DUTY OR DESIRE?
by Imagine
“But sir, Daniel's been
missing for a month!” Jack said forcefully, trying to control his rising
frustration; trying to beat down the fear that ate at him day after day. Daniel had been lost to them before, too many
times and each time the man returned to them, the odds mounted that one day he
would be lost forever.
“I know that, Colonel,”
Jack glared at his
commanding officer and then slumped in the chair next to
It had been a month, a whole
month! Over four weeks; twenty-nine
days, eleven hours and eight minutes, since Daniel had been taken from his off
world dig. Six hundred and eighty three
very long hours for Jack to feel like crap.
A long time to kick himself
for blithely letting Daniel go off with another team, hours and days to second
guess every action he had taken ever since, an excruciatingly painful lifetime
to wonder if he’d lost Daniel without the guy ever knowing what he meant to
Jack.
~~
Jack carried a measure of
guilt for not challenging Daniel’s request to go off world with another
team. He hadn’t really wanted his
archaeologist to go, but at the same time he’d wanted to give Daniel what he so
clearly wanted. It had been so long
since Daniel had actually been an
archaeologist. Jack had known how much
of a strain it was for his compassionate friend to repeatedly subsume his real talents
in favour of military objectives. However,
Daniel had never been one to put his personal considerations above those of the
human race for which the SGC fought on a daily basis, so he shoved his own
feelings aside to do what was required.
When the opportunity arose
for Daniel to take part in a fourteen day mission where his skills as an
archaeologist would be needed, Jack had given in, ignoring his own desires to
keep Daniel by his side. He had signed
off on the temporary transfer and a happy archaeologist had cheerfully gone off
with SG11.
Letting his mind wander
back, Jack remembered standing in the Gateroom to see Daniel off. As the archaeologist mounted the ramp, he’d
stopped just before walking through the event horizon and turned back, a smile
of such pleasure lighting up his face that it made Jack’s heart turn in his
breast.
Jack hadn’t known if the
smile was because he’d come to see Daniel off, or if it was in appreciation for
being allowed to go on the mission, but Jack didn’t care. Any reason for Daniel to consider bestowing a
smile like that Jack would accept. It
was one of his rare smiles, showing true pleasure and as far as Jack was
concerned, it was a smile he would never tire of seeing. Daniel didn’t show such joy nearly often
enough.
The next memory to surface
wasn’t anywhere near so pleasant. It was
nine days later and Jack had just arrived at the base when the unauthorised
traveller alarm had sounded. Still
wearing his civvies, he’d raced to the control room.
Even though he had no reason
to suspect the emergency had anything to do with SG11 and Daniel, he couldn’t
help the fear clawing at his guts.
So far SG11 had made every
check-in exactly on time, and during each report mention was made of Doctor
Jackson. Jack hadn’t needed to request
the detailed reports on Daniel, Colonel Mellor knew better than to risk Jack’s
displeasure. Mellor hadn’t been in charge
of SG11 for very long but enough to know how close SG1 were and how caring they
were of their civilian. How protective
O’Neill was of him.
As Jack rushed to the
control room he knew SG11 wasn’t due to report in for another hour, so when he
heard Mellor’s voice, he was deathly afraid his fears were justified.
Jack listened impatiently to
what was being said, gathering enough to know the SG team had been attacked
while they were split up. Some of them
were at the base camp while the others who were at the dig site had been set
upon.
Jack was itching to
interrupt and get more details on exactly what had happened at the dig site,
but then the next sentence took the breath from him.
“By the time we got there,
Watkins and Sierra were dead and Baxter was fading in and out of consciousness.
There was no sign of
Watkins and Baxter were
seasoned marines; Joaquin Sierra had been their archaeologist, the man who had
requested Daniel’s expertise on the mission.
Jack forced his attention
back to what
“Not much, sir. We’re almost at the gate now, sir,” Mellor
said.
“Doctor Fraiser and her team
are waiting for you,”
“Yes, sir. Just before he finally lost consciousness
completely Baxter said something about a large group of people with cloaks and
hoods. They seemed most interested in
“You don’t know how Sierra
died?”
“Not sure, sir. He was still lying by the wall where he and
Jackson had been working. Watkins and
Baxter were patrolling just above them.
I’m afraid we need Baxter’s report for more information.”
“Very well.”
“Sir, permission to lead a
search and rescue mission?” Jack said immediately.
“When we have more Intel,
colonel.”
“Sir, the longer we leave
Daniel out there, the…”
“I’m fully aware of the
situation, colonel,”
“Yes, sir,” Jack said
heavily.
Frustratingly, all Jack
could do now was wait and consequently have more time to think, to brood. To remember that the last time he had signed
off for Daniel to accompany SG11 the team had been attacked and Daniel had been
kidnapped. Tied up and dragged off as it
turned out by a stinky Unas. Daniel had been hurt, terrified and threatened
with ending up as the main course of a monster’s banquet.
Half the team had died,
including Daniel’s old friend when Jack had been forced to shoot poor Rothman,
yet miraculously the linguist had used his compassionate understanding to make
friends with the monster and even give him a name. Only Daniel, Jack thought ruefully, recalling
how angry he’d felt when he’d finally found his friend, only to find him
defending his kidnapper against them. But later, Jack was honest enough to admit it
hadn’t really been anger he had been feeling when he’d seen Daniel, hands still
tied and blood on his face, it was unmitigated relief that he’d sought to
disguise behind other emotions.
It was almost six hours
before
Mellor and what remained of
his team had very little relevant information to impart beyond what was already
known. They had left base camp in
response to the call for help from Watkins and could soon hear the sound of
weapons fire. It didn’t take more than
ten minutes for them to reach the dig site but by then Watkins and Sierra were
dead and Daniel was missing. Baxter was the
only person with more information and he was unconscious, wounded twice; one in
the shoulder and the other a head injury.
Luckily neither was life threatening, but the head injury was keeping
him out of it.
Jack, Sam and Teal’c were
raring to go, the colonel pushing the point that prior to the incident no other
hostiles had been evident. In fact it
was believed the planet was uninhabited.
However,
Problem was, that only made
Jack more desperate to go as that suggested either the planet was not
uninhabited and begged the question what would the hostiles want with
Daniel? Or possibility two, that the hostiles had arrived by ship – and maybe had
already left? That second scenario he
tried to ignore.
Unwilling to just sit back
and wait, Jack was seriously considering the possibility of making an
unauthorised trip through the gate when the general received a call from the
Infirmary. Baxter was awake at
last.
~~
The general knew Colonel
O’Neill’s attachment to the good doctor very well and he recognised Jack’s
impatience. He was also very aware that
the colonel was presently suffering from a surfeit of guilt; an emotion both
O’Neill and Doctor Jackson seemed to share all too readily when it came to each
other. At one time,
That decision had been made
almost two years ago and the team was even closer now. This could be one of those times when that
very reliance could backfire on them. If
anything was to happen to Daniel Jackson it could tear the team apart; it would
certainly impinge on the impatient man by his side.
Doctor Fraiser met them at
the infirmary door. “Lieutenant Baxter
has severe concussion, general. He can
answer questions, but he is not to be stressed.” She stared pointedly at O’Neill who met her
gaze and nodded. She softened her
expression, knowing how worried he was about Daniel; he was her friend too.
Baxter was lying propped up
in his bed, bandages covering his upper chest and head. He looked tired but on seeing Hammond and
O’Neill approaching his expression was set and determined.
It didn’t take long to get a
clear picture of events.
“The colonel sent Captain
Watkins and me to keep an eye on the geeks. Sorry, sir,” he shrugged. “Doctors
Sierra and
“And Daniel?” Jack asked
quickly.
“I saw Daniel pull Joaquin
to the ground and I heard the sound of small arms fire, I guess they were
shooting back. The captain was already
using his P90 and I did the best I could too.”
“Colonel Mellor said your
assailants seemed more interested in the civilians?”
“Well, that’s the impression
I got, sir. They were firing in the
direction of the wall but all shots were wide, whereas the attack on Captain
Watkins and me was much more intense.”
“If that’s the case then how
was Doctor Sierra killed?”
Jack wanted to know about
Daniel, but he knew better than to interrupt the general again.
“After the captain was
killed, I tried to get closer to the Docs.
It was clear Daniel could handle himself very well, but Joaquin was
panicked by Watkins’ death. I remember
Daniel yelling something at him, but I’m not sure what happened next.”
Unable to keep his counsel
any longer, Jack demanded, “You must know what happened to Daniel?”
“Colonel!”
“Say anything? No, sir. I did hear Daniel shouting to them, trying to
find out what they wanted, but they didn’t answer him.” He looked at Jack. “I’m sorry, sir, I wish I could tell you
more, but it’s a little hazy because that’s when I got shot. Next thing I remember is waking to find
Colonel Mellor staring at me. Joaquin
was dead by then, and Daniel was missing.
I guess they thought I was dead too.”
Jack was frustrated. They knew little more now than they had
before and he was itching to get through the gate and look for Daniel himself.
“I think that’s enough,”
Doctor Fraiser interjected.
“Please, sir. Don’t delay any longer, let me take a team
through.”
~~
Less than an hour later,
Jack led the remaining members of SG1 and SG3 through the gate. At
They spent twelve hours
searching for Daniel Jackson but could find no trace of him, or any sign of where
he’d been taken.
There had been apparent
indications of a struggle near the wall where Daniel and Sierra had been and
the obvious conclusion was that after his companions had been killed or
rendered unconscious Daniel had been overwhelmed. He’d tried to fight back but hadn’t stood a
chance. Teal’c said there were at least
eight attackers, possibly more.
Teal’c followed the tracks
of the hostiles who didn’t appear to have gone to any trouble to disguise
them. Even Jack recognised the signs of
a very reluctant archaeologist being roughly pulled along and knowing Daniel
he’d purposely tried to make a trail for them to follow. As they tracked the group who seemed to be
increasingly careless, Jack’s confidence was rising they would be able to get
Daniel back. He tried not to think about
why he might have been taken.
Therefore after three hours
of following the clear trail it came as a complete shock when it simply
disappeared.
They were standing in the
middle of a rough area of scrubby land on the edge of desert. There was no further sign, no evidence and
Jack’s heart plummeted at the obvious conclusion. Then stubbornness set in and he refused to
give up. He ordered a thorough search of
the area, sending two men back along the trail to make sure no one had headed
off in another direction.
After four hours of finding
no further trace, it was clear that the others believed they were wasting their
time but Jack was as stubborn as the missing archaeologist. It was Teal’c who made him see sense.
“How much longer do we have
to waste time here, O’Neill?
DanielJackson is no longer on this planet, wishing otherwise will not
help to free him. We must return to the
SGC and seek other methods.”
Jack had looked at his
friend; glanced at the worried expression of his 2iC and realised what he was
doing. He was acting like Daniel’s
friend, like the man who loved him and felt guilt for failing, rather than like
the colonel who kept his emotions under tight control to perform his duty at
any cost. He squared his shoulders and
ordered them back to the gate.
That had been a month ago
and they’d had no more luck finding Daniel since. They hadn’t even been able to discover who
had killed the members of SG11 and stolen Daniel from them.
Immediately on their return,
And Jack was slowly going
out of his mind.
~~
A week later they finally
heard from Thor. What little information
he could provide wasn’t what Jack wanted to hear.
“I am sorry,” Thor said from
his ship far from Earth. “That area of
space is a prime hunting ground for the Istress.”
“Istress?”
“They hunt others they can
sell as slaves.”
“What!” Jack exclaimed. “Why Daniel?”
Before Thor could answer,
General Hammond asked, “Why bother with a small group like an SG team?”
“How did they find them?”
Major Carter pondered.
“How? They have various methods. They patrol, they leave traps, they have
detection devices, any number of ways.
Why? That is more difficult to say.
Perhaps they saw something they believed would fetch a high price?”
“But they only took Daniel,”
Jack commented.
“Did not Baxter suggest they
might be after Sierra too?” Teal’c interjected.
“Was this Sierra an
attractive individual by your standards?” Thor queried.
“I guess the answer to that
would be yes,” Carter said, while the men glanced at each other. “He was young, well built with pleasant
features.”
“I overheard the nurses in
the infirmary speaking of him once,” Teal’c added, “They commented that his
long hair was made to run fingers through.”
“Oh my yes,” Carter
answered, only to stop when she saw the expression on the general’s face.
Thor continued as soon as
there was silence. “I can only surmise
it is likely the Istress were keeping an eye on your people while they worked,
deciding an attack was worthwhile to get the two specimens.”
Jack flinched at the
description. “You know where they
might’ve taken Daniel?”
“There are a few locations
where sales are held,” Thor began.
“Can you give us your best
guess?” Jack interrupted.
“Best guess?” Thor queried
but before Jack could explain, he added, “Ah you wish me to provide the most likely
location. I will send you three Stargate
addresses, the first one I believe might be the best choice. I am sorry I can be of no more assistance but
my ship is needed in our fight against the replicators.”
“Thank you, Thor, for taking
the time to talk with us,”
“Yeah, thanks Thor, ole
buddy.” Jack wished the small alien
could do more but understood that he had probably done more than he should from
his own people’s point of view. At least now they had a place to start. Jack felt better than he had in weeks.
~~
The following afternoon,
Jack was pacing in his office, waiting for the result of a telephone conference
that General Hammond was having with Kinsey and the Joint Chiefs. As Daniel had already been declared MIA the general
had to pass on the report from Thor in order to request authorisation to mount
another rescue mission for Doctor Jackson.
Jack hoped the Joint Chiefs would just rubber stamp the request, knowing
what Daniel Jackson had done for the Stargate programme.
However, they didn’t
consider the information provided by Thor to be sufficiently explicit and
passed it on to a higher authority for approval, specifically the Chairman of
the Intelligence Oversight Committee, Senator Robert Kinsey.
Not surprisingly, Jack was
worried. Kinsey had never hidden his
contempt for Daniel and the usually understanding and compassionate Doctor
Jackson displayed his disdain for the man openly. This did not bode well and Jack was hoping
Jack couldn’t bear the
thought of what was happening to Daniel, what the man who meant more to him
than his own life might have been suffering for the past five and a half weeks.
He slipped Daniel’s small
tape recorder from his pocket. He
carried it with him constantly now. He
rarely took it out at work, but just putting his hand in his pocket and feeling
its presence took the edge off. At home
he often listened to it. Not the actual
words which were related to Daniel’s linguistic work but for the sound of his
voice.
Jack hadn’t realised just
how much he liked the sound of Daniel’s voice until he could no longer hear it
in person. Daniel had a melodious voice
when he wasn’t so passionately caught up that his words fell over each other in
their haste to escape and be heard. Jack
enjoyed the passion very much, and he dreamed of experiencing it in other ways
than the verbal, but when listening to Daniel now it was that gentle cadence Jack
needed to hear. He wanted all of Daniel,
the gentleness and the passion.
He made a promise to himself
and one to Daniel. If Jack ever found
him, he would tell Daniel the truth, explain to him that his friendship went so
much deeper than Daniel knew. He was
prepared to admit to Daniel that he was in love with him. He didn’t know how Daniel would react to
that. Jack prayed at least Daniel would
appreciate that someone cared for him and would provide anything – God
everything – he needed.
Next, Jack promised himself
that whatever had happened to Daniel, whatever he had been forced to suffer, he
would make sure Daniel understood he was there for him. Jack would be just a friend if that was all
Daniel wanted or needed, or as a lover if Daniel would accept that from him.
His thoughts were interrupted
by the ring of his office phone and it was with a sense of foreboding that he
picked it up.
~~
Only just stopping himself
slamming down the receiver on General Hammond, Jack thumped his desk instead
and swore volubly. So much for the
vaunted motto of never leaving a man behind!
Kinsey had flatly refused to
allow another rescue mission on what he termed ‘flimsy alien rumour’, adding
that anyway Jackson would most likely be compromised making any effort
unwarranted. According to
Even though Jack had been
doubtful permission would be received once it had been passed to Kinsey for
approval, to actually hear the disparagement in his refusal caused rage to pour
through SG1’s leader.
How dare that…that piece of crap dismiss Daniel like so blatantly! It was bad enough the man denigrated Thor’s
intelligence but to then equate Daniel’s freedom, his very life, to money? The bastard!
Daniel had been abandoned to his fate.
If Jack could’ve got his hands around Kinsey’s throat the man would’ve
been dead in an instant.
Then as the meaning of
Kinsey’s decision sank in, Jack’s anger evaporated to be replaced by a terrible
feeling of sadness, of utter loss. How
could Jack live with knowing that his best friend, the man he loved so desperately
was out there alone; facing God knows what kind of life? Lost.
Probably feeling abandoned. With
a sigh, Jack could well imagine what Daniel would be thinking; that he wasn’t
worth the trouble involved with a protracted search for him. Daniel had never accepted his own worth. And damn it, Jack wasn’t about to let someone
like Kinsey prove Daniel’s self-doubt to be correct.
Kinsey might not stand by
it, but Jack did. He would not leave a man behind, most especially
not this man.
~~
Time was passing and no
matter what Jack tried nothing changed.
He had persuaded General Hammond to keep pressing their allies for any
information and to issue a directive that each time an SG team went through the
gate they searched for any Intel about the Istress or the possible location of
Daniel Jackson. Jack knew the odds of
learning anything were remote but he had to do something no matter how futile.
While working at the
mountain and off world Jack managed to control his feelings. He hid behind his military persona and once
again became the hardened colonel. He
overheard comments suggesting he’d changed and Jack didn’t doubt it. He knew Daniel would once again recognise the
man he’d first met all those years ago; then he realised if Daniel were where
he belonged Jack wouldn’t need to hide. He’d
never hide from Daniel again. But, first
he had to find him and he didn’t have the slightest clue how to do that.
If he couldn’t find him, how
could he bring him home?
~~
Almost four months had
passed since Daniel had been taken and it seemed everyone had accepted that he
wouldn’t ever return. Everyone but Jack. Even Sam and Teal’c spoke of their missing
team-mate in the past tense.
That morning as usual Jack dropped
by Daniel’s office. It was dark and too
quiet but Jack could still feel the archaeologist in the hotchpotch of this
space. It was the one place where Jack
felt a measure of peace. The only other
time he felt closer to Daniel was at home, where the archaeologist had spent a
fair amount of his free time with his friend, often staying over. Jack had long wished for Daniel to spend the
night in his bed, but that had only ever been in his dreams, dreams he often
revisited now. His fear was mounting
that dreams of Daniel would be all he would ever have.
Pulling himself out of his
painful meanderings, Jack realised he needed to head to the briefing room, he
was going to be late for the usual pre-mission meeting with the general. SG1 had a mission and they were due to ship
out early the next morning.
The team carried on with
three members, Jack almost begging
Carter and Teal’c were
already waiting when Jack entered, Teal’c raising an eyebrow at O’Neill who was
rarely late for briefings. Jack nodded
briefly at both of them, before heading straight to the side table and pouring
himself coffee, lamenting the fact that he didn’t need to pour one for Daniel
too. Shaking away his depressive mood,
he took his seat at the table.
After a minute or two
nursing his coffee, he asked, “What’s keeping the general?”
“Not sure, sir,” Carter
said. “He was talking with Major
Etchells when Teal’c and I arrived. He
asked us to wait and continued his discussion with the major in his office.”
Jack glanced towards the
glass wall through which he could see
A couple of minutes later
the general entered the briefing room and the expression on his face didn’t
make Jack feel any better. The general
sat down heavily and looked from one face to another, his gaze falling last and
longest on Jack.
“Sir?” Jack prompted. Whatever was concerning the general, Jack was
sure it had nothing to do with SG1’s upcoming mission.
“Major Etchells made a
report on return from SG8’s recent mission to P4X 515,”
Jack sat forward in his
seat, his eyes never leaving
“The natives on the planet
had heard of the Istress, were afraid of them in fact. Seemed they raided their world from time and
time and kidnapped people.”
“Specific people?” Carter
asked.
“Always young and strong,
and usually good looking,”
“Their taste seems similar
to the Goa’uld,” Teal’c commented.
Jack’s gut twisted at the
implication. God, he’d never considered
the possibility that the slavers might be collecting for the Goa’uld.
“Is that likely?” the
general asked, frowning.
“It is not impossible,
general but unlikely. The Goa’uld would
not pay when they could gather their own slaves at will,” Teal’c replied.
Teal’c’s denial did not
remove the fear his first comment had caused and unable to bear the thought of
Daniel being used as a host or a
“Apparently the Istress hold
sales at regular intervals and natives knew the symbols for one of the planets
where they take place.”
Jack’s head snapped back up
and his eyes fixed on the general. “When
do we go, sir?” For the first time in
months, Jack had real hope.
Jack couldn’t speak; his
anger was so deep it left him breathless, and desperately trying to draw air
into his lungs. It was Teal’c who spoke.
“Why would you refuse us the
possibility of rescuing DanielJackson?”
“It isn’t that simple,
Teal’c,”
“Sir!” interjected Carter,
dismayed.
“These people had no
knowledge of Doctor Jackson. Etchells
gave a full description of him but the natives had no information about any
captives of the Istress. The likelihood
is that Doctor Jackson was sold months ago, probably shortly after he was
taken. We have no more idea today where
he is than we did the day he was taken. Sending an SG team to the known
location of these slavers, who have already proven themselves a danger to our
people, is just too high a risk.”
“A risk we’re prepared to
take,” Jack stated flatly.
“A risk I will not permit,”
“You will not permit?” Jack said harshly. “Forgive me, sir,” Jack’s voice held no trace
of apology, “but I don’t believe the refusal is your idea. It’s Kinsey again isn’t it? Doesn’t think Daniel is worth it? Well I do. I’ll do whatever it takes to get him
back. If there is even the slightest
chance that Daniel is with these people, or even if it’s only a way to get
further information, I’ll go through that gate and find out.”
“And I will accompany
O’Neill,” Teal’c stated.
“Me too,” Carter declared.
“One chance in a thousand is
enough for me,” Jack said gruffly, one chance in a million, he added silently,
pain flaring in his heart as the first chance of finding Daniel since the day
he’d been taken was yanked away from him.
“I’m sorry, colonel, but
without more information it’s just not possible. I cannot authorise such a mission.”
Jack tuned out the
briefing. He already knew enough about
the proposed mission and Carter’s technobabble would just go over his head
anyway. He had more important things to
think about right now.
~~
Jack invited Carter and
Teal’c to come to his house, ostensibly for pizza and beer, but neither of his
team mates was fooled. They knew very
well there would only be one subject of discussion that evening. Colonel O’Neill had been too quiet after the
blow of
“It seemed almost cruel to
give us that news and then tell us we can’t act on it,” Sam said with a small
sigh as she dropped the last crust of her pizza back into the box.
“I cannot believe General
Hammond would purposely be cruel,” Teal’c commented.
“He wouldn’t, but neither
would he be dishonest. He had news he
felt we should know about, even if he had to disappoint us almost immediately,”
Jack said. He’d been thinking about this
ever since
He offered Carter another
beer and Teal’c another soda. Taking a
deep pull of his own beer, he stared at the flickering fire in the grate for a
long moment before he turned to his friends.
“I have no intention of
going to P7S 988 tomorrow morning. I’m
going to the coordinates Etchells got from P4X 515.”
“You have these
coordinates?” Teal’c asked.
“Yes, I accessed Etchells’
report before I left the base. I have
the address.”
Jack looked at Carter. “We disobeyed orders once before on Daniel’s
say so, will you help me do it again for
Daniel?”
“Yes, sir,” Carter replied
immediately. “Did you really think we
wouldn’t come with you? Daniel’s safety
means…”
“No, major,” Jack
interrupted. “I need to go alone.”
“What? Why?”
Carter added a belated, “Sir.”
“We know next to nothing
about these people who have taken Daniel and it will be a lot easier for one
man alone to blend in and…”
Now it was Carter’s turn to
interrupt, “But sir, Teal’c and I are very capable of undercover work.”
“Indeed,” Teal’c added
quietly, the look in his eye telling Jack all too clearly that his abilities
were more than equal to Jack’s.
“I know that,” Jack said
calmly. “But we don’t know whether they
are even aware of the Goa’uld, or whether they could be allies or enemies. There are two many variables and
unfortunately you two could be a detriment.”
Jack held up a hand to stall any more comments. “Look, I’ve thought about nothing else all day
and I have made my decision. All I need
to know now is if you cover for me, at least for a few hours, give me a head
start.”
Sam and Teal’c looked at
each other and without a word being spoken they communicated their
decision. In reality, each of them knew
it had been a foregone conclusion.
Jack was more grateful than
he could say that his friends were with him, so he decided not to try. Instead, glancing from one to the other, he
smiled as he said, “Okay, so we ship out as usual tomorrow and immediately we
step through on the other side I’ll redial the coordinates I got from
Etchells.”
“We’ll set up camp as usual,
go through the motions. Then after say
twelve hours we’ll report into
“O’Neill is missing.” Teal’c
suggested.
“No,” Jack said, “It’s bad
enough I’m bucking orders, I’m not gonna cause
“Saying what?” Sam asked.
“The truth,
that I’ve gone in search of Daniel.”
“
“Maybe. Knowing that, you still wanna go through with
this?” Jack queried but simply received two blank looks. “Of course
“Yes.” Sam frowned.
“And he could easily send a team after you, sir.”
“Then is this diversion
necessary?” Teal’c queried.
“Maybe not, but it does
cover the general if he decides not to send anyone after me,” Jack said
quietly.
“Are you suggesting he would
approve of this action?” Teal’c raised an eyebrow and Jack knew him well enough
to know he was confused.
“Approve? No, otherwise he’d
have given us permission. Understand?
Yes, he knows how we feel about Daniel; damn it, he feels the same way but he
can’t go against orders. I don’t think
he’ll try and stop me once I’ve made my move.
He won’t risk anyone else. I
think he’ll just hope I succeed.”
“I think you better had,
sir,” Carter smiled wryly. “He might
just forgive us if you bring Daniel back, otherwise we’ll probably be spending
some time in
Jack gave her a slight
smile. He fully intended not to come
back through that gate without Daniel.
If he didn’t find him on this world, he would just keep searching.
~~
The next morning Jack took
the time to visit Daniel’s office before heading to the locker room and getting
changed. He hadn’t been able to rest
much the night before, instead planning what he would need for his private
mission and a couple of the items he wanted were in Daniel’s office.
He decided his friend might
be in need of some personal items, ordinary things like a spare pair of
glasses. He knew where Daniel kept a
pair in one of the drawers of his desk.
Smiling he also picked up a
small package of Daniel’s favourite coffee, he doubted very much if he’d had
any in months. That thought made Jack
wonder if perhaps there was anything help that might help …ground Daniel after
his months away. Jack tried not to dwell
on what kind of life Daniel might have been living during his captivity. Having been through prolonged captivity
himself, Jack knew the importance of small personal items, how that
reconnection to reality helped with recovery.
Looking round the office,
Jack began to place things on Daniel’s desk alongside the glasses and
coffee. Daniel’s favourite
bandana, his boonie, the photo of Sha’re. The team photograph taken on P2X 443 when
they were all laughing at something Daniel had said, and Jack was ruffling his
hair. Jack smiled as he remembered how
happy they had been then; a pang running through him at the fear they’d never
experience that again. Pushing aside
some morbid thoughts, he looked for other things. A small notepad and one of Daniel’s many
pencils. Jack dug the small tape
recorder from his pocket, he’d put that in the pack too. What else, he pondered?
He knew! That small box from
Feeling a little
uncomfortable at opening it, but deciding it was in a good cause, Jack flipped
the catch and lifted the lid.
Sha’re’s pendant was still
in the box, but there was something curled next to it, something that Jack thought
he recognised but surely he was mistaken.
Carefully he took out the tightly plaited band, his mouth opening a
little in surprise as he realised it had been right. He turned it over in the palm of his hand, as
if needing to see it from every angle to confirm that it really was what he
thought it was.
There could be doubt, it was
his wrist band. He thought he’d lost it
almost a year ago, when one of the strands frayed and broke. He had taken it off rather than lost it, and
then promptly couldn’t find it. He had
been angry at himself for losing the keepsake.
As he turned it in his hand he suddenly had a vague recollection of
complaining about it to Daniel and he wondered now if it had been this very
office in which he had taken it off. It
must be, he realised; he must have put it down somewhere on the desk and
forgotten it and then Daniel had put it away safely for him.
Frowning, Jack wondered why
Daniel had never given it back to him, why instead it had ended up in Daniel’s
special box. The mystery tugging at him,
Jack slipped the band back into Daniel’s box, debating whether to take the
small box with him. He was about to
place on the desk with the other items, when a voice spoke from behind him.
“I see you have found
DanielJackson’s tal’met roa’ke,”
Teal’c commented. When he saw Jack’s
confusion, he translated, “his box of love tokens.”
Eyes widening, Jack looked
down at the box still in his hands and swiftly laid it on the table.
Teal’c was still explaining,
“I believe DanielJackson said the Abydonians use them
to store items of great value to the keeper, a reminder of those whom he
loves.”
Still Jack did not speak and
the
Jack looked up at his
“A thoughtful idea,
O’Neill. However, you need to choose
wisely as you cannot take everything.”
“No, of course not. That’s what I was trying to decide.” Jack picked up the glasses, the coffee and
the picture of Sha’re. Swiftly he slipped
the photograph inside the small box and added that to his pile. Teal’c raised an eyebrow at the box but said
nothing.
~~
The plan worked perfectly, the
team gated through with
As soon as the event horizon
settled, Jack stepped through to where he hoped he might find Daniel, or at
least some news of his whereabouts.
The world he walked onto
this time was warm. It appeared to be
around mid-day. The gate was set on the
usual stone platform with three wide steps leading down into a small clearing
surrounded by overgrown bushes and tall willowy trees.
As he walked Jack thought
back over what had been learned about the Istress from the natives of P4X
515. Apparently the Istress were like
nomads but rather than travelling through a desert and stopping at oases to
trade, they travelled the stars and stopped at various worlds to hold their
sales. This world, which they called
Tiaster, was a favourite and the people of 515 had suggested it might once have
been their home world because the inhabitants dressed similarly but called
themselves Tiastress. Carter had voiced
Jack’s own thoughts; maybe these people were an offshoot and according the
natives of 515, the Istress were due to hold a sale here any day.
Jack decided to keep out of
sight at first, scout out the surroundings and the people first. It chafed Jack to have to take it slowly but
he knew it was safer in the long run, safer for him and, as a consequence,
safer for Daniel. It wouldn’t help the
archaeologist if Jack found him only to be captured at the vital moment. Jack could only pray Daniel really was
somewhere on this world.
~~
Jack had managed to merge
with the locals quite well. He’d stolen some clothes hanging from a washing
line, his own stuff was well hidden in the wood not too far from the
Stargate. He would’ve liked to bring his
P90 with him but that was impossible so he was forced to leave that stashed
away too. The only weapon he could
safely bring was his knife as many of the locals carried knives strapped to
their belts. Anything else would’ve
looked suspicious though he had considered hiding a zat
on his person, but the native clothing wasn’t very conducive to concealment.
He learned that the Istress
were due to hold a slave sale two days later so he’d timed his visit very
well. The problem was he had nothing
with which he could buy Daniel; he didn’t even understand the currency or how
much a slave would cost. So, Jack’s plan
was simple. Attend the sale, if Daniel
was there – which perversely Jack hoped he was, and didn’t he find it hard to
get his head around that – then he would follow whoever bought him to discover
where he was being held. Then Jack would
do a threat assessment and see if there was a way to get him out. Anyway he could. If that looked to be impossible his only
option then would be to head for the Gate and get help. He had to trust that
Jack investigated the small
township carefully in the two days while he waited, scouting out the various
routes from the market place where the sale was to be held, looking out for any
good hiding places, or shortcuts that might prove useful later. One of the first things he noticed was two
distinct types of clothing among the inhabitants, and he soon learned who were the free citizens and who were the slaves.
When the morning of the sale
dawned, Jack was tense. He hoped he
would see Daniel again, yet at the same time he was afraid his hopes would be
in vain. He knew in reality he had no proof Daniel would be part of this sale,
all he had was a hope, a belief that
he would find Daniel soon. But in the
dark of the night, when hope faded and fear slipped in he wondered if he would
ever see Daniel again.
As the time of the sale was
approaching Jack made his way to the market place, not surprised to find it was
very busy. Most of the usual stalls had
been moved out of the way, leaving a large central area clear where the crowd
was already gathering. A small dais had been placed against the back wall.
Jack joined the watching populace
staying towards the back, and settling into a place where he could see the dais
clearly but was safely hidden himself.
He watched as two tall men
in dark robes entered from the side, one climbing onto the dais. He pushed the hood of his robe back, scanning
the waiting crowd. He said a few words of
introduction, informing those waiting that they had fourteen male slaves and
six female ones to go on the block, adding almost as an afterthought that one
of the women had a child that could be purchased with the mother, or
separately.
Jack’s stomach twisted at
the casual brutality of these men. It
didn’t bode well for the treatment the slaves received.
The man on the dais nodded
to his companion and he let out a shrill whistle. Immediately another two robed men brought out
the first slave, a strapping young man who didn’t look a day over twenty and
the sale began.
Nerves strung to almost
breaking point, Jack watched each person brought forth, usually a couple of men
interspersed with a woman and then two more men. They were mostly young, the oldest being
perhaps thirty so far and in surprisingly good condition, much to Jack’s
relief.
All the women had been sold
by now, and Jack was comforted to see that the child, a boy of about seven, was
sold along with his mother. There were
only two more males left of the fourteen that the auctioneer had stated were to
be sold and Jack was feeling desperate.
If Daniel wasn’t one of the last two, he was at a loss what to do
next. But Jack would not give up. He would think of something, God, he had too!
He took a breath to calm
himself. It wouldn’t do to draw any
attention to himself, he had to blend into the background. Watching nervously as the last two slaves
were brought out, first one and then the other, but neither of them proved to
be Daniel.
Jack stood there as the
crowd broke up. He watched the
auctioneer count the proceeds from the sale, talking animatedly with his
companions. A cold feeling had settled
in his gut and Jack knew he had to get out of there before he did something
stupid.
As he turned away he saw the
vendors were moving their stalls back into position, rapidly putting their
wares out on display again. Just one
more day at the market, Jack thought disgustedly.
Feeling very despondent,
Jack began slowly walking back through the confusion of the market as the
locals reorganised themselves. He was
looking down, trying desperately to think of what to do next, of how to
discover what might have happened to Daniel.
He was concerned now that the odds were he was on entirely the wrong
world. He didn’t even know how many
worlds the Istress used to sell their slaves.
It was so frustrating.
A sudden yell directly in
front of Jack brought him up short. He
had almost collided with a vendor carting goods to his nearby stall. The man’s angry face was expressive and Jack
held up his hands in apology, backing away to skirt the man. As it didn’t really matter where Jack went
just then, he took another direction towards the outer edge of the market where
the stalls hadn’t been disturbed by the sale of the slaves.
He looked around to get his
bearings and it was then he saw the man.
He stared hard, hardly believing what he thought he saw. Heart beating like a hammer in his chest Jack
stared at him. The man in slave
clothing, the nondescript close fitting grey leggings and top fastened with a
twisted grey and black cord round his waist.
Jack thought he would know that figure anywhere, though on second
thoughts he was a little thinner. The
hair was a little longer, more like it had been when they’d first met. But the angle of the head as he talked, the
way he moved his hands, even with a package in one of them, it was
classic. From this angle Jack couldn’t
see his face at all, and the man was clearly focused on the citizen with
him. Still Jack was sure, yet he needed
confirmation.
He watched as the citizen,
he had to be the slave’s owner, turned to the slave and appeared to speak
sharply. The slave took a step back and
bowed a little to his master and in doing so Jack was able to see the slave’s
face. Jack had to suppress a gasp at
what he saw. Indeed it was his friend.
He had found Daniel – and he had a large bruise across the left side of his
face which looked a day or two old.
His first reaction was to
rush forward grab Daniel and pull him away from the man who had the temerity to
mistreat Daniel, to think he could own
his friend. However, good sense
prevailed and Jack stood still, looking his fill instead, grateful to find that
even with the slight loss of weight and the visible bruise, Daniel still
managed to look in reasonably good health.
Daniel and his master were moving away and Jack quickly
went after them, keeping at a reasonable distance so he could follow safely
without being seen.
Jack only needed to keep
pace with them for about ten minutes when they stopped before the gates to one
of the larger residents in the small town.
Daniel stood back as the man opened them, moved through after his master
and then turned to close the gates behind them.
It was then that he saw
Jack.
~~
Daniel struggled uselessly
against his unknown captors as they bound his hands behind his back and all too
soon he was whisked aboard a strange ship.
It was a design he had never seen before.
He demanded answers. Who they were, why they had attacked, why
they had taken him? He’d kept asking
over and over until with a growl one of them gagged him, tying it so tight that
the material abraded his mouth. Daniel
got his answers though as he was slammed back against the metal wall of the
ship, a forearm pressed against his throat so he feared for his life.
“We are the Istress and we
take what we want!” the man snarled at him.
“Men, women, children, it matters not.”
He laughed mirthlessly looking around at the other men. Turning back to Daniel, the man’s eyes
narrowed and he stared closely at his prisoner.
“But you, you and the other one, we have a special…order for someone
like you.”
Daniel assumed the man meant
Joaquin and he frowned, wondering what the Istress could want with two archaeologists,
Tau’ri archaeologists. He longed to
question the man and the gag was doubly frustrating. However, he was released then to fall like a
rag doll on the deck. The Istress walked
out, laughing among themselves, one of them locking Daniel in the small empty
metal room.
A few hours later two men
entered his cell again, one watched while the other removed the gag and his
bonds. He was given some water and a
bowl of some unrecognisable stew that he forced himself to eat. One of the first things Jack had taught him
was the need to keep his strength up so he would be ready if ever the chance of
escape presented itself. It helped to
think of Jack and the others.
Then he was told to strip
and Daniel was about to refuse when the second man lifted his weapon, and
smiled. It was not a pleasant smile and
the message was very clear. Strip or it
would be done for him.
Slowly Daniel removed his
clothes and was unaccountably grateful when a bundle was thrown at him. He’d been scared for a moment that they intended
to keep him naked. He shook out the
clothing he was given, relieved that though the material was rough, the pants
and shirt-like top were strong and serviceable.
When he was finished, his
hands were re-tied but at least they left the gag off. He took the hint and kept his mouth shut, as
difficult as that was. Sitting alone all
he could do was think of what might happen to him next, and all the various
scenarios that came to mind did nothing at all to ease his mind. Daniel was afraid.
~~
It was two days later before
his fears were realised. Daniel was
taken from his cell and, together with a dozen other male prisoners and a large
complement of Istress guards; he was ‘beamed’ to the planet below, which he learned
was called Tiaster.
The scene that greeted
Daniel brought home the comments made by the Istress man on his day of capture:
that they took what they wanted, men, women or children. It was market day and the main sale item was
people. The Istress were indeed slavers.
The man who had gagged him,
who Daniel now knew was called Diman and was the group’s leader, stepped up
onto a small stage and proceeded to display the men – the slaves – one by
one. Daniel watched as each man was
inspected, bids were made until finally a sale was agreed. At last he was the only one left and his
stomach was churning at the thought of standing up there waiting for some
stranger to buy him.
If ever he needed the
cavalry to arrive at the last moment it was now. Come
on, Jack, please. Please, I need you. He almost said the words aloud as if voicing
them could somehow make the desire more real.
Instead, he closed his eyes and repeated the words silently, over and
over, praying help would come.
Then, suddenly, he felt a
hand on his arm and he was roughly pulled forward. Opening his eyes, expecting to be shoved up
on the stage, he was surprised to find he was being propelled away from the now
empty dais. Glancing around he noticed
the crowd was dispersing.
“What? What’s happening?”
Daniel asked, half-expecting a blow when he grasped he’d spoken aloud.
Diman turned to him and said
brusquely, “It’s your turn.”
“My turn?” Daniel queried
carefully.
Diman laughed, “You’re gonna
fill a special order.” Diman turned away
and continued to march his way through what appeared to be a small town.
Daniel knew he’d get nothing
more from the man, but thinking over what he’d told Daniel, now and when they
first met, he reckoned that someone wanted a man with specific abilities. Someone like him, and poor Joaquin. Archaeologists – and linguists! Of course, they had been studying the
markings on the wall. Why hadn’t he
understood that before, it seemed obvious now.
Of course, he might’ve had something else on his mind.
Even as Daniel came to his
conclusion, the group approached a large pair of wooden gates and Diman banged
loudly on them.
Almost immediately the gates
were opened and a middle-aged man in a pale grey tight-fitting outfit bowed and
stood back. Beyond the gates there was
an open area, bounded on two sides by rows of small trees and bushes in large
pots. Opposite the gates was the
residence, and standing on a low veranda another man was waiting. This man was dressed differently, in various
shades of blue, wide leggings gathered at the ankle, a long-sleeved tunic open
from the neck to waist where it was loosely tied with a broad leather belt, the
whole topped off with a floor length sleeveless cloak. Both the tunic and the cloak were richly
embroidered in gold and silver thread.
Diman approached the man and
Daniel noticed his swagger was noticeably reduced.
“Simdan, well met,” Diman
said.
“Well met, Diman.” Simdan stepped down, his eyes only for
Daniel. “You have found someone
suitable? You’re sure?”
“He meets the criteria you
demanded, Simdan, but you know I cannot guarantee
it. I found him studying the writings in
the ruins of Piradae.”
“Piradae!” He stepped in front of Daniel. “You can read the writings?”
Daniel looked at the man,
debating whether to answer.
Diman gave him no time to
think, slapping him hard across the back of his head. “Answer your master!” he demanded.
“I am no man’s slave!”
Daniel retaliated in anger, not considering his words.
“You are now,” Simdan said,
casually throwing a bag to Diman as he spoke, paying for his new slave.
The chink of coin could
clearly be heard as the slaver caught the bag.
“Thank you, Simdan. Always good
to do business with you. If he does not
work out, let me know and I will search again.”
“If he does not suit, the
fee will be half next time,” Simdan said sharply.
Diman hesitated a moment but
then nodded before turning to leave at the head of his men.
Simdan turned back to
Daniel, looking him up and down. “You
have the look of intelligence. You may
not have been a slave before, but you belong to me now. Accept your situation. What is your name? Tell me a little of yourself.”
“My name is Daniel and how
can I accept my situation? I am a free man who was stolen from his
friends, his life.”
“You have no choice,
Daniel. You legally belong to me. I am not a hard master but I will be
obeyed. Timus, take Daniel, bathe him
and dress him appropriately. Show him where
he can sleep, feed him if he is hungry and then bring him back to me.” Simdan glanced at Daniel. “Come back to me in a better frame of mind,
Daniel. Prepare to answer my questions
and all will be well.”
Daniel wanted to ask ‘and if
I don’t?’ but he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer.
~~
Following Timus deeper into
the house, Daniel hoped to learn from the older slave. “Timus, can I…?”
“Quiet!” Timus glanced back
over his shoulder. “The first thing you
need to learn is that Simdan is our master, but I am yours.”
Daniel stared at the man
recognising that he had been well and truly fooled by the man’s attitude in
front of his master. Daniel had hoped
the man might prove a friend but he gathered that Timus was so much more than
the quiet obedient slave he appeared.
“The master leaves the
running of the household to me,” Timus continued. “You will have specific duties given to you
by the master, but beyond that you are just one more slave under my charge and
you will follow my rules.”
Timus opened a nearby door
and ushered Daniel inside. “Remove your
clothes and wash the smell from yourself,” Timus ordered.
Daniel wanted to rebel,
hating the idea of giving in to this man’s demands but beside the fact that he
knew he should save his resistance for a battle worth fighting, it had been
days since he had bathed. The water in
the deep tub looked very inviting.
Daniel pulled off the pants and top given him by the slavers and walked
to the tub.
Suddenly some sixth sense
made Daniel glance over at Timus and he was unnerved by the look in the man’s
eyes. It took Daniel a moment to realise
what it was that made him uncomfortable. Timus was staring at his body, hunger
lighting his eyes. Daniel had seen that
look before and he quickly got into the tub, away from those eyes. There was only one man Daniel had ever wanted
to look at him like that, but Jack never had.
As if sensing his unease,
Timus laughed and dropped a rough cloth and a set of clothes next to the
tub. “Put those on when you’re done.”
Using the cloth to dry as
quickly as he could, Daniel put on his slave attire. Timus again looked him up and down but Daniel
refused to acknowledge it.
The head slave took Daniel
to the kitchen where he quickly ate a bowl of thick stew and drank a fruit
cordial that reminded him of an oversweet grapefruit.
After he had finished
eating, Timus ordered him to follow and they returned the way they had come but
before they reached the main doors of the dwelling, Timus turned to the
right. Knocking on the door he opened it
without waiting for a response.
“The new slave, master,”
Timus said, the harsh note gone from his voice.
“That’s better,” Simdan
commented, looking Daniel up and down.
“It is easier for you to become accustomed to your new life when you see
yourself in your new persona.”
“Wearing this outfit does
not make me feel any more of a slave than I felt in my own clothes,” Daniel
said wearily.
Simdan frowned, stopping in
front of him. “You will learn your place
beginning now,” he said severely. “I’ll
show you what I require of you and I’ll let Timus teach you what happens if I’m
disappointed.”
Daniel was unnerved at the
threat. He had the distinct impression
whatever that entailed Timus would like it, and he, Daniel most certainly would
not.
Simdan showed Daniel into a
large room, two whole walls of which were filled floor to ceiling with shelves
containing books and scrolls. The wall
in which the door was set was covered with framed works of art; the fourth wall
consisted of three tall windows set equidistantly, each one framed with heavy
drapes.
“My pride and joy,” Simdan
said, his arms wide to encompass the room.
“My library has taken most of my life to collect, many of the items are
very rare and precious.” He walked over
to a small table bathed in light from the windows. “Like this,” he said with awe.
Daniel moved alongside
Simdan, following his gaze. There was a
rare and delicate piece of what appeared to be thin parchment displayed between
two sheets of glass, which meant Daniel wasn’t allowed to touch, something he
found frustrating. Jack had often said
without his hands, Daniel couldn’t read.
With a sigh, Daniel wished Jack were here now to tease him.
Daniel recognised the
similarity between the writing on the scroll and the markings on the wall he
and Joaquin had been studying before he was taken. Recognising the markings didn’t mean Daniel
could translate it. He hadn’t had enough
time to make sense of it on the planet and the additional sample Simdan showed
him didn’t seem enough for him to make much progress.
“It took me a long time to
acquire this one,” Simdan said, his voice softening as he stared at the
flattened piece of scroll. “It’s the key
to so much power.” He looked up at
Daniel, his expression set and hard. “You must tell me exactly what it says.”
“I’m not sure I can do
that,” Daniel said gently, glancing at the man who considered him a slave and,
recognising the growing anger in the man’s expression, quickly tried to
explain. “I need more to work with,
other samples of the writing, without that I might never decipher the
language.”
“Don’t lie to me!” Simdan
declared. “You were seen deciphering the
wall on Piradae.”
“No, no. You don’t understand. I was working there yes, my friend and I were
trying to understand what the ruins had been, what the markings meant but we’d
only just…”
“Enough!” Simdan snapped. “You can study any book in my library, ask
for anything you need, but I must know what it says.”
Daniel sighed, shaking his
head. The man didn’t understand, or
didn’t want to. “I will try, that’s all
I can promise,” Daniel stated.
Simdan stared at him and
Daniel knew that failure was not an option to Simdan’s way of thinking. Daniel felt a frisson of fear at what this
man might do if he could not succeed. He
turned away, taking the seat at the table in front of the document.
“Can you tell me anything
about what subject this covers? Why it’s
so important to you?” Daniel asked carefully.
“It is said to be the path
to great knowledge and even greater wealth,” Simdan replied softly, leaving
before Daniel could ask him anything else.
~~
Over the next few days,
Daniel did his best to comply with Simdan’s wishes but he knew it could take a
long time, if ever, for him to translate the writings. He had asked Simdan two days earlier when his
master came to check on his progress if it wasn’t possible to get copies of the
writings from Piradae. Simdan had looked
uncomfortable at the question but hadn’t replied.
At the end of each long day,
an exhausted and frustrated Daniel returned to the tiny room in the slaves’
quarters that had been allocated to him.
He ate his early meal with the other slaves in the communal room; his
mid-day meal was served to him in the library.
He was supposed to eat the evening meal with the others too, but he’d
taken to arriving late, grabbing his portion and taking it to his room. He preferred to work a little longer and eat
alone than put up with the uncomfortable feeling of being under the watchful
eyes of Timus. It wasn’t possible to
avoid the morning meal as all the slaves were roused at the same time and
expected to bathe communally and then go and break their fast.
If Daniel could’ve avoided
bathing in front of Timus he would, the man seemed to be continually watching
him. Daniel didn’t know for sure if he
watched any of the other men with that same expression, as Daniel purposely
didn’t look at him, but either way he didn’t like the feeling.
It was the seventh night
after his arrival that Daniel found Timus waiting for him when he entered his
room. The man was sitting on his narrow
bunk looking far too comfortable.
“Timus?” Daniel frowned,
lifting his chin and squaring his shoulders.
He had no intention of letting the head slave have any idea how
intimidated he felt. “What do you want
here?”
Timus laughed, “Why, you of
course, I thought you’d know that by now.”
“Me?” Even though Timus voiced Daniel’s own fear,
he couldn’t keep the surprise from his voice.
“Oh come now, don’t pretend
you didn’t know. Just the way you avoid
me tells me just how aware of me you are.”
He rose and stepped closer to Daniel.
“Afraid of me, I like that.”
That was the last thing he
ought to have said. Daniel was
furious. Furious at himself for allowing
the man to get to him, furious at Timus for the assumption that Daniel was scared
of him.
“I am not afraid of you,”
Daniel said firmly. “I just don’t
appreciate being ogled at the way you do.
I am not a piece of meat to be…”
“You’re exactly what I chose
you to be!” Timus snarled, grabbing hold of Daniel’s upper arms, his fingers
digging in painfully.
“I’m forced to be a slave to
Simdan, but I am not yours to do with
as you will.”
Timus’ laughter rolled
around the room, loud and raucous, the sound grating on Daniel’s already
stretched nerves. The laughter suddenly
died and Timus yanked him closer. Daniel
could feel the man’s hot breath on his face, smell the sweat on his body; feel
his hard-on pressing into his thigh.
“You’ve not learned yet that
Simdan lets me do whatever it takes to keep his house running smoothly? That means keeping me satisfied.” As he spoke
one of his hands slid down Daniel’s arm to grip his wrist. Daniel began to struggle and suddenly Timus
shoved him and Daniel found himself being slammed into the wall behind
him. “I don’t mind getting a couple of
the others to tie you down,” Timus growled as he leaned so close Daniel could
see his own reflection in the man’s eyes.
Smiling evilly, he added, “I’d like that actually. You like that?”
Daniel froze. He was no innocent but it had been a long
time since he’d been with a man. He’d
never been the kind to play around; to Daniel having sex meant caring for the
person you were with, no matter what gender they were. He’d not felt like that for anyone in a long
time, not until he fell for Sha’re, not until he acknowledged that he loved
Jack. The idea of Jack wanting to make
love with him excited Daniel beyond anything he could think of. He dreamed of Jack wanting him, touching him;
Daniel would do anything Jack wanted including being tied to a bed because he
knew if ever Jack wanted him like that it would be because he cared for
him.
But to be tied down for this
man? That was horrific to him.
Daniel made his mind
up. Timus had power over him, Daniel had
to face that and he didn’t doubt the man would exercise that power to do
whatever he wanted. So, Daniel’s only
choice now was how it was going to
happen.
“No,” he said, deliberately
making his voice low. “If we’re gonna do
this I want to participate.”
Timus’ eyes widened and then
a slow smile spread over his face.
“Good, it’s more fun if we both take part. But,” he added, his eyes hard, “If you’re
thinking of trying anything…”
“No, I know when a cause is
lost,” Daniel said softly. “I might as
well enjoy it,” he added with a smile.
His jaw ached but not as much as his heart.
~~
Time passed slowly, and
Daniel’s life settled into a routine that he found very difficult, and it
wasn’t just the sexual favours demanded by Timus from time to time.
Simdan found it hard to
accept that Daniel was making no progress with the translation of the document. At first the man had resorted to verbal abuse
but after the first week the abuse had become physical. First Simdan’s walking cane had slammed down
barely missing his fingers, then it was a slap across his face and when Daniel
made the mistake of defending himself against another blow by raising his
hands, Simdan was furious.
“How dare you resist my
punishment!” Simdan cried. “Timus! Timus, get in here now!”
Daniel knew he’d made a
major mistake but he’d simply reacted the way he’d been taught, blocking the
blow and twisting to throw his assailant off balance. He had stopped himself from following through
and hitting Simdan but it hadn’t mattered, he’d gone too far for his master.
Daniel was dragged off into
the courtyard where Timus and another slave tied him between two of the trees.
Timus ripped the shirt from his back, leaning in to whisper, “You should’ve
kept that passion for when I come for you.”
Daniel couldn’t help the shiver that ran through him. He hated that he was forced to submit to the
other man, only being able to go through with it by recalling Jack’s
instruction to do whatever it took to survive, trying to push away the thought
of what Jack would think of the whole sordid situation.
Daniel was almost glad it
was Timus who wielded the leather strap on his back; it somehow kept their true
relationship in a box he could live with.
The pain helped him accept he was nothing but a victim, as unwilling in
his bed as he was between the two trees.
That was the first but it
wasn’t the last time Simdan had him beaten.
He learned a couple of weeks later that his master had paid for another
expedition to visit Piradae to have copies made of some of the writings on the
wall there. After that he expected some
results from Daniel within the next few days and when it didn’t happen, he
believed Daniel was lying to him.
“Why? Simdan, why would I lie?” Daniel demanded as
he was dragged outside again. “I have
nothing to gain and much to lose.”
Simdan scowled at him. “You have an easy life working in the
library. You know once you succeed I
will put you to work in some other way.
Of course you have much to gain.”
“No, no, I’m not lying. The writing is similar but it’s not exactly
the same. I can’t…”
Simdan slapped him hard
across the face, “Silence! I will hear
no more of your lies. Timus!”
Timus beat him again. This time was worse than the first but at
least it kept Timus from this bed for a while.
For the next week or two
Daniel continued to work with the document but then Simdan came to see him one
afternoon.
“I have decided you should
do other work as well as this,” he said brusquely.
“Other work, master?” After his last beating, Simdan had demanded
Daniel use his title at all times.
Daniel hated it but he knew it was really a small price to pay and he
swallowed his pride.
“Yes, Ciadus displeased me
and I have sent him to work in the fields, so I have need of a new body slave,
you will assume that role.”
Daniel wasn’t sure how to
react. Nothing had been said but he was
pretty sure that Ciadus did more for Simdan that look after his bath and his
attire and dance attendance on him. The
young man had eaten with the other slaves but he never slept in the slave
quarters. Daniel couldn’t help but
wonder what the young slave had done to displease his master, but knew better
than to ask Simdan.
“You can still work in here
for a few hours each day but the rest of the time you will provide for the
needs of my body. You will come to me
this evening after your meal.”
~~
He’d been right of course;
Simdan’s body slave served his body in every way the master wished.
That first night, after
Daniel had bathed his master, Simdan had led him to his bedchamber and calmly
said, “You can use your mouth to pleasure me tonight.” To Simdan it was no different than Daniel
using a soft cloth to clean the water from his body.
Daniel knelt before the man,
closing his eyes in an attempt to calm himself before he took the man’s cock in
his mouth. Humiliated, Daniel dreaded
that this was going to be his lot for the rest of his life. He’d already accepted that Simdan would soon
tire of his unsuccessful efforts to read the elusive language of his precious
scroll, but Daniel would far have preferred a life in the fields to servicing
this man nightly.
The one bright light in this
turn of events was that Daniel would never again have to submit to Timus, never
have to feel the man’s thick fingers digging into this flesh, or his fat cock
shoving into his body and having to pretend that he didn’t hate every second of
it. Daniel shuddered at the memory,
grateful for a moment until he felt Simdan’s fingers sliding through his
hair. Was it only a case of out of the
frying pan and into the fire?
However, Simdan proved to be
much more considerate of him in the bedroom than Timus ever had. He liked Daniel to suck him after his bath;
sometimes he would expect to be brought to climax in his mouth, encouraging
Daniel to stroke himself at the same time.
On more than one occasion, Simdan’s hand had joined Daniel’s in bringing
him off after Daniel had swallowed down his come. Sometimes Simdan would pull out of Daniel’s
mouth, ordering his slave to his knees where he carefully breached him before
filling his insides with his hot seed.
It was almost a month later
as Simdan rose from his bath one evening, when Daniel automatically went to his
knees to suck him off that his master declined.
“Not this time, Daniel, I
had something different in mind for tonight.”
Simdan had been edgy all
evening, most of the afternoon in fact, ever since his visitor had left. Daniel had no idea what the meeting had been
about but it seemed Simdan hadn’t been very happy with its conclusion. The master had eaten sparingly, picking at
his food, not even attempting to eat the dessert, which always seemed to be his
favourite part of the meal. For a little
while Daniel had wondered if his master was ill but came to the conclusion he
was simply in an ill mood when he abruptly threw his wine glass across the
room.
He had spent less time in
his bath too, rising before Daniel had finished rinsing him.
“Come, hurry!” Simdan
demanded striding quickly to the bedroom.
Following behind, Daniel
felt nervous of what was to come, never having seen Simdan in quite this mood
before. Standing naked in the entrance
to Simdan’s chamber, he watched puzzled as his master pressed one of the small
decorative plaques against the wall beside the bed. He sucked in a breath as a portion of the
wall slid back. Daniel had never seen
this before and his gut clenched with trepidation at what might be behind
it.
Simdan walked forward and
suddenly a dim light illuminated what proved to be a small room. He turned back, glancing irritably at
Daniel. “What are waiting over there
for?” Suddenly his eyes glittered and he
added, “Do I need to drag you in here?”
Daniel’s stomach knotted and
he reluctantly moved forward. He hadn’t
been able to see much from where he’d been standing but he saw the chains
hanging from the ceiling attached to a sturdy bar. As he got closer he also saw the shorter
chains hanging from the bar ending in narrow manacles. His mouth went dry and he desperately tried
to see what else the room contained.
However, before anything
could really register he found himself being dragged forward. Suddenly the usually calm master was gripping
his shoulders tightly as he positioned him under the bar, grabbing an arm to
lift it so he could fasten the wrist in one of the manacles.
As Simdan took hold of the
other wrist he glanced into Daniel’s face and his eyes widened a little at the
expression he must have seen. He smiled tightly, “Don’t worry, my pet.” Daniel shivered at the odd tone as he called
him by a name he never had before. “I’ll
make it good for both of us,” he added, his hands sliding slowly over Daniel’s
back and across his buttocks.
Daniel stared, frowning at
the fire he saw in Simdan’s eyes, a passion he had never seen before. It was unnerving. “What…what are you going to do?”
Simdan looked surprised,
“Why make us both feel, deep inside where it really counts.”
Daniel closed his eyes, not
wanting to see that particular light in Simdan’s eyes. He’d believed he was better off with Simdan,
he’d been a fool.
He heard the sound, the
swish through the air before he felt the lash hit his back, but knowing it was
coming didn’t mean he wasn’t any more prepared for the sensation as fire licked
across his shoulder blades. He clamped
his mouth shut to hold in his cry.
Simdan let lose with the
whip twice more and each time Daniel fought to keep his cries inside.
“Let me hear, let me know
how much you feel it,” Simdan whispered into his ear and Daniel’s eyes shot
open.
He hadn’t known the man was
so close. It suddenly occurred to Daniel
that Simdan got off on his pain and it wasn’t doing him any good to keep the
hurt to himself; that would only make the pain last longer he guessed. So when Simdan next flicked the whip Daniel
gave voice to his pain.
“That’s it! That’s it,” Simdan sighed and lashed his
slave again. “Not too low,” he said
softly to himself, “Don’t want it marked there.” He stepped closer again and his hand was
gentle as he caressed Daniel’s backside, smiling. Then he moved back and the whip snaked out
again. The slave screamed.
Only half-aware, Daniel
wondered how much more he could take, if Simdan would whip him until he passed
out, so it took him a moment to realise that his master was fingering his hole,
circling it and mumbling to himself.
Abruptly the finger pressed inside and Daniel bucked, moaning at the
pain that sliced across his back at the sudden movement. Simdan grabbed him around the hips and worked
his fingers inside him for a moment and Daniel struggled not to move, not to
cause himself more pain.
Abruptly Simdan released his
hold on him, unfastening his wrists from the manacles. Daniel stumbled as Simdan moved him. He could hear his master speaking but he was
unable to make out the words, it was difficult enough trying to put one foot in
front of the other. Then abruptly he was
falling. He tried to put his hands out
to protect himself but he couldn’t make his arms work properly. Luckily he landed on something soft and it
was a moment or two before he understood that Simdan had moved him to the bed while
he was now lying on his stomach.
For a moment all he felt was
relief until he was aware of the bed dipping as Simdan climbed up beside
him.
“Please,” he whispered.
“Soon,” Simdan murmured, his
hands brushing along Daniel’s thighs towards his buttocks and Daniel
moaned. Simdan smiled and leaned down to
kiss the squirming slave. “Open for me,”
Simdan muttered as he slid his fingers inside again.
Daniel felt as if he was on
fire and the intrusion of Simdan’s fingers only fanned the flames but he was
aware enough to understand that his master had only one thing on his mind, his
own pleasure. Daniel’s pain only seemed
to excite the man more and once again Daniel struggled to keep his cries of
pain inside, clamping his lips shut and burying his face in the bedding beneath
him.
Jack please help me, where are you?
Daniel was almost surprised
he’d thought of Jack now, he had determined to keep thoughts of Jack at bay
during such times, it hurt too much to think of the man he’d dreamed of being
with when he was forced to endure the lust of strangers. Yet this time, he didn’t push the thought of
his friend away, he drew it closer, seeking solace where there was none.
He felt Simdan roughly
breach him and hot tears filled his eyes.
Suddenly angry at his loss of control, Daniel flicked the tears from his
eyes and, allowing the pain and anger to feed his emotions, rose onto his knees
and slammed back against the man thrusting inside him. He’d had enough of others taking what he
didn’t want to give, he could at least take back some control by allowing
himself to take some degree of pleasure rather than be nothing but a
victim. He shoved thoughts of Jack away
as deeply as he could and lost himself in the sensations flooding through him,
both the pain and the pleasure.
Simdan was delighted with
his slave’s reaction, with his obvious mounting passion and he thrust deeper
and deeper into the man arched beneath him until his release filled the
slave.
Exhausted, Simdan dropped
onto him, Daniel crying out with pain and Simdan briskly rolled off him.
“Easy, easy, Daniel. I am well pleased and I will look after you,
fear not.”
Daniel refused to allow any
more tears to fall, roughly brushing a hand across his face and into his
hair. He heard Simdan at the door
calling for emollient to ease the skin.
Daniel grimaced at the idea that being beaten and then fucked through
the mattress could be soothed with a little cream.
~~
That night proved a kind of
turning point though, his master being more conciliatory with him both during
the day and in the bedroom, seeming to treat Daniel more as a trusted servant
than as a slave.
Only one other time did
Simdan treat him that brutally again and it was after another meeting with a
man Daniel learned was also looking for the secret Simdan believed was hidden
within his scroll. Simdan was frustrated
that Daniel was no nearer solving the riddle and that night he was taken into
the hidden room. The following morning
after another application of the soothing balm, things returned to what Daniel
considered his normal life now.
Daniel had been struck in
another incident three days ago, when he had attempted to intercede with Timus
over the punishment of a young boy and the head slave had lashed out, hitting
Daniel across the cheek.
“Being the master’s bed
warmer doesn’t give you the right to challenge me!” Timus had roared.
Daniel had almost struck
back, only the sharp sound of their master’s voice held him back. “And I
didn’t give you the right to beat my favourite without my permission,” Simdan
declared.
Timus bowed slightly. “No master, but it is my place to chastise
the other slaves who disobey me.”
Daniel spoke up quickly,
“The boy’s misdeed did not warrant a whipping, master.”
“It is not your place to
say, Daniel,” Simdan said quietly. “Go
to our quarters, I will decide what punishment the boy deserves.”
Daniel had no choice but to
leave but was pleased to hear later that though the boy had been punished, he
had not been whipped and Simdan did not berate him for his interference. For the first time it occurred to him that
his place in the master’s bed might have more uses than to keep him away from
Timus.
Now, only a few days later,
Daniel stared at the apparition, for that was what he thought it was when he
first saw Jack standing there gazing at him.
When Daniel had first been taken he had dreamed of Jack coming for him
but all too soon he’d accepted the odds of that actually happening were
virtually non-existent. He had been
taken away by ship and no one would have had the slightest idea who had
kidnapped him or where he’d been taken.
Before long it was easier to let go of such hopes, hopes that only
became torturous as time passed and he was obliged to face the kind of life he
was forced to live as a slave.
Standing at his master’s
gate staring at Jack, it was very hard for Daniel to accept the evidence of his
own eyes. Very hard for him to know how
to feel when faced with returning to a life he’d tried to forget, people he’d
considered lost to him forever.
It was difficult to know
what to do with the many unpleasant memories of what he’d gone through here on
Tiaster tumbling through his troubled mind.
Hardly knowing what he was doing, he backed away from the man he’d been
dreaming about for months.
~~
Jack could hardly believe
the swiftly changing expressions on Daniel’s face, from joy to shock
to…despair? He didn’t understand what he
was seeing and then suddenly he was running.
The sight of Daniel slowly closing the gate in his face was more than he
could take.
“Daniel! Daniel!” he yelled
as he rashly ran towards him.
Abruptly, the gate stopped
closing and Daniel stood there in the remaining gap, his skin visibly paling as
Jack came closer. Suddenly a hand fell
heavily on Daniel’s shoulder pulling him aside and the man who had walked from
the market with Daniel moved into view.
“What is going on?” the
stranger asked. “Who is this person?” he
added as Jack slid to a halt directly in front of them.
Daniel had moved back
slightly behind the other man, gazing at Jack over his shoulder. Jack was relieved to see the hunger in
Daniel’s eyes as he gazed at him. For a
moment Jack had been concerned that Daniel didn’t recognise him; that would’ve
perhaps explained his odd behaviour a few minutes ago. But now his disquiet returned because it was
clear that Daniel did indeed recognise him, yet he seemed almost afraid of him.
“Daniel?” Jack queried
softly.
“Daniel, who is this man?”
the stranger demanded peremptorily.
Jack stared at Daniel,
waiting for his clever friend to explain, particularly as Jack suddenly
realised he didn’t know what the hell to say.
He had rushed forward without really thinking, because he was so thrown
at Daniel’s odd behaviour. He had meant
to assess the situation and make plans accordingly, not dash forward like an
idiot. He could have ruined
everything.
Realising that Daniel still
hadn’t spoken, Jack thought he’d better dive in, say something, but as he
opened his mouth, Daniel finally spoke, his voice low and deferential.
“This is Colonel Jack
O’Neill, my team leader. One of the
friends I was taken from. I told you
about them, master.”
Master? God,
Daniel, what have they done to you?
Abruptly Jack became the colonel again, back straight, shoulders back,
and chin high, eyes staring over the master’s
left shoulder. “At your service, sir,”
he said formally. “I have been searching
for Daniel for some time. He was stolen
from us in an unwarranted attack and it is my duty to retrieve him. Would you not introduce your…master, Daniel?”
“My master is called Simdan,
Jack,” Daniel said, his voice a little stronger.
“You address your team
leader in such familiar terms, Daniel?”
Daniel smiled gently. “Jack
is also my friend, it’s our way.”
“May I enter, so we can
talk?” Jack said carefully, keeping eye contact with Simdan. He didn’t really know what he was going to
say but he knew he had to take the opportunity that had so unexpectedly
presented itself.
Simdan glanced from Daniel
to Jack, his expression puzzled but he nodded.
“You may enter. Daniel, get
refreshments and bring them to the library.”
“The library?” Daniel asked.
Simdan frowned, “That was my
order. Why do you question it?”
“Apologies, master, but it
is unusual for you to receive guests in the library.”
Simdan waved Daniel away and
indicated that Jack should follow him.
Jack wanted nothing more than to follow Daniel but he knew if he was to
have any chance of getting the archaeologist away from this man, he had to play
by the man’s rules. At least for the
time being.
“What do you expect to gain
here?” Simdan suddenly said, catching Jack unaware, as he didn’t anticipate the
conversation to begin until they reached the library.
Jack hesitated for a moment
wondering whether lying would do any good and deciding it was too late for
that, he answered, “I have come to take Daniel home with me.”
Simdan didn’t answer,
instead stopping and opening a door to his left. He stood back to allow Jack to precede
him. Jack was suitability impressed by
the large room lined with books and scrolls, and couldn’t help but think that
Daniel would have been in his element here.
“Is this why you wanted
Daniel?” Jack asked without preamble.
Simdan laughed. “You are indeed a leader of men, Jack. I may call you Jack?”
Jack angled his head to one
side. “It is really reserved for
friends. Acquaintances…enemies,” he
added pointedly, “call me Colonel O’Neill, or just colonel if you prefer.”
Simdan stepped closer,
ignoring the sound of the door opening as Daniel walked in carrying a
tray. “I prefer to be thought of as an
acquaintance rather than an enemy, colonel.
That would be better for all of us I think.”
Jack nodded, “Indeed.” He glanced over at Daniel who was placing the
tray on a small table, his friend suddenly meeting his gaze at the use of a
term more readily associated with Teal’c.
A sudden smile graced Daniel’s full lips and it did Jack’s heart good to
see it. “Acquaintances can eventually
become friends, Simdan.”
The man laughed. “True.
You were right to suspect this is why I wanted Daniel. I paid quite a sum for him.”
Ah, Jack thought, down to
the nitty gritty.
“And now we would like him back,” Jack stated, moving to stand by his
friend. “Are you alright, Daniel? That’s quite a bruise on your face.”
Daniel raised a hand to his
face, looking surprised as if he’d forgotten about the bruise.
“Daniel can be rash
sometimes,” Simdan said dismissively and that casual statement rang alarm bells
for Jack. Simdan moved away from them
over towards a table by one of the tall windows opposite. “But he does work hard, even if the results
have been disappointing.”
Jack had stretched a hand
towards Daniel, but he moved out of reach and walked over to where Simdan was
looking at something on the table.
Frowning, Jack
followed. He didn’t like Daniel’s
coltish behaviour, like an animal that had been hurt too much to trust. The longer he remained here, the more nervous
Jack was becoming. Simdan was behaving
like a gracious host yet there was an undercurrent that Jack couldn’t quite pin
down.
“I’ve done the best I could,
master, you know that,” Daniel said, as if in apology.
Simdan nodded, sighing. “Serve the drinks, Daniel.”
Daniel moved back to the
small table and Jack sucked in a breath.
“Look, can we get to the point. I…”
“Sit, sit,” Simdan
interrupted, waving a hand casually at the chair on the other side of the desk
from where Simdan was and with a bad grace Jack sat.
Daniel brought them both a
drink, saying to Jack, “It’s a simple herb tea,” before going to stand behind
Simdan.
Jack looked at him but
Daniel wouldn’t meet his eyes, not helping Jack’s frame of mind at all. He wanted to talk to Daniel, hell he wanted
to hug his friend to him, tell him how wonderful it was to see him again, to
know he was safe. To whisper that he
knew his secret, to let Daniel know that he wasn’t alone in his feelings. Instead he was becoming afraid of what Daniel
was hiding.
Simdan was sipping his drink
but Jack ignored his, not trusting it even if it had been given to him by
Daniel’s hand. Something was very wrong
here.
“It is beautiful is it not?”
Simdan suddenly said, and Jack followed his gaze to see what looked like a
piece of cloth pressed between two sheets of glass.
“Yeah I suppose,” Jack said
irritated at the evasion, “But I really want to talk about Daniel.”
“Ah but we are. This is why I had Daniel brought here.”
Jack gritted his teeth,
keeping inside the angry words that sprang to his lips. This piece of garbage had cost men their
lives? Cost Daniel his freedom and his
friends their peace of mind. He wanted
to smash the glass and rip the thing to pieces.
Instead, trying to look interested, Jack leaned forward. As he did so his dog tags slipped out of the
V neckline of the native top he was wearing, the metal clinking against the
glass.
“Jack!” Daniel said
suddenly, and Jack looked up to see the wide-eyed look of his friend, shocked
to see a tinge of fear underlying the glance.
Jack frowned, puzzled as to what had brought about that look. Not surely just because his tags had touched
the glass?
“Quiet, Daniel,” Simdan
commanded. Eyes wide and reaching out
towards the chain dangling from Jack’s neck, Simdan asked, “What is that?”
Looking at his host, Jack
was about to say ‘just my dog tags’ when suddenly he put together Daniel’s
concern with the noticeable interest in Simdan’s expression and instinctively
put a protective hand up to stop Simdan from touching the tags.
Jack remembered the many
times Daniel had lectured him long and hard about the importance of taking
great care of ancient scrolls and parchment, how even the natural oils in the
fingers mustn’t be allowed to touch the delicate materials. Daniel always wore thin white gloves when he
worked with them and Jack recognised what Daniel’s warning had been for, yet
Simdan didn’t seem as concerned as Daniel did.
Jack gathered that Daniel hadn’t been successful in translating whatever
it was that Simdan had wanted from him.
Threat assessing was second
nature to Jack and he immediately recognised that Simdan had other things on
his mind at that moment, something had caught his attention more than what was
under the glass. Had Simdan lost out on
his gamble with Daniel and saw a chance to recoup some value?
Jack had made no offer yet
though it was obvious he was there prepared to bargain, though unfortunately
he’d put himself at a disadvantage making it clear how much he wanted
Daniel. Simdan didn’t really know how
much of course, didn’t know that Jack would do whatever it took to get Daniel
back, and that included killing Simdan if he had to.
Stopping his thoughts
travelling down that dangerous road, Jack considered his next move. He had been wondering what on earth he could
offer for Daniel’s release, thinking he might have to buy time to send for
help.
Lazily fiddling with his dog
tag chain, Jack queried, “This? This is very special, my talisman. I never take it off.”
“Talisman?” Simdan leaned
forward for a better look.
“Yeah, the metal is imbued
with power, you see the words inscribed?
Magic words of protection. Saved
my life more times than I can tell you.”
“Daniel had no such
talisman.”
“Well he wouldn’t, would
he? He’s not a warrior; he’s a
scholar. I protect him. Now if I’d been with him when the slavers
came, they’d never have got him. The
talisman would have protected us both.”
Jack wrapped his hand tightly around the dog tags.
“Did not the other warriors
wear such protection?” Simdan asked suspiciously.
“Yeah, but it’s not as
simple as that. Each talisman is
different, individual. Its power is
increased as it gathers energy from the prowess of its wearer and then the
collective energy is used to protect the wearer. I have been serving my people for many years
and this one has been handed down in my family for generations. I have no idea how much energy it contains
now, how powerful it really is. I have
faced much danger and I have killed many enemies protecting those under my
care,” he declared with pride.
Jack hoped this was making
sense, talk about flying by the seat of your pants! “How many times have I saved you,
Daniel?” Jack looked directly at the
archaeologist, his gaze striving to hold that of his friend.
Daniel was looking a little
bemused, but managed to sound completely sincere as he replied, “I have lost
count, Jack, but I thank you for every single time. I praise the day you took me under your
wing. I would have died long since if
not for the benevolence of the gods working through your talisman.”
Simdan looked from one man
to the other then tentatively reached out again. “Gods? Could I have a look at
it?” he asked quietly.
Jack stared at the man,
pursing his lips as if considering. He
looked down and slowly opened his fist.
“I suppose it would be all right.”
Then he leaned further forward, letting the chain swing free and Simdan
gingerly let it fall into his own palm.
“What are the strange
markings? What do they say?” Simdan couldn’t take his eyes from it.
Jack looked over his head at
Daniel, eyes begging for help, lips mouthing, ‘Come on Daniel!’
Daniel’s mouth opened and
closed like a netted fish until he abruptly said, “It is a sacred prayer to the
gods of the Tau’ri, powerful words inciting them to help the bearer, to offer
their protection and ensure long life.”
“The bearer?” Simdan breathed. He looked up at Jack. “So the benefits would
pass to whoever carried it?”
“Well yeah. But this one has been in my family for
generations; no one even knows how old it is.
My father gave it to me when I joined the service. Quite a reputation I had to live up to I can
tell you.”
“Would you sell it?”
“Sell it? Of course not! It’s precious to me.”
“Not even for Daniel’s
freedom?”
“Daniel?” Jack sounded
surprised. “Oh, I was going to offer
valuables for him, jewels or…”
“I have no need of jewels,
but this…” He closed his hand around the
dog tags, pulling Jack closer across the table.
Jack pried the man’s fingers
away and stood up, looking at his dog tags, chewing his lower lip thoughtfully.
“Please, Jack,” Daniel said
softly. “I would like to go home.”
“I will take nothing else,”
Simdan said forcefully. “If you want
Daniel you must give me your talisman.”
Jack made a show of looking
from the tags to Daniel, and at the tags once more, before sighing as he
finally said, “Very well, if this is the only way to gain Daniel’s freedom, you
may have my talisman.” He lifted the
chain over his head, taking a deep breath as he held his hand out to
Simdan. The man took the dog tags,
gripping them tightly against his chest.
“Come, Daniel,” Jack turned
to leave, a hand on Daniel’s arm before he asked, “Oh, does he need any papers
or anything to leave the city?”
Holding the precious dog
tags, Simdan said distractedly, “Yes, just a moment.” Not releasing the tags, he pulled a sheet of
thick paper to him and scrawled some words quickly, signing it with a flourish.
He picked up a delicately inscribed seal and pressed it to the paper. “Here, if anyone questions you, just show
them this.”
“Great, thanks. Take care of the talisman and it will take
care of you,” Jack said, backing out of the room pushing Daniel behind him, as
Simdan studied the strange markings.
Once in the hallway, Jack
pulled Daniel into his arms and hugged him as tightly as he could.
~~
Daniel could hardly believe
it. He was actually standing there in
Jack’s arms, and it wasn’t a dream, it was real. Oh God!
He thought he just might cry.
Jack pulled back and just
stared at him. “You okay?” he asked
quietly.
“I am now,” Daniel replied
just as softly. “Thank you.”
Daniel knew what had
happened to him would probably catch up with him sometime, but just now all he
wanted was to bask in Jack’s company.
Everything else could wait. He
could break down later.
“Let’s get out of here,”
Jack said with a grin.
They turned and strode swiftly
towards the entrance.
“What’s going on here?” a
voice asked from behind.
Daniel abruptly halted and
swung back, Jack turning with him. “I’m
leaving, Timus,” Daniel said firmly, an edge of resentment to his tone.
“Leaving? What are you talking about?” Timus’ disdain
was obvious.
“Not that it’s any concern
of yours,” Jack piped up in a hard voice, taking his cue from Daniel, “but I
just bought him and now we’re leaving.”
The man’s mouth dropped open
and it gave Daniel great pleasure to walk away leaving Timus wondering how he’d
managed it.
“Who was that?” Jack asked.
“It doesn’t matter any
more,” Daniel said firmly, having no desire to talk to Jack about Timus.
As they walked across the
compound relief washing through him, Daniel said, “I think you’re enjoying this
idea of owning me too much.”
Jack glanced at him, his
face serious. “I’m enjoying having you
beside me again, where you belong. You
have no idea how much I missed you.”
“Yes, I do,” Daniel said
softly.
“God, I’m a fool!” Jack declared.
“So, what’s new?” Daniel
smiled, feeling safe for the first time in months.
~~
Jack wanted to hold Daniel,
he wanted to talk with him; he just wanted to gaze at him. He did none of those things, instead he
hurried Daniel along, trusting everything else could wait until he got Daniel
away from this place, these people.
Until he was somewhere secure, preferably back at the SGC and into
Janet’s tender care.
Jack had the uncomfortable
feeling a lot had happened to Daniel in the months that he had been missing,
and he expected that Daniel would want to keep the full extent of his
experience to himself. As the thought
occurred, Jack promised himself he wouldn’t let that happen. Glancing at Daniel now as they hurried
towards the Gate, Jack thought his friend seemed too calm and composed, as if
he was holding on too tightly. Jack
would be there if – and when – he began to unravel.
They were halfway to the
Gate when Daniel asked, “Are you here alone?”
“Yep.”
Daniel was silent again but
Jack sensed something was wrong. “What
is it, Danny?”
“God, I never thought I’d
miss hearing you call me that.”
Jack heard the crack in
Daniel’s voice, but prudently waited for him to speak.
Shortly Daniel said, “Can we
go somewhere else first? I…I don’t want
to go back to the SGC right away.”
“If you tell me what’s
wrong? What happened to you back there?”
“Jack, please. Give me time.
I just need to…adjust, get back to being who I am…who I was.”
Jack stopped and Daniel was
forced to do so too. Daniel was a step
or two ahead of the colonel and he slowly turned to face Jack, who studied his
face very carefully. Daniel’s eyes
flickered as if he was going to look away but instead he held Jack’s gaze. “Will you tell me, eventually?” He stepped closer almost touching Daniel but
this time he somehow knew it wouldn’t be the thing to do. “I need to know, Daniel.”
“As my team leader?” Daniel
asked in a low voice, “Or as my friend?”
“As the man who missed his
friend so much he went AWOL.”
“God, Jack! So that’s why you’re alone.”
“And I don’t suppose a few
more days would matter,” Jack shrugged.
“Got anywhere in mind?”
“
“They know you’re missing,
Danny. Might not get that much peace and
quiet,” Jack grinned.
“I will if I tell them I
need solitude for a while.”
“Solitude?” Jack asked an
eyebrow raised.
“Solitude with my friend,
providing he doesn’t press me until I’m ready.”
“You got a deal.
~~
Daniel was very grateful for
Jack’s forbearance. It had only hit him
as they were walking to freedom that he could expect to be thrust into Janet Fraiser’s very capable hands immediately they stepped
through the Gate and he really wasn’t ready for that just yet. He knew it would be impossible to keep the
truth from his doctor and she would have to report it, at least to the
general.
He had the fleeting thought
that he could keep the truth from Jack but realistically he knew that it was
impossible. Besides the fact that Jack
was his immediate superior, the man would see through any attempt at deceit at
once. Colonel Jack O’Neill was a past
master at threat assessing, including assessing his best friend.
The truth was Daniel didn’t
want to lie to Jack anyway. He still
harboured a dream, a hope that one day he might be more than a friend to Jack,
but he couldn’t help the fear that what he’d endured might affect how Jack
viewed him. Daniel had seen the look in
his eye when he’d almost closed the gate in Jack’s face and he still wasn’t
sure if he’d been imagining the longing he’d seen there. It wouldn’t be easy but he accepted he would
have to tell Jack what had happened to him, and pray that it wouldn’t change
the way Jack felt about him, even if that feeling didn’t extend beyond
friendship.
They finally reached the
Stargate and Daniel felt a pang when he finally saw it. He’d known for months that it existed on this
world, he even knew where it was but it had been impossible for him to get near
it. Slaves were not allowed beyond the
city limits without their masters and any escape attempts were severely
punished.
“All this time, so close yet
so far,” he said quietly.
“You wanna dial?” Jack
asked.
Smiling broadly, Daniel
nodded. He stepped to the DHD and gently
pressed the glyphs that would take them through to
~~
They had been on Daniel’s
second home for almost a week now and Jack was beginning to think he’d given
Daniel long enough.
When they’d first arrived,
Daniel had been swamped with delighted good wishes and hugs until the folk had
been chased away by Kasuf, the old guy recognising that his good son was near
the end of his tether.
They had been taken to
Kasuf’s tent where they were given an excellent meal, during which Daniel gave
his father-in-law an outline of his time as a captive. It was clear as the evening passed that
Daniel had talked enough and then Kasuf showed them to a tent of their own on
the outskirts of the city, telling Daniel they would not be disturbed.
Over the next few days they
tended to have the evening meal in Kasuf’s tent but spent most of the day on
their own. Daniel seemed to be sleeping
a fair amount of the time, though he often went for long walks in the cool of
the evening. Jack accompanied him, but
sometimes he felt as if Daniel forgot he was there.
Daniel had spoken more about
his slavery in Simdan’s house describing his work in the man’s library,
including Simdan’s increasing frustration with Daniel’s failure. Jack already knew that Daniel had been
beaten; it was hard to disguise the marks on his back left by the leather strap
that had been used on him.
However, there was something
that Daniel had let slip yesterday evening that Jack was determined to get to
the bottom of and it was looking increasingly possible that Daniel had no
intention of telling him. Jack was
arguing with himself about the rights and wrongs of breaking his agreement with
Daniel about not pressing him. Was he
thinking more of Daniel’s peace of mind or his own?
He looked up at Daniel who
was standing on the top of the dune just above the small oasis where Jack was
lounging in the shade. His back was to
Jack who got the distinct impression that Daniel was a long way from
“Daniel,” he called, “Are
you not having anything to eat? You
hardly had any breakfast either.”
“Hmm?” Daniel turned. “Oh, I’m not really hungry.”
“Daniel!” Suddenly Jack didn’t know what to say. There were so many questions on the tip of
his tongue, but the one he really wanted to ask was the one he felt least
able. He could still hear Daniel’s
remark from last evening: when I moved
from the slave quarters to the master’s suite. It had seemed almost innocuous as Daniel was
talking about performing his duties, except that Daniel’s voice had faltered
momentarily before he had smoothly switched tack to talk about the food. Jack knew the simple phrase hid something
painful to his friend and Jack was already pretty sure he knew what Daniel was
struggling with and he hoped Daniel trusted him enough to confide in him.
“I know,” Daniel said gently
as he moved towards him, sitting down gracefully, something Jack found it hard
to do in his robes, always seeming to get his legs tangled in the yards of
material. “I’m making you very tense and
I’m sorry. It wasn’t my intention, Jack,
it’s just that…” Daniel sighed. “It’s
hard to say. I know I need to talk about
it, but…”
“It’s just me, Danny. Nothing you tell me will ever come between
us, you know that don’t you?”
Daniel gazed at him, and
Jack felt as if he was looking deep inside, searching. “Yes, I do,” he replied.
Jack should’ve felt
reassured except that Daniel’s smile was sad.
Hesitantly at first, Daniel
began to speak of his nights in the slave quarters, until eventually in a
strained voice he spoke of Timus; holding nothing back, including his own guilt
at finally capitulating and participating in sex with the head slave of
Simdan’s household.
Jack sat quietly alongside,
letting Daniel speak, not interrupting the flow, but inside seething at the
options Daniel had been faced with. If
he could’ve have got his hands around the neck of that bastard…
Daniel must have sensed
something even from Jack’s silence, because he stopped his confession to ask,
tentatively, “Jack? Do you want me to
stop? To…to ask me something?”
“No, Daniel,” Jack replied,
hearing the tension in his own voice.
“Don’t stop, I… Sorry.” He
reached out to take Daniel’s hand resting on his own thigh, giving what support
he could.
Daniel swallowed, squeezing
the hand. “There’s more, Jack, but
perhaps…”
“No,” Jack interrupted,
speaking more harshly then he intended.
More calmly, he continued, “Don’t keep anything locked away, tell me
everything.”
“’Kay. After a while, Simdan reduced my hours
working in the library.” Daniel licked
his lips and Jack knew it was going to get even worse.
Finally understanding
Daniel’s bitten-off comment from the evening before, Jack listened with biting
anger and frustration and ever-growing guilt for what Daniel had suffered. It should never have happened to such a
gentle compassionate man as Daniel. Rape
was violence of the basest kind, whether at the end of a knife or by the
wielding of power seen as inherent, and to add such cold brutality to it was
something Jack found disgusting and impossible to understand.
All those months that he had
sat safely at home on Earth, bemoaning his own loss, voicing his frustration
and all the time Daniel had been living with that.
~~
Jack was too quiet,
listening to Daniel’s confession without the kind of reaction Daniel had
expected and he didn’t know what to think.
It had been so hard,
struggling to talk calmly about being repeatedly raped by the two men; one who
saw it as simply one more way to exercise his show of strength against his
fellow slaves, and the master who never even questioned it was his right.
He had kept nothing back,
baring his soul and his shame to the most important person in his world and all
he received was silence.
Where was the anger? The grief?
Was he instead to receive disgust, recrimination? Surely not, Jack of all people
understood. Didn’t he?
Abruptly, Jack stood and
walked away. Daniel felt cold creep
through him.
“Bastard!” Jack roared,
frustration dogging him as he uselessly tried to thrust his hangs into
non-existent pockets.
“Jack, please?” Daniel
gasped, fighting to stop the tears suddenly threatening to overflow. His body had been violated by two strangers,
and now it seemed as if his friend was going to tear into his soul. “I couldn’t stop it…I…”
Jack swung back, “God,
Daniel, not you. Never you.” Eyes flashing, mouth in a tight line, he
ground out, “If I could get my hands on the fucking bastards, I’d tear their
damn heads off!”
Relief flowed through
Daniel, for a moment he’d thought that Jack felt he bore some blame for what
he’d been forced to do.
Jack stared at Daniel,
closing the space between them to drop onto his knees in the sand in front of
him. “Daniel, if I could take this all
away from you I would.” He took hold of Daniel’s
hands. “I tried to find you sooner, I
swear. It hurt so much…” he stopped,
shaking his head. “What am I saying,” he
murmured.
“Jack, don’t please. I knew I always knew you’d be trying to find
me. It was my thoughts of you that kept
me going. When things became too much
for me to bear, I…”
“You what, Danny?”
Daniel dropped his eyes, “I
thought of you…and Sam and Teal’c. You
helped me get through it.”
“Look at me, Daniel,” Jack
said softly and Daniel lifted his gaze.
Jack’s eyes seemed lit from within as they held Daniel’s. “You were always in my thoughts too, couldn’t
sleep for worrying about you. Wanted you
home, where you belonged, with me.”
Jack was never good
expressing himself with words and Daniel recognised that he was trying to say
more than that simple speech articulated, and warmth flowed through him as he
understood. Daniel would have to say the
words himself.
Gripping Jack’s hands
tightly, he said, “Yes, Jack, I do belong with you. I always have.” Holding Jack’s gaze, he added softly, “There
has only ever been one man I wanted to hold me.”
“Hold you?” Jack breathed, eyes searching his face. “And
kiss you?”
Daniel’s heart was beating
so fast that he felt dizzy for a moment and he was breathless when he said,
“Kiss me, love me.”
“Daniel!” Suddenly he found himself in a bear hug, held
tightly against a solid chest and he sighed.
Jack had hugged him before but it had never been like this, never meant what Jack was telling him now.
Jack spoke close to his ear,
“I’ve a confession to make too.”
Daniel moved back slightly
so he could see Jack’s face.
“Confession?”
“I already suspected how you
felt about me.”
Daniel’s eyes widened. “You did?
I thought I’d hidden it well,” he said sheepishly.
“Oh you did,” Jack agreed. He shrugged.
“When we finally got Intel on where you might be, I wanted to bring some
of your stuff with me. I didn’t know what condition you might be in, and I
thought it might be good to have some of your personal things, to help ground
you, you know? I was in your office
trying to decide what to bring and I remembered that little box in your
drawer. Teal’c told me it was your tal’met roa’ke.”
“And he told you what that
meant?” Daniel’s eyes were wide.
“Oh yeah. So, when I found my wrist band inside…” Jack
smiled. “How’d you get it by the way?”
Blushing, Daniel admitted,
“You left it in my office. I kept
expecting you to ask for it back but you didn’t.”
“I thought it’d been lost
off world. Why didn’t you say anything?”
Jack asked pointedly.
Daniel flushed a little but
met Jack’s look as he said, “I’m sorry, I know I should have said something,
but I knew it meant something special to you and I didn’t really want to let it
go. I…” He shrugged. He didn’t know how to express how much he’d
needed that connection to Jack.
“And I never want to let you
go,” Jack said gruffly, pulling him close again but this time he dipped his
head and pressed their lips together in a chaste kiss.
“Then don’t,” Daniel
murmured against Jack’s mouth, swiftly kissing him again but this was no chaste
kiss. Daniel gripped the back of Jack’s
head, pushing his tongue against Jack’s lips forcing them open. With a gasp Jack let him in and Daniel sighed
as he finally got to taste the man he had wanted for so long.
They finally broke apart
when the need to breathe took over.
Resting their foreheads together, Jack gasped, “I wanna take this
further.”
For a moment Daniel
panicked, mind flashing back to Timus holding him down, moving roughly over him,
intermingled with the pain of being lashed by Simdan. Then he felt Jack’s lips tenderly brushing
against his and the familiar feeling of being safe swept over him and he
relaxed.
“God, yeah,” Daniel
whispered.
“Not here though.” Jack grimaced, “Too much sand. Tent?”
Daniel grinned. “Tent.”
~~
They lay side by side, their
robes piled haphazardly on the floor nearby.
Fingers drifted lazily on warm skin, learning every inch, every spot
that excited, that brought forth a whimper or a moan. Words were murmured, breathed into each
other’s mouths as they gasped for breath between each lingering kiss.
Gripping Daniel’s shoulders,
Jack rolled them so Daniel was underneath.
Finally breaking the kiss, he smiled into Daniel’s eyes as he began to
undulate over him, their hard cocks sliding against each other. “Daniel,” Jack growled, breaking eye contact
to drop his head and lick and nibble at one of Daniel’s nipples.
Daniel’s back arched as
overwhelming sensation crashed through him, creating sweet torture as his
erection rubbed roughly against Jack’s.
Jack’s hands moved from
Daniel’s shoulders and they seemed to be everywhere at once, on his chest, his
belly, his hips. Daniel ran his fingers
up and down Jack’s spine, hands separating so he could caress each flank and
then knead his buttocks.
Moaning, Jack was thrusting
against Daniel now, pushing him down into the rough material of the pallet and,
desperately needing to increase contact, Daniel’s hips rose to meet Jack’s.
Throbbing with need Daniel’s
head tossed from side to side as he muttered nonsense, calling Jack’s name
intermittently. He dug his fingers deep
into Jack’s back, desperately trying to hold him firm as he surged against him.
Licking long swipes over
Daniel’s chest, Jack moved up towards his neck, where he kissed and sucked the
tender skin. Everywhere Jack touched,
fire trailed along Daniel’s nerves and blood pulsed through his veins,
hammering in his head, making him feel dizzy and light-headed with longing.
As Jack rolled his hips,
making their cocks slide against each other, he suddenly stopped kissing
Daniel’s neck and bit down hard, making Daniel yelp.
Jack’s cock pulsed against
Daniel’s and he came hard, moaning, “Oh God, Daniel, God…love you.”
Hearing those words on top
of feeling the hot seed coating his belly was all Daniel needed to bring forth
his own climax. “Jack, oh, Jack,” Daniel
whispered, his face buried against Jack’s neck.
Slowly Jack turned them so
they were on their sides, facing each other.
He lifted a hand, trailing his fingers through Daniel’s hair.
“I’ll do better next time,
when we’re home,” Jack said softly.
“It’s been a long time, I’m outta practice.”
“You made love to me,
Jack. It doesn’t get any better than
that.”
“I can do better and still
make love to you, Danny,” Jack muttered.
Daniel laughed. He kissed Jack quickly, “You’re not in
competition with anyone, Jack.”
“I know. I want things to be really good between us,
Daniel. I want us to experience
everything together.” Kissing him, Jack
added softly, “When you’re ready.”
Daniel pressed close,
touching wherever he could, settling his head on Jack’s shoulder. “I’ve been feeling better day by day ever
since you freed me, hour by hour since you kissed me, minute by minute since
you made love to me.”
“Daniel,” Jack murmured,
peppering kisses over Daniel’s hair.
They were both silent a
minute and then Daniel said, his tone serious.
“Will it be the same when we get home?”
Jack pulled back so he
could see Daniel’s face. “What’s going
on in that mind of yours? I told you I
love you and I meant it.”
“I know, but here we’re
free to do what we want, but at home you’re not. The Air Force won’t…”
“Damn the Air Force!” Jack
interrupted angrily. “They wouldn’t let
me try and help you. What happened to never
leaving a man behind!” Jack took a
breath to try and calm himself. “Okay, I
know I’m gonna have to face whatever Hammond throws at me when we get back, but
other than that, no way am I going to let anything come between us. I’m never again going through the regret, the
guilt I did when you were missing.
You’re mine now and it’s gonna stay that way.” Jack stopped.
“You do want that, Daniel? Me and
you, always?”
“Of course I do.”
“Well that’s that. I made my choice when I went AWOL, I chose my
desire to find you over my duty and nothing’s changed. It never will. We’ll find a way to make it work. Or I’m out.”
“And where you go, I
go.” Daniel pulled Jack into his arms
and held on tight.
Jack suddenly laughed
softly. “Ironic, don’tcha think, that I bought your freedom with the one thing
that marks me as belonging to them?”
“Just means you’re free now
to belong to me.”
“I do,” Jack agreed
wholeheartedly. “But, you’re not free, you’re mine. Even got the paper to prove it!” Jack added grinning.
“Only because I choose to
let you keep it,” Daniel said quietly.
“I choose to belong to you.”
“Isn’t that what love is?”
Jack said just as softly.
FIN
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