here we go! Please review and let me know what ya think...it's very helpful! Thnx so much!
Chapter 15
Daniel kept his P-90 up as he and the rest of SG-1 slipped into the narrow passageway into the valley where Osiris's village sat. It was only the four of them now. They were through most of the passage, up the slope and about to creep out of the opening when suddenly they were blocked by three natives with bows and arrows, all knocked and aiming at them.
Well, they weren't outnumbered…they could zat them all. But then they heard movement behind them, and turned to see several more coming up behind them. They must have been hiding outside. Had Osiris upped security measures since he'd escaped last year? Maybe he'd been expecting the SGC to send a team back for him.
But the bottom line was, they were outnumbered now. The four of them swung their weapons back and forth, between the two groups ambushing them, but there was nothing they could do if they didn't want to get killed. The opposition said nothing.
"Oh, crap," Cam swore quietly.
The natives seemed to realize that the Earth team knew they were had. One at a time, so as to keep them covered, they exchanged their bows and arrows for their dart guns.
"Not that agai--" But Daniel didn't even get the sentence out before a sharp prick pinched the side of his neck, and everything shut down into darkness.
Colonel Jennifer Hailey--recently promoted from lieutenant colonel--clicked on her radio in contact with the hidden marine teams that had come with SGs one and thirteen. They were all surrounding the entrance to the valley from different positions.
"Did all of you see the natives going in after them?"
One of the other team commanders radioed back. "Positive, colonel. Proceed with the plan?"
"Did you think we would do anything else?" The other commanders sent their confirmation of the order, and she let go of the radio.
"Didn't have to wait long for that," Travis commented. "I thought they wouldn't get caught until they were inside."
Hailey shrugged. "The plan's flexible." They waited half an hour, per the plan, for SG-1 to be brought out of the tunnel on the other side. Some of the natives that had been on the outside before, but unseen, came back out to re-take their posts later, and were zatted, dragged away and restrained so the entrance was unguarded. When the allotted time was up, SG-13 led the foray into the tunnel. The guards on that side weren't waiting for them, but they could be seen coming back up from the village after delivering the prisoners.
Hailey waved her team to duck back, and they waited. When the few men coming up reached the entrance, they zatted them. No one below noticed; they were too far up, and blocked by trees in most places. The marine team came through and took cover, to stay hidden from below, and some of them restrained the newly captured natives and dragged them back through the tunnel to be put with the others and the marines left behind to watch them, then returned.
They'd decided on the direct approach this time, seeing as they were planning on removing Osiris from office. These people needed to know what he was.
And it would help if that kept the natives from wanting to try to kill them all for kidnapping their god.
They'd brought plenty of forces through the job; by the time all of the teams and other marines had finished sneaking through the passageway and getting out of sight for the moment, there were about thirty of them inside, total. That didn't count SG-1 in custody.
Once all of them that weren't back outside watching their own captives were through, they proceeded to get as close to the village as possible without being seen. It was mid-afternoon, and there was much daily commotion in the village. They weren't seen until they were all in the trees right outside the relative village limits, surrounding it.
Then they chose to be seen. Hailey gave the signal, and the Earth forces burst from the foliage, weapons raised. The villagers dropped what they were doing. The women and children screamed, but didn't seem to know whether to run for their huts or to get away. They just ran in circles. The men went for their weapons, rushing out to meet them, but when the SGC personnel started firing zats and bullets at the ground and into the air, all of the villagers froze at the lightning-like beams and loud pops. A village of fifty or more stared at them.
Colonel Hailey motioned Cassie and Skaara off to the hut they knew prisoners were kept in, to retrieve SG-1. All of her people kept their weapons trained on the villagers. The natives stared back--some angry, some afraid, some just confused. But all silent.
In the quiet, one more figure burst out of one of the largest huts, his eyes flaring orange-white in anger. That would be Osiris, then. He stared them down, but didn't go any farther. He didn't have a weapon.
A moment later, Cassie and Skaara came back out of the other hut with a disgruntled and slightly groggy SG-1. But she noticed that Daniel snapped alert immediately. He looked right at the Goa'uld.
"Surprised to see us?"
Osiris glared. "Why are you here?"
"To kick you off the throne," Mitchell retorted, overcoming the effects of the dart. Funny. Usually things like that knocked people out for longer that an hour or so, as far as she'd heard. But then again, SG-1 was more than experienced in just about any kind of trouble possible.
"He our god!" one man protested in broken English. Daniel had explained that some of them could speak it to some extent.
"If he's such a deity, can he do this?" Hailey shot back, firing her zat at the ground again. All of the natives jerked back simultaneously.
Osiris smirked. "That is only a weapon."
"Osiris can fling you across a field with on flick of his hand!" another villager cried. But they'd been prepared for that one.
Daniel stepped forward more, and raised his voice. "Listen to me! I know some of you can understand. Don't pretend you don't. Listen, and translate for those around you if they can't: Osiris also uses a device to do the things you see him do. It's just a thing, a machine, technology. It's based on science, not magic."
One woman answered. "We know he use hand thing. But if he not god, why rest of us not can use it? He let us try--so we know he god."
"It's something in his blood that allows him to use it; it's not magic. He's not the only one who can do it." He glanced back, and Vala had already pulled a ribbon device out of Hailey's pack and stepped up where he was, slipping it on as she went. All part of the plan, should it be needed. When she had it on, she held it up, letting the villagers see the crystal glow.
Osiris's eyes widened for just a moment, but he quickly composed him and glared again. "I know her--she is another god! She is like me. Her name is Ketesh. Though she should not be helping them; she betrays her station."
Vala smirked. "Sorry. She's been gone a while. I'm Vala. Nice to meet you." He obviously hadn't been expecting that, but he didn't show it much. She spoke to the people. "I'm not a god, either. I was implanted with a parasite--a snake--an alien that stole my body from me and used it for years without my consent. But now I'm just a normal human like you. But I can still use the technology they use. That's what he is. He's not a god; he's been tricking you."
"Liars!" Osiris shouted. Vala, appropriately peeved by this turned on him, aimed the hand device and blew the Goa'uld back a few feet, knocking him over. The villagers gasped and scrambled away from him. Vala seemed satisfied. She sighed and smiled in satisfaction. "Handy little thing, isn't?"
"Lame pun," Travis commented. She shrugged.
Face contorted with rage, Osiris stood up again quickly, but he knew he was helpless, and it showed. "You cannot do this!" he shouted.
Daniel's eyes rolled, and he reached back and grabbed Hailey's extra zat from her belt. Her having it and the hand device--as well as the rest of her team carrying extra weapons to pass over to SG-1 if the ones they'd had when captured couldn't be located--had been carefully thought out. Daniel, however, was only annoyed at the moment.
"You know what? Why don't you shut up," scowled. Then he promptly zatted the Gould, who fell to the ground, unmoving.
The villagers reacted with another jerk, but most of them didn't seem too angry--more scared and confused than anything. Maybe they weren't used to seeing their usually stern, in-control-of-everything 'god' angry and flustered. Hopefully that and what they'd been told were planting doubts.
A few of the men, expectedly, were still ready to jump on the Earth people, but when they burst forward suddenly they were zatted down before anyone was really hurt. Maybe it wasn't the best way to do things, but it was the only way to keep anyone from being seriously injured. That hadn't been the intent. The point was to help these people become independent of the snake again.
Daniel sighed and spoke to the small crowd again. "I know you're confused. But please listen. We're here to help you. If you'll all calm down, and let us explain more, I promise that everything will be all right. Do you understand?" Many nodded. Others seemed to agree, but were turning to translate for other. Then most of those others nodded too, and those that had weapons in their hands dropped them. The real troublemakers were already unconscious. The ones outside with the remaining marines would be brought back in, so everyone else would know that they were fine, too, and so that they could hear the truth as well.
As the marines and other SG-teams spread out into the crowd to give instructions, Mitchell and Teal'c wandered forward to Daniel, Vala, and Hailey. "Well. That went better than I expected."
Hailey looked around. "We're not quite out of the woods yet, but it's a good start."
Daniel rubbed at his head and winced. "Didn't quite expect to be cornered that quickly. Those darts really leave some after effects."
Vala huffed. "No kidding. It's a good thing you're such a good actor," she smirked. He smiled just a little and hugged her.
"You didn't do so bad yourself. Good clincher with actually using it on him."
She returned the embrace for a moment, then pulled back and tugged at the ribbon device. "Thanks. Now help me get this darn thing off, would you?"
It had been almost twenty-four hours since Janet had left the Leska village for the stargate. She'd tried sleeping in a tree that night, after finding a tree with a few low-hanging, wide branches. It had worked--sort of. But she'd fallen out a few times. She was sore, but then again she would have been sore no matter where she'd slept in the middle of the forest. She knew she didn't want to be found and eaten by anything. Maybe another night she would get lucky and find a cave.
She found that she really didn't need the water skin; her route was, after all, mostly by water. But then again, keeping it full did save her time. She didn't have to bend down by the stream to get water every time she needed it. And since she didn't know if she ever would be able to return at all, ever, she was reluctant to part with it. Trinan had probably known that she didn't really needed it, but maybe he'd wanted her to have more to take with her of them. He knew she was sentimental.
Janet swallowed and grabbed the necklace at her chest. It really was a beautiful piece of jewelry; it didn't matter that it was originally fashioned by and intended for a man. Trinan had made it himself, after finding the old arrowhead. The strap was thin leather, but was covered almost completely around with small beads in turquoise, yellow, red, and a few white--again, white dye was rare here. The designs were basic, because he wasn't as skilled in the beaded arts, but it was still beautiful to her. Even if she never saw him again--especially then--she knew it was something she could cherish forever.
Her fists balled and her walk remained steady, but slowed. For several agonizing, insane moments she almost turned and ran all the way back to the village. She didn't even know what home would be like. With dad gone…what was her mother like? Her brothers? But of course, unless they had come back for them later and had somehow heard it from Osiris, they wouldn't know exactly what had happened to either of them. Maybe they thought she was dead, too…
That was what snapped her out of it. She knew she had to get back home. They had to know what had happened. They had to know she was alive.
Janet let go of the necklace, gripped the straps of her bags, and headed on resolutely.
After the situation had been explained in more detail to the people of the village, and those still with doubts had been calmed down, SG-13 stayed with the other teams while SG-1 went back with a few marines to set up a base camp in the clearing by the stargate. They figured it would be better if they kept Osiris farther away in case any secretly still over-zealous villagers got it in their heads to try to break him out.
They didn't want to leave the planet or bring him back to Earth yet until they were sure the villagers were settled again, and they made sure there wasn't anything else they needed to know.
Osiris, however, wasn't happy at all when he woke at the base camp, restrained to a portable gurney and drugged with just enough sedative to make sure he couldn't just break the straps. He was still awake enough to harry them.
"You cannot do this. I demand that you release me immediately!"
"I suggest that you keep it down," Mitchell glared. "We could just kill you, you know." Vala could tell that he'd been struggling not to use should in place of could.
"Release me!"
Vala scowled. "Do you want more sedative?"
Daniel took a step closer. "You've been had, and you know it. You might as well cut the act."
Osiris fumed. "You cannot keep me long. I will escape, and you will be punished."
"I think not," Teal'c responded, eyebrow raised.
The Goa'uld remained silent for a moment, maybe thinking. Something must have donned on him; his face changed. "I have information that you would wish to know."
"Oh really? Like what?" Cam asked sarcastically.
"Release me first."
Vala snorted. "Fat chance. We release you, and you try to kill us all or escape, or both. I don't think so."
"Then you will not know."
Daniel crossed his arms over his chest, taunting. "Fine with me. But it's all over for you, you know. You'll be removed from your host, and this time we won't just let the Tok'ra take you. Maybe we'll stuff you back in that jar you crawled out of thirty years ago. Or…"
Cameron caught on. "Tell us what you know, if there's anything else that you think we might like know, and maybe we can get you a nice tank to live in for the rest of your natural life. Otherwise you'll be taking a dirt nap."
Osiris glared a little more, then looked at Daniel. "It involves your daughter."
Daniel's expression became murderous immediately. "Don't even go there." Vala almost wanted to back away. She'd forgotten that he really could be quite frightening if he wanted to be--when he was very, very angry. She glanced up at Cameron and Teal'c--the only other two in this curtained-off 'room' of the heavy green military-issue tent in the base camp. They seemed a little surprised, too.
"I am certain you will want to know this," The Goa'uld smirked. Daniel gave him a look as if waiting impatiently for an answer. "Release me first."
"We already told you; that's not going to happen." He turned as if to go, as if telling the snake that he was done with this.
"She is alive," Osiris blurted. Vala froze.
Daniel spun back around immediately and slammed a fist down on the edge of the bed, making it shake hard. "I do not need you trying to lie your way out of this, either!" But his face was contorted with pain. He forced it away as much as me could, but they all knew.
The snake sneered. "It is not a lie. I tricked you."
"Shut up!" The other three of them didn't know what to do; they stood frozen. It was between Daniel and Osiris now.
"What I gave her was what you thought it was, but it was not entirely pure. It could not kill. It only mimics death for several minutes--puts the victim in something of a comma for a while. She was never dead."
"I'm not listening to this." Daniel turned and left quickly. Vala motioned to the others to stay, then gathered her wits and followed him. She found him out in the front of the large tent, leaning against one of the poles at the open flap door. He was breathing in and out heavily, eyes closed. She swallowed and wrapped her arms around him. He responded silently, bringing his around to hold her in return.
"He's just trying to mess with us," he sighed after a moment, swallowing.
Vala pulled back a little and looked at him. "But…" Her eyes fell away again. "What if he's not lying?" she whispered.
Daniel gripped her arms and made her look at him. "We can't listen to him. That's what he wants--to get our hopes up and then watch them crash again later. He's lying. There can't be any other explanation. I--I saw what happened."
"But he said that--"
"I don't care what he said!" he cried, letting go of her. "He's lying! Don't pay attention to him. He's a Goa'uld, Vala."
Vala blinked back tears. "But how can we know it's not true! What if it is?"
"It's not!" he grabbed her again, looking desperate now. "Don't you get it? He wants to mess with us! We can't start believing anything different from what we've known for almost a year now. I hate it, but that doesn't change it." Daniel choked. "She's gone, Vala. Nothing can bring her back."
He let go, and started to leave again, but she caught his arm when he turned. "Daniel, wait." He paused, and looked back at her tentatively. "Why?" she pleaded. "Why can't you at least consider it? Don't you want it to be true?" she asked softly.
"More than anything." Daniel turned away and whispered more. "But I can't let myself start hoping. If it's not true…when it probably isn't…" His fists clenched and he stopped, but she understood what he couldn't say. I couldn't deal with that pain. It's easier this way.
She couldn't blame him for that. When he remained silent after that, and walked away, she didn't follow. She didn't know what else to do, but she didn't follow.
Janet had pushed herself for the first couple of days. She'd walked as far into the night as she could without risking hurting herself in the dark. She'd reached the stream junction barely an hour after beginning the third day, instead of at the end of it. Knowing she was ahead of schedule, she relaxed a little to keep from burning herself out, but she wanted to get home. Late the fourth afternoon, she reached the lake and slept near it. Today was the fifth day.
She woke from her perch in a low tree branch--she'd gotten the hang of sleeping like that now--and smiled out at the lake as the early morning sun sparkled off the water. The sun was behind her. She dropped from the tree, settled her bags on her shoulders, and started around the lake away from it. Trinan had said, from the lake, to walk toward the 'setting' sun.
She was chilly, exhausted, sore, and dirty, but Janet felt better that morning than she had all week. She knew she was close. She re-filled her water skin for the last time at the mouth of the stream, and then continued around the lake, eating what little was left of the food her friends had given her. She tried to pace herself, but the excitement wouldn't abate. Soon she broke into a run.
She would be home on Earth today.
After the first day of attempting to question Osiris, Daniel and Vala left it to the rest of SG-1 and the others and went back to the village to help the teams there helping the villagers. They spent several days there, making sure the villagers understood everything that was happening and helping them to reorganize themselves. They had to rule themselves again, with no 'god' to guide them. After almost a week, it seemed that they would be all right. The Earth contingent prepared to pack up camp and return to Earth, and bring Osiris there for the symbiote to be removed. He wasn't talking. There wasn't much point anymore in trying to make him.
Daniel, Vala, Cassie and Skaara, and the other couple of teams left the village for the 'gate clearing where the rest of SGs 1 and 13 were, along with several marines needed there to make sure that Osiris was kept under guard.
They expected to find the base camp calmly packing up, but instead they found chaos. Most everything except the tent Osiris was kept in was taken down and packed, but no one was calm.
"Daniel Jackson!" Teal'c was the first to notice the returning teams, and he pulled Mitchell with him to meet them. They hurried into the camp faster.
"What's going on?" Daniel demanded.
"Osiris has escaped," Teal'c intoned angrily.
"What?!" Vala gasped.
Cameron grimaced. "Apparently he's been faking the effects of the sedatives. They don't work as well as we thought they did. He broke the straps. He planned this."
"Oh, that's just what we need…" Daniel cursed. "Where is he?"
"That's the problem," Cam told them. "He broke through the back of the tent--quietly. He must have run off into the woods. The guards didn't see him. They didn't know he was gone until they looked in to check on him."
"But wouldn't someone else have seen him?" Cassie asked.
Skaara shook his head. "Not for certain. He could have slipped away. Obviously he did. He is not here."
"What are we doing now?" Daniel asked, trying to survey what was happening.
"Looking," Teal'c replied. "If he is not found hiding in camp, we will organize search-and-capture parties.
Daniel sighed heavily and rubbed his forehead. "I guess that's all we can do…" But he knew one thing. He was not leaving this planet until that Goa'uld was subdued.
Janet saw brighter light up ahead, something a little distant, but metallic, through the trees. She'd run out of steam and stopped running an hour ago, but she'd been walking fast. Now she ran again. The stargate! She could see it! But just before she broke out of the trees and foliage, she stopped short and frowned. She looked through the trees, not quite sure was she was seeing. She was too far away. She wanted to run to the 'gate right now--the ring on the far side of long, narrow meadow-- but strange shapes moved near it. A hill half hid them. Sighing, she took fifteen minutes to make her way down the clearing from the side, still in the trees and brush.
Finally, Janet rounded a corner, and could see out of the trees and around the small hill that had been blocking her sight before.
Her breath caught.
It was people--Earth people, she was sure of it. There was even one large military-green tent up. It looked like they were all upset about something, but she didn't care what she interrupted. Maybe they were here looking for her. Or they had met friendlier natives to start trade with. It didn't matter. She could go home.
Janet started to run out of the woods when a small group of people caught her eye, rounding the edge of camp, heading somewhere purposefully. Uncle Cam and Teal'c! Cassie and Skaara! She almost cried. Mom! She was about to call out to them when she saw someone else with them, and she stopped dead in her tracks, right in the middle of the clearing. No one from the Earth camp had seen her yet, though she was barely fifty yards away.
It couldn't be…dad?
She stood frozen in indecision and doubt. Could she be imagining all of this after her long journey? Dad couldn't be there…he was dead--dead for almost a year. Had she even imagined the trip? Could she be back in her bed in the Leska village, waiting to wake to the day of her wedding? Or…had Osiris lied?
And then something grabbed her from behind, and she screamed.
Everyone turned at the sound of the scream from farther down the clearing, including Daniel. What he saw was Osiris fifty yards down the clearing, holding a knife to the throat of a tall, natively-dressed girl. He didn't look closer, and neither did anyone else, just pulled out a weapon and ran down the clearing with Vala and everyone else to help and taking the lead of the Earth people as they pulled up in front of Osiris and more went farther to surround him.
"Put down your weapons or she dies!" Osiris snarled.
That was when Daniel looked at who the Goa'uld had snared, and realized that she was staring right back, just as shocked as he was. That was when his heart stopped, and he felt himself completely detached from the mentality of everyone else surrounding Osiris except for his wife. That was when he heard Vala's sharp intake of breath, and felt himself go dizzy with disbelief. That was when he felt his jaw drop without any help and his throat clog without permission.
That moment was when Daniel saw his daughter being held in the clutches of a bloodthirsty Goa'uld, and discovered to his shock and unmatchable relief that she was not, in fact, dead.
That was when Janet struggled and shouted in fear, and he heard her voice for the first time in nearly a year--a year of thinking she was dead.
"Dad!"