The Mercy of Mot
Chapter 3
Late afternoon found Daniel finishing his translation on the second stele. He set his notebook on the ground and picked up his water bottle, enjoying the coolness of the water on his parched throat. The afternoon was a hot one, and most of the people working in the ruins were either taking a break or working in the shade.
Glancing around for Sam, Daniel spotted her sitting on the steps of the stargate dais drinking her water. Anger briefly flared again, but quickly dissipated. He couldn't stay mad at her. He knew she was waiting for an opportunity to try and talk him out of leaving the SGC, but he really was glad to be able to spend some time with her before she went back to Earth. He could feel his resolve weakening as he thought about how much she had become like a sister. He really needed to stay strong if he was going to resist whatever argument she came up with. He knew in the long run he was doing the right thing.
Daniel watched as Hiram stopped to say something to her. Suddenly, he saw Hiram drop his own water and grab at his chest. At the same time, Sam leaped up and grabbed for him as he toppled towards the ground. As Sam eased him down, Daniel saw the arrow sticking out of his chest.
Sam reached for her sidearm as shouts began sounding from different areas of the ruins. Daniel saw some of the workers running for cover, an arrow striking one as they ran. He ducked behind the narrow cover of the stele, reaching for his own sidearm, only to discover he didn't have it—it still lay with his pack in his tent.
Searching the ruins he began to see glimpses of their attackers—men in simple tunics and leggings, some carrying spears and some carrying bows. He glanced towards Sam again and saw her take aim at one of the invaders. So focused was she on her target that she failed to see another attacker approaching from behind.
"Sam!" he shouted, leaning around the stele so she could see and hear him. "Behind you!"
She fired on her first target and Daniel could see she would be too late to hit the second. Wracking his brain for the right word, he yelled, "Stop!" in Phoenician, hoping his guess was right and they would understand him.
The man behind Sam came to an abrupt halt and looked in Daniel's direction. A third man standing a few feet to Sam's left also turned towards Daniel's voice. Sam used their brief confusion to turn and aim her gun at the man behind her. But she was too late as he had already raised the blunt end of his spear and he brought it down on her head before she could fire.
"Sam!" he shouted again, leaving the relative safety of the stele to face the attackers. Raising his hands to show he carried no weapon, he tried another word, "Friends," he said in Phoenician.
The third man seemed to consider what he'd said, holding up his hand to stop the second man from advancing.
Yes, he thought, maybe they'll listen to me. The thought was followed by a stabbing pain that erupted high on his left chest, knocking him backwards into the dirt.
He struggled to catch his breath as he lay on his back looking upward. The intense pain brought tears to his eyes and he could feel something warm trickling down his side. He risked tilting his head to look down at himself and saw the shaft of an arrow sticking out of his chest, just below his left collarbone.
A shadow passed over him and he looked up to see that Sam's attacker was standing over him, his spear aimed at Daniel's throat.
Daniel said the only thing he could think of. "I call upon the mercy of Mot."
Suddenly, the third man was also standing over him, reaching across to block the man with the spear. Daniel's vision began to gray out and it occurred to him that he was going to die not knowing if Sam had survived. Another person I couldn't save.
~oOo~
A stab of pain thrust him back to consciousness. He felt hands pressing his arms and legs into the dirt, holding him in place. He tried to pry himself free, moaning as the movement sent spikes of pain through his chest. He struggled to open his eyes but managed only a slit. He saw the third man standing over him, giving directions to those holding him down. He was older than Sam's attacker and appeared to hold more authority.
The man spoke to Daniel, and he tried to process the words. The man placed one hand on Daniel's chest and with the other, took hold of the arrow. He didn't need to translate to understand what was coming next.
"Wait—" he began weakly, but the word transformed into a scream as the arrow was pulled from his body, and he fell into darkness again.
He drifted back to awareness once again to find himself lying on a blanket in the shade of the ruins. Moving cautiously, he found his left arm was bound tightly to his chest, which had been wrapped with strips of cloth, his t-shirt pulled partially over it.
Sam.
He tried to sit up, wincing as he jarred his shoulder, reawakening the pain. He laid his head down again, panting through the pain, and searched for her from his prone position. He spotted one of the people who had attacked them bent over something against another wall. A woman was sitting next to whatever it was. As the man straightened and moved away, Daniel saw that the object was Sam.
"Sam," he croaked. Was she alive or dead? The fear of losing her tightened his chest and he began to wonder how he could have ever thought of leaving his friends. Attempting to clear his throat, he tried again, without much improvement. "Sam."
Seeing he was awake, the woman left Sam's side and knelt next to Daniel, holding up an animal skin pouch.
"Water," she said in Phoenician.
He nodded his understanding and she put one hand behind his head to help him raise it, tipping the skin with the other. He savored the wetness as it eased his dry throat.
"Thank you," he said in her language.
She gave him a small smile, and gently eased his head back down. "Rest."
"My friend," he said glancing towards Sam "is she all right?"
"She is recovering." With that, the woman moved away to speak to the man who continued to stand guard over them with his spear.
Recovering. He felt relief wash over him. Not dead. But she wasn't awake, either, and he wondered how badly she was injured. He hoped the woman was right and that she was going to recover. But he had another problem, and that was: who were these people and why had they attacked? He really needed to speak with whoever was in charge and sort this out.
He felt his eyes trying to close and fought it, but finally he succumbed again to sleep.
~oOo~
Arguing voices pulled him out of sleep and he woke to find man number two and man number three standing next to him, deep in a heated discussion.
"They have defiled the sacred place—they must die!" said number two, pointing from Daniel to Sam.
"But he called upon the mercy of Mot—it cannot be ignored. They must be judged by Eshmun. He will decide their fate," number three countered.
Their conversation halted abruptly when they noticed Daniel was awake.
Number two moved swiftly to where Daniel lay and grabbed hold of the neck of his t-shirt, pulling him into a sitting position. Daniel gasped as his injured shoulder was jostled.
"Who are you and why do you defile our sacred ground?" Number two hissed, his face inches from Daniel's.
"Enough, Melqart," the other man said, placing a hand on the arm holding Daniel upright. "There will be time for questions later. We must complete the ritual and prepare to leave."
Melqart gave a grunt of disapproval, giving Daniel a shove as he released the hold on his t-shirt.
Daniel hit the ground again, grabbing his left arm and groaning as the pain flared.
Melqart followed the older man as he headed towards the stargate where the entire group of newcomers was gathering.
Realizing they were alone, Daniel slowly pulled himself into a sitting position, breathing hard as he cautiously checked around him to see if anyone was watching. Hoping to stay un-noticed, he tried to stay low to the ground. He got to his knees and, using his free arm, he began moving towards Sam, trying not to cry out as he jarred his injured shoulder. Reaching her side, he began feeling for any injuries. Finding no broken bones or other injuries on her body, he moved to her head. His fingers quickly found the large knot on the back of her head, due, no doubt, to being hit with Melqart's spear. She moaned as he moved his fingers over the lump.
"Sam?" he whispered.
She didn't open her eyes or make any other movement, so he tried again.
"Sam, it's Daniel. Can you wake up?"
He was rewarded with a flutter of eyelashes and then a slit of blue looked in his direction.
"Daniel?" He barely heard her say his name.
"Yeah, it's me. Just lie still, you have a head injury."
"No kidding." The blue disappeared as the eyes closed again.
"Stay with me, Sam. You shouldn't sleep with a head injury."
"I'm awake," she replied, partially opening her eyes. "What happened?"
"We were attacked—you were hit on the head. Do you remember anything at all?"
It took a few seconds for Sam to reply as she appeared to consider Daniel's question. "We were on P9 . . . P9X . . ." She looked at Daniel for help.
"P9X-030. That's right." His concern hitched up a notch at Sam's inability to remember the planet designation. "Anything else?"
"Sorry . . . can't think clearly, and I really don't feel so good."
Daniel saw her go a shade paler and quickly helped her roll onto her side, where she promptly threw up.
She moaned as she rolled onto her back again. He wished the woman with the water would come back, but as it was, he had nothing to give her.
Sounds of chanting pulled his attention back to the gate where the attackers had gathered. Daniel counted about a dozen men and three women. The older man lifted something above his head, then lowered it. The chanting continued as the crowd stepped back, surrounding the steps of the gate, just out of danger zone. The older man stepped up to the DHD and began punching the glyphs.
"Sam, they're dialing the gate!"
"What?" She took hold of Daniel's arm to steady herself, causing the pain to flare in his chest again.
Daniel and Sam watched as the man pressed the center crystal, the blue splash of the wormhole springing outward then settling back into a rippling pool. The chanting stopped and the older man stepped forward, said words that Daniel couldn't quite hear, then tossed the object he held into the event horizon. One of the other men approached and handed him another object. He held out the second object, recited the words again, and tossed it in also. It was all repeated a third time and a fourth time, followed by the crowd bowing their heads until the wormhole winked out.
"What do you suppose they threw through the gate? And to where?" Daniel said.
"Who are these people?" Sam asked.
Daniel turned to her and could see her eyes looked glazed. She continued to grasp his arm, her body listing towards his.
Just as he was about to help her lie back down, a familiar voice rang in his ears.
"Get up, you vile scum!" Melqart was bearing down on them and before Daniel could move, he was grabbed by his good arm and dragged to his feet. He was wrenched out of Sam's grasp and she slumped forward. Another man approached Sam and grabbed her hands. Pulling them together, he began tying them with rope.
"Hey—that's not necessary," Daniel began, "She's not a threat to—"
His words were cut off as Melqart took Daniel's good arm and pulled it painfully up behind his back. Daniel gasped as both sides of his body protested.
"You will not speak. We are leaving and Philo has decreed you are to come with us. If it were up to me, you would already be dead."
Philo must be the older man who was apparently their leader. Maybe he would be willing to listen. These people used the gate; he didn't know to what extent, but maybe they would understand about visitors coming through it. "I need to speak with Philo. This has all been a misunderstanding—"
His arm was pulled even tighter and Daniel was sure it was going to snap. It sent him to his knees, gasping in pain, but Melqart followed him down, never releasing his hold.
"I said do not speak! I will cut out your tongue if that is what it will take to silence you. I may not be allowed to kill you—Eshmun will decide that—but I can make you wish for death."
Melqart released his arm and Daniel fell forward onto the ground, every movement causing his shoulder and chest more pain. And now the pain in his right arm was rivaling that of his left.
"Now, get up—we are leaving. See that your friend does not fall behind."
Daniel wondered how they expected Sam to be able to make the trek to wherever they were going, but he wisely held his tongue. He struggled to his feet and moved to Sam's side. The man who had tied her hands pulled her to her feet where she swayed. Daniel moved so he could put his right arm around her waist, grimacing as it protested being stretched again. They evidently thought he wouldn't be much of a threat with one arm bound to his body and the other one hanging on to Sam. They were right.
"Adon," Melqart called, motioning to a young man Daniel hadn't seen approach, "you are to watch them closely. If they try to escape, you may shoot them again."
Daniel saw the young man—he could only be thirteen or fourteen—smile in appreciation. "Thank you, Father. I would gladly put another arrow in this one," he said pointing to Daniel.
This young man—child—had been the one to shoot him? And apparently he had no qualms about doing it again.
"And he will not miss," Melqart boasted, placing his arm on the boy's shoulders. "He has already proven himself to be an excellent marksman."
Adon smiled, reveling in his father's praise.
"Now it is time to move. Adon, Cadmos will assist you. Keep them moving."
"Yes, Father." He turned to Daniel. "Go—I will be right behind you," he said, pointing with the tip of his bow. Daniel noticed he had a full quiver of arrows slung across his back.
"Lean on me, Sam," Daniel offered as he started moving them forward, Adon and Cadmos close on their heels.
Sam took a couple of wavering steps before finally getting into a steady stride. She glanced at him once, then put her head down again. He knew she must have a killer headache.
For the first time since the attack, Daniel searched his surroundings for other members of the archaeological team. He saw four of them—two men and two women—hands tied, being pushed forward by two of their attackers. Fortunately, they all appeared to be in good health. As they moved past the walls of the ruins heading towards the forest, Daniel saw the bodies of two more—one of them Hiram. Images of Hiram and Dido kissing at lunch the day before flashed through his mind and he felt a pang of sympathy for the young woman. Another couple that would never see their future fulfilled. His own pain flared again and he looked away. At least that meant that there were four still unaccounted for. Hopefully, they had gotten away and were hiding. If so, they would be able to contact Jack and Teal'c's group with the radio. He hoped it wouldn't take their teammates too long to get back here. Then they would just have to track them to wherever they were going. And Daniel had no idea where that was.
TBC