The Mercy of Mot
Chapter 8
In the grey of pre-dawn, Sam watched the camp prepare to begin their march once again. She had been given a piece of bread and some water, and Yara had brought Daniel another drink of the foul-tasting stuff he'd had the day before. He had been grateful for a piece of bread and drink of water to rid his mouth of the taste.
Sam had hoped Yara would clean and treat Daniel's wound again, but apparently that wasn't going to happen. She could tell he still had a fever and she was worried about the infection. At least he had seemed a little more alert this morning.
She was allowed to tend to personal needs, and when she came back, Melqart was kneeling next to Daniel. They were conversing, but Sam didn't understand any of it.
"Where do your people come from, Daniel?"
"It is a place very far away." He was afraid to tell him they had come through the gate—he wasn't sure how Melqart would take the news that they came through an object that was obviously sacred to them.
"Why were you in the sacred city?"
"We didn't know it was sacred. We study the past and just wanted to find out who had lived there and what they were like. Did your people once live in the sacred city?"
"Our stories tell us that our ancestors once lived there, but they abandoned the city and moved into the forests."
"Do you know why they left?" Daniel's curiosity was piqued.
Melqart looked around uncomfortably. "That story may be written in our sacred texts, but I do not know it."
Daniel wasn't sure if he was getting the whole truth, but decided not to press the matter.
Melqart changed the subject. "Why are you the only one who speaks our language?"
"That is my job—to communicate with people that we meet. I have learned many languages in my travels."
At that moment Philo signaled for the group to move out. Two men came and picked up Daniel's litter. Sam stayed close to his side and Adon and Cadmos stayed close to both of them.
"We will speak more later, Daniel," Melqart promised, turning to go.
"Wait," Daniel called. "Just one more thing."
Seeing he had Melqart's attention, he continued. "Who is Eshmun, and what can we expect when we meet him?"
"He is the head of the council. Since you called upon the mercy of Mot, he will hear your plea and decide what is to be done about the defilement of our sacred city."
"Oh." That's what he had been afraid of.
"Do not worry. He will be fair," Melqart said confidently before turning and walking away.
He who calls upon the mercy of Mot shall be heard, and they will be judged justly.
Daniel only had one worry: what did a goa'uld consider just?
~oOo~
The worry that was gnawing at Jack's gut went up a notch when he saw two men pick up the litter Daniel was lying on and start carrying him. Daniel must be hurt pretty bad if he wasn't walking, and he hadn't missed the fact that Carter was hanging on to the litter. Jack hated that all he could do was follow and watch. And they were moving further from the gate with each step.
SG-3 and 5 were pushing themselves to close the gap, but they were still at least an hour and half behind them. Jack was concerned that they'd reach the group's destination before the other teams could catch up. The last thing they needed was for the group to meet up with more natives. If they did, they would lose their chance to overpower the relatively small group. They were going to have to make their move soon.
He glanced over at his Jaffa friend and saw the same concern etched in his features. However, Teal'c's attention was focused on something over Jack's shoulder. He turned, following Teal'c's line of sight, and, after searching a couple of seconds, he located what held the Jaffa's attention. In the distance he could see the faint curl of smoke rising and beyond that a thin, blue line that was probably a lake or sea. Dollars to donuts, that was their destination, and they'd be there within a few hours.
Time to make our move.
~oOo~
Sam sniffed the air, realizing that she could detect something different—it smelled like the ocean; they must be getting close to a large body of water. Surely that meant the end of their trek.
She glanced down at Daniel who was sleeping again. He had drifted off as soon as the caravan started moving. She reached over with her bound hands until they came in contact with his cheek. The fever had obviously not released its hold on him—he was hot. She could also see red streaks snaking out from beneath the bandages around his chest. Either Yara's medicine wasn't working, or the infection was too severe. Or maybe it was just going to take more time. Sam sighed, wishing Janet were here—she would surely have something to tame the infection.
Looking around, Sam considered the reality of their situation. They were two days from the gate, she had no idea if the colonel and Teal'c even knew of their plight, much less if they were on their way to rescue them, and she and Daniel were in no position to try and escape. Choiceless. She hated having no control over their situation, but all she could do was continue to walk next to Daniel and face whatever was to come by his side.
~oOo~
Jack and Teal'c had been following the group that held their teammates for close to an hour. All the while, Jack had been contemplating how to get them back with minimal loss of life. He had spotted the other archaeologists who were also tied and kept in pairs—one set towards the front of the group and another in the middle. Carter and Daniel were towards the back, which was fine with Jack. It would be much easier to grab them. Of course, Daniel would give him hell if he left the other people as prisoners, but he just couldn't see how he was going to get all of them out of there.
Just then he noticed Daniel, Carter, and their escorts all coming to a stop. He tensed, glancing at Teal'c who gave him a small head bow to let him know they were on the same page. This might be the opportunity they;d been waiting for. Besides Carter and Daniel, there were two men carrying Daniel's litter, a young boy with his arm in a sling, another young man walking beside Carter, and a young woman.
Daniel's litter was placed on the ground and the young woman knelt next to it, holding some kind of pouch. Carter helped Daniel sit up and then the woman tilted the pouch—obviously a water skin—while Daniel drank.
The two men who had been carrying the litter walked off towards the trees, apparently taking care of personal needs. The rest of the group was pulling ahead and making their way down an incline towards a small stream.
This was it—the break they'd been waiting for.
~oOo~
Continuing to support Daniel as Yara helped him drink, Sam couldn't help but notice his skin was hot even as his body was shivering. She knew it meant his fever was spiking again, and that couldn't be good. She gave Yara a questioning look and received a tense smile in return. Not what she wanted to see—the other woman was obviously worried, too.
Sam was glad, however, to get a break, even a brief one. Her headache had begun to escalate, and the dizziness was returning. When Daniel finished the water, she helped him lie down again. She gladly accepted the water skin from Yara and took a long drink before handing it back to her.
And that's when she heard it. A soft, low, whistle, almost indistinguishable from the other bird calls floating through the forest. But she was familiar with this one—the colonel had used this signal before. She glanced at Daniel, but he had his eyes closed again and didn't seem to have heard it. She only had seconds to prepare herself before the sounds of zats firing rang through the air.
She dropped as low as possible and scooted over next to Daniel, wondering how the hell she was going to get him moving.
"Daniel—let's go!" She pulled him into a sitting position and he looked at her with bleary eyes.
"Sam?"
"Time to go, Daniel. Come on," she continued, trying to pull him towards the trees.
She scanned her surroundings, noting where each of their captors were. The zats had taken down Daniel's litter carriers but Adon and Cadmos were taking defensive stances with their own weapons. Yara had flattened herself to the ground, eyes frantically looking around to see who was attacking them.
Jack and Teal'c suddenly appeared from behind some trees, weapons trained on Adon and Cadmos.
"Drop it!" Jack yelled, aiming his MP5 at Adon.
Teal'c had his staff weapon in one hand; in the other was a zat, pointed at Cadmos who had lifted his bow. The man attempted to reach for an arrow, but Teal'c was quicker, bringing him down with another zat blast.
"Carter, get Daniel out of there!"
"Trying, sir." She awkwardly pulled him up with her bound hands, steadying him as he swayed. She knew any minute the rest of the group would descend on them and their chance to get away would be gone.
Too late. Melqart and another man were the first to reach them, weapons ready. Melqart looked at each of the men lying motionless on the ground and the anger and loathing they had seen in him earlier returned.
Before he could move against them, Jack swiftly moved to Yara, aiming his zat at her prone body.
"Get back!" he shouted, holding his zat on her with one hand and using his other to point his MP5 at Melqart.
"Stop!" a weak voice broke the standoff. "Stop!" Daniel repeated again in Phoenician.
"Daniel, we're getting out of here now!" Jack ordered.
"Wait—don't hurt them. We've come to an understanding. And besides, we can't leave without the others."
"An understanding?" Jack shouted. "What I understand is that you've been shot and Carter's tied up. I'm sorry about the others, but my responsibility is to you and Carter. Now move!"
"No." Daniel continued to lean into Sam, allowing her to keep him upright.
Melqart moved as though he were going to throw his spear, but Daniel's words stopped him.
"Melqart—stop! My friends just want to get us back. I've asked them not to hurt you."
"But they have already killed three of our people!" he spat.
"No! No—they're not dead, just unconscious—uh, sleeping. They'll wake up soon and be just fine. Please, trust me."
Melqart looked at Daniel skeptically, and then at Jack and Teal'c before returning his gaze to the men on the ground. At that moment, one of them moaned and turned his head.
Melqart turned back to Daniel. "They are truly unharmed?"
"Yes, they will be fine. Please give me a chance to talk to my friends."
"Very well," Melqart replied, keeping his weapon aimed.
Just then, more of the group joined Melqart with weapons raised.
"Stop!" Melqart commanded them, raising his hands to bring them to a halt. "Their friends have come searching for them. Daniel Jackson wishes time to talk to them."
The group looked uneasy, but relaxed their stances.
"Daniel, what's goin' on?" Jack demanded.
"It's a long story. But first, let Yara go—you're scaring her and I owe her my life—so does Sam." Seeing Jack didn't look convinced, he added, "These people aren't going to attack us unless you provoke them. I've asked them to let me talk to you."
Jack looked at Daniel, taking in his flushed skin, the cloths wrapped around his shoulder, and the way he leaned heavily on Carter. Carter looked about ready to collapse herself and Jack wanted nothing more than to get the two of them into Fraiser's hands. But he knew Daniel wouldn't settle for anything less than getting all of them out of there. It wasn't that Jack didn't care about the archaeologists; he just cared about his teammates more. Doing it Daniel's way would mean trusting Daniel to talk their way out of the situation. And right now, the man didn't look like he could talk his way out of a paper bag.
Scanning the group, Jack noticed there was no sign of the other captives or the rest of the group of natives they had seen earlier. Obviously, they were guarding the archaeologists at a distance, either to bargain with them or possibly kill them.
So what were his choices? Get his two teammates out by taking on the entire group now facing them, or give Daniel a chance to convince these people to let all of them go? Both were risky, but if there was a chance to get the others back along with his teammates, he knew he'd have to take it. And there was one other thing to consider: if Jack denied Daniel the chance to find a diplomatic way out of the situation, how would that affect his decision to leave the SGC? Jack knew the answer to that—it wouldn't be good.
"Fine. Tell them to lower their weapons and we'll do the same."
Daniel spoke to Melqart and soon everyone had lowered their weapons. Yara got up and moved closer to Melqart, as did Adon.
"All right, Daniel, tell me what's goin' on. Who are these people and where were they taking you?"
"Sam," Daniel whispered as he began to sink to the ground.
She tried to ease his descent but was hindered by her bound hands. Jack and Melqart moved simultaneously to Daniel's side, taking over for Sam.
When Daniel was safely sitting on the ground, Jack and Melqart released their holds, eyeing each other warily as they took seats on either side of him.
Sitting with his head down, Daniel's right hand cradled his left arm close to his body. His skin was still flushed and Jack wondered for a moment if he had passed out.
Daniel lifted his head and took a deep breath. "These people are descendants of the Phoenicians. They hold the ruins of the city as sacred and consider our trespassing there as a desecration. They are taking us to see someone named Eshmun who will decide what to do about it."
"What's this 'understanding' you have with them?"
Daniel closed his eyes and lowered his head again. His reply was almost a whisper. "This is Melqart," he said, nodding to the man next to him. "I, uh, sort of saved his son from a . . . a cat. He's on our side, now. I think . . . I think he'll support us when we face Eshhh . . . munn." He trailed off as he began to list sideways. Jack grabbed him and eased him down, trying to make him as comfortable as possible. Checking for and finding a steady pulse, Jack was satisfied that his friend had merely passed out.
Jack looked at Sam. "A cat?"
"It was something like a cougar, sir. It attacked Adon," she explained, indicating the young man standing behind his father, "and Daniel used a branch to knock it off of him. Apparently, it then attacked Daniel and Adon shot it."
"Sounds like you've had a busy couple of days, Major. So what do you think? Are these people going to back us or turn on us when they get the chance?"
"These people were very angry at the beginning, sir, but once Daniel saved Adon, they seem to have had a change of heart. This woman, Yara, has been extremely kind to both of us. She's the one that's been treating Daniel's wound."
"Who is this Eshmun guy? And why are they taking you to see him? Why didn't they kill you like the other two archaeologists we found in the ruins?"
"Daniel told me that when they attacked us in the ruins, he called on the mercy of their god, Mot. I think that's what saved us, sir."
"Mot was an enemy of Ba'al," Teal'c interjected. "Ba'al defeated him in battle and he was killed. That was many years ago."
Sam continued. "Daniel translated some of the writing that said 'He who calls upon the mercy of Mot shall be heard and they will be judged justly.' I think by saying that, these people are obligated to give him a fair hearing, and apparently Eshmun is the judge."
"Well, that's fine and dandy, Carter, but what if this Eshmun isn't as forgiving as the rest of these folks? What's the penalty for trespassing?"
"I . . . I don't know, sir. I don't think Daniel knows."
Of course not. "Do you think he can convince them it's in their best interest to let everyone go?"
"Well, I think these people wouldn't be too hard to convince, but it's not up to them—it's up to Eshmun."
That's what Jack was afraid of. He really needed Daniel to wake up and talk to these people. He tapped his friend's cheek. "Daniel."
A couple of seconds went by and he tried again. "C'mon, Daniel, rise and shine." No response.
"I think it's time Fraiser joined the party."
"Janet's here?"
"She and SG-3 and 5 should be here in a few minutes. I requested radio silence, but obviously that's not necessary any more. Can you figure out some way to let them know we're going to have a couple of visitors? I'm going to request Fraiser and Reynolds join us and have the rest stand by at a distance."
"I'll try, sir."
Sam proceeded to pantomime to Yara and Melqart that someone was going to come and take care of Daniel. They seemed surprised at the news that others were nearby, but seemed to understand and consented. Jack radioed the other teams and relayed his plan. The radio startled those standing around, but they didn't make any aggressive moves.
A short time later Fraiser and Reynolds appeared through the trees, walking slowly with hands in front of them, palms turned out, to show they weren't aiming any weapons. The natives tensed, holding their weapons tightly, but not raising them, either.
Fraiser quickly walked to Daniel's side and knelt down. She looked Sam over, taking in her exhausted appearance and bound hands. She would be next on the list, but Daniel needed her attention first.
"What's the situation, Colonel?"
"I'll let Carter fill you in."
"He was shot with an arrow, Janet. This woman, Yara, cleaned it and put some kind of paste on it, but I think it's infected."
Yara moved closer and knelt down opposite Janet. She gestured to the cloths around the wound and Janet nodded her head. She could see the red streaks radiating from under the bandage—not a good sign. Yara began slowly unwinding the cloth, gently moving Daniel as needed to reach the back. Janet helped lift him and soon the cloths were off. Janet took hold of the square of cloth covering the wound and pulled it off, revealing the badly infected wound.
"Whoa!" Jack exclaimed at the sight.
Yara handed Janet another piece of cloth and indicated she should use it to clean the wound.
"No, thanks. I have my own," Janet smiled as she handed the cloth back. She dug in her pack and pulled out her supplies. Yara watched closely as Janet cleaned the wound and began to apply an ointment. Daniel had lain quietly until the ointment touched the wound, then he began to roll his head back and forth, moaning, and finally his eyes flew open.
Janet gently placed her hand on his good shoulder and spoke softly. "Daniel, take it easy. It's Janet—I'm just treating your wound."
"Janet?" Was he in the infirmary? Didn't feel like an infirmary bed; didn't sound like the infirmary, either. He glanced around and saw Jack and Teal'c, then Sam and Colonel Reynolds. Turning the other way he saw Yara, with Melqart and Adon behind her. He remembered where he was then and wondered when Janet and Reynolds had shown up. He also remembered that they had been in the middle of a standoff. What had happened while he was out?
"Jack, what's going on?"
"Just waiting for you to wake up from your little nap, Danny boy. Let Janet finish fixin' you up and then we need to talk."
"'Kay," he replied, looking at Janet.
"I'm going to put some more ointment on the wound and then bandage it, okay?"
"'Kay," he said again. The one-word answers were starting to bug Jack. Since when did Daniel give a one-word answer to anything?
Janet turned to Jack. "Sir, you might want to be ready to help," she said with a slight nod of her head towards Daniel.
"Oh, right." Jack moved closer and placed his hand back on Daniel's shoulder.
Janet began to apply more ointment, but at the first touch Daniel cried out and tried to move away.
"No you don't," Jack insisted, pressing down on his good shoulder with one hand and placing his other on his friend's cheek. "Hang in there, Daniel, she's almost done."
Daniel squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath. Jack nodded to Fraiser to finish. She quickly applied the last of the ointment while Daniel clenched his jaw and breathed faster. When she was done she bandaged the wound and then wrapped clean cloth around his chest and shoulder.
"All done, Daniel."
Daniel kept his eyes shut while his breathing began to return to normal.
"Can you take these pills?" Janet asked.
Jack helped him sit up while Janet mimed drinking to Yara. The woman quickly got up and retrieved the water skin. Janet placed the pills in Daniel's mouth and Yara helped him drink.
"Thanks, Janet," Daniel said when it was all over.
"You're welcome. Now, we need to get you home as soon as possible."
"Did you take care of Sam? She got hit on the head—might have a concussion."
Janet looked at Sam. "She's my next patient, Daniel. Don't worry, I'll take care of her."
"Daniel, I know you're not feeling so hot right now, but we need to talk to these people about letting you and Carter go home. Think you can do that?"
"Elissa and Hanno. Lilith and Thales."
"What?"
"The other prisoners, Jack. We have to try and get them to release all of us."
Jack sighed. "All right, Daniel. Now, can you talk to them?"
"I'll try."
Daniel called to Melqart and, seeing Philo standing in the group, he asked him to join them. He explained that their people had come to bring them home and that they would like to be friends, but first they must free them. Philo insisted that their laws must be followed and they must face Eshmun. They had no quarrel with the new arrivals, only with those they had found in the ruins. He said Jack and the others were free to leave or follow, but Daniel, Sam, and the others must plead their case to Eshmun. Daniel decided it would be wise to avoided telling them their friends had also been in the ruins.
Daniel knew Jack wasn't going to like it, but they were going to have to go before Eshmun to get the situation straightened out. He hoped Jack wouldn't decide to fight their way out—he didn't want to see anyone hurt on either side. Hopefully, they would be able to explain to Eshmun that they meant no harm and didn't know the ruins were sacred. During the conversation, he had learned that these people called themselves Carthians, their home being Carthia. It's similarity to Carthage was obvious.
He looked over at his friend. No point putting it off—he had to tell him.
"Jack, they're not going to just let us go. We have to go before Eshmun and plead our case. Philo did say they had no quarrel with the rest of you—you can go home or come with us to Carthia."
Daniel saw Jack's jaw clenching as he tried to contain his anger. "Daniel, SG-3 and 5 are waiting for me to give them the word to move in. We could take these people—"
"No, Jack. Someone would get hurt or killed. If we follow their rules we might come out of this with allies instead of enemies. If we're going to search, and possibly mine, for naquadah, we'll have to deal with these people, too. Please, let us try."
"Daniel—" He left the sentence unfinished. What else could he say? He knew he what he was going to do; he just hoped he wasn't going to regret it.
He clicked his radio. "Warren, Coburn."
"Yes, sir," two voices replied.
"We're going with this group to their city. I want the rest of you to follow at a reasonable distance. Keep an eye out and wait for my orders."
"Understood, sir," they acknowledged.
Jack turned back to Daniel. "Okay, kids, we're off to see the wizard."
TBC