Blood of My Heart, Beloved of My Soul

Part II

SG1 sat around the table in the briefing room being debriefed by General Hammond.

Jack O'Neill was not a happy camper. "Daniel could you PLEASE tell me what you thought you were doing? What in the
world made you run for the DHD like that under such heavy enemy fire? If that whirlwind hadn't suddenly come up and pushed those Jaffa back, we'd have had a hell of a time trying to cover you. I wasn't ready for you to make a break for it yet. We needed to take out a few more of those guys first."

"Jack, I heard you tell me to go. I *heard* you tell me."

"No, you didn't."

"Yes, I did."

"Did not."

"Did, too."

"Not."

"Too."

"Sir." Major Samantha Carter broke into the quickly deteriorating disagreement. "I heard you, too. You told Daniel to make a break for it and dial us home."

"Indeed, Colonel O'Neill. I also heard you give the order to leave."

Jack looked at each of his teammates in astonishment. Was he losing his mind? Or were they loosing theirs? He had NOT given that order.

"Well, people," General Hammond stated, "I'd say that in the heat of the battle there was some confusion. It can happen but it is dangerous. Maybe you should all give the whole thing some serious thought and then write your reports with as much detail as you can. That may help figure out where the wires were crossed. You'll be on downtime for the next several days so try to get some rest. You've all been going pretty much flat out the last few months. Take a few days and just relax. Hopefully, nothing out of the ordinary will happen for a while. Dismissed."

Jack and Teal'c were already heading for the door. Their teammates were somewhat slower, taking their time, neatly tidying their notes.

"Sam?"

"Daniel?"

"You got a few minutes?"

"Yeah, sure, what's up?"

"Well, um, can we go someplace a little more private?"

Samantha Carter laughed softly. "Okay...your lab or mine?"

Daniel smiled back at her. "Well, mine is closer and I'll even make a fresh pot of coffee."

"Sounds like a deal to me. Let's go."

The two friends walked together down the hall. One curious and one trying to appear casual and at ease. It wasn't working. Daniel knew he looked anxious. What he had to say to Sam might get him a medical checkup if anyone else found out about it. Nevertheless, he had to ask her. Things were getting just too strange lately. This last mission had made it all even stranger. He was sure he had heard Jack tell him to dial them home...until now. Now he realized that it hadn't been Jack's voice at all. He had to admit it. He was spooked.

"Okay, Daniel, here we are. Put that coffee on and then spill it. What's so," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "secret?"

"It's not that it's secret, Sam it's just that I don't want anyone overhearing me and deciding I'm nuts."

Sam looked startled. "Daniel..."

Daniel started the coffee and turned back to Sam. "Have you noticed any strange things going on during some of our missions over the last couple of months?"

"Well, actually, maybe, but you need to give me a clue as to what kinds of things you mean. What kind of `strange things' do you think are happening?"

"Well, ok, P39-987. Do you remember the Jaffa we ran into?"

"Yes, they arrived shortly after we did. We thought we'd have trouble getting back to the gate and gating home."

"Don't you think that was a little odd?"

"In what way?"

"Well, have you EVER seen Jaffa start looking around like they were scared to death and then just take off running like the hounds of hell were after them? It was great for us. They never even knew we were there, but what WAS that? You have to admit it was pretty weird."

"We decided there must have been some type of anti-Goa'uld device somewhere on that planet. You were at the briefing. You know that was all we could figure out it could have been."

"Then why wasn't Teal'c bothered by it? There was nothing on that planet, Sam, but some ruins that were interesting to me and a lake that Jack thought could be great fishing. In fact, the only thing we know about that planet is that it seems safe from Goa'uld and might make for a nice archeology expedition because of the ruins. And don't you think it's a little strange that, although we saw those Jaffa get the crap scared out of them, we never were afraid? Even though we never found out what made them want to leave in such a hurry?"

"Yes, when you put it that way it does seem a little out of character for us. Normally, we would have been a little bit more on guard. Maybe even left and monitored the place before we went back. But we didn't. We just set up camp and carried on as if nothing odd had happened. You're right."

"What about P56-988? The natives were ready to sacrifice us to their version of their God of the Harvest. Then all of a sudden, they all turned toward the forest, untied us, mumbled something, and left. We at least had enough sense that time to gate home.

"And what about P64-555? I wandered off completely from where I was supposed to be, fell down an abandoned mine shaft, broke my radio and yet you guys found me in less than thirty minutes."

"You were lucky you weren't hurt worse that time Daniel." Sam frowned slightly. "But you know Daniel, I just realized, it was almost as if someone was showing me where you were. I kept getting flashes of that area and I just had an urge to go there."

Daniel nodded. "P41-788. It was as if the Jaffa were moving in slow motion. We left them behind so fast it was incredible. I heard a whisper in my mind. At the time, I thought it was Jack."

"What did it say Daniel?"

"It said, I can only slow them down a little, the rest is up to you." It was just a whisper in my mind, but I swear I thought it was Jack saying he'd only be able to slow them down a little. The rest was up to us. But it wasn't. It was a woman's voice...and I think I heard it inside my head, not out loud. Sam, I didn't even remember hearing it until just now while we were talking.

"And that brings us to today. Sam, those Jaffa COULD NOT move toward us. It was as if something was holding them back. Then that voice told me to dial the gate. She said `Hurry, I won't be able to hold them for very long. I'm too far away.' And I did even though they were firing at us."

"Well, you usually dial the gate when the Colonel tells you to Daniel."

"Sam," Daniel paused trying to put his thoughts together, "Sam, the voice I heard wasn't Jack’s. I realize that now. It was the same woman I heard before and it was inside my head, too."

Sam almost dropped her coffee cup. She stared at Daniel with wide shocked eyes. "My God, Daniel, you're right. It wasn't the Colonel's voice. But I heard it, too. I believed it was the Colonel. I even said so in the briefing. Colonel O'Neill told you to dial us out of there. But, it wasn't the Colonel."

"I haven't said anything before. I've been compromised and I didn't even know it. I thought I had to be imagining it, but the truth is that I've fleetingly felt a presence with us occasionally on and off for a couple of months. It hasn't been a constant feeling. It's more just a barely felt whisper of something. It's as if something is watching us. But it isn't a- a... malevolent, evil type of presence. It's, I don't know, soothing?" Daniel looked embarrassed, "It's kind of a warm soft touch, as if a butterfly landed in your mind, and then it's gone. Have you felt anything at all like that?"

Sam looked a little uncomfortable but then confessed. "Well, yeah, I guess I have a bit. Not actually a "presence" just a comfortable feeling once in a while when we are off world. Sounds weirder to say it aloud than it did when I just thought it to myself. Daniel, this could lead to some dangerous situations. I think we need to talk to the Colonel and Teal'c. If someone or something is using some kind of mind control on us, we've been compromised."

"It doesn't appear to mean to harm us in any way but, yeah, I guess you're right. I just hate to. I know Jack isn't going to believe us."

"Maybe not at first, but I have a feeling that Teal'c is going to back us up on this once we bring it up. The Colonel will be more likely to listen if we are all saying the same thing."

"I know you're right. OK. Let's go see if we can find Teal'c, and then Jack."

Before they could leave the room, the klaxons were blaring. "Unscheduled Off World Activation." Suddenly, every bit of
power in the base shut down.

"Well, either we are under attack or it's the Asgard. I hope it isn't our newly recognized friend come to visit without an
invitation. We'd better hurry up and get up there." Without another look at one another, Sam and Daniel sprinted towards the control room.