Chapter Nine
Two Hun soldiers drove Jack and Teal’c through the city, followed by two other vehicles full of combatants, everyone ready to search the museum.
Reaching the old building seemed to take an eternity for Jack, who knew Daniel and Sam could be killed at any moment. Teal’c was characteristically silent as Jack’s mind wandered, his anxiety taking over for a few minutes. Were both of them still alive? What if they arrived too late?
He closed his eyes and, in his mind, he saw Sam’s lifeless body lying on the floor, a knife sticking out of her chest and her eyes open in death. He shook his head and refused to allow the scene to replay itself in his mind. He could not bear the thought.
Instead, he looked back to almost six weeks ago when he and Teal’c had been caught in that crazy time loop, and remembered how her lips felt under his. Yes, a much more pleasant thought!
He remembered how she had melted in his arms after initially going stiff with shock, her arm circling his neck and her hot mouth opening in welcome despite the stunned witnesses around them.
There was one definite advantage to being a genius. He had not had to waste too many words explaining why he was doing what he was doing.
“In seven hours I will have to relive the past ten. I want to live these seven hours with you,” he had whispered to her, his lips barely leaving hers.
She had smiled at him in understanding, and they had left a bemused General Hammond blustering in indignation, both quickly walking away, hand in hand and laughing at the bewildered personnel they left in their wake.
And they had done so many times.
-----
The first time, Jack had intended to content himself with kissing the heck out of Samantha Carter, maybe have an intimate talk at last, or just spend time with her as the woman he loved, not as a colleague.
They had only made it to the closest storage closet when he had decided he had waited long enough. He had shoved a giggling Sam into it and had started kissing her passionately, her body pressed against the closed door as his hands roamed her curves.
She had returned every kiss and every caress, laughing nervously at their naughtiness in between kisses and generally goofing around, ignoring the few times someone tried the door. They explored each other’s bodies like teenagers, but the game had not lasted long. Their emotions had taken over, as if they had lacked will of their own.
“Your quarters?” she had asked suddenly, pushing him away breathlessly.
“My quarters!” he had agreed immediately, and they had ducked out of the closet and run all the way.
Once there, to his surprise, she had taken the initiative and begun to undress him, panting in anticipation as her hands shook. He had not held back then, spurred by her eagerness letting his need guide him.
They had made love twice, the first time hurriedly and explosively. The second time slowly and lovingly. Then they had lain naked on his bed, intertwined under the covers and talking about their forbidden feelings, finally stroking each other at their leisure.
Jack smiled with the memory of how Sam had responded to his actions, every time in the same way… and with amusement at how he had felt every time he’d found himself with a spoonful of Fruit Loops close to his mouth when the time loop had restarted, missing the very delectable lips of his Major.
Every time the loop started anew, he and Teal’c had had to waste some time explaining to Daniel, Janet, General Hammond and Sam what was going on. The medical tests would follow and theories would be discussed. But, brilliant Daniel, thanks to him he had realized he had been missing a golden opportunity, and for many loops — he was not sure how many — he had then ran to Daniel’s chalkboard, written on it everything they had translated to that point, and left the confused archeologist to his own devices.
He had then turned to Teal’c and told him to go off and do something fun. Teal’c had been as sick of the situation as Jack, and had taken off happily to do whatever it was that he did. Jack had never asked him what it was because he did not want to have to tell Teal’c what he had been doing with his Major.
The next step had been to type his letter of resignation, change his clothes and find Sam and General Hammond. The rest of the time he had spent with Sam in his quarters, enjoying what he could of the unexpected holiday, lost in his oldest fantasy come true.
After the first time, they had skipped the storage closet and run directly to his quarters. His feelings for Sam had been unlocked, bursting to express themselves, and he had taken the initiative from then on.
She had never hesitated, and the feel of her in his arms had been even better than he remembered from years ago.
Yes, he had had her in his arms once, kissed her once. Well, it had not really been her, but the other Sam, the one the other Jack had married in the alternate reality. He had enjoyed that bittersweet kiss back then, he had to admit. But the kisses he had shared with his own Sam had been a thousand times better. They had been ardent with love, sensuality, playfulness and promise.
Weeks before, during the zatarc incidents, he had already admitted, in public and to his chagrin, that he loved her. She had later been forced to do the same, and both had had to continue acting as if such words had never been spoken. They had had to continue sacrificing their feelings for each other, now a horrendously difficult feat knowing that their love was mutual.
He had had to convince a worried Dr. Fraiser that their feelings for each other would not affect their jobs and his decision-making ability. It had been a hard sell, but Janet had not wanted to make it any more difficult for them than it already was and had not said a word to General Hammond about the depth of Jack and Sam’s feelings.
Freya had diplomatically not addressed with anyone what had transpired in the lab, and Teal’c had been as quiet as a mountain about the subject. He had never mentioned the incident, not even to Jack.
For a long time before that awful day, Jack had suspected that Sam shared his. But actually saying the words had hit him with the brutal reality of his unattainable desires, and he suspected that Sam had been affected in the same way.
Ever since then, they had been trying to avoid each other as much as possible, both trying to put the experience behind them and not wanting to face temptation when the truth was so freshly in the open. They both had found a way to never be alone with each other. But every time they bumped into each other in the hallway, every time they slept across from each other as they camped at night in another planet, every time they accidentally touched during a mission or during a briefing, they had met each other’s eyes and expressed through longing looks what they could not express with their bodies.
That crazy time loop experience, as exasperating and difficult as it had been, had given them the chance to finally give in to their feelings. Even if she did not remember it now, he did, and he treasured those memories as no others.
Jack was actually glad that Sam could not remember. She did not know what they were missing, as he did. He knew how hard it had been for him to remain professional and he would have hated for her to go through the same ordeal.
Yes, he and Sam had given in to their passion and to their secret love for each other. The first time had been like dying and going to heaven. She had been more beautiful than he had ever imagined. She had been softer and warmer than he had ever fantasized, and she had been more passionate than he had ever hoped.
Her body had been a perfect match for his, her cries of pleasure an antidote to all the bitterness he had been carrying in his heart for so long. Her caresses and her whispered words of love had healed all his wounds, and her responsive body had finally quenched the ever present thirst and satisfied the voracious hunger his soul had learned to live with. At least for a while.
Jack had felt reborn after the experience, but he had reluctantly allowed duty to take over eventually, and he and Teal’c had finally finished working on the translation with Daniel.
He loved and needed Sam Carter, but he could not have her, not permanently. So, if Sam could not be his, at least he had to know that she would be around where he could always see her, hear her, smell her, and be with her. The thought of her dying and leaving him alone was excruciating.
Yes, their jobs were dangerous and he knew this was always a real possibility. But he had somehow convinced himself that he would be the one to die first. In his mind, part of her perfection was his own belief that she could not be killed or taken away, not before he died.
Fool! Of course he was a fool! But it had made their situation bearable for him, even if he had always known that he was deluding himself. Even if he’d always known that it was just another fantasy.
Jack was glad when they finally arrived at the museum, and not only because now they could get on with their rescue mission. He was glad he could now act and stop thinking those terrible thoughts, those appalling thoughts of a life without Samantha.
-----
Sam was silently staring at the Ancient artifact sitting on the table before her, deep underground in the archeology museum’s large storage room.
Daniel had a gun to his head, sitting between the two soldiers that had dragged him through the series of stairs that led to the bottom floor of the building. He was thankful, however, that his hands had been bound in front of him when they had clumsily wrapped his bleeding arm in an effort to stop the bleeding. He felt less helpless than with his hands tied behind him.
“Tell me what this thing can do and how to operate it, or your friend will only be the first one to suffer the consequences,” Adros growled at her, his patience all but gone. “I need something to turn this fight in my favor, and I need it now!”
“I know. Uhmmm… I need some tools,” she stalled, looking around the room and wondering what her next move should be.
“What does it do?!” Adros snarled in her face, the hated knife back to her throat. She instinctively started to raise her hands to ward off the weapon, but forced herself to remain still.
“It… it’s an energy based weapon. It charges itself and releases an energy pulse similar to a laser…” Sam was wildly fabricating lies, trying to buy time. “Do you know what a laser is?” she asked Adros, looking at him unsteadily. She was weak, frightened, in pain, and doubted she could hold her own against the men surrounding her if she tried.
“No! But I don’t care what it is! Tell me how I can use it and start working on it!”
Adros was angry beyond reason. The man had lost it, she could tell. He just wanted to lash out, to retaliate, to hurt, and it did not matter much to him who or what his target was anymore.
“All right!” she agreed, feeling the knife against the throat of her skin, dangerously close to her jugular. “Pass me that bag. I need the tools in it,” she requested, and was glad when the man moved his knife away from her in order to reach the bag that she had been using when the attack had begun.
Adros pretty much threw it at her and she caught it with both hands, wincing at the pain in her chest and shoulder. Al least she was not bound any more. Adros had released her hands so that she could work on the machine.
Sam carefully opened the bag and laid out the utensils on the table, next to the artifact. She picked a long screwdriver and made a big show of trying to find an access point in the object that she could use to pry it open.
She guardedly glanced at Daniel and he gave her a nervous look. She could tell that he knew that she had no idea what she was doing and that she was just trying to stall for time.
Sam found a spot in the object where she could insert the screwdriver and bit her lip in feigned concentration as she wiggled the tool this way and that, trying not to touch anything inside.
She glanced at Daniel again, trying to send him a message with her eyes. She wanted him to be ready to bolt at a moment’s notice. He held her eyes and nodded imperceptibly, letting her know he was ready.
Suddenly, a couple of shots and the sound of running boots could be heard from above, and everyone’s eyes looked up in response. Sam reacted instantaneously.
In one move, she pulled the screwdriver from the slot and swung it toward Adros, who was one step behind her and with his knife still in his hand, but momentarily away from Sam. The tool connected with the Segaran’s torso below his right armpit and the man screeched in pain.
-----
Daniel did not hesitate. As soon as he heard the noises and saw Sam start to move, he brought up his bound hands and knocked the menacing gun away from his head. It went off, echoing loudly in the large room, and Daniel could taste gunpowder, a reminder that he was still in danger.
Despite his injured ribs, he was able to throw himself against the other soldier’s middle, burying his head in the man’s stomach. The man went down on his knees, winded, and Daniel turned again to the one with the gun. The soldier had started to aim the gun back at him, but was unexpectedly hit by a large flying object, smack in the middle of his face.
Daniel heard bones crack and he saw the man fall backwards on the floor, blood splattering the wall behind him. Sam had sent the Ancient artifact flying and had saved his life, just in the nick of time.
He turned to look at Sam gratefully, surprised by her intervention, and was horrified to see a staggering Adros come at her from behind.
“Sam, watch out!” he screamed.
She had clearly been expecting Adros to attack her again and kicked backwards, aiming for the man’s groin, but she missed and hit his upper leg instead, which only served to slow him down.
Daniel had to reluctantly divert his attention to the winded soldier, who was now pulling out his own gun. He successfully kicked it out of the dazed man’s hand, then he continued kicking, aiming for his face. He kicked the Segaran soldier three times until the man fell to the floor unconscious.
Daniel could hear running steps coming much closer now, as well as shouting almost at the door. The sound of the gun going off had attracted some attention. He then turned to Sam and was sickened to see that she was now trapped by Adros, her right wrist held tightly by the Segaran.
He had switched the knife to his left hand and had it pointing straight into her neck, a feral look on his face. He had evidently also pulled out the screwdriver from his armpit and was dripping blood, but his right arm still held Sam’s wrist forcefully.
Her left arm was also dripping with blood, hanging useless to her side. Her wound had opened up and she was doubtlessly in great pain, but she was still trying to free herself from the man.
“Please, don’t!” Daniel pleaded with the Segaran Commander as Jack and Teal’c finally burst into the room, weapons aimed at the struggling couple in the middle.
Jack took in the image and froze, clearly trying to assess whether he could zat the Segaran without Sam getting her throat pierced by the glinting blade.
-----
“Stay where you are, or I’ll kill her!” the hysterical Segaran demanded, the point of the knife drawing yet more blood from Sam, who shuddered with unrepressed pain. She kept her distressed eyes on her CO, knowing he didn’t dare to shoot.
She desperately tried to make her left arm work and attempt to push the knife away from her throat, but she just couldn’t. It felt completely numb aside from the agonizing, throbbing pain emanating from her shoulder wound.
“You’re done, Adros,” Jack spoke calmly, at the same time lowering Teal’c’s zat gun with his left hand. “Lower your weapons!” he ordered the soldiers.
All of them did, if a bit hesitantly, probably wondering what the Colonel was planning to do.
Jack kept his zat gun leveled at Adros’ head, still talking to him. “Huna is under the Huns’ control again, most of your troops are prisoners of war now, and there’s nothing else to be accomplished here. Let her go.” He was slowly approaching the couple as he coolly addressed the crazed man.
“Nothing is over until I say it is! It looks to me as if I still have some control here! If you take one more step, I will slice her throat!” the Segaran defiantly shouted at him.
Adros had been backing off, dragging Sam with him, but had gotten to the end of the room and there was nowhere else for him to go. “Either we both walk out of here, or she dies with me,” he threatened.
-----
Jack knew the man was at the end of his rope. Drastic measures were needed, and he looked into the eyes of his Major attempting to convey a message. She probably already knew what he was going to attempt, but he wanted to make sure she was ready.
Sam returned the look with meaning, not willing to prolong the standoff any longer and giving him the green light. Her eyes told him the second she decided to make the move.
She suddenly pulled away from the knife, hitting Adros’ right cheek with her head hard enough to distract him.
Jack squeezed the trigger at the same time, almost a reflex action, and the struggling pair dropped together in a heap, senseless.
“Sam!” Daniel ran to her, swiftly separating her body from the Segaran Commander’s and cradling her with his still bound hands, checking her injuries apprehensively while Teal’c approached the unconscious commander lying on the floor.
The big man kicked Adros’ body further away from Sam and Daniel and turned to Jack, who was staring at the archeologist.
-----
Jack’s face was white as a sheet, his eyes wild as he stared at Daniel. He was clearly waiting for the archeologist to say something, looking at Sam’s throat as if looking for more blood.
The Hun soldiers just stood around them, waiting, and Daniel finally managed to reassure Jack when he was satisfied that Sam’s neck was intact. “She’s okay, it’s just blood from before.” He then gasped, overcome with emotion but still trying to smile. “I’ve never been more glad to see you two!”
He knew the picture his friends saw. Both he and Sam were a battered, bloody mess, and Daniel could see Jack’s jaw tense and his eyes grow harder, hate and wrath emanating from him as he turned to look at the unconscious body of the Segaran Commander.
Teal’c had a contemptuous look on his face as well, staring down at the man in disgust. He then gave Jack a meaningful look.
Daniel watched in fascination as his CO returned Teal’c’s gaze and, without a single word, both men shot the Segaran at the same time.
The body shimmered and disintegrated before everyone’s eyes, eliciting exclamations of awe and fear from the soldiers around them.
Daniel closed his eyes, instinctively rebelling against the barbaric act, but then he forced himself to open them again. He looked at his friends with understanding, knowing he might have done the same thing if he had found Sha’re in the condition Sam and he were in.
Well, at least he would have felt like doing the same.
-----
Jack made no comments and no apologies. He put away his weapon, knelt by Daniel, and grazed Sam’s black and blue but still beautiful face with his rough knuckles, pushing away a lock of hair that had fallen across her closed eyes.
“She’s going to be okay, Jack,” Daniel kindly assured him.
Jack nodded grimly, still feeling sick to his stomach with dread. He could feel a bad case of the shakes coming, so he needed to continue to act in order to prevent it.
“Teal’c, bring her along. I’ll help Daniel,” he commanded softly, and the big man approached to take Sam’s inert body from Daniel’s arms. He lifted her effortlessly, trying to be gentle.
Jack tried to not look at the blood covering her and now staining his friend’s uniform. “Let’s go home. You both need medical attention,” he said, walking out of the room holding Daniel by his uninjured arm.
Teal’c followed, carrying Sam while the Hun soldiers just looked at each other in wonder. One of them made himself useful and fished Daniel’s handcuff’s keys out of one of the fallen Segarans’ pockets. He ran after SG-1, and the rest of the soldiers silently filed out of the room.
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters, settings, etc, are the property of their respective owners. Any original characters and plots are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended. ... [ read more ]