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The Poseidon Effect
***** Chapter 4 *****
Teal’c finally stopped on a ridge overlooking a narrow box canyon, and waited for Sam and Daniel to catch up. The terrain here was mountainous, studded with craggy peaks and deep valleys - a thoroughly unlikely place to hide an alien artifact. “Teal’c?” Teal’c tilted his head slightly to one side, eyebrow raised in polite interest. “I don’t see any device.” Sam was startled by the note of irritation in Daniel’s normally enthusiastic voice. Then again, they were all hot, thirsty, and cranky as hell. “I don’t either,” she said. Teal’c pointed toward the end of the canyon, unperturbed. “It is there.” Daniel squinted. “All I see is more rock.” Sam unclipped her pack and reached inside, pulling out her binoculars. She stared through them for several moments before handing the glasses over to Daniel. “I’m sorry, Teal’c, but I agree with Daniel. Nothing but rock.” “You will see it when we get closer.” Teal’c started to turn away. “I have a question.” Daniel nudged a fist-sized rock over the edge of the ridge with his toe. It skittered down the steep slope, raising a cloud of dust as it went. “Why didn’t we use a tel’tak?” “Do you require rest, Daniel Jackson?” There was the faintest hint of amusement in Teal’c’s voice. Sam felt a laugh bubble up in her chest, and devoted her attention to screwing the top on her canteen, biting her lip to hold the smile at bay. “No, not at all.” Daniel’s response was swift. Teal’c continued to gaze steadily at Daniel for a moment, as though deciding whether or not he believed him. “There is no tel’tak available at this time.” Daniel put his own canteen away and waved Teal’c ahead. “Lead on.” It took another half hour of steady hiking to reach the place Teal’c wanted them to see, and it wasn’t until they’d actually arrived that she and Daniel were able to recognize the fact that there was, indeed, a manmade object here. The device, whatever it was, had been built into the wall of the canyon near where it came to an abrupt dead end. Its position several hundred meters above the valley floor meant that the only way to reach it would be by climbing down to it from above. Sam dropped her pack and rifled through it for the rope and harness Teal’c had suggested she bring. She started to step into the harness, but stopped when she felt Daniel’s hand on her arm. “Shouldn’t we get some idea of what that thing is before you go poking and prodding at it?” She yanked the harness up and started buckling it around her waist. “That’s exactly what I’m going to do, Daniel.” “Okay, maybe I should rephrase.” He folded his arms and rocked back on his heels. “Teal’c already told us that the device has some kind of markings on it, and there’s a fair chance those symbols are in an ancient language. Have you become a linguist in your spare time?” She shook her head. “You know I haven’t.” “Then doesn’t it make sense that I should be the one going down first?” “Perhaps Daniel Jackson is correct,” Teal’c said mildly. Sam blew out an exasperated breath and took off the harness, reluctantly handing it over to her teammate. “Daniel, so help me God, if you start pushing buttons…” He held up his hands, “No buttons. I swear.” She snorted. She didn’t trust him for an instant, but she had to acknowledge that he was right. It really did make more sense for him to go down first. Teal’c took the other end of the rope, wrapping it around his waist and leaning back slightly to better support Daniel’s weight. Daniel eased himself over the edge, taking his time to find stable toe holds as he worked his way down the rock wall and then across to a narrow ledge that would allow him to reach the device. Several minutes passed during which Sam lent her strength to Teal’c’s, and Daniel concentrated on his footing. Finally, the rope went slack. “Daniel?” she called. “Yeah, Sam. I’m good. Lock the rope, would you?” Sam nodded to Teal’c, who wrapped the end of the rope several times around a large boulder. He tied it securely before coming over to where Sam lay flat on her stomach, her head hanging over the edge to better see what Daniel was doing. Camera in hand, he was already recording digital images, his free hand moving lightly over the rock face. “Daniel!” Surely he knew how sensitive some of these things could be. “No buttons!” He looked up at her. “Sam! Give it a rest! I’m not-” The rest of his comment was lost in a low rumble as Sam felt the ground beneath her shift ominously. “Daniel!” Suddenly she wasn’t angry or irritated. She was scared. The ledge Daniel was standing on was only just wide enough for his feet, and, rope and harness not withstanding, it wouldn’t take much to dislodge him. She looked around to where Teal’c had rolled to his feet in a single smooth motion and was now once again holding onto the rope. Teal’c’s calm voice was almost lost in the grating noise of rock shifting against rock. “Shall I pull him up, Colonel Carter?” “Just a sec, Teal’c.” Reassured that the lifeline was stable, Sam looked back down to see that Daniel had flattened himself against the cliff wall, the fingers of one hand wrapped securely around the rope, the other holding onto something she couldn’t see. The digital camera hung freely from its strap around his neck. Luckily, a small outcropping above his head offered protection against the cascade of small stones and rocks that been dislodged by the tremor. “Not yet, Teal’c. Right now, he’s safer where he is.” She got a nod in reply as the rumbling finally slowed to a stop. She breathed a tentative sigh of relief. She hadn’t known Dakara was prone to earthquakes, but given its geological makeup, she wasn’t all that surprised. Daniel looked up at her, a crooked smile of relief on his face. “I swear, Sam. I didn’t touch a thing.” She laughed a little nervously. “Maybe the mountain just prefers a feminine touch.” He snorted at that and went back to his work. A few minutes later, he called up that he was finished, and Sam and Teal’c worked together to pull him back up the steep incline. Daniel took off the harness and Sam reached for it, preparing to take her own look at this new discovery. “Sam.” Daniel caught her arm, preventing her from fastening the buckle around her waist. “I think you should wait.” “Excuse me?” Daniel usually knew better than to try to protect her. She could take care of herself. Besides, this discovery could be important to the Jaffa people, and it seemed to her that – He interrupted her train of thought. “I just think we should get a geological survey done before we take any more risks. Look, if that quake had happened before I’d gone down there I would have said the same thing. It’s too dangerous.” Sam looked over to where Teal’c was coiling up the rope. “It would be exceedingly unwise to linger, Colonel Carter,” he said. “This area may indeed be unstable.” She sighed in frustration. They were right. It made sense to get a survey done before they did too much poking around. Besides, from what little she could tell, the machine was turned off at the moment and no apparent danger to anybody. “Fine,” she said finally. “We’ll go back. General Landry can decide what happens next.” She looked around at the rapidly deepening gloom. “There’s no way we’ll make it back to the gate tonight, though. Let’s make camp.” It was nearly 1130 by the time they reached the gate the next day. Sam adjusted her pack on her shoulders and moved to the DHD beside Daniel, but Teal’c held back. “I regret that I will not be joining you on your return,” he said quietly. Sam snapped her head up from where she’d been watching Daniel punch in the coordinates. “You aren’t coming back?” “Not at this time.” “And you wait until now to say something?” Daniel voiced the incredulity Sam was feeling. He looked at her. “Is the O’Neill disease contagious?” Sam shrugged a puzzled shoulder before turning back to Teal’c. “Why?” “My presence is required here,” he said. “I must help my people find a new way now that they no longer serve the Goa’uld.” “What about the mission?” Sam asked. “I will rejoin you upon your return to Dakara.” “Does General Landry know about this?” Sam knew she was grasping at straws, hoping that Teal’c’s sense of duty would work in her favor. “Indeed,” Teal’c nodded, disappointing her. “We discussed the matter yesterday.” “And yet, you didn’t tell us.” “I did not see the need.” Sam rolled her eyes at that. What was it with the men in her life all of a sudden? “So… Is this a permanent thing?” Daniel asked. “I do not believe so,” answered Teal’c. “My place is with the Tau’ri.” Sam swallowed her sigh of relief. Well, that was something, anyway. “We’ll miss you, Teal’c.” He bowed slightly in her direction. “And I you, Colonel Carter.” She hugged him, closing her eyes as she was briefly enveloped in a cocoon of secure affection. When she pulled away, she hid the mistiness in her eyes, focusing her attention on her gear until she was sure she could look up without revealing her emotions. Daniel hugged Teal’c as well, the gesture one of masculine affection and respect. “Dial it up, Daniel,” she said, needing a distraction from the lump in her throat. “Let’s go home.”
“Sam?” Daniel’s voice interrupted her thoughts. “What’s up? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.” She exhaled sharply. “I think I have.” Daniel scanned the control booth, and Sam sensed the instant he saw Jack. “What the hell is he doing here?” Daniel kept his voice low, but it was tight with controlled anger. She didn’t bother to answer, merely shaking her head and starting down the ramp, intent on making it to the infirmary before having to face Jack. She knew she couldn’t avoid him forever, but she could certainly delay the inevitable for a few minutes. It was mid-afternoon by the time she’d finished with her exam and had a shower, her mind churning the entire time about what she was going to say to Jack when she saw him. Her temptation was to avoid him altogether, but she knew that wasn’t going to happen. It was a safe bet that he would be invited to sit in on the briefing that was scheduled to start in fifteen minutes. Retired or not, nobody would deny Jack O’Neill access to the SGC. Besides, it had only been a little over three weeks since he’d left. With a sigh, she collected a pen and notepad from her workbench and headed for the conference room. There was no point in trying to put it off any longer. Daniel had gotten there before her and was already sitting at the table, doodling on a legal pad. He looked up when she came in, his expression tense, eyes dark with emotion. “Hey, Sam,” he said. “Medical go okay?” She grinned at him. “You’re asking me? I’m not the one who spent fifteen seconds glued to a cliff!” “Yeah, well, since you’re asking, I’m fine.” He smiled back at her. She seated herself across from him, and they were both writing notes for their mission reports when the door opened and Jack came in. Sam, out of long habit, was on her feet and at attention before she remembered that he was, officially at least, retired. Feeling slightly flustered, a little off balance, and royally pissed at herself, she sat back down and buried her face in her notes, desperate to hide a flush of embarrassment. Damn. This was so not how she’d wanted this to go. Daniel apparently had no such difficulties. “Never thought I’d see you around here again, Jack.” His voice was coolly polite, revealing nothing of his feelings. Sam mentally gave him a gold star for grace under pressure. “Carter,” Jack nodded over at her. “Daniel.” There was caution in his voice, as though he half expected one of them to come at him with fists flying. Sam, determined to maintain some professional distance from the situation, settled for nodding back. “Where’s General Landry?” Daniel asked. “Emergency leave,” Jack said simply. “The Pentagon needed somebody in here who already knew the ropes, so—” He lifted his hands, palms outward in an expression of good faith. “Here I am.” “Here you are,” Sam said with a decided lack of enthusiasm. She felt Jack glance sharply at her before taking his seat at the end of the table, but she didn’t look up. Let him wonder. “So,” Jack said, “Where’s Teal’c?” “He stayed on Dakara to do some work with the Jaffa,” Daniel answered. “Oh?” Jack looked over at Sam. “How long?” “He didn’t say,” she answered, “beyond telling us that it isn’t forever.” Jack pondered that for a moment, and then flipped open his notebook. “So, kids, tell me about your trip.” Funny, Sam thought, being called a “kid” didn’t used to bother her this much. This time, though, she found she had to resist the urge to call him a condescending bastard. Go figure. “Standard mission,” said Daniel. “There’s some type of device built into a cliff wall about twelve clicks from the gate.” “That’s quite a hike,” Jack said. “Or did you use a tel’tak?” “We walked it, Sir,” Sam said. “No other transport available at the time.” “That explains why you elected to stay the night.” “Yes, Sir. We cleared that with General Landry before we left. Didn’t know how long the mission would take.” “So what about this device?” Jack said. “Does it do anything cool?” Sam and Daniel exchanged a glance. “Cool, Sir?” Jack sighed. “You know what I mean, Colonel. Does it have military or civil potential, either for us or for the Jaffa?” “Hard to say, Sir. I didn’t get a good look at it.” “But you said…” “I’m the only one who got to see it close up,” Daniel interrupted. “The device is built right into the cliff wall. There’s barely enough room for one person to get to it, much less two.” “It didn’t occur to you to take turns?” “We would have,” Sam said, “but after the earthquake, we didn’t think it would be such a great idea.” Jack’s slightly raised eyebrow was the only indication that he’d noticed her sarcasm. “So, Daniel?” Jack swiveled slightly in his seat to direct his full attention to the other man. “What’s the story?” Daniel shrugged. “It’s impossible to say right now. I need time to analyze the video before I can give any useful answers.” “Surely you’ve got a guess.” “No, actually. I don’t.” The terse answer notched up the already high tension in the room. Sam waited, wondering whether Jack was going to tackle the elephant in the room or ignore it. “So what’s your suggested course of action, Carter?” Jack finally asked, professional facade solidly in place. Ignore it, apparently. Aloud, she said, “I’d like a geological survey done on the area before we go in again, Sir.” “Fine. I’ll send SG-7 over to take a look.” He turned back to Daniel. “In the meantime, I’d like to hear your analysis of the artifact as soon as possible.” Analysis? Artifact? Sam bent her head to her paper, scribbling something inane about the briefing and effectively hiding her expression from Jack. Normally, he would have just asked Daniel to take a look at the video and get back to him. The man really was rattled. “I’ll get it done just as soon as I can,” Daniel said. “Good.” And that was that. Jack ended the briefing, and five minutes later Sam sat down at her workbench with a sigh of relief. Well, she thought. That was fun.
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