.

"Archeologists, huh?"

He gave her a sly grin. "Maybe an astrophysicist every now and then." She grinned back, and they turned again toward the ocean. He bumped her shoulder with his. "Glad you're okay, Carter. You had me worried there for a minute."

"Sorry, sir," she replied, and she really was. She knew all too well what it was like to not know what had happened to one of her teammates, and especially him, though she would never admit that out loud.

Jack huffed. "Yes, well, I'd hate to lose one of only two scientists I actually like."

Sam gave her commanding officer a brilliant smile, and Jack felt his stomach do a little flip flop. He immediately turned his attention back to the ocean and tried very hard not to think about how beautiful she looked, the setting sun giving her skin a warm glow, with the light reflecting off the water and dancing in her eyes.

Yep, he thought, this could definitely be a problem.

oOoOoOo

Giyana swept into her brother's quarters. He'd been staring out the window, his mood pensive, but spun around to face her the moment she entered. "Did they tell you why they're here?" he demanded. She shook her head. "They are searching for it," he said more to himself than to her. He grabbed his sister by the shoulders. "We need to be careful. You must not say anything more."

She hung her head for a moment, and he dropped his hands. She looked up at him. "Sukumar, how did you retrieve the woman from the savages?"

He smiled, but there was no warmth in it. "I didn't. I found her, lying on the jungle floor. It would seem they abandoned her there."

"But why?"

Sukumar furrowed his brow. "I do not know, but they are getting bolder – they attacked in the daylight, and the fire seems less of a deterrent to them now. We were barely able to turn them away. Hatu was almost taken. All the more reason to be cautious."

Giyana paused, wondering if she should share what she had observed with her brother, given his apparent interest in the fair stranger. Ultimately, she decided he needed to know. "I think the silver haired man is mated to the woman."

He scoffed. "He is too old! In fact, I doubt he will be of much use to us."

"Perhaps not, but the others could provide a great deal, especially if they're really from Earth..."

Sukumar grabbed her shoulders once again. "Yes, but we need to keep them here until the second rising, and we must ensure they suspect nothing, Giyana."

She nodded her head once in agreement.

TBC...