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Chapter 26 – Arbitro Arbeo – To Bear Witness.
Sam decided she must have looked in much worse shape than she realised because it seemed that she had barely set foot on the ramp within the SGC when she was whisked away on a gurney,surrounded by hordes of medical staff and before she knew it she was propped up on pillows with the curtains drawn and her shirt off while Janet inspected her stitches and as gently as possible, removed the drainage tube. Sam answered Janet's questions as best she could, honestly glad to see her friend again. It was difficult though, every now and then her throat would close up and she would be unable speak for several moments. She could tell Janet was getting worried about her.
'You were all declared MIA a week ago. I know they tried to dial the planet several times but something was blocking the connection. I can't wait to tell Cassie you're back. She's been really upset.' Just then, Daniel and Teal'c arrived and Daniel was pulled onto another bed by one of the senior medical staff in order to pump him full of antihistamines and vitamins. Teal'c stood silently between their two beds while a nurse took his temperature. Janet pulled back the curtains around Sam's bed.
The unnatural silence of her colleagues worried her and she searched for something to get them talking. 'Well, the colonel did a great job on you Sam, I'll have to consider hiring him. I take it he's still talking with General Hammond...?' She trailed off at the looks she got from SG1. Sam looked as though she was about to be sick; Daniel gaped at her and Teal'c looked...thoroughly grim. '...What? Guys, what's going on?'
'O'Neill was killed on the planet before we were able to return through the stargate.' The Jaffa's voice sounded rougher than usual. Janet's hand flew to her mouth.
'Oh God, he's dead?' Nobody spoke but Daniel nodded slowly, staring somewhere over her shoulder. Janet's hands shook. Perhaps letting Cassie know of SG1's return would not be the joyful moment she had pictured. She glanced at Sam. Suddenly her friend's almost total silence since her return made sense and looking at the distant expressions on Daniel and Teal'cs faces, she realised that she probably had reason to worry about the psychological well-being of all of SG1, all that was left. 'Uh, Sam, I need you to stay here for now, for observation.' She spoke to the nurse treating Daniel. 'I want full physical exams on all three and prescribe Dr Jackson some immune boosters. I'll be back shortly.' With that she excused herself and within minutes was knocking on the general's office door.
When he called for her to enter she did so to find him sat in his chair with his laptop open but he was clearly not concentrating. His face held the same intense loss she had seen in the faces of Jack's team. She stepped toward his desk. 'Sir, I just heard what happened.' she paused, unsure of how to go on. 'How are you?' He sat back in his chair and sighed.
'To be honest Doctor, I'm struggling to take it in. SG1 have beaten the odds so many times and always made it back in one piece. It's almost difficult to believe that our luck as finally run out.' She nodded. 'How are they?' Janet took a deep breath.
'Well sir, they're all quite weak, but surprisingly healthy...they've obviously taken good care of each other. I haven't been able to conduct a full examination yet but from the looks of them they've been through a lot, particularly Daniel and Sam. Sam's had to have field surgery for an appendicitis. Amazingly, that seems to have gone off mostly without a hitch. She'll take longer to fully recover than if she'd been properly treated but in a few of months she could be back to her old self...physically speaking that is. Daniel will need some carefully regulated meds for a few days but again, he should make a full recovery.' Hammond was staring out into the conference room as she spoke. 'Sir, do we know what happened to them?' The general turned back to face her a carefully controlled look of disgust on his face.
'From what Dr Jackson and Teal'c have told me, they were effectively used as guinea pigs for experimentation.'
'Is that how...is that what happened to Colonel O'Neill?' George shook his head. Janet's look of horror matched how he felt.
'No. Colonel O'Neill was shot while SG1 tried to make it back through the Stargate. According to Dr Jackson, he died very quickly. I'm afraid that so far, I have little more idea than you of the details. Official debriefing is tomorrow morning, provided you think that SG1 will be fit?' He raised his eyebrows in question.
'They should be sir. But they all seem to be in varying degrees of shock. They're all very quiet, but that's not surprising, considering...'
The general shook his head sadly, 'No, ' he said. 'no it's not.'
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After a long and painful debriefing with SG1, General Hammond put the team on indefinite downtime. Daniel was allowed to go home and Teal'c to his quarters. Sam was forced to remain in the infirmary for another 48 hours, after which Janet removed her stitches and put her on medical leave with strict instructions to rest and not lift anything weighing more than a few pounds.
Rather than try to find an airman who could drive her home, Sam headed for her quarters on base and locked the door behind her. She lowered herself onto the covers, her side twinging and lay down, staring at the concrete ceiling. She tried to think; something she had avoided doing so far, until she was somewhere private. What was going to happen? General Hammond would make funeral arrangements. He might ask her to say a few words, but she knew she wouldn't be able to. Daniel would say something moving and appropriate. The president might even be there.
Cassie would be distraught and Sam would hug her and cry too. General Hammond would find a replacement leader for SG1 and they would continue as before, but without Jack.
The thoughts she had kept chained at the back of her mind now broke free, assaulting her with the images her brain had conjured, years ago, when she had finally realised the depths of her feelings for her commanding officer. Her mind had provided her with the images she held onto when things where at their worst, thoughts that had kept her going. Her hopes, which she had known where there but had refused to examine, out of duty. Now there was nothing to hold them at bay: Family Christmases at a cabin in Minnesota; a dog...named Thor; grandchildren that had somehow picked up Jack's cheeky grin before they could even walk. Possibilities that had missed their chance to become reality.
It was strange that with the requirements that were put on them as a result of their jobs; the dangers they faced on a daily basis, she had never fully considered how she would cope if one of the team was killed. With Daniel, it had been agony. She found it almost impossible to continue with her life as though there wasn't something massively wrong with the world, but the colonel had dragged her kicking an screaming to face the reality that she was still needed 'out there.' She had clung to the remaining friendships she had with Jack and Teal'c and somehow, she had coped. She wasn't sure how well that would work this time.
So, when she woke, she forced herself painfully out of bed and went to find Teal'c. She was only half surprised when she knocked and opened to the door to his quarters to find Daniel already there.
'Hey Sam, how did you sleep.'
'Like I hadn't had a good night's sleep in weeks.' she told him. He nodded pulling an extra chair toward her. Sam looked up to thank him and saw the tears in his eyes, so she sat down and took his hand. 'What's happening about a funeral?'
'General Hammond has everything arranged for the day after tomorrow. In the Gateroom.'
After a few minutes of silence Daniel spoke again. 'Is it just me that can't quite accept it? I mean – I saw it happen, but somehow it just feels like he's going to show up at the door any second talking about cake.' Sam snorted. It was the first time she had smiled in days and it almost felt too large for her face. Teal'c smiled too as Daniel shook his head at the bizarre notion.
"Unscheduled offworld activation.'
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The dash to the control room left both Sam and Daniel out of breath. General Hammond was waiting for them. He nodded toward the closed iris.
'The incoming wormhole is from P2k-485. There's no IDC. We've sent a 'hold' signal.'
Daniel stared thoughtfully at the gate and the blue light dancing on the wall behind it. Sam caught Teal'cs eye, knowing the thought that had passed between the three of them, back in his quarters, when the alarm had sounded.
'I doubt it's anything to do with Hyden. The DHD was destroyed. They didn't have the technology to dial the gate without one right Sam?'
'I don't think so.'
'It could be the Arbeons.' General Hammond turned to Teal'c.
'The ones who sent you back?'
'Indeed.'
'Well, why would they be calling here?' He looked back at Daniel who shrugged. 'I'm not going to let them through unless you recommend it.' He told them. Daniel glanced at Sam. She mimicked his shrug.
'I don't think they have any intention of harming us sir. They're pacifists.'
'Very well. Open the iris sergeant.' Walter put his hand to the palm scanner and the iris retracted smoothly. Hammond and the three members of SG1 headed down to the gateroom. As they arrived, the event horizon rippled and a short balding man in a blue uniform appeared on the ramp.
'Roan.' Daniel greeted the man, though his voice held no welcome.
'Dr. Jackson. I'm glad to see you looking healthier.'
'It's good to be...healthier. Um,' he stepped back. 'Roan, this is General Hammond. He's the leader of this facility.' Roan nodded to the general immediately spoke again to Daniel.
'I am here in the hopes that our species may in the future have better relations than when you left our planet.' He held up a hand before Daniel could speak. 'I know that you may consider our ways cowardly but we respect you and the work you do...and there is information we may be able to offer you in the future that you can use in your fight against the goa'uld.'
'What kind of information?' The General stood moved to stand beside Daniel at the base of the ramp.
'Scientific information. Some understanding of our...abilities would, I'm sure, prove useful in scientific advancements that you could use in protection of this, and other planets from the threat the goa'uld pose. If I am honest, we know little of the rest of the galaxy but that does not mean that we are uncaring.'
'We...appreciate the offer. I will not be able to make a decision immediately. We will have to consider it carefully.' Roan looked confused.
'What is to consider? We are offering you knowledge, which may turn the tide of the war you are fighting and we ask for nothing in return.'
Daniel tried to explain. 'Roan, we consider any trade or alliance very carefully. We have to be sure that the offer is being made for the right reasons. We can't just accept without fully understanding what it entails, although, believe me there are some politicians who would be happy for us to do just that.' Roan was nodding as he spoke.
'Of course, I understand. Also, I wanted to apologise for any part we may have had to play in what happened to you on our planet. We may also have made some assumptions about your wishes regarding Colonel O'Neill's body. As a gesture of good will, we reformed his body as it was.' Roan raised his arm and pulled back his sleeve to reveal a wrist device identical to the ones worn by Alnair and the other Arbeon soldiers. He pressed a button and the event horizon which had remained active behind Roan rippled again to reveal Jack O'Neill's body, laying serenely on a stretcher of sorts, which moved smoothly through the air, a full yard off the ground until it came to a stop and dropped slowly to rest at the bottom of the ramp.
It seemed that nobody in the room was breathing. All eyes stayed riveted on their fallen colleague. His wounds were gone and uniform was untarnished. He lay still, hands resting on his stomach.
Daniel could not speak. Just as he had not been prepared for Jack's death, he now found himself not unprepared to see his friend's lifeless body so close at hand. Without thinking, he climbed the first step at the foot of the ramp and laid a hand on Jack's chest. He was cold and his stillness seemed somehow to make the whole thing even more unnatural.
'Ten Hut!' He jumped and looked round. The airmen lining the wall of the gate room had lowered their weapons at their feet and now stood straight, in a crisp salute. He glanced up to see the officers in the control room had done likewise.
For the first time, it felt real, seeing the soldiers saluting their colleague and seeing Teal'c and Sam's barely constrained grief.
'I hope that in time, relations between our people will be good. I wish that there was more that we could do to help in the future. Over the past few weeks, I have witnessed your collective strength. Colonel O'Neill fought to prevent any of you coming to harm.' Roan's lips twitched in a half smile. 'I came to understand that even his apparent bad temper was simply a result of the fear he felt for all of your safety. He showed incredible courage and strength. All of you surprised me by your willingness to sacrifice your own safety for the well-being of your team and I was impressed.' he told them sincerely, his gaze taking in the whole gateroom and the control room above. 'However, we are bound by our obligation to protect our planet and to uphold nature. Alnair was right. In all things, there must be balance and so I wish you goodbye. Arbitro Arbeo.' He smiled and turned to walk back up the ramp. Hammond looked quizzically at Daniel, who was staring at the little man's back. He repeated Roan's parting words under his breath.
'Arbitro Arbeo. ' To bear witness and to change.'Wait!' Daniel started forward onto the foot of the ramp but stopped dead as Roan erupted into white flame where he stood, framed by the gate; his face turned upward. Daniel heard Sam gasp and the sounds of several weapons engaging around the room. 'Don't!' he told them, throwing his arms out for the SFs to stand down. The fire burned for only a few seconds before dying quickly, leaving a small amount of ash scattered over the grille of the ramp.
Daniel turned back to face the others, eyes wide. General Hammond and Teal'c stared back at him with identical expressions of shock. Sam seemed unable to tear her eyes away from the spot where Roan had burned; her face white. Unable to explain what had just happened Daniel shook his head, giving a helpless half shrug. He tugged off his glasses to rub his eyes when Teal'c seized him around the middle and hauled him back away from the ramp, his feet never touching the floor. 'What!?' Spinning around, he saw what. 'No.'
They watched, horror-struck as Jack coughed violently, his hand lifting to clutch at his chest before drawing a wrenching breath and bolting upright so fast he nearly fell of the ramp.
'Ow god!' He coughed again, rubbing the spot on his chest where there had been nothing but jagged ribs and his pulse failing against Sam's palm. 'I thought I got hit!' He looked up at his team, forcing air back into his lungs, and took in the terror on their faces. 'What?'
AN I missed Jack D Roan rules! (and you all thought he was an evil slimy bastard (evil author laugh)) got quite fluffy in the middle there huh?One more chapter and maybe an epilogue. R and R please
prometheus246