There And Back Again 3

The Test

by Sue Barrett

URL: http://www.area52hkh.net/ass/sbarrett/there03.php
Summary: My way of dealing with the departure of Daniel from the SGC, and his return

Jack O'Neill opened his eyes slowly, and then closed them again, as white-hot needles of light burned hotly.

"Daniel?" He called out huskily.

"Colonel O'Neill?" A female voice answered. O'Neill opened his eyes again; a young redheaded woman was standing next to the bed. He recognized her as one of Fraiser's nurses. At that moment the doctor herself appeared.

"Well Colonel, you've given us quite a scare. How are you feeling?"

"Confused." Janet dismissed the nurse and smiled down at her patient, noting down the readings being displayed on the various monitors surrounding the bed.

"You were dreaming about Daniel." She stated. O'Neill shook his head slowly.

"You don't understand. He saved me Doc. After all I'd done, after all I said. He still cared enough to come and save me." He struggled to sit up, but Janet gently restrained him.

"All in good time Colonel. You've just had extensive brain surgery, try and get some sleep." She injected something into his IV port, and he closed his eyes.

~oOo~

Unseen by the others Daniel had silently followed his friends back to the SGC and had been watching over Jack as he slept. He knew he shouldn't stay long, but he wanted to make sure Jack was going to be all right before he continued on his journey. Although he'd never met The Others, he was aware of their presence, and knew that they weren't pleased that he'd helped O'Neill escape from Anubis. Taking another look down at the older man, Daniel left the infirmary and went in search of his friends. He found Sam in her lab typing up a report; he peered over her shoulder and noticed one of his artefacts on the desk; a small statuette. He automatically reached out for it and as he did so Sam picked it up. Looking at the sculpture for a long moment, she sighed, then replaced it on the desk and went back to her typing, but not before Daniel had noticed how thin she had become, and the lines under her eyes that he was certain weren't there before. At that moment Teal'c arrived and offered to escort her to the Commissary. Daniel smiled, pleased that his friends were looking out for one another. He was about to leave, but stopped as he heard their conversation.

"Do you think the Colonel really saw Daniel?" Sam asked her escort.

"I am uncertain. But since joining the SGC I have seen much and have learned that nothing is impossible." The Jaffa replied.

"I'd like to think Daniel was out there watching over us." Sam continued. Teal'c remained silent.

Daniel continued to wander round the corridors and passageways, visiting old friends and haunts. Everyone he met looked tired and drawn. From the few mission reports he'd been able to glimpse at and from the conversations he'd overheard it looked as if the Goa'uld had been keeping the SGC busy. Daniel found himself in a once familiar corridor and continued along it until he reached his former office, currently empty. He was amazed to find the room more or less as he'd left it, apart from the extra chairs and coffee mugs. He looked along the shelves at his books and hoped whoever was using the room now was enjoying the knowledge the shelves contained as much as he had. Absently he wondered where his personal things were, including his photograph of Sha're.

After a while Daniel decided to wander outside, and once on top of the mountain he stood and watched as the sun rose slowly between the distant peaks. As always the view was magnificent, and he stood there unseen watching until the sun was high in the sky and the early morning mist had left the hillsides. He noticed the breeze blowing through the trees and even though he couldn't feel it, he wondered if it was cold where he was standing. He remembered the times in the past when he had escaped up here when things had got too much, and the number of times Jack had followed him – usually bringing his jacket and a flask of coffee. Daniel smiled at the memory, and sighing to himself decided to pay one last visit to Jack before continuing on his way. He arrived back at Jack's bedside to find his friends in the middle of a heated discussion. Some things never changed he decided. He stood for a while watching and listening to his friends bickering. He felt a sudden longing to be with them again.

"'Napoleon' doesn't believe me, but I'm telling you, Daniel rescued me from that pyramid ship and somehow got me back to the gate." Now that he'd rested a little Fraiser had finally relented enough to allow him to have visitors. "How else could I have gotten out of there?"

"How indeed." Teal'c responded. Sam Carter looked at both men.

"Carter, how did you know it was safe to go through the Gate?" Jack asked. Sam blushed slightly.

"I don't know sir, I just did, but that doesn't mean Daniel..." Jack waved his hand and she fell silent.

"I too sensed something on the planet, when we were hiding in the trees, a presence of some kind, and again at the Stargate." Teal'c continued.

"I saw him Teal'c, actually saw him and spoke with him. Damn it!" He turned to face Sam. "It was just like what you said about that Orbit guy, you know all that walking through the kitchen counter stuff..."

"You mean Orlin sir."

"Yeah, him. No one believed you. You were the only one who could see him." Sam bowed her head and nodded. The Colonel was right. At that moment a nurse arrived carrying a tray filled with fresh dressings, and the others left, promising to visit again later. Taking that as his cue, Daniel decided to continue on his way, but as he made to leave a strange sensation passed through him, as if something or someone was holding him in place, silently ordering him to stay. The feeling passed as quickly as it had arrived, and the gate alarm sounded suddenly distracting him. Sam looked at Teal'c.

"There are no teams currently off world." He commented. At that moment the general alarm sounded. The two of them dashed out of the infirmary. Daniel also decided to investigate and made his way to the control room.

~oOo~

"What have we got sir?" Sam asked as she ran into the control room. Teal'c was on her heels; an unseen Daniel was already waiting. The alarm had been sounding for a few moments, and everyone was rushing to his or her stations.

"Incoming sir, no signal received so far." Sergeant Davis replied. At that moment the iris began to fluctuate. The sergeant looked up at Hammond. "The Tollan sir?" He asked, even though he knew it was highly unlikely. Hammond didn't have time to reply. They all watched in paralysed horror as at that moment a huge object passed through the iris and rolled down the ramp. Everyone recognised it for what it was; including Daniel, who yelled a warning just as the device exploded.

"Clear the Gate Room, and close the blast doors!" Hammond yelled. But it was too late. Instinctively Daniel ducked for cover as glass, masonry and equipment flew everywhere. Finally after an eternity there was silence. Teal'c opened his eyes and sat up slowly. He grabbed the nearest workstation and hauled himself to his feet, assisting General Hammond at the same time. The two of them looked around the room.

"Is everyone all right?" Hammond yelled out. Several groans were heard in response. Hammond nodded to Teal'c that he was all right, and the big man assisted Sam to her feet, before going to the aid of the rest of the people in the room. They looked down into the embarkation room. The bodies of the team guarding the gate were strewn across the floor, the iris was smashed, and Jaffa warriors in strange armour and carrying weapons never seen before began to pour through the gate and within moments the door to the outer corridor was smashed down, the SFs disposed of, and a troop of Jaffa accompanied by a huge man, someone's first prime they guessed by the size of him, entered the Control Room, and began herding everyone together, and then marched them down to the embarkation room. Daniel could only watch helplessly, as within minutes the control centre of the SGC was over-run. Guards dressed in red began to arrive through the gate and lined up on the ramp ready to receive their lord: Osiris.

~oOo~

A throne had been set up and Osiris watched and waited with his aids in the embarkation room, while his first prime led his men through the base. The sound of staff weapon blasts and answering machine-gun fire could be heard echoing in the corridors as section-by-section the base was overrun. Jaffa were all over the place rounding up personnel, and setting up weaponry with which to blast their way deeper into, and eventually out of the mountain and into the world outside. Anubis would be pleased.

All round the control room sparks were flying everywhere and the whole area was strewn with damaged equipment and masonry. Daniel watched as one of the Jaffa attempted to access the computer network.

~oOo~

The alert was still sounding, and from his bed in the infirmary O'Neill heard the sound of raised voices.

"What the hell? Can't a guy sleep in peace? There are sick people in here!" He shouted to no one in particular. Then he heard the distant sound of staff blasts. Rising unsteadily from the bed he tried to stagger over to the door only to fall flat on his face. Suddenly the door burst open and a squad of Jaffa marched in, staff weapons at the ready. O'Neill quickly rolled under the bed next to his own, and watched as the warriors searched the ward. The only other patient in the room was dragged out of his bed and taken away. Finally after what seemed like an eternity the Jaffa left and Jack breathed a sigh of relief. He struggled to his feet and staggering across the ward peered through the door window into the outer corridor. Janet Fraiser was there, along with the rest of her medical staff. Jack listened as a huge man he assumed was the first prime ordered the prisoners to be taken to the holding cells; apparently to be dealt with later. He waited until all was quiet and then made his way along to the nearest ventilation port. Checking both ways, he quickly opened the hatch and climbed inside. At least all the bandages on his head were of some use he thought as he knocked himself against the roof of the shaft. He needed all the protection he could get. It was going to be a long day.

~oOo~

Daniel continued to watch the activity behind him, he knew that if the man standing next to him succeeded in downloading all the gate co-ordinates from mainframe the Goa'uld would have access to all the addresses from the Abydos cartouche and that of the Ancients', plus the few addresses the SGC had access to that weren't on either. All the worlds that the SG teams had visited would be in danger. Millions could die as a result, or worse; be enslaved. He decided it was time to take action. Each time the Jaffa would start getting somewhere Daniel reached out with his energy and the screen would go blank. For affect he also added a few showers of sparks. He smiled as he listened to the big man muttering, and watched as the Jaffa thumped the keyboard in frustration, before moving to another terminal. Finally he stormed out of the room and headed down to the embarkation room to join the others. Daniel in the mean time decided to end the Jaffa's search once and for all, and take out the computer core.

~oOo~

The Goa'uld, Jack decided were either extremely careless, or his SGC colleagues were putting up one hell of a fight. He hoped it was the latter. Here he was crawling, albeit painfully and slowly, through the SGC ventilation system, so far undetected. He knew setting the auto destruct was out of the question: that took two ranking officers, and he was alone. Therefore he decided to do as much damage as he could. Realising he was in the vicinity of one of the security posts, he exited the shaft and made his way into a large room at the end of the corridor.

The room was empty, but the monitors were still switched on. He closed the door behind him and checked the screens. The control centre he could see was a mess, and there on the screen large as life was the reason why: Osiris.

He continued to check out the rest of the base. At the moment it looked as if the invasion force was still confined to the base: but for how much longer. Jack's vision began to blur, the adrenalin rush he'd had while in the infirmary was beginning to fade. But he couldn't stop yet, not until he'd at least tried to contact one of their allies. Although he hoped that since Earth was a protected planet the Asgard might already be on their way. Still it wouldn't hurt to make sure.

The Asgard communication device was held in a small safe in what had been Daniel's office, four levels up. It would be a long journey. He wandered down the empty corridor, stopping off at the nearby armoury to pick up a handgun and a zat, until he found an emergency stairwell. Unlocking the door and peering in, he heard no sounds of activity, and stepping in, began to climb. Reaching the required level he slowly opened the door and squeezed out. The sound of approaching footsteps could be heard round the corner. He ducked back in and held his breath as a large number of Jaffa marched past. Once the sound of stomping feet had died down he emerged once more, and made his way along to the end of the corridor. Removing a pass from one of the dead airmen lying on the floor, he swiped it through the locking mechanism and waited for the door to slide back. Once inside he closed the door behind him, and sagged down to the floor and rested for a moment.

After a few minutes he crawled over to the safe, and opening it, took out the communication device. He activated it, spoke his message, and then put it back. He just hoped Thor would get here in time. Feeling weariness taking over he leant back against the wall and closed his eyes.

~oOo~

Something cold and metallic touched him and he pushed it away. The poking and prodding became more urgent.

"What?" O'Neill yelled as he opened his eyes. Standing before him were two large Jaffa.

"You will come with us." One of them ordered.

"Need a little help here." O'Neill quipped trying to use a near by chair to lever himself up. The two Jaffa grabbed him under the arms and hauled him out of the office.

~oOo~

Daniel continued to watch the events in the embarkation room. Just a few moments ago he'd taken out the computer core. He knew of course, that all the files were backed up daily, and copies sent to the Pentagon. The first prime had been astonished when he'd pressed a button on the keyboard only to have the whole system had shut down on him. Just then Jack was dragged into the room, and put with the others. He didn't look at all well and Daniel was touched to see Teal'c move over and offer his friend support. Osiris was pacing up and down angrily yelling orders at his first prime. Then he turned to the prisoners.

"What have you done to the computer system?" Osiris asked O'Neill, grabbing him round the throat.

"Who me?" O'Neill quipped. "Listen I'm the guy round here who still writes up his reports by hand. I don't know how to do anything WITH the computer system, let alone TO it."

"Insolence. Your pretence of ignorance fools no one." Osiris replied as he shoved O'Neill out of the way and moved down the line of prisoners. O'Neill turned to Hammond and whispered.

"Managed to contact the Asgard though." Hammond nodded in response. Osiris stopped opposite Carter.

"Major Carter, we understand you designed the system that controls your Stargate. You will tell us how to access the back-up files." Carter remained silent. Osiris smiled; perhaps some more persuasion was needed.

At a nod of his head, the first prime pulled O'Neill away from the others and into the centre of the room. O'Neill cried out in pain and fell to his knees.

"Once more. Tell me how to access the back-up files. You will tell me what I want to know. If you do not O'Neill will die." Osiris yelled. Hammond spoke out.

"This is an Asgard protected planet sir. The moment you try anything they will destroy you." Osiris laughed.

"We are too powerful even for them." He scoffed.

"Which reminds me where is your boss?" O'Neill quipped.

"Anubis is elsewhere in the galaxy, and busy with other more important matters, which are of no concern to you – just yet. But rest assured he will be here soon."

"Can't wait." Jack replied.

~oOo~

Daniel was torn, he wanted to stop this, but what would the consequences be of such an action. Oma had taught him that things would always be the way they were ordained to be, but somehow it wasn't enough, not anymore. He was angry, angrier than he could ever remember being. How could he just stand here while everything he loved, his friends and family, were killed? How could he just stand by while millions of innocent people on other worlds were enslaved? He knew that the Asgard considered Jack and the others to be very important to the future of the galaxy, why couldn't the others understand that? The strange sensation that he'd felt in the infirmary returned, and suddenly he knew what it was. The reason he'd felt he had to stay. The others were testing him, and Daniel had finally decided, this was one test he wouldn't pass. Moving to stand in front of Jack, Daniel reached out with his energy and brushed the older man's cheek. In that instant Jack became aware of his friend's presence and smiled.

"Better get on with it, I haven't got all day you know." O'Neill quipped.

Colonel O'Neill!" Hammond yelled. "This is no time for heroics." Jack ignored him and thumped his chest.

"Right here. Hit me right here!" Slapping his chest over his heart, as he yelled at the first prime.

Malor raised his staff weapon and fired. O'Neill instinctively braced himself and waited for the end.

Everyone in the room, including the Jaffa gasped in amazement as the blast from the staff weapon bounced off O'Neill, and hit Malor in the chest, killing him instantly. Osiris in a fit of temper ordered the remaining prisoners to be executed. The Jaffa fired their weapons into the group, but the blasts bounced back and hit the warriors instead. In an instant Teal'c picked up a staff weapon from the floor and aimed it at Osiris.

The other Jaffa up in the control room raced down to aid their lord, but each time they attempted to fire their weapons at the humans the energy rebounded into them. Osiris' temper quickly got the better of him. It was all going wrong, and he did not wish to face the wrath of Anubis if his mission here failed. Osiris knew how important this planet was to his lord. He frantically yelled at his remaining Jaffa to fix the problems with the computer, and then kill all the prisoners in the room. He pressed a button on the bracelet he wore. With any luck his fleet of ships would now be in range.

"You are not welcome here." A gentle voice spoke out. "You will leave this place." Osiris turned sharply and saw a familiar figure standing before him.

"Daniel Jackson. I was reliably informed that you were dead."

"Yeah well, just goes to show you shouldn't believe everything you're told." Daniel replied. "So, are you going to leave quietly, or do I have to get nasty?"

"This world is ours, and its people our slaves." Osiris responded.

"No, I don't think so." Daniel answered. Osiris noticed the faint glow around him, and for a brief moment doubt set it.

"You cannot stop us." Osiris scoffed. "Even your saviours the Asgard are no match for us any longer." Osiris sneered and grabbing a staff weapon from the floor aimed and fired it at Daniel. The beam went straight through. "What are you?" Osiris asked.

"I guess I'm your worst nightmare." Daniel replied. "So are you going to leave, or do you want this to get unpleasant?"

"Strike me down - if you dare." Osiris scoffed. Daniel moved a little closer.

"In that case Sarah, I hope you can forgive me." He replied. Facing Osiris he allowed a charge of energy to build up in his hands, but just as he was about to strike, a huge bolt of energy hit him. For the briefest moment he felt as if his very essence was being sucked out of him, then everything went black.

~oOo~

From where Jack and the others stood it seemed that Osiris and Daniel stood facing one another for several minutes, although in reality it was only seconds. Then he noticed the faint glow around Daniel's hands. The glow got brighter and brighter and Daniel raised his hands as if to thrust the energy at Osiris, but as he did so a huge bolt of lightning struck the embarkation room and everything exploded. The last thing Jack remembered before he hit the ground was the sight of Osiris being ringed up.

~oOo~

Everything was quiet once more. Sitting up slowly Jack looked around the room. Everyone appeared to be in one piece. Teal'c and Carter were assisting Hammond to his feet. Fraiser and a medical team had just arrived. The bad guys were nowhere to be seen. The only evidence was a large burn mark in the centre of the room where Osiris and Daniel had been.

"Yes!" O'Neill crowed shoving a fist into the air. A bright light appeared and Thor arrived.

"Thor! Buddy!" Jack shouted in delight. "Great save!" The little alien blinked at him.

"You are welcome O'Neill." Thor replied. "It was fortunate that we had a ship in the vicinity, or we would not have been able to assist at all." Sam walked over.

"So what happened? To Daniel I mean? Is he alright?" Thor looked at her with his large black eyes and blinked.

"I do not know the condition of Daniel Jackson, Major Carter, or his whereabouts." He replied.

"That wasn't you who threw that thunderbolt?" Jack asked.

"It was not." Thor replied.

"So Osiris...?" Sam asked.

"Ringed out of here just as the fireworks started." O'Neill replied.

"A ship was reported departing a few moments before our arrival." Thor added.

"The others..." Jack commented, his face paling as he remembered what Daniel had told him about what would happen if he interfered.

"Sir?" Sam queried.

"When he saved me from Anubis, Daniel told me that if he tried to interfere in any way with the natural flow of things, the others would punish him."

"Like they did with Orlin?" Sam commented.

"Thor is there anything you can do?" Sam asked hopefully.

"There is not. I am sorry." Thor replied. Jack slammed his fist on the floor in frustration.

"Come on Thor, there must be something you can do."

"I am sorry O'Neill." The grey alien blinked sadly, before winking out of sight.