Author: Fai
Status: Complete
Spoilers: Pretty much everything up to Shades of Grey
Category: Hurt/Comfort, Action Adventure, Angst
Pairings: None
Season: 3, right after Shades of Grey but before New Ground
Rating: PG-13
Content Warning: Moderate cursing, very mild violence
Summary: Who defines what makes something real?
Authors Note: This was supposed to be fluff but kept going all angsty on me. I think I was suffering from PMS (Post Meridian Syndrome). This is a team piece. Thank you to Carrie, for being a great beta, for talking me out of digging a hole in my backyard, chucking the whole computer in and burying this story forever and mostly for being a really nice lady. Feedback in any form is greatly appreciated.
~~ * ~~
Daniel Jackson wasn’t breathing. He hadn’t been since the shimmering water-like surface of the wormhole had spit the foursome out into a mirage of archeological splendor. He wasn’t turning blue yet, but Jack was getting concerned just the same. Colonel Jack O’Neill walked up beside his teammate and clapped him soundly on the back, causing the huge gust of air Daniel had been holding to quickly billow out. The captivated man’s eyes never faltered in their continuous quest to scan over every item the immense chamber held. He was as oblivious to Jack’s quiet ‘Breathe, Daniel’, as he was to Sam’s smile and Teal’c’s slightly bewildered expression. Inhalation seemed to bring relief to Daniel’s oxygen-starved lungs and spurred him into action. Three sets of eyes tracked his flight off the platform as he made a beeline for the first stop on what Jack had dubbed ‘The Daniel Express.’
Jack shook his head in wonder at the impulsive young man and turned to look at Major Samantha Carter. He had intended to put her on Daniel duty, but saw intense curiosity floating behind those brilliant blue eyes. Sending her to keep Daniel out of trouble would be a little too much like sending Tom to guard Tweety from Sylvester. There was absolutely no doubt in his mind one of the two would end up eating the damn bird before the day was through.
Next, he turned his attention to the less scientific minded Teal’c. Nope, that wouldn’t work either. He could think of too many times the Jaffa had been caught following the wayward archeologist into trouble with little more than a word of caution. Jack attributed part of the reasoning behind this to the obvious; changing Daniel’s mind while he was in stubborn mode was next to impossible, even for a former first prime Jaffa. Jack had also spent the last three years watching Teal’c watch Daniel. Behind that imposing face and intense brown eyes laid a very analytical mind. Teal’c seemed willing to do anything, short of actually dissecting the scholar, to figure out what made him tick. Jack would lay odds Teal’c sometimes let Daniel stay the course just to see where it would take them.
Sorry big guy, not today. General Hammond had been very specific about this mission. It presented itself as a wonderful opportunity for research of an alien culture and none of them wanted to deny Daniel the chance to spread his wildly inquisitive wings. However, there had been several strange energy spikes during the time they monitored the area around the gate. Hammond gave them the go but the team was to proceed with the highest level of caution until they were sure they were in no danger. A resigned look settled itself on Jack’s face as he realized this was one case where he would need to do the honors himself.
“Teal’c, you and Carter head that way, I’ve got Daniel. Check-ins on the hour. Oh, and Carter? Don’t touch anything.”
Sam threw him a look that would have been labeled insubordinate if thrown or received by any other two officers. Something seemed to pull her attention behind him and he had exactly three guesses on ‘who’ that something was.
“Ah, sir,” Sam said pointing in the direction Daniel had gone. Jack turned to spot the man with a hand already poised to connect with one of the hundreds of archeological candy dispensers the room was filled with. He turned back to find a self-satisfied smirk plastered all over the major’s face. She quickly schooled her features back to neutral when he looked her way, but he’d seen it loud and clear. Sibling rivalry has struck again, he thought. It would have been easier for her to jump up and down yelling, ‘I can’t touch, he can’t touch,’ but it really wasn’t her style. Tattletale seemed to suit her much better.
He watched as Teal’c bowed his head to his female teammate and held out his arm in an ‘after you’ gesture, making it obvious he had noticed the look as well. Sam had the dignity to look mildly embarrassed as she ducked her head and moved past both men. This is going to be a very long day, he told himself as he spun around and headed straight for the entranced young man, yelling the whole way.
~~ * ~~
Daniel was mere inches away from heaven when a very vocal Jack reached his side. His brow knit in confusion when he realized his momentum had stopped, hand left hanging uselessly just a hairsbreadth from its goal. He swung his fingers back and forth a few times to confirm their no contact status before allowing his gaze to travel up his own arm to where it came to a crossroads with Jack’s. He knew he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t stop his eyes from following the path up Jack’s arm until they met with a clearly unhappy set of brown looking back at him.
“Jack.” What are you doing?
“Daniel.” You know damn well what I’m doing.
Daniel saw Jack’s eye’s flicker to the hand still hanging in mid air and decided it was in his best interest to take the hint. Pulling his hand back, he tucked it under his other arm in a mutated version of his self-hug before meeting Jack’s eyes again.
“Daniel. Do you remember when the MALP sent back all those pretty little pictures? What exactly did General Hammond say?”
Oh here we go, he told himself as he began instantly bristling at the condescending tone behind Jack’s words. Hammond had said to proceed with caution. He did NOT say Jack should have a hissy fit anytime anyone tried to take a closer look at something. They had been in situations like this before. Of course, Daniel had been sucked into an alternate reality and Jack had had the knowledge of the Ancients downloaded into his head that way. Throw in some Machello induced body switching and mental illness with some identity stealing alien life form crystals and it only went to prove caution didn’t always equate to safe. Besides, contrary to what Jack apparently thought, Daniel was not a ten-year-old. He had two degrees, was at one time a leader in his field, was a member of the flagship team of the world’s most top-secret project, had been partially responsible for the fall of several ‘Gods’, and was last but not least, a married man. If he was old enough to mourn the loss of his wife, he was old enough not to be treated like a child by Jack O’Neill.
All of this went bouncing around his head as he tried not to play into Jack’s hands. He kept his voice measured and calm but backed the words with a look set in granite. “As I recall he gave us the go ahead to come take a look.”
“That’s right. A look. We do that with our eyes, not our hands. There are no hands in look.”
Jack actually had the nerve to wiggle one of his hands at him to punctuate the statement. Okay, Daniel thought, I was wrong. Jack doesn’t think I’m ten, he thinks I’m five. Calm went out the window as he gave in to his baser instincts and allowed himself to full out glare at his CO. Hundreds of words in twenty different languages, most of them foul, began fighting for the chance to verbally pummel the sarcastic man. As he mentally sorted through the onslaught of choices, one sentence came back time and time again: this two-sided dance of wills is getting old.
Daily life on SG-1 had become a constant struggle for who got to lead, not the team but the relationship between the two men. There was the Daniel and Jack that loved and respected each other or the Daniel and Jack that irritated and antagonized each other. Ever since Jack had taken part in the plot to smoke out Maybourne’s rogue NID group, they had been uneasy with each other and the latter pair seemed to be winning more and more often.
Truthfully, it had started long before then. When he had lost Sha’re he had made a promise to her he intended to keep; he would find her son. Jack unequivocally dismissed the idea of a host communicating through a hand device and didn’t hesitate to tell Daniel so. Later, he had tried throwing a few words like ‘I believe in you’ at him, but Daniel knew Jack didn’t understand how important this was to him and he still definitely did not believe it really happened. And if he were being honest with himself, he was starting to wonder if he really believed it. He was self aware enough to know he sometimes took this uncertainty out on Jack since he was the embodiment of Daniel’s own disbelief. Then there were times like this he fully believed Jack needed a swift kick somewhere sensitive.
The irritated Daniel decided he was just the one to do the kicking and latched onto a few words that ought to do the trick. The wiggling hand picked this moment to came back up, halting him in his tracks with its audacity.
“I know Daniel, I’m sorry. Just…be careful, that’s all.” This time the words had been stripped of everything but sincerity and Jack let the offending hand fall to his side, throwing in what Daniel figured was meant to be a conciliatory look. It would appear they had just called another ‘swing your partner, dosido’ and ‘friend’ Jack came waltzing in.
Daniel was able to maintain the pursed stance for another few seconds before finally caving and letting his arms drop back to his sides, signaling his participation in the truce. With the wind effectively taken out of his sails, he remembered what had brought them here and started this latest battle in the first place. The allure of relics of unknown origin took over and with no conscious effort, Daniel fell into his professor persona.
“Actually I was being careful, this piece is definitely not a weapon. See these symbols here?” Daniel motioned to a series of symbols that decorated the outer edge of an object that roughly approximated a bowl. “These represent fire and this marking here represents purification…”
“Daniel. Bottom line?”
Daniel had been expecting the interruption and since it was delivered in a non-malicious manner, he didn’t even miss a beat as he segued into a more Jack friendly explanation.
“Basically, it says the indigenous people had ‘sticks of fire’ that were lit and used in some type of purification ritual. These urns were used to extinguish the sticks in once the ritual was complete.”
Daniel watched as Jack mulled that over before apparently reaching his own conclusion. “It’s an ashtray.”
He opened his mouth with a response befitting the smart-ass description on the tip of his tongue, but closed it again as he realized it was actually a pretty fair assessment. He hated having to admit it; he had this feeling the man loved doing that to him for some reason. He shot Jack a mildly perturbed look before slowly acknowledging its accuracy. “I guess you could call it that.”
Jack gave him a fleeting smug little smile, but delivered his next words at a low sarcasm setting.
“Yeah, well smoking is bad for your health, Daniel. Let’s just make sure nothing else here is before we touch anything. Do you know what any of this,” Jack waved his hand around at all the clutter surrounding them, “stuff is? Other than the ashtray.”
“Not yet. It looks like its all pretty much Polynesian in nature as far as the writing goes, but I can’t really be sure until I do some full translations.” Daniel felt his eyes being drawn to a pillar just off to their left. It was covered in text and symbols. He decided that would be his first priority. He was already working on translating the first line when he vaguely heard an insistent buzzing in his ear he tried to swat away. He jumped when the annoyed source of the buzzing stepped directly in his line of vision, waving that hand again.
“Hold it. Are you’re saying this might not be an ashtray?”
“What? Oh, um yes, it is. I mean I’m almost positive it is. An ashtray. I mean a ceremonial urn. What was the question?” Daniel had the distinct impression he’d already been asked this question more than once and braced for the wrath of Jack. He didn’t get what he was expecting. Instead, Jack took a deep breath and almost smiled.
“Never mind, Daniel. Just do your translations. With your eyes,” Jack stressed the last word but put his hand gently on Daniel’s upper arm, giving it a light squeeze. The contact startled him a lot more than the words. It had been a while since Jack had made anything other than superficial physical contact with him, like the earlier back slap. In fact, he thought the last time might have been Jack putting his arm around him as he was explaining why he had cut him to the quick when he’d gone to Jack’s home during the NID thing. It hadn’t seemed right at the time, he was still too hurt to feel anything other than the sting of betrayal.
This did feel right and he was suddenly acutely aware of how much he’d missed it. Of how much he’d missed Jack, his team, his wife and his hope for the last few months. If he was reading this right, Jack was making an effort to help him get at least a small part of that back. He felt tears prick at the back of his eyes and wasn’t sure if they were tears for what he could get back or for what he couldn’t. He broke eye contact before he ended up sobbing in the middle of some intergalactic museum.
Once he felt like he had his emotions in check, Daniel moved over to the rather large pillar he’d spotted earlier, pulled out a notebook and set himself down in front of it, immediately losing himself in the story it told. On the very fringes of his consciousness, he was aware of Jack beginning his customary perimeter check. For the first time in a long time, there was a sense of normalcy Daniel wasn’t sure he would ever see again and with it came hope.
~~ * ~~
Sam and Teal’c had been working their way through the maze of artifacts in silence. Sam found herself focusing inward frequently over the last year. That year had been hell, both literally and figuratively. She was still trying to come to terms with the changes that had taken place since her blending with Jolinar. It had given her abilities she didn’t completely understand or know how to use and to be honest wasn’t sure she wanted to. Feelings and thoughts would occasionally run through her head she wasn’t sure were her own. Combine that with having watched her father face death and new life with the Tok’ra and you have a person who was very confused about the use of pronouns in their life. Was her dad, he and him or they and them? Was she, I and me or us and we? Hathor.
Hold it right there, she berated herself, this is one road I, in the singular, am not going down.
Pushing that though as far out of her mind as she could, Sam looked at the man walking quietly beside her. Her teammates didn’t confuse her, at least not on an emotional level. She loved them, plain and simple. They had become her friends and her family over the past three years and she would do anything for them. It would be so easy if that was the end of it. It wasn’t. Love aside, she had spent the last few months helplessly watching them very slowly drift away and didn’t have the faintest idea how to stop it from happening.
There was Teal’c. Sam had no doubt he was dedicated to the SCG and considered them friends as much as they considered him to be. She had learned so much about loyalty and honor from him. His presence was steady and true and she couldn’t ask for a better teammate or friend. Yet all she had to do was watch Teal’c when he was with his son or Bra’tak to know someday he would have to follow his heart to another path. A path that would surely lead him away from them and back to his own people. Sam's instincts told her it was the right thing for him, but for purely selfish reasons, she prayed it wouldn’t happen any time soon.
Daniel’s distancing was no less subtle, but somehow easier to recognize. Maybe because it was playing out between him and the colonel in full Technicolor view. It started with Sha’re’s death and contention over the images Daniel insisted she had sent him through the hand device. Daniel wanted; no he needed to find her son. It took a while, but the colonel finally seemed to understand. He backed the search for Daniel’s sake, but the initial hesitation had taken its toll and the younger man had already started to withdraw from the people close to him. Then along came the whole mess with Kira, seeing Apophis alive and in hell and then losing Jack for months and getting a lukewarm reception when they found him. The last straw seemed to come in that final awful moment when everyone gathered to bid Jack farewell with one very glaringly apparent omission.
When it was over, apologies had been given and accepted, but there was still something ugly between the two that was as obvious as Apophis standing with one hand to each of their throats would have been.
For the life of her, Sam couldn’t figure out how two of the best people she had ever known, who cared about each other so deeply could suck so badly at communicating with each other. Daniel turned inward, getting all prickly like a porcupine protecting its middle. Although the colonel was harder to read, she had the distinct impression he felt as helpless as the rest of them, with a solid dose of guilt thrown in for good measure. He covered it with flippancy, which only served to push Daniel further into his protected shell. Sam was pleased today when he opted to pair with Daniel. Maybe the time spent doing something ‘normal’ would do them some good and give them a chance to repair some tattered feelings on both sides.
“Major Carter, I believe we are approaching the time to check in with O’Neill and Daniel Jackson.”
The sudden rumble of that deep timbre voice caused Sam to nearly jump out of her skin. Being lost in your own thoughts was one thing, forgetting you were walking with a mountain sized Jaffa at your side was entirely another. Trying to distract from her startled response, she glanced at her watch, feeling a flash of guilt as she realized it had been nearly an hour since she had spoken to or acknowledged Teal’c. There would also be little to report since she had only been giving the place a cursory inspection. She nodded confirmation to Teal’c of the time and reached for the button on her radio.
“Colonel?”
“Go ahead, Carter.”
“Not much to report, sir. There’s a lot of stuff but no signs of life and we haven’t seen any type of way in or out of here other than the gate. How’s Daniel doing?” There was a slight pause before she got one of the patented O’Neill responses.
“He’s just peachy, Major. Having all sorts of fun. Wish you were here. When exactly will you be here?” Both she and Teal’c had to grin at the whining tone their CO’s voice held. The colonel sounded desperately eager for his team to regroup. She pictured Daniel, totally lost to them within his own head, and the colonel bored out of his skull watching over him. This was more like how it was supposed to be.
“Sir, I’m going to take a closer look at a few of the objects. Get some video for Daniel then we’ll head back your way. It could be a while yet.”
“Copy that. Check in mark one hour. O’Neill out.” Sam couldn’t stop another smile at the disappointment that had come through clearly along with the colonel’s words. She removed and started rummaging through her pack for the camera when an out of the blue realization stopped her in her tracks. She couldn’t believe she had completely ignored one very important part of her update.
“Teal’c, do you have any idea what this place is or recognize any of this?” Sam gestured around them. She held her breath while waiting for his reply, hoping he hadn’t felt snubbed by her silence earlier. It was important to her he knew his input was not dismissed just because this was a scientific mission rather than a military one.
“I do not. However, I am confident Daniel Jackson and yourself will be able to determine its purpose.” Sam could detect no hint the Jaffa felt slighted and his confidence in them was stated with absolute certainty. Sam held her friend’s eye for a moment.
“Thank you, Teal’c.” The Jaffa bowed his head a fraction and let a small smile form. Sam smiled back, grateful she could spend this time with her friend and hopefully, her soon to be co-conspirator. She absently bit at her bottom lip, trying to think of a way to phrase her idea without sounding like a busybody.
“Teal’c, I’ve been thinking. If we were to oh, say, take our time getting back to Daniel and Colonel O’Neill, that might give them a little more time to, talk?” She couldn’t hide the hope in her voice.
“Would that not also provide them adequate time to commence arguing, as has been their habit of late?” It sounded more like a statement of fact than a question to Sam and she had to admit he could very well be right. As usual, quiet didn’t mean imperceptive. She should have known Teal’c was just as aware as she was of the tension between the two.
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” She finished fishing the camera out of the bag and stood, taking her first really good look at the area around them. The double meaning of her next words were not lost on either of them.
“So then, where should we start?”
~~ * ~~
Jack couldn’t help it. He’d done the circuit too many times to do it again. Stand, circle, sit. Stand, circle, sit. There was nobody here, nothing to watch out for and nothing to do. He eyed the back of Daniel’s head for at least the hundredth time. If he couldn’t see a hand frantically mapping out chicken scratch on the notepad, he’d believe the man had turned to stone. He hadn’t moved from his spot in front of the column since he’d first sat there, which he was certain had to have been several days ago at least. Aside from the three check-ins from Carter and Teal’c, neither of the two had spoken during that period.
Jack stepped over to Daniel’s side, waiting in vain to see if this time his presence would be acknowledged. When it was apparent that would not be the case, he decided he was going to have to take a more proactive approach and sat down as close to the scholar as humanly possible. He let his eyes wander over the man, the post he was so intent on and back again. Jack cleared his throat loudly hoping sound may startle him from the spell he seemed to be under. Not so much as an irritated cheek twitch.
“Daniel.” Nothing. He brought his voice up to the next volume level.
“Daniel.” Still nothing. Where was a firecracker when you needed one?
“Yo, Doctor Jackson!” Daniel’s head finally snapped up, eyes at a squint as he turned to give him an inquisitive look. His eyes widened in surprise, confirming Jack’s suspicion the younger man had been completely unaware he was virtually sitting on top of him.
“Jack. Where you saying something?”
“Who me? No.” He waved his hand dismissively and tried to appear nonchalant.
“Oh,” was the offhand response he got, head already turning back to the notepad. Damn, he was losing him already. If he didn’t act fast, he would spend the next four hours in silence. Jack knew he would kick himself later, but there was only one surefire way to get Daniel talking.
“So Daniel. This looks…” Jack paused and waved a hand at the pillar letting a small puff of air fill his cheeks and then burst out. He tipped his head and scrunched up his face knowing the next word to leave his lips would seal the deal. “…interesting.”
There, it was out. He’d opened himself up to Danielspeak and there was no going back. He let his hand fall into his lap, trepidation taking hold of his features. Daniel, of course, didn’t notice; Jack had just given him a willing audience. His head swung back in Jack's direction, eyebrows flying up at the opening. “Yes, it is. Fascinating really. See the top part of the column?”
Jack could see it coming a mile away. He started to call out a warning, but Daniel was already past the point of no return. He had jumped to his feet to call attention to the area of text he would no doubt happily spend the next hour explaining in great detail. The loss of limb control was immediate and he gracelessly came plunging back down. Jack was at least able to keep Daniel from continuing his backwards topple after his backside had re-connected with the floor, the result leaving Jack with a lap full of linguist.
A quiet ‘Ow’ came from the owner of the stunned blue eyes blinking up at him. Jack gave him a half grin and a push back into the upright sitting position, apparently aggravating the condition behind the fall.
“Ooh, aah, ow!” The words tumbled out of Daniel in a constant stream as he bounced his legs up and down, frantically rubbing at them. Every now and then he would look over at Jack making him wonder if he was actually wearing the goofy grin he thought he was holding back. From the highly indignant look on Daniel’s face, he figured he must be. He knew he was about to add insult to injury, but it just couldn’t be helped, some opportunities were too good to pass up.
“Three hours sitting cross legged on a stone floor. That has GOT to hurt.”
Daniel’s look morphed from indignation to sheer contempt. “Nice, Jack. Thanks for all your help.”
“For crying out loud, Daniel. They’re asleep, not broken. Hey, I kept you from cracking your head open when you fell, didn’t I?” Admittedly he had poured a little lemon juice on wounded pride, but he deserved some credit too, after all he had also performed the courageous act of head cracking prevention. Jack watched as a series of different emotions played across the annoyed man’s face and wondered idly if Daniel knew what an open book he was so much of the time, at least to him.
Daniel closed his eyes briefly and gave his head a small shake. When he opened them his face seemed to settle on a look Jack read to be bemusement. Secretly, he was relieved with the reaction. Knowing he could still elicit that response from his friend and that Daniel was still capable of being so open with his emotions were both good things in his book. Life in general and life via the Stargate in particular could harden even the softest of hearts. He was glad his friend had toughened up enough to survive and had in fact been known to push him in that direction from time to time for his own protection. By the same token, he prayed to any deity that would listen that the inner core of kindness and generosity that made him uniquely Daniel would never be snuffed out.
“I don’t suppose you could give me a hand up?” The soft-spoken question seemed amiable enough and Jack gained his feet, grace belying his constant complaints of poor knees. He grasped the offered hand in his own and had the man standing in one smooth motion. Jack kept his hold until he was certain Daniel could maintain his upright status of his own accord and then let him go and turned, gesturing to the pillar. “As you were saying.”
Daniel hesitated for just a moment before taking advantage of an opportunity Jack knew he gave him way too seldom. “As I was saying, this top portion of the text reads; ‘Yesterdays are captured, kept safely day to night to day. Today’s are sadly numbered and will soon be forever gone. Tomorrows will be steeped in strangers and with thoughts and words bring life anew’.”
Daniel finished the translation and continued to stare at the words with reverence. Jack eyed the man, always amazed how someone could get this thrilled over a bunch of nonsense. It was time get down to the brass tacks. “Shouldn’t a poem rhyme?”
Daniel let his head fall forward for a moment before bringing it up with the hoped for half smile. Yes, thought Jack, I snagged him. Now is when it got tricky. Jack knew Daniel thought he knew most of Jack’s inane questions were deliberately so, which of course sometimes they were. However, a lot of the time they were legitimate inane questions dressed up to look deliberately inane to cover the fact they really were inane. If he knew his archeologist, Daniel would now give some circular, overly simplistic answer, pretending to play along with Jack, never knowing Jack really desperately needed the simplistic answer.
Book smart, Jackson was the hands down winner. Sneak smart, Jack had it all over him. He hoped he managed to look significantly un-cocky as Daniel went into his spiel.
“No, Jack. Poems don’t always have to rhyme, I’m not sure this is a poem and it was written in a different language so even if it is a poem and is supposed to rhyme, it would rhyme in their words, not ours.”
He had been hoping for a little more definitive simplistic response. “Not a poem. Riddle?”
Daniel’s jaw tightened just a fraction before answering. “It does seem to be speaking metaphorically since you can’t really capture a yesterday, which would lead me to think it is intended to be some type of message if you can figure out what it means, like a riddle. Of course if whoever wrote it knew the person reading it would understand it, then it would just be a message. Unless it’s only meant to be pretty, like a poem.”
Jack waded through the flood of words that had just poured over him, then cocked his head to one side. “You don’t know what it means, do you?”
The jaw grew tighter before he let out a long breath, sagged a bit and fessed up. “Not a clue.”
Daniel waved a hand towards the lower half of the pillar. “This section says, ‘Hearts that beat in tandem will surely touch the suns.’ And before you ask, I don’t know what that means either.”
Suddenly, Daniel furrowed his brow, moving to the left side of the pillar. Jack could see it held more text and watched as the young man’s hand automatically stretched out towards it. Jack jumped forward, reaching his hand out to catch an arm that had already come to a stop a few inches from the wall, causing him to tip forward at the abrupt ceasing of forward motion. He put a hand out to steady himself as both of them were trying to speak at the same time.
“Daniel. Do not touch…”
“Jack. I wasn’t going to…”
They both stopped as they heard Sam’s tinny voice blast out of their radios.
“Colonel. What ever you do, don’t touch…”
Jack’s balance seeking hand had finally found purchase, landing right on top of the ‘ashtray’ just as he understood what Carter was going to say.
“Aw, crap,” he muttered. Both he and Daniel’s eyes locked onto the hand and then each other as a bright flash of light enveloped them.
~~ * ~~
Teal’c was pleased Major Carter’s focus had changed to an external one. He had remained silent as he felt her working through some internal dialogue, aware most humans did not indulge in a formal meditation process as the Jaffa did with kel’no’reem. Instead, he had long ago gotten used to their habit of turning introspective during what were commonly considered mundane tasks. Major Carter had been doing this on an increasingly more regular basis, as had Daniel Jackson. He believed the man had been doing so due to the strain between himself and O’Neill. He was unsure of what the cause was in the major’s case, but honored this behavior as they had always honored him with their friendship and trust.
Honoring it did not, however, mean he enjoyed it. Admittedly, he was a man of few words, but listening was all together different. He truly enjoyed hearing them talk about everything from the commonplace to the outrageous. They all had a unique flavor and view, creating a remarkable picture of the world Teal’c would never fully be a part of. He had never regretted the actions he had taken that had led him to the SGC; not only because of what it had done for his cause, but for what it had done for his life. These were good friends; good people and he cherished the fellowship he had found among them.
His previous friends had all been warriors like himself. They had lived his same life, come from the same place and served the same God. False God, he automatically corrected. The same could not be said of SG-1. O’Neill was a warrior, but unlike any others he had ever known. Fierce, loyal, disciplined and dedicated he was, yet he was also very human. He cared for those under his command and interacted with them in a way only Bra’tak had ever come close to doing. Unlike Teal’c’s mentor, O’Neill questioned orders, had a quick mind and wit and occasionally failed. Jaffa’s who failed died, humans seemed to learn and grow with each failing. With time, Teal’c had begun to believe their way was indeed better. They rarely seemed to make the same mistake twice and didn’t have to die in the process. O’Neill was his brother and his respect and bond with the man grew on a daily basis.
The female at his side was definitely different from other females he had known. Jaffa women did not go into battle. They were strong yes, but ultimately they were still slaves to the gods and to their men. There was still inequality between the sexes of the Tau’ri, but he knew Major Carter would bow down to no man and walked with them into battle with as much commitment and skill as any soldier he had ever seen. Her intelligence was rivaled only by her compassion. He had been as confused as he was impressed when she had willingly stayed to comfort a small girl, believing they would both surely perish as a result. In that moment, he loved her and the mystifying mix that was Samantha Carter became forever his friend.
Daniel Jackson was the biggest anomaly of them all. Meeting someone you had been ordered to kill, hours after handing that person’s beloved over to an evil parasitic false god was not the best basis to build a friendship on, yet that is exactly what had happened. Teal’c actually wanted the younger man to hate him, just so he had somewhere to focus the pain of his loss. That was evidently not the way Daniel Jackson worked. On the rare occasions he had seen hate shining in those expressive eyes, it had never been directed at him, even after Sha’re’s death at his hands. Saying the man was intelligent, compassionate, gentle or caring would be doing him a great disservice. The complexity of the man made him the hardest to understand, at times the most irritating to be around and the easiest to be devoted to. O’Neill had once told him Daniel Jackson could charm the rattle off a snake. He had no idea what that meant, but believed it to be true.
He also believed despite the awkwardness they were dealing with now, it was without question that care for one another was still the heart and soul of SG-1. Witness to that was the way they had been very slowly making their way back towards O’Neill and Daniel Jackson’s location. On both of their subsequent check-ins, the colonel had questioned the speed of their return while Major Carter had lamented about how arduous the task was to film everything for later study. In reality, they were at most, five minutes away from the men’s location.
They had decided earlier the potential had outweighed the risk and had been stalling their return as long as possible, hopefully giving the two time to get comfortable with each other again. Sooner or later, O’Neill would reach his tolerance threshold for staring at ‘old stuff’ and he would try to force Daniel Jackson back to the present. Teal’c feared he would do so by picking a fight with the single-minded man. Major Carter had expressed her hope that Daniel wasn’t too distracted to be brought back by anything other than a fight.
So he and his companion were working together, he watching for any signs of danger and she filming as many of the objects as she could, supposedly for later study back at the SGC.
“You know Teal’c, some of these pieces are exquisite. Daniel must be going completely wild by now. Bet dragging him home at the end of the day will be next to impossible. I don’t even want to leave and I don’t know what any of it means.”
“I agree. Removing Daniel Jackson from this planet will indeed be most difficult.”
Teal’c on the other hand, didn’t see anything worth giving a second thought to. He had been to many worlds and seen endless beauty during his years in the service of Apophis. Tragedy, death and destruction were the only images he had been able to take away with him. As he looked around now, he saw nothing that would be of value in the fight against the Goa’uld, making it of no use to him. At times he envied the gift Daniel Jackson had to look at such items with admiration and understanding. It often made others look at it a second time from a different perspective. This ability was one of the things Teal’c didn’t understand about their civilian teammate, but was highly intrigued by.
Teal’c observed Major Carter as she moved from station to station in an effort to document everything she could. Finally, she seemed to exhaust her need to film and went to re-stow the video camera.
“I hope the colonel and Daniel are having more luck figuring this place out. There’s nothing I’ve seen that indicates what its purpose is. It’s way too organized to be anything other than intentional, but who or what set it up and why?”
“I believe we would understand the purpose of this location if we are able to determine the purpose of the items.”
Sam gave a small laugh before responding, causing him to wonder yet again if he would ever understand Tau’ri humor. “You’re right, Teal’c. But how do we do that without touching it or being able to read any of the inscriptions?”
Teal’c did not respond, knowing well the major’s practice of asking herself questions aloud. He took a small step back and watched her moving around a pedestal that held a medium sized square block. She stopped, stooping down to get a closer look at the detail work. From where he stood, he could see it was squared, about the size of a fist and had the appearance of being made out of a smooth, dark gray metal. The side facing him looked like it had been gouged repeatedly, creating several deep groves that revealed a variety of colors underneath.
The major had stilled, her eyes locked on the intricate and seemingly mesmerizing pattern. Alarm ran through Teal’c as he watched her lean closer to the swirling mix of colors and hypnotically reach forward to run a finger along the edge of the pattern.
“Major Carter. Were not our instructions from O’Neill to withhold from touching any of these items?” Teal’c’s concern had caused his voice to come out quite loud and he saw a jolt run through the major. She jumped back and shook her head, finally looking over to Teal’c with a blank expression. He saw awareness slowly coming back into her eyes, as if she was just remembering where she was.
“Oh, yeah. Sorry, Teal’c. Yes, those were our instructions.” Teal’c was not convinced his friend was fully with him yet. She absently reached to run her hand through her cropped hair, mindless of the cap perched there. Her fingers caught the brim, pushing it back and off her head, ending with it landing directly on top of the block she had so recently meant to touch. A bright flash of light exploded causing her to jump back towards Teal’c. He in turn immediately raised his staff weapon, adopting a defensive stance. As the light dimmed and their eyes readjusted, they found themselves staring once again at a lone block.
Major Carter looked back at Teal’c, silently requesting he watch her back as she began to cautiously move around the area. She completed the whole circle looking puzzled when she came up hatless. Teal’c edged closer and shifted his grip on the weapon as Sam leaned down for a closer look at the pedestal. If he were not strenuously looking for it, he would never have seen the little black speckles that peppered the block and its surroundings. He was certain those hadn’t been there before. Stepping back, Sam lightly blew on the block causing the soot to dance around.
As the mini debris tornado settled back into place, Teal’c looked to Major Carter for confirmation they had just seen her hat incinerated. Her distressed look spoke volumes and he had his answer. “Think it’s just the block?” she asked while looking around them at the hundreds of potential new threats.
Teal’c tilted his head in contemplation a second, finally reaching into his pocket and pulling out a glove. He spied something shaped somewhat like a flowerpot on the next pedestal over and there was an unspoken agreement made between the two. Balling up the glove, he automatically put himself between the major and the ‘flowerpot’ and tossed. Another flash as the glove made contact leaving nothing but dust settling in its wake.
“There’s one more thing I’d like to try,” she mumbled, already rummaging through her pack. Finally, she snared her bounty and headed over to stand beside him again. He watched intently as she pulled a key out of her pocket and stuffed it into the middle of a pair of rolled up socks. The major walked over to the next platform, this one holding another decorative item shaped along the lines of an apple. It looked like the same metal as the block and held a similarly bright colored pattern around its middle. The scientist and Teal’c came to rest facing each other with the apple smack dab between them.
Major Carter took a deep breath and tossed the socks. It was a great shot. The socks made an elegant arc and would have bounced right off the top of the apple had they not been instantly reduced to ashes on contact. From within another brilliant flash of light, they both clearly heard the soft tinkling sound as the key skipped its way off the platform on to the floor, coming to a stop directly between Teal’c’s feet. He bent and scooped the key up into his large palm.
“Teal’c wait, that’s hot!” she called out in warning.
Teal’c opened his hand and frowned down the key lying there. “It is not.”
The major supplied a matching frown as she moved to his side, hesitantly reaching out for the offered key. “I don’t understand. This should be hot. Or warm or scorched or something.”
Apprehension filled Teal’c as the reality of what they had witnessed sank in. Rather by accident or Daniel Jackson’s insatiable curiosity, one or both of his friends could very well already be hurt or worse. A bolt of fear caused him to take an involuntary gulp of air before turning in the direction of their two teammates. Major Carter's eyes widened in alarm as the same scenario seemed to hit her. As one, they were moving towards the area where they had last seen the duo, the major reaching for her radio.
“Colonel, what ever you do, don’t touch…”
The radio suddenly screeched with static, cutting her off mid warning. Both stopped as they saw a distant crack of brightness, like lightening in the far distance across an open field on a stormy summer night. Teal’c’s face became a scowling mask as he resumed his rapid flight to reach his friends, his last teammate still by his side, fear etched across her face and unconscious of the horror struck ‘Oh, God,’ she’d left hanging in their wake.
~~ * ~~
As soon as Jack was able to see again, he found himself standing toe to toe with Daniel, arm still firmly grasped in his hand. He looked down at his own offending hand, taking in the fact it no longer rested on the ashtray. He let the archeologist go and did a quick spin around to get a look at their new surroundings. They were in a completely empty, gray walled room. He turned back to find Daniel still blinking owlishly in his direction.
“Jack. What just happened?”
“I think a better question might be, where the hell are we?”
“Okay, where the hell are we?”
“You’re with the people of Laytelle.”
Both men jumped at the soft feminine voice that came from behind them. Daniel automatically took a step back while Jack pulled his P-90 up, swinging around to find the muzzle pointed directly at a pretty young girl. She looked to be in her late twenties by Earth standards and stood about a head shorter than Daniel. Her long blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she was analyzing them from a set of deep brown eyes.
Daniel appeared to overcome his initial shock and moved back to Jack’s side, mumbling ‘blue jeans’ questioningly under his breath. Why didn’t it surprise him? Of course Daniel would notice she was wearing jeans, a sweatshirt and sneakers before the fact she had materialized out of thin air and didn’t appear to be the least bit concerned she had a gun pointed at her, assuming she knew what a gun was. Jack heard the young man take in a quick breath, knowing what Daniel would say before Daniel did. He’d heard it often enough.
“Hello. I’m Daniel Jackson and this is Jack O’Neill. We’re not here to cause any harm,” he held up his hands in a surrendering pose and shot Jack and his gun a disapproving look before continuing. “We came through the Stargate from a planet called Earth. We explore, trying to learn and meet new people. You said we are with the people of Laytelle. Is that what your people are called or is that where we are?”
The girl stayed quiet a moment while finishing the once over she was giving them. Finally her attention settled on Jack. She gestured vaguely in the direction of the gun.
“You really won’t need that. I don’t bite, I promise.”
Great. She knew what a gun was but still had an attitude more suited for a sock hop than a shoot out. “Thanks, but I think I’ll just keep this handy for a while,” he answered with a slight sneer. The girl simply shrugged off his decision and directed her next words at Daniel.
“I’m AwnaRay, my people are called the Laytelle and you are where you always are.”
The response didn’t impress Jack at all and he wondered why it seemed they never met anyone who would just give them a straight answer.
“Okay, let’s start with an easier question. How about telling us how we got here?” he pressed.
“You’re always here.”
Ask an alien a stupid question… Why was he suddenly thinking of Harlan and his ‘you are better’ answer? “Of course we are,” he casually answered.
Jack shifted a little closer to the woman, hoping to unsettle the picture of poise she was presenting. “Look, Honorary. I want to know where we are and how we got here and I want to know right now.”
“You already know,” she said matter-of-factly.
“Alright lady! I’m about at the end of my patience with…” Jack was cut off by Daniel’s hand on his arm. He turned to see a silent plea being sent to let him take the lead for a while. Jack was in no mood to deal with this today but he had to admit if they were going to go the communication route, he wasn’t doing so hot and Daniel was a better bet. He let a frown show clearly but did lower the gun a fraction and took a step back, allowing Daniel to address the girl without him standing directly in-between them. He gave Jack a nearly imperceptible nod of thanks before turning to address their host.
“AwnaRay, you have to excuse Jack, we’re just a little confused about what you’re telling us. We came seeking knowledge and wanted to know more about the chamber. We’d also be very interested in learning more about this place and your people. Maybe share information with each other.”
“Fine, what do you want to know?”
Daniel looked to Jack, confusion in his eyes. It was obviously not the answer he had been expecting. Jack had resigned himself to not getting what he wanted from this girl and shrugged at the man, causing exasperation to play across his features. He made a couple of false starts before deciding on appropriate follow up questions.
“Well, um. How, how is it your know how to speak our language so well? And your clothing, it’s the same style people of our planet would wear. What was the purpose of the chamber we were in?”
Jack cleared his throat, catching Daniel’s attention. They’d been doing this long enough for that small act to telegraph what questions needed to be added to the list.
“We’d also really like to know how we got here, where our other team members are and how we get back?”
Both men were caught off guard when AwnaRay fell into a fit of laughter. A leery glance passed between them as she wiped at her eyes, finally managing to pull herself together after several minutes. Once she’d regained her composure, she gave the two men a sweet smile that went all the way up and crinkled the corners of her eyes.
“I have a sense you are the ones. Your questions are delightful and the first I’ve had of that kind! Knowledge is the same goal we have. To answer your questions Daniel, the chamber’s purpose is what it has done. The language and clothing come from you and Jack. These are things you’re comfortable with.”
“Are you saying you can read our minds?” Daniel had gone a little pale at the suggestion. They had spoken about it once, so Jack knew the concept of sharing custody of his mind with anyone else was one of Daniel’s greatest fears. He hated the fact some Goa’uld knew more about what Sha’re was thinking and feeling than he did. Your secret hopes, dreams and fantasies were meant to be shared with someone by choice, not invasion. Jack could understand and wasn’t real keen on the idea himself.
AwnaRay seemed to sense the intense unease behind the questions and moved closer to Daniel, laying a delicate hand on his arm. “No Daniel, mind reading has never been one the Laytelle’s abilities. Your mind is yours alone and has done all the work in this case.”
He watched the tension visibly drain from Daniel’s body as, once again, he took a stranger’s word at face value. This was one of those areas where Jack hoped he would learn to practice a little self-preservation. The young woman turned back in his direction and gave him another smile, this one partnered with a mischievous glint in her eye. She apparently knew the last of Daniel’s questions had been posed by proxy and addressed her answers accordingly.
“Now for your questions, colonel. As I said, you have gone nowhere and are currently nowhere you’ve never been. Your team is where they always are and since you have gone nowhere, there is no need to go back anywhere.”
Jack voice was laced with acid in response to what he guessed was an intentionally nonsensical answer. “Gee, thanks. That clears it right up.”
Daniel grimaced and gave him the same look a twelve year old gives their dad when he shows up at school wearing shorts, knee socks and sandals and actually talks to your friends. The look stating ‘please, please stop talking or I will die of embarrassment RIGHT NOW!’ As much as he’d love to let Daniel continue to play twenty questions with the nice alien lady, they really needed to figure out what was going on.
“Daniel, do know where we are?” A pursed expression accompanied the negative headshake. “Do you know where Sam and Teal’c are and if they’re safe?” The pursing gave way to guilt in an instant as another headshake quickly followed.
He addressed his next comments to both his teammate and AwnaRay. “Then as much as we’d love to stay a while and go through the whole who’s on first routine a few more times, we really need to get back to… the ‘where we always are’ our teammates are.”
Daniel looked downcast but concern for friends won out over new adventure without question.
AwnaRay grew serious and looked the team leader in the eye. “Colonel O’Neill, I know you have no reason to trust me and believe me I do understand your concern and desire to see your friends. I have been separated from friends and loved ones myself and I confess I am here with you today for a selfish purpose. I strongly believe you are the ones we’ve been waiting for, but I have only a very short time to show you what you need to see. I give you every promise I have to give, you and all of your teammates are safe. As Daniel said to me, we’re not here to cause you any harm. I will show you nothing if that is your wish. I am asking if I may. ”
He studied the woman’s face, looking for any signs of deception. Jack felt all his apprehension swiftly melt away, though he couldn’t put his finger on any reason it should have. Every instinct he had told him to trust her. Every ounce of training he’d had told him not to. He wasn’t surprised as he looked to Daniel to see trust and intrigue in the man’s eyes. He looked back to AwnaRay and realized he believed her. Not only did he believe her, he wanted to see what she wanted to show them.
“What is it you want us to see?” he asked her in the first gentle tone he’d used since meeting her. AwnaRay’s face brightened by the apparent consent and turned away from the two. She swept her hand in front of her causing one gray wall to slide away. Behind it stood a picturesque countryside. The three took a few steps forward setting them on the edge of a vast open meadow carpeted with grass of the deepest green. In the distance, he could make out a river winding its way like a delicate ribbon through the landscape. Just beyond that, stood a patch of rooftops sprinkled in a circle he was certain were the homes of the Laytelle. A fresh breeze came up and whispered around them, tickling at the backs of their necks and lightly blowing through their hair. He looked up to see a brilliant sun blazing overhead with a smaller one trailing behind, like a duckling chasing its mama across the sky.
“Welcome to Emerald City,” Jack muttered, hardly aware he had spoken. He brought his attention back to AwnaRay as she stood with her eyes closed, face raised towards the sky. The sunshine seemed to wash over and into her. He looked down as she moved her hand into his and looked back up to find her warm brown eyes looking into him.
“I need you to see my world, Jack O’Neill and Daniel Jackson,” she stated simply. She turned and offered her free hand to Daniel who, without hesitation, took it into his own. As much as Jack knew he should refuse and demand they be returned to Sam and Teal’c, he couldn’t do it. There was a feeling in the pit of his stomach that told him she was right, they were the ‘ones’ and they would see her world. And he wanted to do just that more then anything right now. Neither of the two men noticed as the gray room simply disappeared behind them as they followed her into the sun.