barrel

Over a Barrel

By Travelling One

Email: travelling_one@yahoo.ca

Web: http://www.travellingone.com/

Season: 7

Referenced episodes: Spirits, Show and Tell, Enemy Mine, The First Ones

Summary: With little time on their side, Jack and Teal'c must rush to find out what's become of Daniel.

Notes: This story was written late 2005, and re-edited July 2007. It appeared in the May 2006 zine Foundations 7.

Posted August 2007

Ah, speed. Nice, for a change.

Wind in the hair, although really there was no wind. Alright then, dust in the hair, and Jack hummed pleasantly. Dust in the non-wind. All we are is dussst in the non-wind.

"Lovely day," he commented to no one. Okay, less than lovely. Drab grayness, in fact, permeating the dusty ground, the sky, the air around them. The only movement was their own speed, gravel kicking up not from any breezes or weather but from their own rotating wheels crunching the tiny broken pebbles below. Close my eyes... Only for a moment, and the moment's gone - - -

"I still say SG-8 should've requested motorcycles," Sam complained. "We'd've been there already."

"Too frivolous." Daniel's cough nearly drowned out his words as he sped up and rode neck-to-neck with Jack. "Why do you think they missed their last check-in?"

"Probably just waiting for the bikes to arrive so they don't have to walk," Jack surmised. Not so considerate of the other teams, but he could understand it. They had four bicycles at the site already, but if SG-12 was riding around searching for more oil territories, Richards' men would have had to walk back to the gate. Waste of time and energy. Jack, too, didn't relish the thought of walking all the way back after delivering the wheels.

"How ya doing, Teal'c?"

"I am doing… adequately, O'Neill." Teal'c held his chin up as he rode past. Jack could tell the big guy was… enamored with the simplistic machine. Hammond had agreed to SG-1 bringing the extra bikes over only because most of the supplies and weapons they needed would already be at the camp. Nothing much necessary to carry in their packs, and no hostiles to surprise them along the way. This mission was supposed to have gone to SG-15, but Hammond had finally gotten tired of O'Neill's hinting. Nagging, some had called it. Pestering, others.

Jack whistled as he rode.

Nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky

All my dreams, Pass before my eyes, a curiosity

The campsite had been adeptly set up, and just a few hundred feet from it was the first experimental mini oil rig and well area. While this planet had not offered up the naquadah Washington had so hoped the teams would find, the U.A.V. had unexpectedly revealed the nation's next most desirable commodity: oil. Seeps dotted the terrain, and the first test dig had exposed a basin of crude oil unusually close to the surface. So, presently, while SG teams 8 and 16 were out mini-pumping samples from this first well and awaiting more men and equipment, SG-12 was out scouting for even more. This planet might very well eventually be the next oil supplier to the U.S., and there was no one to go to war with in order to claim it.

Barren and flat except for some slightly bumpy areas farther to the north, there didn't seem to be any signs of civilization. This was Daniel's first glimpse of P3X-701, nicknamed 'Mongolia', and it was leaving him puzzled. "Why would anyone have put a stargate here?" Daniel muttered more to himself than in expectation of an answer.

"There might be cities farther away than the U.A.V. could discern, Daniel," Carter surmised, although she agreed the terrain was not looking terribly hospitable. "Or this area may have been abandoned centuries ago."

But Daniel had been looking for indications that anyone, including nomadic tribes, may have once set up residence around here, and had so far noticed none. Nothing manmade or carved, no pictographs or petroglyphs, no fields formerly plowed, nothing at all on this flat terrain, either close by or in the distance. They could see for miles, and only a minor rise far ahead altered the bleak, dismally boring monotony. And yet, for the oil to be here at all, this place must have supported a great deal of animal and plant life millions of years ago, along with large bodies of water. Perhaps Sam was right; maybe even a few hundred miles away was a completely different environment with a thriving agricultural civilization… one that didn't have any need to tap their oil resources. But that in itself seemed odd. Even the ancient Babylonians and Sumerians had found uses for the oil seeping into their rivers.

"Race you."

"I thought that's what you've been doing, Jack. And why isn't this bothering your knees?"

By now they were nearing the camp. In this flat landscape, distance was nearly impossible to determine; with no landmarks to guide the eye, only their compasses could point them in the right direction. From this position, they were unable to tell if the camp was still several miles away or only one.

"I hope they've got a hot meal prepared. I'm starved."

"Yes Jack, I'm sure they've cooked your favorite M.R.E.s. Knowing you were coming, and all."

"Hope so. You know we've got nothing with us but water and energy bars."

"Soup ingredients."

"Mmmm."

"Where is everyone, Colonel?"

As they approached the multi-tented camp from the back end, they could sense that something was wrong. The lack of movement was conspicuous, and unless the teams were all inside the tents eating or having a nap, there should have been some sort of activity going on. The approaching cyclists should have heard sounds, not this stifling stillness. A few small patched-up oil drums sat not too far off, obviously rolled into place, and a couple bicycles could be seen leaning against them.

Jack braked and jumped off his own, holding up a hand in silence as the other members of his team pulled up and disembarked.

"They must be doing something out front," Daniel guessed quietly. It was only mid-morning here, the sky the same dull gray evidenced on every M.A.L.P. transmission. "Although it's a bit early for lunch and late for sleeping in." But these guys were on their own out here; who knew what odd hours they might be keeping?

"The bikes are here, Daniel. So, as you said, why did they miss their last check-in?" Observing the surroundings with suspicion, their CO cautiously pulled a zat from his pack.

"Maybe SG-12 just returned?" But even in Daniel's mind, he knew he was making excuses. Something did seem wrong.

There was nowhere to take cover and sneak in unobserved, so Jack motioned Daniel and Carter to stay behind while he and Teal'c quietly made their way around to the front of the compound.

The sight before them froze them in their tracks.

Three SG teams… twelve men… lying around the central yard and mess table… dead. Their throats had been neatly, gruesomely slashed, and blood was congealing in pools under each of them.

The shock sent waves of alarm and dread coursing through Jack's brain at warp speed, his eyes searching the compound for enemies or predators. Thoughts flashed by in a jumble: grab the weapons and get out of there; jump on the bikes and get the hell out of there; contact Daniel and Carter and get his team back together. Were the other two still safe? It had only been three minutes -

"Carter? Daniel?" Jack barely paused for an acknowledgement. "They're all dead."

"What?"

"Get over here, and watch your backs."

Footsteps were running, and in seconds the other two members of his team had joined them, stunned at the sight that lay spread out before their eyes.

"Oh my God."

Harris and O'Dell had fallen facedown on the table, thick blood covering their deck of cards. Leaning backwards over the same table, cards at their feet and unblinking eyes wide in shock, were Owens and Pederson. Draker was slumped over a very bloody engineering text. Richards and Manasco had been enjoying a cup of coffee.

The others lay scattered on the ground, Forbes in front of the door to the latrine, Banderman at the entrance to the supply tent, his legs buried under Lieutenant Kendle.

Jack was torn between searching the tents and getting his team out of there ASAP. What with the bicycles and lack of alien life, they'd only taken one Beretta and one zat each with them on the ride, and Jack wasn't sure he wanted to meet whoever had done this without more firepower than that.

Teal'c mirrored his thoughts, scooping up a P-90 lying by one of the tents, still in Sanderson's grasp. "Should we not check for perpetrators, O'Neill?" There was no one in their immediate line of vision, either there or in the distance.

"Cover me." Grabbing the only other rifle in sight, from beside Captain Rohann, Jack snuck up to the door of the mess tent. Anger and dread seethed within him; he wanted the punctured heart of whoever had done this. But the assailants were probably long gone by now, unfortunately for the victims but thankfully for his own team.

"Why didn't they try to defend themselves?" Daniel, too, had noticed the lack of readied weapons, the men seemingly murdered so easily at rest and play. Sidearms were still holstered.

"They appear to have been caught off guard."

"All twelve of them?"

Jack was done with the mess tent and was now checking out the large sleeping tents. They all appeared deserted.

"Um… this may sound odd, but could one of them have done it?" Daniel was still staring in shock at the group of dead men. Murder-suicide? Madness, in a place so bleak?

"Their throats are all slit the same way, Daniel." Carter grimaced in empathy. "It would have been hard for the murderer to do that to himself. And the knife would most likely still be in his hand." Assuming it was a knife, she mentally surmised before turning her horrified gaze away. "Not to mention that a single person would have been stopped by the others."

"Damn. Nothing." The colonel felt disappointment surge at the thought of being unable to avenge the death of these colleagues. Twelve men, doing a supposedly safe job on a safe planet. Still, they should have known better than to let their guard down so completely.

"There is either indigenous life on this planet after all, O'Neill, or other visitors very quickly arrived and departed from this place."

"What possible reason could anyone have had for doing something like this?" Sam kept her eyes down, trying to avoid seeing the bodies. But they were everywhere.

"Well, not for theft," Jack growled, having noted that their computers and other equipment were still out in the open. The mess tent also didn't seem to have been disturbed.

"We were trespassing. Again," Daniel stated matter-of-factly, dismay and regret inundating his tone. "Remember the Unas on P3X-403? We invaded their sacred area."

"The teams have been here for almost three weeks. Why now?" Jack looked at Daniel in frustration. He wanted answers, ones that would ease his anger in any way possible. Had the teams just disturbed a sacred site? The Unas had waited weeks before attacking the teams on 403 as well. Where would the locals have gone? And where had they come from?

"Maybe they couldn't communicate any other way. What about Zales? We tried taking his people's trinium."

"So we should be looking for birds? That what you're saying?" The sarcasm dripped not only from Jack's voice, but his eyes as well. "Don't see any." Not even any trees for them to perch in.

"I'm saying, Jack, that we should stop drilling here."

"Well that's a given. Although I don't think Washington will see it quite our way."

"Sir, they can't possibly decide to send more men back here, after," Carter paused, "this?"

"Let's hope. Either way, we're out of here. Watch your backs." Out here in the open, they would be easily seen by any interested parties. On the other hand, they too could see anyone approaching from a respectable distance away.

But Daniel couldn't pull himself away from the abhorrent, ghastly scene; as much as he didn't want to look, he couldn't stop thinking of what the men had all gone through. Families, hopes, futures... gone. Terror, pain, loss. For what? Oil?

"Daniel! Let's go!" The tone of Jack's voice was one of impatience, borne more of worry than annoyance. He knew some of those men were friends of Daniel's; hell, he'd had some lunches with a couple of them himself. But they couldn't take the time here, now, to dwell or mourn. And Daniel knew better than to succumb to shock in the field. With a hand on Daniel's shoulder, Jack guided his subdued teammate quickly around the tents.

Keeping up their guard, the four teammates cautiously made their way to the back of the site where their hastily deposited two-wheeled transport awaited their departure, now that the bicycles wouldn't be needed here.

But watching his back had nothing to do with it. Daniel was watching everywhere, jumpy and acutely alert, senses heightened to the approach of a bug - or bird - had there been any. So when he felt something grab his upper arm from behind, it was with a surprised gasp that he swung wildly around.

Nothing was there.

And then… something grabbed his other arm. "Jack!"

The three other teammates all turned, seeing…nothing. "What?"

"Daniel Jackson?" Even Teal'c's expression was puzzled at the archaeologist's outcry.

The panic-stricken shock on Daniel's face was something, though, and Jack's features twisted in alarm as he hurriedly made his way back to his fourth team member. "Daniel? What's wrong?"

Suddenly, with an expression of pure terror contorting his appearance, Daniel's feet - his whole body - lifted… and he was rapidly gliding backwards, barely four inches off the ground.

"Daniel!" Jack made a grab for him, but the archaeologist was moving too swiftly. Not of his own accord, though.

Daniel's eyes went even wilder as he realized he was being carried above the solid ground, away from the rest of his team. Something was holding him, running with him, gliding, something much bigger than himself. Something none of them could see.

"Jack! Help!" But he was already a hundred yards away, gaining distance and speed. He was helpless to stop himself, inches off the surface. Helpless to do anything but go along for the ride. Wherever the destination.

People weren't meant to fly.

Daniel saw in the lengthening distance Jack jump on a bike and spurt after him. Teal'c was not far behind.

_____

"Go back to the gate! Get a T.E.R," Jack ordered with a sharp burst of words as he jumped onto the nearest bicycle and took off after Daniel. His legs pumped the pedals faster than he'd ever thought he could move. Damn them for not giving us motorcycles, was the thought raging through his brain.

Carter had jumped on a bicycle with the intention of following, but Teal'c's arm stopped her. "I will go after O'Neill and Daniel Jackson. I cannot be court-martialed for disobeying an order." And then he was speeding away, leaving an abandoned Sam staring at his dusty trail. While it was now up to her to contact the base, she was also potentially alone with invisible beings who had a penchant for slitting throats. She quickly began cycling in the opposite direction, determined to return with a rescue team.

_____

Daniel still felt as though he was flying; the journey was too smooth to be on the back of a running creature. His struggles did nothing to dislodge him, though. Beneath his back he could feel a solid form, and pressed around his upper arms was a grasp continuing to hold him tight. The thought trampling his brain was that he should just cooperate if he didn't want to end up like SG-8, 12, and 16. Mostly his mind was blank, still caught in the horrors of what he had witnessed and the shock of his own immediate present and future.

His captor was gaining distance, leaving his pursuing buddies far behind. Hopes of them trailing him were vanishing, for they were already just specks of dust on the horizon and would soon be out of sight.

Cooperate. If given the chance, that's what he'd do. This was all up to him now. Images of Chaka flowed into his mind, and fears of being someone's lunch refreshed themselves in his memory.

This someone, he couldn't even see. Reetou? Why would Reetou want to kidnap him?

_____

Jack was long past exhaustion, but he refused to give up. He could no longer track Daniel, but he was still cycling in the northerly direction that he - they - had last been seen, and he wasn't planning to stop until forced to by nightfall. Or until he found his friend. Maybe that creature was invisible, but Daniel wasn't.

He knew Teal'c was following him, still a short distance behind. Secretly, Jack appreciated the back-up, and only prayed that Carter had made it home.

_____

It had been on the move with him for nearly an hour and a half before slowing down. Under different circumstances, this might have been an exhilarating, thrilling novelty. Instead, it was ninety of the longest minutes of Daniel's life, filled with nothing but blind panic, fleeing from safety, into an unknown future. All Daniel could do was patiently watch the monotonous scenery swiftly drifting by, mile after mile, and try his damnedest to stay focused. If he managed to escape, somehow, sometime, he would be completely and hopelessly lost if he didn't pay attention now.

Although Daniel was facing backwards, he realized they had climbed over higher terrain and were beginning to descend, a wide ridge behind them opening up into an overhanging crevice in the ground. Within a moment, there was nothing but blackness surrounding him, the pinprick of light from the aperture growing smaller and more distant as they descended into the depths of the earth. Even though the gradient of the slope was gentle, the last remnant of exterior light was soon extinguished.

Abruptly the motion ceased, and Daniel was dropped to the dirt, deposited in pitch blackness.

It took a minute for him to regain some composure, as he turned from his hands and knees into a sitting position.

"So, um… you guys can see in the dark, I guess?" His voice echoed, then faded into silence, indication of a wide chamber surrounding him. Feeling around, his arm hit a cold stone wall at his back.

At least he wasn't exhausted and hurting, the way he'd been after Chaka had dragged him for hours through the woods. "Thanks for the lift," he tried again.

When nothing else happened, Daniel let out a breath and slowly started to rise. He knew the direction of outside.

A forceful push threw him back against the wall, momentarily knocking his breath away and causing his eyes to water and sting. "Okay, I'm staying. I get it." He lowered himself back down to the ground, fishing for the flashlight in his pocket.

The sudden beam had him blinking, but when his eyes adjusted, he saw nothing but a deep, low cavern covered in glazed dark blue stone walls, some thin spiderwebs hanging above his head and in the far corners, and an enormous pool of something liquid and black filling the chamber's center.

Oil?

_____

Of course. The only land protrusion in sight, and the thing had aimed straight at it. Figures.

It was growing increasingly difficult for either Jack or Teal'c to stay balanced among the now prevalent rocks, and finally they were forced to stop, the furrowed land ridges making it impossible to traverse the uphill route on two narrow wheels. Scattered with natural debris, these low land protrusions had likely been higher hills millennia ago. As far as Jack could see, he had two choices: two miles around the rise, or up and over. And Daniel had most likely been dragged - flown? - straight over to the other side.

"Crap." The last thing Jack wanted to do was continue on foot. Not at the rate Daniel had been going; he was already way too far ahead for psychological comfort. Jack's anger and frustration were boiling to the surface. The only hills around, and they manage to get in our way.

"We will find him, O'Neill."

"Before they slit his throat?" The growled words felt even harsher than the raging internal fear.

"If that had been their intention, would they not have already deposited him in our path?"

Crumpling his face into a scowl, Jack shrugged. "Who the hell knows their intentions. Think they're Reetou?"

"I do not choose to make such an assumption."

"Right." Jack dropped the bike, preparing to hike the rest of the way, cursing the speed of that creature. The one they couldn't see.

"When Major Carter returns with the Transphase Eradication Rod, we will be able to ascertain this."

"If we find them."

"There may be more right here beside us as we speak, O'Neill."

"Yeah, I thought of that." Did they dare rest for the night, if it came to that? Did they dare leave Daniel with those things, whatever they were, for so many hours? For one more hour? It had already been far too long; just the thought of the possibilities made Jack cringe. He'd already witnessed the violence of which they were capable. While Jacob had said that most Reetou were peaceful, there were a hell of a lot more rebel factions still out there. And who knew what was motivating this group? SGs 8, 12, and 16 had certainly not been treated with hospitality. With no way to see them and no means of communicating with them, Daniel would be defenseless against any urge these aliens might have to rip a hole through some part of his body. "Which way?"

"I am uncertain. For some reason, there are no tracks."

Jack had noticed that as well. "It didn't kick up any dust, either. Could it have been flying?"

"Then it would not be Reetou."

"Yeah, well, maybe it's not Reetou," he scowled. "Let's get going." Jack half ran up and over the first ridge, ignoring the aggravating twinges in his knees. Not now, damn it, was all he could think.

_____

Daniel felt as though he had been sitting there - forced to sit there - in this damp blackness for hours. His watch told him three, to be exact. His muscles pinched and tingled and his back ached; each time he'd attempted to rise, something had knocked him back down.

So far, they hadn't really tried to hurt him, but being unable to see their actions or assess their intentions had him filled with dread. He'd seen what they were potentially capable of doing, and just because there were no cooking fires in the vicinity didn't ease his concerns; given a choice, he'd rather be dealing with Unas. To add to the intimidation, all attempts at using his radio had failed.

Pondering his situation, Daniel knew the strangest thing was that basin of oil two dozen feet in front of him. It was odd for a deposit like this to be here in a cave. Surface seepage usually occurred out in the open, in or near bodies of water, where ancient plant and animal life had been decimated by mud slides, shifting sand dunes, or volcanic eruptions. No dunes here, no volcanoes, no water. And quality oil was normally much farther from the surface, needing to be pumped from the reservoirs in porous rocks. Yet from where he sat, this fluid appeared to be rich, slightly thick, but not yet the tar-like consistency of oil that has long been exposed to air. And there was a whole hell of a lot of it. Of course, it was possible that this entire environment, ridges included, was really the former site of an enormous lake, and this a huge well, recently dug up by whomever these beings were that presently inhabited this area.

Or perhaps this planet really was rich with unexploited oil, now experiencing some geological upheaval that was forcing the deposits to shift and then bubble to the surface in great quantities.

Daniel had had three hours to do nothing but think, and his mind kept returning to the same conclusion. Was this a sacred area, constructed by the indigenous population and stumbled upon by SG-12? Is this what the men had been killed for?

The only part of that explanation that didn't make sense was why he would have been brought here now, and his theory was… not pleasant. No matter how hard he tried, Daniel couldn't get the thought of sacred oil out of his mind, and some rite of anointment… or sacrificial offering… was not beyond plausibility.

The others know where I am, he convinced himself. But the truth was, they only knew in which direction he'd been taken, before he'd been lost to their sight. For all he knew, the creatures had abducted his teammates as well… which was still far better than having killed them.

Daniel had finally turned off his flashlight. Nothing to see in here and no reason to waste the batteries.

_____

"Do you have any idea where they might be?" The frustration in Jack's voice bore no attempt at concealment. They had climbed the rocky ridge and seen nothing. They had no idea where to go.

"I do not."

"No tracks? Nothing to follow?" He'd always thought Teal'c was a genius at tracking anything; why stop now? "Hey, buddy, you can do it. This is for Daniel."

"O'Neill, if one wants to follow a disturbance along the ground, one must have ground that has in some way been disturbed."

"You're way too picky, Teal'c."

Teal'c raised an eyebrow and ignored the comment. His team leader was obviously in distress, and helplessness was not his forte.

Jack stood on top of the first twin ridge, squinting into the dusky plains stretching out past the lower ridge in front of them. A narrow gully led between the double land formations. Checking behind him, he was able to see for miles in the direction from which they'd come, but there was no sign of Carter's rescue team. Dropping himself onto the gravel, Jack picked up a small rock and threw it ferociously, watching it skip downwards onto their future trail. Teal'c sat wordlessly beside him. O'Neill's head was down, and his expression had grown more pensive and grim.

"I don't want to find him with his throat slit, Teal'c." Just the sound of the solemn words chilled Jack's bones. He refused to allow the abhorrent, sickening image to replay in his mind.

"Nor do I. Yet I do not believe Daniel Jackson has been killed."

"And you're basing this on…?" Jack could not meet the other man's intense scrutiny. Those dark eyes were too sincere, with nothing to back them up but feelings and assumptions.

For a few minutes they sat, resting, thinking. Finally Jack spoke, and stood. "Let's go. We'll check out this strip of ridges; that's got to be what's concealing them. Keep trying your radio."

They were now on foot, and the going was aggravatingly slow. They'd never find Daniel this way.

_____

The sudden tingling sensation jolted Daniel from his musings. Shuddering, he reflexively slapped at his ankles. He could've sworn something had just crawled over his outstretched legs.

Daniel knew night had fallen on this planet, and that meant any rescue attempt would be halted. He'd had some water from his pack and the second of three energy bars. His other needs, however, would have to wait. Whatever this thing was that he couldn't see, wasn't allowing him to rise.

And it didn't seem to understand any of the languages he had tried. But if it couldn't hear him, it could certainly see him.

Shifting uneasily, Daniel pulled himself in tighter, and rubbed again at his lower legs. In the blackness, he struggled to keep his apprehensive imagination in check.

_____

Carter had not had an easy time convincing the general to send any more teams. Her report had been gruesome, and the Reetou had not won hearts at the SGC for their past behavior. But, finally, with the knowledge that the T.E.R.s might give them an advantage over any of the other unfortunate teams and knowing that the creature who had abducted Doctor Jackson had already passed up the opportunity to kill all of SG-1, General Hammond gave in, allowing one more team - and Carter - to advance at first light.

In the meantime, Carter passed a disturbed night of tossing and turning before giving up and grabbing a donut and coffee at 0200 hours. Sunrise began on P3X 701 at around 0400 hours Colorado time, according to the other teams' reports, and she intended to be out there with SG-5 by 0401.

_____

Quick to learn his lesson, Daniel had been careful not to make any sudden moves that would be seen as provocative or aggressive by whatever was in here with him. Thankfully, he had not been forbidden from lying down, so he slid up against the cold glazed wall, his back, at least, protected. The night passed in pitch darkness as he strained to hear sounds, any indication of movement. But the creatures were not only invisible to the human eye, they were also silent.

In such a stillness with his eyes closed, Daniel could almost pretend he was out camping with his team. The illusion nearly lulled him to sleep, until he realized there were no shuffling boots of a teammate on watch, no muffled crackling from a nearby fire, no breathing of a sleeping tentmate. The aloneness was electrifying, waking him to full alertness with a sudden chill. He wasn't alone, and he knew it.

Something was in here with him. It had brought him here, and was keeping him contained. Was there more than one?

The being was definitely strong. Maybe it was something supernatural. Some force without substantial form. Some sort of energy that could lift and push him?

Daniel couldn't decide if he preferred that to a Reetou.

While there would be no one on watch for him tonight, there was nothing to watch for. Whatever was out there was right by his feet, and had not hidden that fact from him. Daniel reached out, feeling around for it. It had substance; he'd been able to feel it beneath his back as it carried him. But it had proven to be quick, and it could see him. It could easily move out of the way of his touch if it wanted to.

Daniel pressed himself closer to the cold wall and curled up, hands protectively covering his throat.

There was no way he could shake the gruesome sight of those SG teams from his mind or dispel the gory imaginings of his own fate. Those men had been surprised, caught off guard, and had not knowingly provoked any attack. Had it been only one attacker, the other men would have gone for their weapons, instead of sitting there playing card games. And that indicated that there were several assailants hanging around.

None of that boded well for SG-1.

The night hours dragged on, his agitation and apprehension escalating. Daniel knew no one would be out searching for him during the night, and he couldn't even hazard a guess as to what morning would bring. Maybe this creature was just waiting for something. For what? Reinforcements? More of its tribe to return?

The rest of SG-1 to arrive, in order to capture them all here together?

In what his watch told him were the early hours of morning on this planet, Daniel again tried to stand. He needed to relieve himself while there was a chance that the creature might still be asleep. Did it sleep?

But no sooner had he started to rise than he was again knocked backwards forcefully into the cavern wall, where he fell and remained.

So, the thing had been watching over him all night.

_____

Shadows continued to meld into shapes, forms swaying with knives, creeping along in ambush. All breathing silently, for there was no wind in this place, and the dust remained where it lay.

Jack had long since stopped prodding Teal'c, asking in whispered voice if the other man had seen that too. Seen what? Those invisible Reetou, shifting along the ledges? The dinosaurs, their long necks forming shadow puppets in the starlit gravel? The human figure, sliding down the slope, hanging in mid-air? "Daniel?" he'd called quietly, urgency and hope in his tone. There had been no answer, and Teal'c's hand on his arm was all that had stopped Jack from rushing over to check it out. Only minutes later it had morphed into a lump of granite.

Now only Jack remained alert, continuing watch during a night in which he could not even think of sleep. But he knew Teal'c would not be deeply asleep, either.

The shadows on the ridges flickered in and out as the clouds moved overhead, casting doubt on what Jack had sworn were caves. Caves to be checked out in the morning, one of which had to be sheltering Daniel Jackson. Hang in there, buddy. We're on our way, I swear. Soon.

Soon.

I promise.

And so, without any sleeping bags, they spent an uncomfortable night mostly awake at the base of the low stony ridge, completely visible to anything that desired to spy on them. Shadows may have seemed like caves in the gloominess of midnight, but in the gray light of morning the two teammates could see that most were nothing but just that - shadows, formed by creases and folds in the rock.

Jack handed Teal'c an energy bar, taking a bite from one himself before pocketing the rest. He had no appetite. "Let's go." Go, before his imagination could whip up any more scenarios involving Daniel bleeding profusely from his sliced throat. A tremor shivered its way up his spine. "That way."

And so they trudged on, checking out every nook in which their missing teammate might be hidden, knowing they were oh so likely to be heading in the wrong direction.

"Daniel?" Jack kept calling. But his radio only picked up dead air.

_____

"Try that one." They'd found another small aperture, this one large enough for a human and a small animal to pass through together. "Daniel?" Jack called into it half-heartedly, again getting no reply. "This isn't working, Teal'c. He could be too far in, or unconscious." Or dead. Visions of being moments too late in the Unas caves kept buzzing into his thoughts, like a mosquito that wouldn't relent. That rescue was just damn lucky. This one might not be.

Teal'c frowned. "A creature as large as the one that seems to have absconded with Daniel Jackson would not fit in a cavity this size." They had found few larger hollows, yet O'Neill had insisted upon calling down into each one, futile and disappointing as the results had so far been.

"We've passed up too many of the smaller ones, Teal'c, and still haven't found any good-sized caves. Maybe they just dropped him down into one for safe-keeping."

"How would they retrieve him?"

"Maybe they just wanted to get rid of him." Especially if he was dead. Any theory couldn't be discounted until they knew what they were dealing with, and that didn't appear to be happening any time soon. All Jack could console himself with was the fact that they hadn't seen any trails of blood. But they had no idea if they were even on the right track; Daniel could be a hundred miles away by now.

The thought that he might never find his friend scared the crap out of him.

We're coming, buddy. Don't give up. Daniel wouldn't give up, Jack knew that, no matter how discouraged he might get. Nor would he do anything foolhardy and rash if given the choice. But the fact was they were in unfamiliar territory, one that was hostile and unpredictable, and for some reason something here had chosen to capture his archaeologist. What Daniel was going through right this moment Jack could only conjecture; what Daniel was feeling, he pretty well knew.

"This one's big enough for a large animal; we can't ignore it." Wouldn't fit a Reetou, though; it seemed too narrow. "Daniel?" Jack called loudly before stepping in.

Was that a voice, or his imagination? It was the first sound Daniel had heard in … since he'd been kidnapped. "Jack?"

"DANIEL?" Louder, faintly echoing along the descending passage.

"JACK?" Shouting, Daniel was shoved harshly against the wall, his loud call cut off with a groan and cough. Catching his breath, he manipulated his bruised shoulderblade. "Okay, so you… people can hear me, then?" Or had it looked like he'd been about to get up?

But nothing else happened.

"I hear him!" Caught completely by surprise, Jack elatedly grabbed Teal'c's arm. "He's down there, Teal'c! I'm going in. Stay here and keep an eye out for Carter." His mood was suddenly on the upswing, fueled by cautious anticipation.

"Be careful, O'Neill." The big guy's eyes were intensely serious.

"Do my best," Jack had his zat in one hand, his Beretta in the other. A P-90 was slung across his chest. "He's alive, Teal'c!" Jack grinned, shoving himself into the opening.

_____

"Daniel?" Jack had been forced to trade the Beretta for a flashlight when the natural light had disappeared, and his downward trek was now taking him along a sloping trail with a ceiling barely a foot above his head.

Daniel's voice sounded distant. "In here. Keep going."

Jack stopped. If Daniel wasn't coming out to greet him, he could be walking into a trap. Yet he knew Daniel would never allow that to happen…if he had the choice. "Are you hurt?"

"No."

Jack frowned. "But…?"

"It won't let me get up. Which is a bad thing, as I really have to pee."

No, not hurt, and Jack stifled a chuckle. Trapped but talking; he could deal with that. The more immediate problem, however, was whether his own exit would be blocked when he tried to leave. He could return to Teal'c now, or trap himself in there with Daniel. Jack tried his radio, but only got an earful of static.

"I'm going back outside just for a minute, Daniel." Not leaving you, buddy.

Back outside. Daniel closed his eyes to the darkness, overwhelmingly relieved to have been found. Trapping his rescuers down here with him, however, didn't seem like the best of plans. Yes, back outside was probably good.

Yet, having Jack turn his back and walk away left him with an empty, confusing ache. "Probably the wisest thing, Jack," he called loudly. It hurt for him to say that, but it was the truth.

"I'll be back," Jack promised, hesitating. Retreating seemed wrong, a betrayal to his friend. Daniel had been alone for too many hours already.

"Only if you can figure how to get me out of here. They may not let either of us go."

Disheartened, Daniel listened as the footsteps that had been drawing closer faded away. He'll be back, Daniel assured himself. Although convinced of that deep down, the past hours in the cavern had woven a discouraging pall over his hopes. The entire SGC had battled invisible beings before, and they'd nearly lost. Yes, Jack would be back with a plan, but this captor would more than likely interfere with its success, and that could get them all killed.

"Teal'c?" Jack's head appeared in the entranceway, but the Jaffa was nowhere to be seen. For a moment, Jack stiffened, his heart suddenly pounding. "Teal'c!"

A body came sliding down from above the ridge. "O'Neill! How is Daniel Jackson?"

Damn it, Teal'c. Don't do that! Jack silenced a sharp intake of breath. "Didn't see him yet. He says he's okay, but they won't let him up. Any sign of Carter?"

"There is. The rescue team is heading too far west."

"Keep trying to contact them. I'm going back down to Daniel." Wise or unwise, Daniel had been alone down there long enough.

_____

"You shouldn't have come down." Daniel wasn't disappointed to see Jack emerge from the passageway, but he still didn't think it was such a good idea.

"Had to make sure you were really okay." Jack shone his light across the blue stone walls and the large basin of black oil, and whistled. "Love what they've done with the place. Just don't light a match." Or fire off a T.E.R. He spotted his friend leaning against the wall. "So, not alone?"

"No. It's watching us."

"Doesn't seem to be afraid of my weapons."

"Why should it? I think it's got the advantage here." Daniel's voice held resignation, a hint of dejection coloring the tone. Obviously, the man's unsuccessful attempts in coming up with an escape plan had left him frustrated.

"Have you figured out why it took you?" Jack sat himself down beside the archaeologist.

"Just theories. It hasn't exactly been forthcoming with information."

"But it won't let you up."

"No."

The scene was calm and serene, albeit eerie, and if Jack hadn't seen with his own eyes his friend being swept away at thirty miles per hour, he'd think Daniel was delusional. "Maybe I'll have a look around." As Jack rose, grunting at the aches in his knees - it had been a lot of years since he'd ridden a bike so fast and so hard - he felt a furious shove against his chest. Losing his balance, he fell backward, hitting the hard wall, his flashlight dropping to the ground and rolling. "OW!"

"Jack!?" Daniel reached up in an attempt to assist the too-rapid descent.

"Ow. Crap." Jack took a moment to steady his breath and let the pain in his back diminish as he slid down the wall. "Damn it!" Grimacing, his features slowly eased into sheer annoyance. "So. Looks like I'm staying for dinner." He had his answer; once in, no one gets out. Not that he'd have left Daniel, but good intentions were meant to be voluntary, and Jack hated being choiceless. Reaching for his flickering light, he shut it off, enveloping them in complete blackness. If those things didn't have perfect night vision, no sense in helping them out.

"I'm sorry, Jack."

"Forget it, I was staying anyway. Are we sure this is a something and not some sort of force field?"

"No."

"Oh."

"But it's got awfully sharp claws for a force field, Jack, or else it uses knives. It slits throats pretty smoothly."

"I haven't forgotten. Maybe there's more than one type of presence we're dealing with here."

"Do you think its plans for us are… um, you know." Daniel paused. "It would've already killed us then, wouldn't it? Me?" Daniel tried to keep his tone hopeful, but it came out a plea, one that Jack had no way of reassuring.

"We'd never see it coming. Be over in seconds."

"Which is why the other teams didn't defend themselves. They didn't know there was a threat," Daniel concluded.

"So… whatever is in here could be getting ready to strike right now. Waiting for one wrong move."

"Which is pretty well why I've been peaceful and obedient all night." Daniel's mock smile was fleeting, unseen, but he knew Jack could sense the tension. He paused, then cautioned more seriously, "No sudden moves, Jack. I don't want you dead in my lap."

Jack was thankful his reaction was obscured in the darkness. "Trust me, Daniel. Of all the ways I've considered dying, lying dead in your lap with my throat slit was never one of them."

"Good. Just remember that, next time you want to get up."

"Oh, and how many times were you thrown against that wall?"

"After the first hour… not that many."

Jack's own shoulder blades stung in empathy. "Bruises?"

"I'd say so."

"But still in one piece. More than I was expecting."

Daniel heard the genuine relief in the words. "Yeah. Thanks for following." Although, at that moment, his rescue hopes were considerably dimming. "So, now what?"

"We wait for Carter. Maybe she can come up with something. She'll have the T.E.R." To at least see what they might be dealing with. Shooting at anything might be out of the question, across a pool filled with flammable liquid.

"I hope she brings food."

And with those words, their semi-relaxed state of apprehension whipped into abrupt alarm. In one sudden breath-stealing move, Jack found himself being held down, as Daniel was pulled away.

"Hey!" Jack felt the bands across his lower arms and calves, like coils of insulated wire, as he was raised nearly upright and held in place. "Daniel?" He shouted in the darkness at the same moment he heard his teammate cry out.

"No!" Daniel struggled in the tight grip, but the thing was strong. Lifted face-down by his arms and lower legs, he was flying again, helpless to resist. Horizontally, it brought him closer to the pool of oil, slowly enough to allow Daniel's mind to conjure up too many terrifying scenarios. Even though his flashlight was off and there was nothing but blackness surrounding him, he knew exactly what was out there, as whiffs of petroleum grew pervasive and intoxicating. Down nearer to the surface it forced his head, and for some nauseating moments, Daniel believed his worst fears were materializing as it prepared to push him under. "Let me go!" He struggled against it's powerful hold, achieving nothing.

"DANIEL?! What the hell's happening?" When Daniel's distressed demand had come from across the cavern, too many unwelcome scenarios began racing through Jack's mind. With his own arms strapped tightly to his sides by an inhumanly strong unknown force, Jack had no way of reaching his zat gun. Or Daniel.

Nor did he know if he would have dared use a weapon, had he been able. Couldn't risk a stray spark contacting all that oil. Alien oil, with unknown properties.

The flashlight was pulled from Jack's pocket, and the beam turned on. So, unless it was standing on one leg, this thing had more than four limbs… or there were at least three of them in there. And it had learned how to operate a flashlight.

Jack paled at the illuminated sight.

Daniel was being held prone, face-down, directly over the petroleum pool. In the pool, hovering just inches above the liquid's surface. And nothing seemed to be propping him up.

Daniel's gasp was reflexive; he could now see the slick liquid shimmering an inch below his nose, revealing only his own distorted reflection, and he took a long deep breath in spite of the fumes. Okay, going to drown in a minute, was the first thought screaming through his mind. Retribution for stealing their oil? I'm sorry, we didn't know! Calming himself would have to wait; for now, nothing was working.

"Um, Jack?" It was almost a plea, one Daniel knew was useless to utter. Help.

"Don't move," his friend cautioned, his own heart thumping wildly but his spoken manner deceptively tranquil. "Don't give it any reason to drop you. How deep does it look?"

"I can't tell." The voice quivered.

And for a few panicked moments that seemed to stretch indefinitely, both men waited for something more to happen.

But for now, instead of being forced into the murky depths, Daniel's head was jerked back by wiry hooks tangled in his hair, and in that awkward, helpless position he could see the entire reservoir glimmering around him, the size of a football field, and the blue glossy walls shining along its edges. It was so large, the far end was only faintly illuminated in the minimal lighting.

For several more minutes he was supported there, mere inches above the oily surface, his legs stretched straight out behind him, upper arms grasped in an invisible hug, his head held high, heart pounding rapidly in his chest. At any moment, he expected to be dumped in, and wondered darkly how buoyant oil could be. Or what it tasted like, when forced to inhale. This close, he could tell it was slightly viscous, like very thin molasses, and he had the sudden image of being sucked in like a mastodon in the La Brea tar pits. "I swear, I'm sorry! We'll leave your planet alone, I promise!" He knew it could hear him, but would it be able to understand?

"We'll go." Jack tried to keep his voice low and steady, in spite of the churning in his gut. For the past several moments, he had been holding his breath. "We'll leave you alone." Helpless to intervene, he could do nothing but watch in horror as Daniel was manipulated over the petroleum pool. Any minute now he waited for that grip to cease, for his teammate to be released headfirst into a grease-suffocating death. By the look of terror on his friend's face, he knew Daniel - immersed in his own repugnant visions - was nearly paralyzed with fear.

So was he.

Slowly, Daniel was rotated to face the opposite end of the pool, as the creature took him further toward its center. Jack strained to see as his teammate was nearly lost in shadow.

"It can't be too deep, Daniel, or else that thing has really long legs." With a weak try at optimism, Jack realized he'd been preparing for the worst, still was, and he struggled futilely in his invisible bonds. The hold only locked him in tighter.

"It held me above the ground to get me here, Jack. If it's not flying, long legs is a definite possibility." Another thought occurred to Daniel, and he sucked in a breath. "But I don't think it's walking. I think it's skimming across the surface."

There was silence from Jack's end of the cavern.

Now, instead of being tossed, Daniel was lifted higher and carried across the reservoir to the far end. Then he was conveyed all around the inner perimeter, his face just inches above the greasy surface. The creature was moving slowly, as though contemplating what to do with him. Taunting, playing games.

Once more, Jack struggled against his own captor, but the thing had no intention of letting go. He couldn't move a muscle.

Daniel realized what a bizarre sight this must be, from Jack's perspective. Under invisible control, he seemed to be floating around the cavern. Closing his eyes, he tried to persuade himself that nothing worse was going to happen. Nothing. Nice tour, thank you, I appreciate it. But I think I've had enough now… his thoughts trailed off, Jack's curses echoing in the huge semi-natural vault.

Suddenly, Daniel was turned to face a hovering Jack and a flashlight floating in mid-air, aimed directly at him… and he was moving towards them both, back to his former spot at the wall and the teammate who was watching with uninhibited relief, his own limbs in the process of being freed.

As the creature dropped Daniel back onto the ground on hands and knees, the flashlight was powered off and tossed vehemently into Jack's lap.

Both men paused, waiting, barely daring to think. But nothing else happened.

"So… what the hell was that?" Flicking the light back on Jack watched heedfully as Daniel leaned back against the wall, eyes closed, expression impassive, distant. "Hey. You okay?"

The archaeologist nodded his head slowly. "A warning?"

"For what? Stay away from our oil? Don't send any more teams?"

"I don't know." The sigh was audible. Daniel's eyes remained closed, his head supported by the stone wall.

"So, they intend to keep us here as a threat to the others?" Jack inferred with a scowl. "We have no supplies. And my butt's getting cold."

"Maybe they don't know we have to eat. And considering what they did to the others, they may not care. I seriously doubt they're worried about your state of discomfort, Jack. Or mine." Daniel lifted his head and looked hauntingly into Jack's narrowed eyes.

"We need to get out of here. Without using weapons and explosives." Or potentially blowing ourselves up.

"Right." Daniel leaned back again. His usual first choice of action, communication, wasn't even a possibility.

_____

Teal'c had no flares in his pack and there was no wood with which to start a smoke fire. All he could hope was that Major Carter would eventually be close enough to pick up his voice on the radio, or turn to see him waving, a distant speck on a low hilltop.

And, finally, she did.

Sam was on a motorcycle - her own - and was now approaching with the T.E.R. and more ammo. The rest of her rescue team was on foot, weighed down with supplies and weapons; they would just have to get there in their own time. No way was she waiting for them, waiting to see what had happened to Daniel. She would never forget his abduction by the Unas, and knew every minute could very well be his last. I'm coming, Daniel. We'll blast those damn things to hell if we have to, whatever they are.

Hopefully, they'd respond to the T.E.R. as the Reetou had.

_____

"Colonel? Daniel?" Carter's voice filtered to them from the passageway. Her relief at hearing that Daniel was alive almost spurred her to abandon caution and race down there. "I have the T.E.R., and SG-5 will be here soon."

"Carter! Tell Teal'c the thing in here won't let anyone leave once they come inside."

"Sir?"

"We're both trapped, Carter," Jack called out to her, fighting the urge to stand up and head for the passageway. "Tell Teal'c if he doesn't hear from us in an hour, to come up with another plan." Suddenly, Jack was knocked back against the wall, another grunt forced out with winded breath.

"Jack, it can hear us. You okay?"

"Give me a minute." He slowed his breathing. "You didn't mention they don't like shouting. Do they understand us?"

"I have no idea."

"But they don't trust us."

"Maybe they just want retribution for defacing their land."

Having delivered the message, Carter returned, approaching slowly, her flashlight aimed at the interior of the cavern. Stopping in the entranceway, she eyed her two teammates. "Are you okay, sir? Daniel?"

Jack felt a chilled relief at the sight of the T.E.R. under her arm. "Cold butt. Turn that thing on, Carter; I can't stand the suspense. But don't fire it. And stay where you are!"

She did as ordered.

"Oh!" Sam's eyes went wide, as Daniel inhaled sharply.

"Not Reetou."

Not exactly.

No… the T.E.R did not work quite as well as it did for the Reetou, and these creatures, perhaps distant cousins of those other aliens, were not displayed as manifestly. But the device realigned the light waves just enough to make them transparently visible, and what SG-1 saw was astonishing. Small creatures with dozens of long, wiry legs, not all of which were being used at any given time, and humped white bodies. Many of them were standing on top of - or clinging to - others, making them appear tall or wide, much larger than they actually were. And there were very small ones, dozens, scattered about the cavern, drinking from and wallowing in the pond of oil.

"Jack?" Daniel reached out without shifting his focus from the pool, fingers finding and gripping his teammate's sleeve.

Jack didn't respond, his gaze drifting around the chamber, lingering on the creatures, many of whom were staring at them. Each with two pairs of huge, round eyes, set deep in white oval heads. The largest one, only about three feet high, was sitting right beside them, a much tinier one snuggled in its - her? - lap. Lap? Seemed to be a lap. Or pouch, maybe. Its multiple thin legs were long and multi-jointed, resting on the ground beside and behind it like a spider's. The tips on which they balanced looked sharp enough to slice through flesh.

"Sir? There are hundreds of them."

"Daniel." The clipped utterance held a tone of foreboding. "Look up."

Illuminated by the T.E.R now were the webs above their heads; not webs, but large silken nests reaching from the edges of the ceiling to the floor beside them, specked with small moving bodies and what looked like dark round eggs.

"Oh!" With a gasp, Daniel instinctively leaned towards Jack, sliding away from the wriggling mass of organic matter only feet away, before forcing himself to take a closer look. "Those are babies." He knew his teammates had drawn the same conclusion, but the reality was slow to sink in. "No wonder they wouldn't let us up; we might have damaged them."

"Babies?"

"And we've been stealing their food." In horror and shame, Daniel turned his head to watch slightly larger, palm-sized creatures drink, or eat, from the pool. Along the cavern floor and down the walls, tiny new bodies were scampering from various nests towards the basin, dark blue shiny secretions trailing behind them.

"No."

"No? What no, Jack?"

"We've been taking more than their food, Daniel." Jack gestured towards the little ones floating on the oil, tumbling over each other almost playfully. Their sharp and multi-jointed legs helped them maneuver. "We've probably got some of the babies trapped in those barrels."

"Oh my God. Colonel? We've been kidnapping their young?" Carter's eyes were huge in the diluted light.

Gritting his teeth, Daniel closed his eyes and let his head hang. His next words were disturbed. "SG-12 reported that the barrels kept leaking. The teams kept patching them up."

"The creatures were trying to claw their way in," Carter whispered. "Or out."

"They were trying to rescue their kids." Even Jack's voice had taken on a quality of disbelief, both in what the creatures had gone through, and what his units had inflicted. As alien as these things were, he was fueled with empathy.

"So, killing the teams was their last resort," Daniel reasoned. "There was always someone on watch; as soon as the drums split, they'd seal them back up."

There were several moments of silence as the team watched the creatures go about their daily life.

"Why did they grab you, Daniel?" Sam's voice was quiet. There must have been about three of those things standing on each other when they'd carried him off.

"I'm thinking they had no other plan of action. They wanted me to see for myself, and maybe tell the rest of you, how many children they have here." Immersed in thought, Daniel added ruefully, "Then they brought me into the pool, hoping to show me more closely the life in there."

Jack cringed. "Only, you couldn't see it."

"No. I couldn't see it."

The ensuing uneasy silence was interrupted by Jack. "I think they know we know, now."

"Do you think they did this to SG-12 too?" Unless it had happened the previous morning, they would have reported this cave.

"SG-12 never found this place, Daniel," Jack informed him quietly.

Daniel's eyes narrowed in a frown. "How do y - "

"No tracks. No one's been out this way."

"What? So if you're right in saying there are babies in those barrels - "

"They inhabit all the oil pockets on this planet, including the one near camp. There are probably a lot more in those hollows Teal'c and I saw." Were the hollows actually some form of local wells?

"And in the underground tunnel system that likely connects them," Daniel surmised. A series of fissures or faults had probably been created throughout the planet's history, through which perhaps even now rivers were still flowing. Maybe other cool glazed sanctuaries such as this one had kept some of them from drying up. Whatever was happening underground, this species had adapted, making use of the one food source they could find. "I think this land may once have been largely underwater." Now dry and dusty and dead. No, not dead, but teeming with life.

With the T.E.R. baring all the life in this disturbing habitat, Carter was feeling spooked and uncomfortable. "Sir? Do you think they'll let you guys leave now?"

"One way to find out," and Daniel stood.

Without a moment's hesitation, one creature bounded onto another, and in a flash they were leaping at Daniel.

"Watch out!" Two alarmed voices echoed through the chamber.

Quickly, Daniel ducked, instinctively covering his head, plunging back down as Jack pulled him to the ground, and the things backed off. Others moved in to enclose them. The creatures were spry and agile.

"That would be a no." Jack heaved a sigh. "You okay?"

Nodding pensively, Daniel licked his upper lip in thought. "Well, we have to get them to trust us."

"And how do you propose to do that? You said you can't talk to them."

"No, I can't talk to them." But he knew Sam was still standing at the entrance to the cavern, at the end of the passage, and they'd probably let her leave. "Sam, go back to the camp with Teal'c. Open up the barrels and let out all the oil. Tell Teal'c and SG-5 to dismantle the rig at the well."

"Colonel?"

"Go, Carter. It's the only plan we've got."

_____

So Daniel and Jack settled in for the wait, once again bathed in blackness. It was better than looking at that seemingly lifeless pool while knowing all the activity that was going on in there, invisibly right before their eyes. The silence was disturbing.

"You slept here all night?" Jack couldn't help patting Daniel's leg. Anything might have happened to him alone in his vulnerability; it couldn't have been an easy time.

Daniel nodded, then realized Jack couldn't see. "If you can call it that."

"You knew we'd come, right?"

Daniel nodded again, then shrugged. "Kind of. I knew you'd try."

"We'd come." Jack's tone was matter-of-fact, meant to reassure. "Sorry, we forgot to ask Carter for food." He reached into his pocket, found an unopened energy bar, and dropped it into Daniel's lap.

"Thanks. Good thing they let her go, though."

"Maybe they were curious to see what she'd do, now that we've seen what they were so desperate to show us."

"So you think they'll let us go?" Daniel asked hopefully.

"If we can prove we'll stop the stealing. But quite frankly, Daniel, I'm not sure how the Pentagon will react to that."

"What? Even with all these babies here? With all those teams dying?"

"They're a non-human species, Daniel. As you said, remember the Unas on 403? Orders were to relocate them rather than relinquish that naquadah mine."

"And they were ready to do it with force." Daniel scowled at the unpleasant memories of unbending attitudes. "This time I can't negotiate, Jack."

"I know. We need another plan."

"Do you have one?" Skepticism reigned in the tone.

"I might."

Daniel waited, but nothing more was forthcoming. "Care to share?"

Jack shrugged. "Maybe later."

_____

"This ground is damn uncomfortable. I need to stretch." It had been hours since Carter and Teal'c had left. It would take a while for them to dismantle that equipment.

"They'll let you lie down. Try doing push-ups."

Suddenly, Daniel's arms were grasped and he felt himself being lifted…again. "Jack?" he said desperately.

"They've got me too, Daniel."

The two men found themselves being carried, not toward the pool, however, but in the direction of the passageway. Up the incline the creatures transported them, until natural daylight came into view. Blinking, they were deposited on their feet just outside the entrance as their arms and legs were freed. "They're letting us go?" The relief and hope in Daniel's voice were evident in his eyes as he flexed his cramped muscles.

"They must have seen Carter release the hostages." The babies.

"News travels fast around here."

"They travel fast." Like huge spiders, with all those legs. Jack clamped a hand on Daniel's shoulder, looking sideways at his friend, grinning. "We should be starting back."

"Uh… I'll be right back." Daniel dashed around a fold in the ridge line, leaving Jack standing there. Two minutes later, he returned. "Sorry. I'm ready."

Understanding Daniel's discomfort and lack of supplies, Jack searched his pockets for one more energy bar, removing the opened one from his own pocket. He could do food now. "Want half? It's all I have."

"No, that's okay. I think I still have one."

"Good. This could take a while." Jack eyed the flat expanse of gravel and dust. They had to have traveled forty miles to get here. "Don't suppose they'd give us a lift?" But no invisible grips touched the two men, and they began the long journey back on foot with the second day's light already fading.

_____

It would have taken them nearly two days to reach camp, had Sam not returned - twice - on her motorcycle. Stirring up dirt and gravel in her wake, stones flying like shrapnel, she skidded up abruptly, grinning. "So, who wants to be first?"

_____

It had taken two wagonloads to transport the murdered men back to the gate. Although a tiring and strenuous - not to mention emotionally taxing - job for only two teams, General Hammond had not been willing to send more help. It would be a long debriefing, but SG-1 was anxious to get home.

"We still have to convince The Powers That Be to give up their quest for oil here."

"They could never get rid of all those creatures by relocating or bombing them, Jack." And, thankfully, they'd never be able to see or find them all, anyway. "And they'd be risking their lives - or ours - trying."

"Sir, wouldn't the oil be contaminated with those things living in it? At least forty tiny ones fell out when I opened the tanks. I used the T.E.R," Carter explained. "About six adults carried them off. They'd been watching us the whole time."

"That's what I'm counting on, Carter."

"What are you planning, Jack?" Daniel's eyes were wide with curiosity and hopeful expectation.

"Never mind. Carter, just go back and tell them that the oil is contaminated, okay?"

"Yes, sir. But they'll want samples."

"Can't get samples, remember? They killed three teams for taking samples." Then Jack added with a nod, "and leave me that T.E.R."

As Sam went with Teal'c and SG-5 to open the gate, Daniel put a hand on Jack's arm, halting them both. "What are you planning, Jack?"

"Can't tell you. Just play along."

"How can I do that without knowing what to do?"

"Just be yourself." Removing Daniel's hand from his arm, Jack bypassed his friend and said nothing more. At the open gateway, SG-5 and Teal'c were already sending the twelve dead men through.

As the last of them were transported, O'Neill nodded to his own team. "Go. I'm going to have one last look around with the T.E.R."

"Colonel?"

"I shall wait, O'Neill."

"No. I'll be there in a minute. Go. That's an order." He looked deeply at Daniel. "You too."

"Jack?"

"Just do it. I'm following, I swear."

"Fine. But if you're not back in ten seconds, I'm coming after you."

"Quit worrying. I know what I'm doing."

"I wish I did."

"Why? Think there's still danger here? Good, tell the general."

"Sixty seconds, Jack. I mean it." With a last puzzled look, Daniel stepped through the wormhole after the others.

Jack turned on the T.E.R., aiming it in all directions. Startled when he saw a lone adult creature - even more semi-transparent in the daylight - focusing on him from a dozen yards away, he realized he'd been expecting at least several to be there. For a few motionless moments they stared at each other. Slowly, Jack laid down the device, its light still pointing at the alien's legs.

He pulled out his knife, hesitated, then took a deep breath and slashed the blade across his arm. "OW! God. Damn it!" As the blood dripped downward from the three-inch gash, Jack wiped the blade on his sleeve before flinging it as far as he could. The more blood on his clothing, the more effective this would be. Then he slung the T.E.R. over his shoulder and dashed into the event horizon.

_____

Jack came running through the wormhole clutching his dripping, bloody arm. "Close the iris!" he yelled.

"Jack!" Daniel rushed over. "What the hell?"

"Colonel?" Hammond's eyes were wide as the sergeant in the control room shut down the gate.

"Sir!" Jack gasped out. "One jumped me as I was coming through. They're everywhere, General, hundreds of them, approaching from all directions. I recommend we lock the address out of our dialing system, sir!" He was out of breath and his eyes were panic-stricken.

General Hammond, who had just seen twelve of his men return with their throats slit, and heard clipped stories of contaminated oil, wasn't about to argue with his best team leader dripping blood on the ramp. That had been too close a call, apparently. "Do it," he ordered up at the control room. "Get yourself to the infirmary on the double, Colonel!"

"No argument, sir." Jack shrugged at Daniel's astonished glare as he passed his friend, and gave Carter's worried, questioning expression a quick wink behind the general's retreating back. No one could refute his claim; after all, they hadn't been there, had they? Daniel wouldn't have been able to lie, and Carter would never have to. Teal'c… well, Teal'c could do silent really well.

As for SG-5, they'd just transported twelve murdered men back home, knowing that could have easily been their own fate, had they been chosen for that mission. They were in no frame of mind - nor had they any desire - to negate the Colonel's last remarks.

Daniel walked with Jack to the infirmary. "Ow," he grimaced empathetically, looking at the wound. "I can't believe you did that."

"What? Can't believe I stayed behind for a moment to assess the risk of returning? Yes, brave thing for me to do, but I didn't want another team to die out there." He moved on past, his steps speeding up, as Daniel shook his head.

"Ah. You're a true hero, Jack."

"What can I say," Jack called from up ahead, then hesitated, turning around to wait for his friend. His expression had taken on a more serious cast. "You're the one who got stolen. Again."

"Thanks for trailing me, again. And thanks," Daniel paused, "for understanding. Doing this," he added, biting his lip and grimacing at the renewed sight of Jack's arm.

"Children are children on any world, Daniel. So are families." He winced. "And I'm dripping all over this hallway."

"Yeah." Daniel watched as Jack turned and disappeared into the infirmary. "Thanks."

For a few moments Daniel stood there, pondering the unorthodox strategies of his CO. Jack was one to always do what he felt needed to be done, then think no more of it and quietly carry on, business as usual. Although unvoiced among his friends and colleagues, those who worked closely with Jack understood the heart of gold that lay under that fabricated concrete façade. Daniel knew Jack knew his team appreciated him - most of the time - but none of them ever really discussed things like that.

Daniel stepped into the elevator, still dwelling on the so-called wisdom of words left unsaid, and pressed the floor to the commissary.

_____

His arm stung from the stitches, but he'd have a nice scar to show off and exploit for a few weeks. As Jack switched on his office light, he paused, then chuckled.

Sitting down at his desk he stared at the huge slice of chocolate cake, then tilted his head. Along the edge of the plate was the word 'thanks', scrawled in chocolate syrup.

Jack picked up the fork and grinned. "You're welcome, Daniel."

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Disclaimer: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of MGM, etc. I've written this story for entertainment purposes only.