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).
Jack O'Neill was not happy. Granted this was not the first time Daniel had fled the infirmary before being officially released, but, dammit, why did he always leave just before dawn? The inevitable result was that Jack was deprived of precious hours of undisturbed sleep, which, at his age, was not to be taken lightly. This time, however, Jack was more concerned over the young scientist's frame of mind than his physical condition. A quick check with the sentry on duty proved that Daniel had not left the facility. Jack smiled sadly. That left the man's only real sanctuary on base.
Daniel was most comfortable in his own environment, and on base that environment was the sanctum of his laboratory. Few SGC personnel dared to cross the threshold into the Egyptologist's lab. Although Daniel's openness and ingenuousness had won him lasting friendships among the SGC personnel, the brilliant young man unwittingly terrorized those who were brave enough to visit him in the lab. Most people feared being trapped by a dissertation on a long dead society which they had no hope of understanding.
He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw that the lights were on in Daniel Jackson's lab. Peering in through the small window, the Colonel studied the younger man from a discreet distance. Realizing that time was not his friend, Jack pushed the door open. "Daniel. Did Dr. Fraiser release you?"
"I released myself."
"Daniel."
"What, Jack?" Daniel whirled and glared angrily at his friend. "I had a momentary nervous break-down. Made a complete idiot of myself in front of just about everyone. No problem. Could happen to anyone. Now if you don't mind, I have work to do. SG-7 brought back pottery shards...
"Danny-boy..."
"...from a Viking culture on PSX927A but the writing..."
"Daniel..."
"...is definitely Egyptian, probably 4th century..."
"Daniel!"
"WHAT?"
"I'm sorry."
The younger man, for once, was rendered speechless. He sat motionless, eyes wide with shock as he stared at the Colonel.
Jack made a mental note to mark this day on his calendar, then continued. "Daniel, you were what, six, seven when your folks died?"
"Five. I was five." Daniel was suddenly engrossed in watching his feet.
"Whatever. The point is that you were a little boy who had his world snatched away from him in one fell swoop. Worse, you saw it happen. No one, and I mean no one, thinks of you as an idiot for your violent reaction to that damn tape. I'm just sorry I went to the hockey game. I might have been able to help."
"Not your fault, Jack. You didn't know what was in the box." An involuntary shudder played over the young scientist's body.
"Wanta talk about it?"
"Nothing much to talk about. You saw the tape?"
Jack nodded.
"Well, that was it, except..." Daniel's words trailed off.
"Except?"
"There wasn't any sound on the video, was there?"
Confused, Jack responded, "No, it looked like it was spliced together from three separate home movies. No sound. Why?"
Pain-filled blue eyes rose to meet concerned brown ones. Daniel's voice was barely above a whisper. "B..Because, I could hear their screams, Jack, all night long."
"Teal'c?"
"Yes, Major Carter."
"Are you sure that you don't recognize these nine symbols?"
"I am sorry, Major Carter, they are unfamiliar to me."
"That's okay, Teal'c. But I've managed to match almost all the other symbols to those on the Stargate. There're a few blocked by this object, but maybe I can use the comp... Oh my God!" Sam dropped the laser pointer onto the desk and sank slowly into a chair.
"Major Carter, is something wrong?"
"I'm an idiot, Teal'c. The 'object' blocking my view is Daniel's mother. How could I be so callous?"
"I do not believe you were being callous, Major Carter. You are much like Daniel Jackson. When presented with a puzzle you will work tirelessly to the exclusion of all else to solve it. You have also been working all night. It is entirely understandable that you have forgotten the source of this photograph."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Teal'c, but I'm not sure it makes me feel any better." She sighed, and used the pointer to isolate one of the unknown symbols. "These nine don't make any sense."
"I agree, Major Carter. They do not seem to belong with the others."
"I know, maybe Daniel can... Uh, no, bad idea, real bad idea. I must be really tired." She stared for a moment at the fuzzy, gray mass in the center of the photo. At this scale of enlargement, it was unrecognizable as human.
The large Jaffa looked even more solemn that usual. "Indeed it would not seem advisable to allow Daniel Jackson to see these photographs."
"You can say that again."
"Indeed it would-"
The intercom effectively cutoff the Jaffa's reply as General Hammond's aide requested their presence in the briefing room.
Jack placed a sympathetic hand on Daniel's shoulder, but before he could respond his pager played a lively tune. "Dammit!" Jack ripped the device from his belt and glared at the message. Turning his attention back to his friend, he smiled ruefully. "Daniel, you really need to get some rest."
"Rest! Unless I'm mistaken I've been in a drugged sleep for about twenty four hours. What I need to do is check these artifacts..." He once again stared at his feet, then, sighing, lifted his head to meet Jack's eyes. "No, that's not true. I need to find out who sent me that, that tape and why. I don't remember a camera being there. Surely I would have remembered somebody with a camera."
"Daniel, the camera could have been set up anywhere and it was probably on a tripod. As to who sent it, General Hammond has turned that over to NID. *You* don't need to sweat it."
"But Jack..."
"No, Daniel. You go ahead and fiddle with your rocks-"
"Artifacts." Daniel automatically corrected the older man.
"Whatever. Just let NID worry about the tape. Okay?"
"Okay," came the reluctant reply.
"I've gotta go. Are you gonna be okay?"
"I'll be fine."
Jack squeezed his friend's shoulder, then left quickly; grateful that Daniel hadn't asked where he was going. But he fervently hoped that the younger man hadn't picked up on his anger.
Tired eyes followed Jack from the room. Daniel's mind took him back again to the horrendous day when his secure little world had died. Five. He'd only been five. God. That ... event ... had been followed by three years in institutional limbo. Three long years spent waiting for the authorities to trace his grandfather. Who, when found, didn't have time to raise a child, or so he'd been told as he'd been shuffled off to one more foster home, and one less chance of having real connections.
Shaking his head in an attempt to clear his mind of increasingly bitter thoughts, Daniel absently picked up a pottery shard. He stared unseeing at the broken fragment, then his brow furrowed with confusion. Why hadn't he seen the camera? Even on a tripod, someone should have been there. Think, Daniel, think. No. There'd been no tripod. But something didn't fit. What? The movie. Movies - three to be exact.
Daniel frowned. Three? Surely there were only two. The one in Egypt and the one in ... New York. What third one? He'd have to remember to ask Jack or, or watch the tape once more. Shuddering, he moaned softly. No, that was definitely out. He did NOT want to see that tape ever again. Get a grip, Jackson. Don't think about th..them, what was wrong with the picture? Concentrate on the picture. Yes! That's it. The movie didn't waiver when the corner-stone fell. A security camera? That had to be it. Jack said NID had the tape but... The General. He'll know how to find out. Relieved to have something constructive to do, Daniel gently placed the artifact on the table and went in search of General Hammond.
"General, sir, you wanted to see us?" Carter saluted as she entered the briefing room.
"Yes, Major, be seated. Colonel O'Neill should be along momentarily. Ah, Colonel, come in."
"Sir." O'Neill quickly joined Teal'c and Carter at the table, staring curiously at the NID officer standing there.
"This is Major Harris, NID. He's been assigned the lead in the investigation of Dr. Jackson's tape. Major, would you explain to my staff what you've found so far."
"Yes, sir. Colonel, Major," the NID officer hesitated slightly before continuing, "Mr. Teal'c. The package originated in Washington, DC. It was mailed from a small substation near the river. Unfortunately there were no prints on the package itself nor, as Major Carter found, on the original tape."
"What you're trying to say is that you've got nothing." The frustration in O'Neill's voice was obvious even to the NID officer.
"No, sir, not exactly. A body was found in the gutter four blocks from the substation, time of death preceded the postmark on the package. We believe he dumped the tape at the substation after hours, then left the site only to be murdered a few blocks away."
"So? What makes the connection? It's Washington. People are always dying there." Jack's thoughts trailed back momentarily to the reporter who'd died at his feet there.
"True. But, how many die within easy walking distance of a mailbox containing an unwrapped tape of the Tutankhamen dig?"
Carter gasped. "So you think the victim sent Daniel the tape?"
"Yes."
"I assume you've identified the body." Hammond sat straight up in his chair.
Major Harris nodded slowly. "Yes, sir. His name was Colonel Martin L. Nichols, U.S. Army, retired."
The silence that filled the room was broken from an unexpected source. "Why would a retired Army colonel have a tape of my parents' accident?"
A trembling hand brought the secure cell-phone out of an inner pocket. The young man stared for a moment at the number he'd dialed, then reluctantly hit the send button.
It seemed an eternity of rings before a severe voice answered. "Report."
"Sir, I, uh, I've failed you, sir. The vault was empty when I got there."
"EMPTY!"
"Y..yes, sir. I'm sorry, sir. I didn't let on to anyone that the vault had been cleaned out, but I did check the records. It hasn't been accessed in ten years."