Interesting – Chapter 7
PapayaK

oO0Oo

Previously…

His pulse throbbed once, and then not again. She brought his hand to her lips as her tears fell freely.

As if in answer to her prayer, the Janitors appeared almost immediately. They pulled him away from her and made ready to carry him away under the watchful eye of the Jaffa. She only stared. Still weakened from her mistreatment, it was almost enough to send her into shock.

The Janitor who had approached her before, turned to her and, with sympathy in his hooded eyes, echoed Jack's words. He spoke quietly so the Jaffa would not hear, "It'll be okay, I promise."

oO0Oo

Pain.

Hope.

Death.

Rescue.

Fight.

Jack's eyes opened.

He came off the table fighting.

Hands that were gentle yet incredibly strong grabbed and restrained him. Finally he stared into the eyes of the alien who met his gaze steadily. Understanding grew. "Ak?"

"Indeed, Colonel O'Neill."

He slumped back against the table, "Did that - all – just – happen?"

"Indeed, Colonel O'Neill."

"We gotta get Carter."

"Ind…"

"ahk - That's about enough of that… Ak." He finished lamely, realizing the alien's name was very similar to his favorite grunt.

Ak smiled. He allowed the Colonel to rise. He helped him to his feet and supported him knowing that he would attempt the feat well before he was truly able: the telepathic exchange had gone both ways, and Ak already knew quite a bit about his new friend.

Once Jack was fairly steady, he bowed low.

"Colonel, Thank-you. You were able to keep our secret, as I suspected; A rare ability indeed. I am sorry you and Major Carter suffered so long for it. I never expected you to tolerate the chair so–"

Jack waved him off with a gesture "You wouldn't happen to have any of our stuff would ya?"

"Indeed…" He paused at Jack's look and corrected himself "Yes, Colonel, over here." Ak gestured at their gear, dumped in a heap in a corner.

Jack staggered over to retrieve his and Carter's pack.

"Y'know, you really remind me of a friend of mine." Jack grinned, his strength already returning. "So how do I get to Carter?"

"I am sorry we cannot go with you…"

"Yeah, I get that. You take care of Alberts?"

Ak nodded, "He revived well and has returned to the area of the gate. He is hoping to find an opening in the Jaffa guard and retrieve reinforcements."

"Yeah – if reinforcements were coming they'd 'a been here by now. Time for me to go."

"You cannot possibly do this alone. Should you not wait for your friends?"

"Can't risk Dagon putting her in the chair. And speaking of that – explain to me why you guys don't just find a way to kill Dagon's victims in their cells and then revive them later? It would be quicker, more efficient, - less painful." He was busy stripping the packs taking only the supplies and weapons he would need to rescue Carter and kill the snakehead.

"It is our highest law. We would become no better than Dagon."

Jack nodded.

"I gotta go. Can you show me the way?"

"Colonel, you are not yet well enough."

"So, this way?"

oO0Oo

Jack ghosted down the hallways. He still felt weak and sick, but he was getting better. He had no time to rest anyway. As soon as Dagon learned of his 'fate' he would turn to his next victim. Jack could not allow that.

He was nearly invisible in the dimly lit corridors outside the cells. He soon reached his destination.

"Carter." He whispered.

She was at the door immediately, the joy in her voice instantly recognizable, "Sir, is that really you? I couldn't believe…"

She fell silent at Jack's signal and he faded away as a Jaffa patrol passed. After a few moments he reappeared and quietly picked the lock.

"Now, as you know the Jaffa haven't oiled these things in a coon's age, so as soon as you can fit through, we move. Down the hall to the left is an empty room."

She nodded once, looking him straight in the eye and on the count of three they put their plan into motion.

Seconds later they were hunkered down in an open cell waiting for the Jaffa to respond to the noise of her escape. As they crouched behind the door, Sam slightly behind, she couldn't resist resting a hand on his back. She told herself it was only natural. She would be able to sense his movements in the dark much better this way. The fact that she reveled in feeling the muscles in his back ripple as he shifted, his slightly elevated breathing and heartbeat did not need to be examined.

As soon as the squad had passed Jack turned and roughly pulled her into a fierce hug, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face in her neck for just a moment. Then he released her, held her gaze without speaking, and began handing Sam her weapons.

At the noise the Jaffa made discovering the empty cell, Jack and Sam erupted from the cell, both P-90s firing on automatic. Being attacked from behind was not something for which Dagon's Jaffa were prepared and they were quickly defeated.

Before the last Jaffa had fallen they were on their way. When they reached a convenient spot, Jack stopped to explain. "I set quite a bit of C4 on my way to your cell. Right now, we need to get to the chair room and destroy it."

"What about Dagon, Sir?"

"Oh yeah," he responded cheerfully, "him too."

oO0Oo

Once they had reached the chair room, Jack stopped, glanced inside and returned to Carter. "Dagon and Khek are inside, alone. I'm going to detonate the C4 to cause a distraction. You take out Khek and I'll take Dagon. Quick and quiet, no discussion. Kill, do not engage. Can you do that?" He looked at her, deeply regretting the brutality he was asking of her.

Carter only nodded, prepared to do what was necessary. Jack hit the detonator and as explosives shook the entire complex they moved. Jack went in first and Dagon was dead on the floor, nearly decapitated, his throat slit through to the snake. The other goa'uld fell to a quick knife thrust though the back of the neck.

Jack stood and cleaned his knife carefully. As Carter turned to him she shivered, for she saw, just for a moment, eyes that were cold and dead. Where do you learn to take someone's head off without getting hardly any blood on you? How much practice does it take? She wondered, not for the first time, what his years of 'damned distasteful things' had done to his soul.

Then he looked up at her and his eyes had resumed their normal light. The 'other' Jack had been put away; boxed up until he would be needed again.

He moved quickly to the chair and relished in loading the thing with every bit of C4 he had left. Carter met him at the door, and smiled when he held up the detonator and wiggled it in his fingers, grinning now like a kid.

"We head for the gate. Take out any Jaffa we meet on the way. There shouldn't be many left, and those that are hopefully should be in chaos."

"The human natives may just be willing to talk to us now that Dagon is gone."

"Naqudah mines and technology, Major..."

Moments later they were outside the complex and Jack caught her arm and grinned, holding up his detonator once again. He made a great show of opening the guard and throwing the switch. The look on his face as part of the complex collapsed was pure satisfaction. "Sweet."

By the time they reached the gate the Jaffa had all but scattered. He had taken out the first prime and several squad leaders with his C4. The humans they met were quiet, almost fearful of them, now that Dagon was gone.

"Looks like we might get that Naqudah and technology after all, Sir."

Jack grinned crookedly, "Cool. Let's go tell Daniel."

As they approached the Stargate, they could see Alberts there, finally getting his chance to dial home. But before he could complete the sequence, the gate activated.

Jack clapped Alberts on the back and clicked his radio, "Sierra Gulf Charlie, this is Sierra Gulf niner, please stand down, I repeat, stand down, the situation is under control… Well, pretty much…" he added when Carter looked at him skeptically.

General Hammond responded, "Colonel O'Neill, what are you talking about?!"

Daniel piped in, "Jack are you, y'know, you?"

Jack and Sam exchanged a grin, "Why don't ya come see, Danny? You got the door open."

Daniel and Teal'c appeared through the wormhole, weapons at the ready with a squad of marines behind them.

"I told you to stand down!" Jack complained. Then he gestured at the marines, "Major Adel, since you're here, take your men and round up the Jaffa. See if you can get the humans organized, Daniel's gonna want to talk to them. Oh, and the other aliens you may encounter are friendlies. They're on our side, got it? Good guys!"

Major Adel nodded and moved off with his men.

Daniel was studying Jack as if he were a new artifact, "Jack, you want to explain why one minute you're dying on a goa'uld infested world and by the time we mount a rescue you're cured and you've got everything under control??"

Once again Jack smiled at Sam who returned his grin and went to reactivate the gate shaking her head all the way, "Well… I told you this was going to be interesting…it just turned out... to be... very VERY interesting!"

He put his hand on Daniel's shoulder and turned him back towards the event horizon as Teal'c, his head inclined in satisfaction, punched in the new IDC code.

"I'll explain it all when we get home. Oh, and we have some new and interesting allies… Did I say VERY interesting?" He gave Daniel a friendly shove back through the gate and then he reached a hand out to Carter who took it in her own, "Let's go home."

End.

Okay - that's it. Thanks for sticking with me to the end. Really hope you enjoyed it. Please review and let me know what you thought.