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He went from sleeping to waking in the blink of an eye. He didn't move and didn't bother looking around, feeling too tired and too comfortable. He was aware that his surroundings didn't feel familiar, though. The bed was airy and soft beneath him, the coverings light and warm. Somehow he'd expected a hard, thin mattress and scratchy blankets.
There were soft beeps and hums that didn't quite muffle an underlying deep thrum that vibrated straight into his bones. It was familiar, and yet, wasn't.
He heard a low moan to his right and finally, curiosity got the better of him. He opened his eyes and looked around. He was in a large, white, sterile room with beds along the walls. There were banks of machines around the beds, nothing that he could identify, though. He squinted, the rapidly blinking displays making it hard to focus.
Another soft moan caught his attention and he turned towards the sound. An attractive blond was lying on a bed a few feet away from him, apparently just waking up She rubbed her eyes, then dropped her hand heavily back onto the bed.
A tall man dressed in beige came over and spoke to her. She nodded after a moment, and he fiddled with some buttons on a keypad beside her. Then he turned to a console and handed her a glass of water.
Seeing her drink made him realize that he was thirsty. He licked dry lips, and at that moment, the man in beige turned to look at him. The man smiled as he walked over. He had large, wide set brown eyes and a pushed-in nose.
"Are you in any discomfort? Any pain?" the stranger asked, speaking with an odd accent as he scanned the readouts around the bed.
He thought about it a moment, assessing his body. He felt tired, his head felt fuzzy and he had a bit of a headache, and he also had some trouble putting thoughts together. But no, he wasn't experiencing any pain other than his headache.
"No, I'm not. But I wouldn't mind some of that water," he added. The woman was staring at him and he turned his head to look at the featureless ceiling.
"Of course." A glass was handed to him and he noted the short, beige fur covering the hand that held it. Not hair, fur, which contrasted with his own pale, nearly-smooth skin. He took the glass from the long, slender fingers and greedily gulped the water down, surprised at how weak and shaky he felt.
"What happened? Where am I?" he asked, handing back the empty glass and settling among the pillows, seeing now that the man's face was also covered in fine fur. He rubbed a hand across his cheek, noting stubble in certain spots, smooth skin in others. He turned to look back at the woman. She didn't appear to have any fur growing anywhere.
"You're on our ship," the man answered. "Please, forgive me." He looked back at the woman, including her in his apology. "My name is Keyon. I am Chief Medic here."
"Keyon…" Damn, he had no idea of his own name. Or where he was. He shook his head. "I don't remember my name." His headache suddenly escalated with his discovery, and he tensed to hold the panic at bay.
"Neither do I," the woman added.
"Please, do not be alarmed, it is a normal side effect of one of our medical procedures. Your memories will return completely in a short time. We found your ship adrift in space. It had been damaged, and life support had failed. When we found you, all of your body functions had ceased. A short while longer and my medical facilities would have been unable to revive you."
"You rescued us?" the woman asked. "The three of us?"
"Three?" He knew his brain was a little slow, but he only saw two of them lying here, him and the blond.
The medic's gaze flitted past him, to his left. He turned his head and was surprised to see another person lying in a bed, apparently asleep or unconscious. A clear plastic-like band surrounded the man's chest, another fit over his face, covering his mouth and nose. Muted lights decorated the plastic bands, like a display setting of sorts. This man wasn't sporting any fur, so he was obviously of the same race as himself and the woman. But his face was very pale, his lips tinged with blue. Wires and tubes were attached to his leg, snaking in beneath the blanket.
Somehow he knew that the man was being supplied oxygen through the plastic band over his face, and that fluids and medication were being pumped into the tubes attached to his leg. Maybe the thing over his chest was monitoring his heart and other vital signs. But everything seemed off, like they didn't fit right. Like there should be more wires and stuff, not this clean, uncluttered, way too neat area around the beds. And the air wasn't right; there was something in it he couldn't quite identify, and something missing… the sharp telltale smell of antiseptics.
"This one was severely wounded," Keyon explained, moving over to the third bed. "He experienced exsanguinations and is not responding well to the volumizing fluids we are providing. It must be supplemented with more of his own kind for it to be effective. As our blood supply is not compatible with yours, I do ask your permission to retrieve some of your own life giving blood in order to treat him."
"Our blood won't do him any good if we're not the same types," the woman said as she raised herself on her elbow to look at the third patient. "But how do I know that when I don't even know my own name?"
For that matter, what she said made sense. His head was whirling with questions, but he was too tired to even try and form them into sentences. He nodded his permission for the blood taking and settled for lying back and listening to the medic talk.
"Making your blood types compatible with his is not a hardship," Keyon said as he pulled the blanket aside, baring his leg. "But I can only give him small amounts of the blood prepared in this manner. Too much would be harmful." The medic's hands were warm and soft on his skin. He felt a pinprick on the inside of his leg, above his ankle. He craned his head and saw the red fluid flowing down a tube into a small, clear bag. "We have healed the worst of his injuries, but he remains weak. As I said, he died due to extreme blood loss, but the circumstances in the ship were perfect for preserving his body. For preserving all of your bodies, for that matter."
Preserving all of our bodies? What the hell… "Wait, *we* all died? I died?" It wasn't bad enough that he had no idea who he or who any of these people were, but couldn't this guy just give them all the information at once instead of these little irritating snippets?
"Did I not mention that? I apologize once again. Your ship's life support failed. This one… bled to death, the remaining three crewmates died from lack of oxygen. But the cold of outer space preserved your bodies long enough that we were able to resuscitate you before your bodies had deteriorated to the point of no return. Your loss of memory, as I know I mentioned before, is simply due to the procedure when—"
"He died from blood loss and three of us died from asphyxiation?" the woman interrupted, asking what had been on the tip of his tongue before he could voice the question. "But there are only three of us in here. Where's the fourth?"
"Oh, yes, of course. He is in suspension. We were not certain if he was a friend or an enemy. You see, we have heard of these particular parasites which inhabit your galaxy. We deemed it a precaution on our part to separate him from you. He is a very interesting specimen, and…"
He closed his eyes and ignored the man's prattling. He'd died, and somehow he should feel shocked at the news, but instead he felt numb. Parasites? Friends, enemies, strangers? His exhaustion wore him down and despite all the unanswered questions, he felt himself drifting towards sleep. The droning voice soon faded, and he allowed himself to sleep.
- - - - - -
"What is this stuff?" he asked with a grimace, looking at the pile of yellow, gooey, short, curved noodles on the plate before him. He glanced at the woman sitting in the bed next to him, who was looking at her own similar meal with apprehension.
"It is from your supplies," Keyon said. "I thought perhaps if you were to eat your own food, it might help the process of triggering your memories."
He took a forkful of the stuff and teased off a few morsels, chewing thoughtfully. Cheese, and… something. Not bad. He swallowed and ate some more. He noted that the woman appeared to enjoy the food also.
He'd taken a good look at himself in a mirror earlier, hoping that seeing his face might help him to remember. What he'd seen was an aging, craggy face, silver hair, brown eyes… in effect, a stranger. If his own face couldn't help him remember, how would food manage that? Still, it was good stuff, tasty and comforting.
"Keyon," the woman said after a time, "you said you found our ship adrift. What happened to it?"
"Oh, it is in our hangar bay. Our technicians have been attempting to repair it. Indeed, it has been a thrill and a challenge for them to work with alien technology."
"Can I go and see the damage? Maybe I can help."
"Ah, I am pleased to see our guests up and about," a voice said from the entrance. A tall man entered the medical area, smiling widely at them.
"I am pleased to introduce our Captain, Alden," Keyon said.
Alden inclined his head as he stopped between the beds. "I have just come from your ship," he said. "The repairs are going well, and my technicians are confident that they'll be able to have her fully functional in a few cycles."
"That's great. But how is it gonna help us if we don't remember where we were going or where we live?" He pushed his empty plate aside and sipped at some water.
"Please, your memory will return," Keyon said. "It will take a bit of time, when you are stronger."
"What happened to the ship so that it was damaged?" the woman asked.
"An explosion. Which we assume was the cause of your friend's injuries," Alden said, looking towards the still-unconscious man. At least whatever Keyon had done to him with their blood appeared to have helped. The man wasn't quite so pale and his lips were pinkish, no longer blue.
"What caused the explosion?" the woman asked.
"It is unknown at this time. I am sure when your memories return, your questions will all be answered. I, myself, am anxious to hear your story."
"But you haven't answered mine," she continued. "Can I go see the ship?"
"Of course, if our medic deems you strong enough, Captain," Alden replied with a smile.
"Why did you call me Captain?" she asked. He frowned, wondering the same thing. Somehow hearing the rank irked him, for some unknown reason.
"I assume you must be the ship's captain, you show a keen interest in her condition," Alden replied.
So just because he had no burning desire to go visit a ship's engine room or figure out how badly she'd been damaged meant he wasn't her captain? That made no sense. Instead, he'd rather know who these aliens were. For all he knew, they were the ones responsible for blowing up the ship and had taken him and the rest of the crew prisoners. Or, maybe the woman was simply an engineer and her innate sense of interest in her work was coming out. He couldn't help himself, and the words slipped out in a sarcastic jibe.
"Not especially, she might be one of those scientist types who just likes to work with engines."
// I like women, I just have a little problem with scientists. //
Whoa, where did that come from? A memory of this same blond, dressed in a blue uniform, eyes snapping, oozing confidence as she looked across a table at him, assured him that they really did know one another.
"Of course they may go visit their ship," Keyon said. "Just don't keep them too long. They're still not quite recovered and require rest."
The woman got up eagerly and he followed a little more slowly, feeling reluctant about leaving the other guy alone. As he put his boots on, he glanced back at the bed beside his and figured the man wouldn't be waking anytime soon.
He walked behind the two, noting that the blond was tall and slim, and somehow he knew she was taller than most average women of his world. He had also noticed that both he and the injured man were wearing clothing similar to Keyon and Alden's. Soft beige pants and shirt which caressed his skin, whereas the woman was wearing a black tee shirt and splotched greenish pants.
His legs were shaky but by the time they'd walked down the ship's corridor, he was feeling a little better. He looked around curiously, noting that all the crew on this ship were furred.
From what he could tell, this ship was enormous. Alden proudly stopped at a window and from that particular angle, the ship appeared to stretch close to a half mile before them. Okay, he was impressed. He had kind of wondered what kind of ship they'd traveled in, obviously it wouldn't be anything even similar to this one if it was sitting in their hangar bay. He smiled at the image of him sitting behind the controls of a sleek, fast jet, then shook his head, recognizing that the type of aircraft that had come to mind certainly wouldn't fly in outer space.
After several twists and turns and two elevators and a shuttle, they found themselves in an immense hangar bay. He immediately knew which ship was theirs. Its triangular shape stood out like a sore thumb among the more aerodynamic vehicles parked around it. With a sigh, and an embarrassed shrug at Alden, he followed the woman inside.
Dark and sparse, he wondered how the hell they had managed to live inside this thing. The damage from the explosion was evident in the control room, even though the surviving machinery had been taken apart by the technicians. The walls were darkened and gouged, and bits of debris still littered the far corner of the room.
As the woman immediately went to join the two technicians who had greeted them, he called out. "Hey." She turned to look at him. "See if you can figure out what caused the explosion." When she continued staring at him, he shrugged, "Wouldn't want it to happen again, would we?" She nodded after a moment, and knelt beside one of the open panels, discussing the damage with the alien working there. As he himself had no urge to do so, he wandered around, trying to see if anything felt familiar.
A small crack in the ship's ceiling showed how they had lost their oxygen. He left them alone and wandered into the other rooms. As he stepped into a smallish room that was littered with various colored lengths of crystals, he froze.
Goose bumps flitted over his arms and he rubbed them away. He looked at the ground, expecting to see something there. But it was clean, the marble flooring pristine and shiny. Too shiny, he thought after a moment when he compared it with the outside hallway. There had been something here that had required cleaning, and he had the haunting feeling that it had been the blood that had once coursed through the body of the man now lying in the ship's medical facilities.
- - - - - -
He leaned against the bulkhead, hands in pockets, watching them work. When Alden joined him, he said, "I haven't thanked you for saving our lives."
"Please, don't mention it. It's the least we could do, and our encounter with you has enriched our lives. We hope to learn more from you, just the language we speak, for example, has enriched our libraries."
"How'd you learn to speak English?"
"Your books." Alden waved at several books neatly piled in a corner. With a frown, he left the Captain and picked up the top two. One was about ancient Babylon , the other about some ancient dead language.
"You taught yourselves to read?" he asked, stupefied.
Alden laughed. "No, we scanned the information into our computer, and we were lucky enough to have an oral recording of it. He walked over to some other equipment and picked up a small device. Pressing a button, a man's voice, speaking so quickly the words nearly tripped over themselves in his excitement, came out of the speaker.
"… unbelievable find. It's fourteenth Century, possibly thirteenth. Note to check against… damn, it's hockey night. Wonder if Jack might notice if I asked Sam to take my--"
"We assume this is your friend's voice," Alden said, clicking it off and placing the tape recorder back onto the pile of equipment. "It was found in his pant's pocket, and his words, along with the books, enabled the computer to teach some of us your language."
"Downloaded it into your brain?" he said jokingly.
"Exactly," Alden replied seriously.
The woman had stopped working and was staring at them. She met his gaze, and he shrugged, confused.
"Unfortunately, the language on the ship's console is not the same as the one you speak. The computer has deciphered a small portion, but not enough for us to fluently speak or read."
Alden pointed out the strange drawings which were supposed to be a language. He looked at them, and shook his head. "Nope, doesn't ring a bell."
"It sorta looks familiar," the woman said. "But at this point I couldn't tell you what any of it means."
"Another obstacle is that our technology is not easily adapted to yours," the Captain said. But we are working on it. Come, I should return you to Keyon before he sends someone in search of you. Otherwise he will make my next mandatory physical examination one of torture."
// Napoleanic power monger. //
He shook his head, the images of a petite, brown haired, brown eyed woman looking at him with concern flitted through his mind.
"I wonder who Jack and Sam are," the woman asked as she got up to join him.
He shrugged. "One of them could be me, both are guys' names." Or the other guy… Alden," he said, "what about our fourth? Can we see him?"
"Of course. He is in the medical bay."
Alden led them back to the infirmary, past where their third still lay unconscious, to a closed door at the end of a long hallway. The Captain pressed a button and the door turned from opaque to translucent. A large, black man with a tattoo on his forehead could be seen sleeping on a small bed. His eyes were closed, his face serene. As with their other colleague, clear plastic strips with flickering lights in their depths could be seen along the man's forehead, chest and abdomen.
"Look familiar?" he asked the woman. She shook her head.
"What's wrong with him?" he asked Alden.
"He is in suspension. We will not awaken him until proper precautions have been taken. Do not alarm yourselves, he is no danger to anyone at the moment."
// It can only accomplish its work if you put your body into a state of kelno'reem. //
Strangely, he saw his own image speaking the words, but knew they really came from the large man sleeping before them.
"I don't think he's an enemy," the woman said softly, echoing his sentiments.
"And you say he's a parasite?" he asked, looking at the still figure.
"No, he carries one in a womb." Alden placed a hand on his abdomen to indicate the placement. "Do not worry, the beast is also in suspension, and is no threat."
Disgust threaded through him, but he realized that the big man's earlier words somehow related to this parasite. This… symbiote. Now why was he remembering these weird names, and not his own?
"She's right, he's not a danger," he said after a moment, motioning to the prisoner. "Can't you wake him?"
"I would prefer not to. I hope you will forgive me if I do not release him until your memories have fully returned? I understand how disorienting it must be at the moment, and how you only perceive your recollections in small parts. This will resolve itself soon. Trust me, it shall not be long before your memories return."
They began walking back the way they had come, fatigue dragging their feet, the woman looking pale and wan beside him. It was with relief that they returned to the medical area and to their beds.
A pile of neatly folded clothes sat on the foot of his bed. He fingered them, noting that there was a tee shirt and two pairs of pants similar to what the woman was wearing.
"We washed your clothes," Keyon said as he sat on his bed to untie his boots. "They were soaked with his blood," he explained, taking the clothing and placing it on a table near the bed before leaving them to their rest.
His fingers were clumsy as he continued to fight with the laces. He hated this not remembering, hated the tiredness and the lethargy. He'd done nothing today, the woman had been in and around the broken machinery. He figured if he was tired, she must be exhausted. Finally he managed to kick his boots off and as he turned to lie down, he saw that the man next to him was awake.
Impossibly blue eyes were watching him. He smiled at the stranger and politely said, "Hello."
"Please, I'm cold."
He could barely hear the faint voice and he turned for Keyon, but the medic had left the room and there was no one around. The woman was already under the covers, her back turned to him. Grabbing the top blanket from his own bed, he got up to spread it over the injured man.
The memory hit him so hard, he reeled.
// "Please Jack, I'm cold."
"I know, hold on, Danny." He quickly shed his jacket before carefully pulling his friend up into his arms, away from the cold marble floor. Daniel moaned at the movement, and he knew he was causing his friend pain. "Sorry," he murmured as he tucked Daniel's head against his shoulder. He grabbed his discarded jacket and wrapped it around his friend's trembling torso.
He shivered, the quickly cooling air in the engine room sending goose bumps along his spine and bare arms. Daniel's chest and abdomen was soaked with blood, and the damp, clammy material was cold as it began to saturate his own clothing. But as Daniel lay against him, the fresh, hot spurts of blood flowing from Daniel's torn abdomen and thigh quickly drenched Jack's clothing, warming him despite the cold air in the room.
Jack could feel his friend's blood running down his own chest and abdomen. It pooled on the floor around them, and he knew without a doubt that Daniel's injuries were fatal. They'd tried to stem the bleeding, but an artery had been severed. It was only a matter of minutes now.
"Shau're's angry… I missed dinner," Daniel murmured.
"Shhh, it's all right. I'll talk to her, she'll understand," he whispered into his best friend's hair.
"S'cold, is it night?"
"Yep. Sun's already set," Jack lied.
"Shleepy."
"It's okay, Daniel. You can go to sleep. I've got you. You can let go." Jack forced the words out with a tightening throat.
"Th…ns." Daniel's slurred thanks faded as he lapsed into unconsciousness. Jack buried his face against his friend's shoulder, knowing he'd never wake again. Jack suspected he and the others would be following Daniel down that same path in a very short time. It was growing colder by the minute, getting harder and harder to breathe. //
"Are you all right?"
The softly spoken words broke Jack out of his trance and he met the other man's concerned gaze. "Sorry, yeah. Flashback," he said as he quickly placed the blanket over the man's body. He was shaking with the aftermath of his memories, his throat still tight at the remembrance of his friend's death. His friend. Daniel. Who was lying in a bed right here beside him. Alive.
"Better?"
Daniel nodded. "Thank you."
"Remember anything?" Jack prompted, feeling strangely euphoric after the flashback. He smiled, he was Jack. Friend of Daniel. Daniel, who was miraculously alive!
Daniel's brow furrowed into a frown, followed soon after by a quick shake of his head. Jack quickly glanced at the woman who still had her back to them. He couldn't tell if she was asleep, but he'd wanted to let her know that yes, their memories would return.
"It's okay, seems like we're all suffering temporary amnesia due to some kind of medical process. Your name's Daniel, mine's Jack. Give it some time, it'll start coming back soon. Want some water?" he asked, remembering how thirsty he'd felt when he'd woken up. At Daniel's tentative nod, he went to the small sink near the beds and returned with some water. He helped Daniel sit up, careful of the wires and plastic material surrounding his friend, and held the glass while the man drank most of it down.
Daniel was tiring fast and Jack tucked the blankets around him. "Got to sleep," he said. "I know you probably don't remember, but we're friends." Jack's earlier fatigue had fled upon his remembering Daniel, but it now came back full vengeance. "I'll be right here." He clambered into his bed, seeing Daniel following his movements with heavy drooping eyelids. "Sleeping," he added as he pulled the blankets over his shoulders. Daniel closed his eyes, and Jack followed suit.
- - - - - -
"You'll be pleased to know that our technicians have finally managed to find a way to merge our technology with yours," Alden said as he leaned against the pristine white wall, watching them eat their breakfast. He glanced first at Jack, before turning his attention back to the woman, who was quickly chewing her food, obviously anxious to get into a discussion about the repairs. Daniel had refused to eat, but was awake and was listening to the conversation.
"We've also managed to synthesize those damaged crystals, Captain, the ones that control life support."
"She's a Major, not a Captain," Jack snapped, irritated at the constant use of the honorific. Suddenly everything snapped into place; he knew who he was and he finally *knew* these people. His team. His family.
"I beg your pardon?"
"She's not the captain of the ship, Captain," Jack said, stressing the man's title, "there isn't one. She's a Major of the United States Air Force. Major Samantha Carter."
"Sir!" Carter somehow managed to sit up straight despite the tray on her lap. Jack was glad to see that his words seemed to trigger some trickle of memory on her part.
"And you are…?" Alden asked, his tone polite despite Jack's earlier sarcasm.
"Colonel Jack O'Neill, in command of SG-1. This is Doctor Daniel Jackson, and the Jaffa sleeping in that room over there is Teal'c."
" Jaffa ?" Daniel's voice, although still weak, carried easily to Jack.
"He's not from Earth, Daniel," Jack said gently. "He's got a Goa'uld larva inside him. Give it a little while, I'm sure you'll remember Junior with as much affection as I do."
The injured man shook his head weakly to indicate he still had no recollection.
"Don't force it," Jack advised. "It all came back just a second ago, and Alden did say our memories would come back once we were feeling stronger. You have a little ways to go yet."
Daniel had improved considerably overnight; his color was better and he seemed stronger, although from the way he was moving, Jack suspected he was in pain and wouldn't admit to it.
"Sir, how much do you remember?" Carter asked as she pushed the remains of her breakfast away and stood up.
"I know who I am, Carter, and who we are, but I don't remember what we were doing on that ship or much of what happened to get us here. You?"
She raised her eyebrows, smiling. "I know you and Daniel. And Teal'c. But I don't remember what happened with the ship. I know it's a tel'tak, but why we were in it and what our mission was is still a blank."
"You're military," Daniel said in a panicky voice. "What am I doing in the military?"
"Easy, Danny," Jack said as he threw his legs over the edge of the bed and leaned across the space separating the two.
"I know I'm not a soldier… why can I remember that and not remember who I am?"
"You're a civilian consultant, and you've been on our team for five years now. Please, don't worry about it. Just relax and concentrate on getting stronger. I promise you, it's not as bad as what you're thinking right now."
Daniel shifted under the blankets, the plastic bands on his chest moving easily as the man repositioned himself. Keyon had removed the oxygen thingie overnight. Jack thought Daniel stifled a gasp, and his face seemed to pale after a moment. He stilled, his breathing coming a little faster than before.
Carter came to join them and she picked up Daniel's hand. Jack saw Daniel stare at their clasped hands a moment before he returned his gaze to her face.
"I know how disorienting it is to not remember, Daniel, but believe me, you're not alone here. You're with friends." She smiled at him before letting go of Daniel's hand. "Are you okay?" she asked when Daniel seemed to wince.
"I'm fine. Maybe a little tired."
"Try and get some sleep," Jack suggested.
Carter glanced at the Colonel. "I hope Teal'c's not too upset with being kept asleep."
"Captain Alden, if you don't mind, I think that now would be a good time to wake our other friend up."
"Of course, Colonel O'Neill." He motioned to the medic, who nodded and began walking out of the room.
"We'll be back soon," Jack said to Daniel. His friend nodded and closed his eyes. Jack and Carter followed the medic and ship's captain, and watched with concern as Keyon entered the small room and pressed a few commands into the console by Teal'c's bed.
“Sir, what if Teal'c doesn't remember us?” Carter whispered in his ear.
“Then we wait for Junior to put his memories back.” The thought had flitted through Jack's mind, but the snake in Teal'c's belly had always helped the Jaffa recover more quickly than the humans.
The lights along the small plastic bands winked out, and a few seconds later, Teal'c opened his eyes. Jack did note that the doctor hadn't removed the bands from Teal'c's body, and that he stood with his hands still on the controls. Jack hoped the precautions wouldn't be necessary.
“What if his symbiote also has amnesia?”
The large man sat up smoothly and gracefully, twisting his body around so that his feet were on the ground. He stared at the people in the room, oblivious of the medical trappings still stuck to his body.
“Carter…” Jack griped, then pushed into the room and stood before his friend, arms held out at his side.
“Hey Teal'c,” Jack said with a wide smile. "Remember me?"
He was met with stony silence. Jack pursed his lips together and shoved his hands into his pockets. He had to hope that if Teal'c didn't remember them, then he also didn't remember his time as a Jaffa , and so wouldn't see Jack as a threat.
"I guess you don't remember anything, huh? Well, that's okay, it's happened to all of us. It'll take a little while but your memory will come back. Now, I have only one word of advice." He leaned forward and lowered his voice. "Apophis is a false god. Just remember that before jumping to any other conclusions, okay?"
Their friend simply continued to stare for a long moment, and Jack began to feel uncomfortable. He turned to look at Carter, then at the two aliens, before swiveling back Teal'c.
"I guess Carter was right, looks like Junior might have amnesia also."
At his comment, Teal'c placed a hand to his abdomen. He raised his tee shirt and looked down at his pouch, and at the wires snaking into the opening. He lowered the shirt and said, "Those were five words, O'Neill."
"Buddy! Glad to see you remember us," Jack said, grinning and clapping Teal'c's shoulder.
“MajorCarter, I am pleased to see you also. Why did I not remember?” Teal'c asked as they waited for Keyon to disconnect the wiring and then Jack waved his friend out of the tiny room.
"It happened to all of us," Carter said. The alien doctor and Captain had left them alone, allowing them to bring Teal'c up to speed. As she explained to Teal'c the reasons for their memory loss, Jack couldn't help wonder why no one could remember why they were out here in space. And exactly where in space were they? And where had they been heading or coming from? Was Alden's ship traveling away from their home? Who were these aliens, were they really as friendly as they appeared? Of course, Jack and Carter had been too busy trying to remember who they were that the normal suspicions had flown right out of their minds.
"What of DanielJackson?"
Teal'c's words brought Jack back to the present.
"He was hurt a little more severely than we were," Jack explained, his voice tense as Daniel's death suddenly hit him once more. Yeah, right, like he bled to death in Jack's arms, that would constitute being hurt worse than running out of air.
"He's recovering," Carter added, "but they don't have any blood to transfuse him with. Sir, we need to find out exactly where we are and how long it'll take us to get home. Or at the least, find out where the nearest 'gate is. I think the sooner we get Daniel to Janet, the sooner he'll recover. He really needs a blood transfusion."
Carter's words paralleled Jack's earlier thoughts. He nodded, and was glad when they entered the infirmary once again. He wondered whether they'd continue to bunk in here or if they'd be assigned private rooms. He was feeling pretty good at the moment, although Keyon had warned him it would take him a while to get his full strength back if he didn't overdo it.
They went straight to Daniel's bed, and seeing that his friend was asleep, continued on through the medical area in search of Keyon. They found the man sitting at a desk looking at some kind of computer console.
"How is Daniel doing?" Jack asked when the medic turned to greet them. "Physically, I mean. It looked to me earlier like he was in pain."
"He has not complained of any discomfort," the medic replied.
"Well, that's just Daniel." Jack shook his head. "He wouldn't say much of anything, especially if he's not sure of what's going on. He doesn't remember, and even though we're telling him we remember him, he must be horribly confused and he doesn't feel safe, so he won't admit to any kind of vulnerability. I know I wouldn't. He's hurting, I'm pretty sure of it."
"His wounds have been healed," Keyon stated as he got up and began to walk in the direction of Daniel's bed. "What ails him now is the lack of red blood cells. But there are rare instances where patients experience residual nerve trauma after the resuscitation. The brain continues to experience the pain, even though the damage has been healed. Perhaps this is what is occurring with your friend." Keyon began accessing the console beside Daniel's bed. Lights lit up on the plastic band around his chest. "I did not think to check for this as he never mentioned any pain. You were right, there is nerve trauma."
"Ah, Danny," Jack sighed.
- - - - - -
The voices around his bed, although softly spoken, woke Daniel out of a light doze. The pain in his abdomen was getting worse, and was keeping him from sleeping soundly despite the overwhelming exhaustion that made his whole body feel like it was permeated in lead. The sounds quieted after a moment, and Daniel was too tired to see if the people had gone away.
He needed to move, to ease the pain in his belly. He shifted his weight onto his right hip, stretching his left leg, searching for some kind of surcease of the discomfort. He wished the contraption surrounding him would allow him to turn onto his side. He felt it would help if he could just curl around the pain.
He wished he were back home, in a hospital where someone could give him some kind of medication to ease the hurt. But the people here weren't human, and those that were, were military. Somehow he knew he should be shocked to be talking to aliens, but he wasn't. And the idea of a Colonel being his friend seemed more off the wall than a monkey-faced furry doctor.
A stabbing pain made him catch his breath, and he brought his hand up to massage the area below his right breastbone.
"Easy there." The words were softly spoken and a hand squeezed his shoulder. He finally decided to open his eyes and saw the Colonel, Jack, sitting on his bed watching him with what Daniel thought to be concern. He squeezed his eyes shut as another round of pain assaulted him.
"Doc," Jack said, his voice rising.
"It's okay," Daniel managed to ground out, not wanting anyone to make a fuss over him.
"No, it's not. You're hurting and you're just too damned stubborn to tell anyone about it. The doc's making adjustments to that computer thingie, just hold on a little longer."
He felt a hand on his forehead and opened his eyes again. The pretty blond, the Captain… no, she was a Major, wasn't she… pushed his short bangs off his forehead. Somehow her touch and the Colonel's words, their obvious concern, made him feel less alone.
He groaned at another stabbing pain. This time he managed to turn onto his side and brought his knees up to his chest. His shoulder bumped the plastic that had sat against his chest, and it slid down his torso. He felt hands grab his own; hard, callused fingers squeezed and encouraged him to squeeze back.
"Just hang on," Jack said as Daniel did exactly that, crushing Jack's hands involuntarily as yet another spasm of pain coursed through him. He panted through the worsening pain, feeling sweat trickle down his face.
He felt the plastic contraption lifted from his back and then somehow it was sitting against his ribs again. Something cold and wet was placed against his temple, and the plastic now surrounding his ribs felt cool.
"There." The pain was suddenly gone as the alien doctor spoke, leaving Daniel thoroughly exhausted and light headed. He realized he was still grasping at the Colonel's hands and embarrassed, he let go.
"Better now?" Daniel nodded, and Jack patted his hand. The bed dipped and a rustling sound indicated that he'd moved off the bed. Daniel realized that he'd been given some kind of painkiller, and suddenly his fear escalated. Wasn't pain a warning that something wasn't right?
"Maybe it's my appendix," Daniel said, his voice seeming to come from far away.
"Don't think so, unless you've suddenly grown a new one." Jack's voice held a hint of laughter, and Daniel cracked one eye open to look over at him. The Major, Sam, was standing next to him and a huge black man stood beside her. He must be the fourth of their team that Jack had mentioned earlier.
"DanielJackson." The man spoke Daniel's name as if it were one word.
"I, um, I'm sorry, but I don't know you," Daniel said.
"I understand. I myself had a temporary loss of memory."
"And you won't remember until you've gotten stronger," Keyon said, walking into Daniel's field of vision. He adjusted the cold thing on his patient's forehead and stood back. "This will ease the pain, until the treatment for the nerve trauma is completed. And rest assured that not informing me of your discomfort did not aid your condition. We could have prevented this suffering, had you but said you were in pain."
Daniel raised his eyebrows at the doctor's appearance. The fur around his eyes and ears was standing straight up. Daniel glanced at Jack, wondering if he was seeing things. But Jack was staring at the alien with a bemused look on his face.
Slowly, the fur settled back as the doctor calmed down. "Rest now, you must not tire yourself, as this episode will not help in your recovery."
As if the words were a hypnotic command, Daniel's eyelids drooped. He forced them open, only to see Jack bending down close. "Go to sleep, Danny. Let go, relax. We'll be here, okay?"
Somehow the words were comforting, and he believed him. He let his eyes close, sleep claiming him now that the pain wasn't holding him back.
- - - - -
Jack sat down on his bed, watching Daniel sleep. Damn, but he'd deteriorated quickly. At least Keyon was fixing that little problem, and hopefully Daniel would start getting stronger now. Or as quickly as someone could recuperate without an adequate supply of red blood cells in him. Carter had suggested they donate more blood, but Keyon had said it wouldn't help. Without whole blood, there wasn't much more they could do to help their friend.
"Colonel?"
Jack turned, seeing a young woman waiting nervously behind him. She had long striated gold and tan hair, with her fur a lighter golden color. Sand-colored eyes gazed at him owlishly.
"If you please, I can bring you and your crew to your quarters now. Unless you prefer to stay on your vessel; but Captain Alden has made rooms available for you now that Keyon has given you the all clear."
"Yes," Keyon agreed, "you may leave the medical facilities as long as you assure me that you will rest and not overdo things over the next few cycles." Keyon looked over at Daniel, adjusting a small panel by the side of the bed. "Of course you are welcome to visit at any time. I will insist that he begin taking meals, so perhaps you would wish to join him at mealtimes."
With a last glance at Daniel, who looked like he'd be sleeping for quite some time, Jack nodded. "Sure, lead on," he said to the woman. As he followed the young lady, Carter and Teal'c fell in beside him.
"If you need anything, please, just ask me. If I can't provide what you require, or don't know the answer, then I can always find out for you."
"Well, we could start with your name," Jack said with a smile.
The woman gulped nervously, glancing at him quickly, a mannerism that reminded Jack of Daniel. "I'm sorry, my name is Edolie."
"Edolie, can you give us the coordinates of where we are in space and where we're heading?" Carter asked.
"Of course," Edolie replied as she led them down the corridor to stop at a shuttle post. "There's a computer in your suite, I can bring the coordinates up on it and show you. The ship isn't moving, though. Captain Alden wasn't sure where you were heading and didn't want to chance bringing you too far out of your way if your destination didn't coincide with ours."
"We haven't put your people out, have we?" Jack asked, wondering if the Captain would expect payment for this delay.
"Oh no," Edolie answered as she waved them into an arriving shuttle. "We're explorers and scientists, and the opportunity to meet new cultures is always worth the time to explore it fully."
Jack grinned at her words and looked at Carter and Teal'c. Carter grinned back at Jack and Teal'c raised an eyebrow, acknowledging again similarities to Daniel's eagerness in learning new cultures expressed by this young alien woman.
"Our last mission was to study a red dwarf in a binary system that had unusual qualities. We're on our way home, but we detoured into this galaxy at the rumors that there was much diverse life to be found here. So far we haven't been disappointed. You're the fourth race, oh, sorry," she said as she looked back at Teal'c, "fifth race we've encountered since we've been here. And we've heard of so many others, it's incredible. Where we come from, we have only two other races who share the galaxy with us. Learning about new cultures and life forms has been even more exciting than the red dwarf."
The shuttle came to a stop and everyone filed out. Edolie led them through a warren of corridors until she stopped at a door. She waved her hand over a light in the center of the door, and the door disappeared.
"The sensors are keyed to you," Edolie explained as she entered the room. "All you need to do is activate them and you will have access to anything here." Quickly and efficiently, she instructed them on the use of the various gadgets and facilities. She also led them on a very short tour of the four bedroom suite with a spacious living area which had an enormous picture window displaying the dark vista outside the ship.
"Here is the computer," she said, sitting at a small console, and after punching a few controls, she pulled up a star map on the wall display. "And here is our location," she added, isolating a small group of stars to the right of the map.
"Look familiar to you two?" Jack asked.
Carter shook her head. "I'll need to check the ship's navigational computer when it's back online and see if I can correlate the stars with planets having any known 'gates. And that's only if the computers are working. I have no idea how much damage they might have sustained."
"I believe that the technicians will be restoring power in the next cycle," Edolie said. "Perhaps then you could test your computers?"
"Cycles, that would be ahhh… days?" Jack asked.
"Yes, Sir," Carter replied. She checked her watch. "Local time on the ship makes it about 8 pm , Sir."
"And you know that, how?" Jack asked as he sat down on the soft sofa facing the stars.
"I asked, Sir," she said with an impish grin.
"You asked," Jack repeated.
"I will leave you now," Edolie said, after having powered the computer down. "Press this button to contact me in the morning. I will be at your disposal. If you wish, I will take you to your ship when they test the engines."
"Thank you, that would be great," Carter said, walking the woman to the door. Edolie left the room, flashing a smile at them before the doors reappeared, hiding her from view.
Jack sighed and laid his head back on the sofa. God, he was tired. He wondered if he should just go straight to bed. He thought of Daniel sleeping in the ship's infirmary and hoped that he wouldn't wake during the night and wonder why he was alone.
"I wish I could remember why we flew here in a tel'tak," Carter said as she dropped heavily into a padded chair.
"Why a ship, why not a Stargate?" Jack added.
"Perhaps if we compare our last memories," Teal'c suggested.
"Right. What's the last thing any of you remember?"
"Scrambled eggs," Carter said. "Orange juice, and coffee."
"Feeling hungry, are we?" Jack asked.
"No, I mean, I remember eating that for breakfast. That's my last memory."
"Indeed. I recall leaving the commissary to gear up for our mission. O'Neill, we did leave through the Stargate."
Jack rubbed his palms over his eyes, making little squelching sounds. "Okay, I remember going through the 'gate, too, but who's to say that that was the start of this mission, or one that happened last week."
"Right," Carter said glumly, closing her eyes and letting her head fall back on the cushions.
"What about the explosion?" Teal'c asked. "Does anyone recall DanielJackson being injured?"
// "Please Jack, I'm cold." //
For a moment Jack could feel Daniel's bloodied body warming up his chest and abdomen while the cold leached the heat from Jack's back. Daniel's limp weight was heavy in his arms. He felt intense regret and hopelessness at their situation and knew they were all going to die. He could see Carter's agonized expression when she informed him there had been too much damage to repair, and Teal'c's tireless attempts at barricading the door to maintain as much oxygen as possible in the small room finally had Jack ordering him to cease and rest.
He had felt Daniel slip away from their world with a soft sigh, and still he had refused to let go of his friend. His teammates had curled up around the two of them, huddling close to maintain body heat, their hands curling around Daniel to hold him in place close to Jack. The gravity had felt weird; he had been strangely buoyant, like he was floating in water. His ass was had been planted on the cold marble floor, but every so often he had felt something like a wave or current or gust of air that would lift him up and gently set him back down.
"Sir, are you all right?"
Carter's question jerked him back to the present, and at that moment, Jack wanted nothing more than to go to bed. Instead, he turned to look at her, and said, "I remember Daniel dying."
"In the tel'tak?"
"Yeah. He went first, but we weren't far behind him," Jack said. He stood up. "Look, I'm going to bed." He didn't want to talk about what he was feeling just now. He headed for the bedroom nearest to where he'd been sitting.
"I'm right behind you," Carter said, standing up and heading in the opposite direction.
"As am I," said Teal'c, taking the room between the two.
Jack quickly stripped to his underwear and slid beneath the soft sheets. As he turned onto his side, he was sure he was going to be haunted by dreams of Daniel's death. Instead, he slept peacefully, knowing nothing until he woke twelve hours later.
- - - - - -
Daniel tried not to look at the greenish-grey glop sitting on the tray that Keyon had brought in moments earlier. Just the color and consistency turned his stomach. Hell, he was sure it would put anyone off his food, even if he were healthy and not feeling nauseated.
He'd only been sitting up for several minutes and already he was tired. Keyon had insisted he try to eat something this morning and although Daniel had no appetite, he did realize that he needed food in order to get his strength back. But he was positive this supposedly nutritious *stuff* the medic had brought him would make a repeat performance if he did try and eat it. Finally he shut his eyes, hoping that when he opened them again, someone would take the food away.
"Hey Daniel."
"Colonel." Daniel smiled at the older man, happy to see him and at the same time, a little embarrassed at the comfort he'd needed last night when he'd been in such pain.
"Jack."
"What?"
"You usually call me Jack. You haven't called me Colonel for years now."
"Oh, okay. Jack."
"What's this, breakfast?" The man who proclaimed to be his friend, and who had proven to be so last night, leaned over to peer at the tray. "You gonna eat that?" he asked, making a face.
"No, do you want it?" Daniel asked hopefully.
"Um, not really," Jack said after sticking his finger into the glob and tasting it. He picked the tray up and moved it to a table, out of Daniel's sight. "We had some crunchy stuff for breakfast, I think I'll pass on the… gruel. I'll be sticking to MREs from now on so, maybe you'd like to try something a little more familiar?" Jack dug into a pocket and pulled out a small object. He tore the wrapping off one end and handed it to Daniel. "It's an energy bar, extremely nutritious and tasty."
Daniel broke off a small piece from the sticky bar and tasted it. It was sweet and tasty, and much preferable than the food Keyon had wanted him to eat. Apples and cinnamon, Daniel decided. A great combination, almost as good as coffee and chocolate.
"I know you're probably better off eating something other than solids right now," Jack said as he handed Daniel some water to wash the bite down with, "but just that one serving packs enough calories for a day. So if you just nibble on it every few hours, it might not tax your stomach too much."
"Thanks," Daniel said as he took another bite. "But weren't you planning on eating this yourself?"
"I just packed it as a snack." He tilted his head, looking at Daniel. "I've got more, don't worry."
With shaking hands, Daniel pulled the torn wrapping over the uneaten portion of the bar. With the water and the couple of bites he'd eaten, his stomach was already feeling full and he was afraid he'd be sick if he ate more. He dropped the bar beside him and closed his eyes, wishing he didn't feel so weak and exhausted.
"You okay? You're not in any pain, are you?"
He opened his eyes to see Jack leaning forward over the bed. There was genuine concern showing on his face.
"I'm fine, just a little tired," he said as he fingered the small device stuck to his temple. Whatever it was, it was doing a great job keeping the pain away.
"Okay, get some sleep. I'm gonna go join the others and see how much longer before we find out exactly where we are. With any luck, we'll find a planet with a Stargate and get you home to Fraiser in a few hours."
"Stargate? Fraiser?"
Daniel wished he had the strength to question Jack more fully on these words or names, but sleep was pulling him under and he was helpless to resist. Jack might have answered, but Daniel was asleep before the other man opened his mouth.
ON TO PART TWO >>
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