DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters and property of Stargate SG-1 belong to MGM/UA, World Gekko Corp. and Double Secret Productions. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment purposes and no money was made from it. Also, no copyright or trademark infringement was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any other characters, the storyline and the actual story are the property of the author. Not to be archived without permission of the author(s).
Daniel kept working well into the night. When Jack caught him blinking blearily at his notes in the firelight, Daniel was packed off to his tent. Jack heard the distinct phrase, "Enjoy it while you can" and the young scientist was asleep. Jack laughed, glad that Daniel was regaining his strength...as well as his sense of humor.
Jack took the time then to familiarize himself with the sounds around him. Some of those sounds were surprisingly normal: cricket-like chirruping, leaves rustling in the light breeze, the occasional gurgle as the river flowed its way over stones. Once Jack felt confident that he could recognize any disturbances in the peaceful night routine, he let himself relax somewhat.
Jack found his attention wandering back to Daniel's tent and he could just make out the young man's face in the firelight, brow creased as if he were still hard at work, even in sleep. Jack became aware of being watched and turned to meet Teal'c's eyes, finding understanding in the dark depths. They both knew how close they had come to losing Daniel on this one.
Jack sighed only slightly embarrassed to be caught in 'mother hen' mode. Jack knew Teal'c shared the strange compulsion to watch over and protect the younger man. 'Maybe it's an unwritten law,' Jack thought with a smile, 'look out for children and one overly-intelligent, far-too-trusting, entirely-too-sensitive, universal conscience."
Jack's smile faded as he wondered how Daniel had managed to maintain that wide-open acceptance, that air of wonder at everything...and everyone...he met. Given what Jack had picked up on concerning Daniel's early history, it was hard to imagine how that essential goodness had survived...
Even lost in thought, Jack could hear Carter slip out of her tent and move straight for the coffee pot. When she indicated that she was awake and taking over, he made a goodnight noise and crawled into his own tent.
'Jack!'
Jack shot out of the tent to find Teal'c and Carter staring at him strangely.
"Sir?" Carter asked in confusion.
"Didn't you hear...?"
Jack moved to Daniel's tent, feeling an immense dread as he bent to look inside....
Daniel was gone.
Jack's mind reeled and he felt a distinct, sharp pain at the base of his neck that drove him to his knees, then Carter and Teal'c were beside him helping him to sit down.
"Sir? What is it?"
In a haze, Jack could see them taking in the fact that Daniel was missing, but it took him a few minutes to regain his composure and speak...
"It's not me...Daniel...Something hit him..."
Carter's eyes widened as she took in the full implications of that statement. Jack nodded, holding his head at the pain it caused.
"Yeah.."
Jack got to his feet, trying to pull himself out of Daniel's pain so he could function. Teal'c returned from checking the perimeter and Jack could tell from the closed expression that the Jaffa had found nothing to indicate who, or what, had taken their friend.
Carter had been searching Daniel's tent and came back to Jack carrying Daniel's hat in one hand and his notebook in the other. There was blood on both.
Fighting a rising wave of panic and anger, Jack took the notebook. There was something important about the notebook...
Trusting that he was somehow picking up on Daniel's thoughts, Jack started to thumb through the pages full of Daniel's tight, distinctive handwriting. To his shock, Jack found he could actually make some sense of the unfamiliar words and phrases. On the last page he found it...what Daniel wanted them to know....
Three words that were like a knife in Jack's gut...
'Temple of Nirrti'.
"Nirrti?" Carter was as shocked as Jack. "I thought the System Lords..."
She trailed off as she realized they had no idea what sort of punishment the Goa'uld System Lords might have imposed on Nirrti for trying to kill Cronus, not to mention withholding her phase shifting technology.
Either the punishment hadn't been very severe...or the self-proclaimed Goddess of Darkness' had escaped...
Jack's thought had mirrored Carter's. "Yeah. And either way, she hasn't got much reason to be happy to see us."
Teal'c had taken it all in silently. "But why take only Daniel Jackson?"
Jack knew the answer, dreaded what it meant for Daniel...
"He's the bait. She wants us to come to her...."