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A Dangerous Man        
by Kikkimax
 

Colonel O'Neill finished his sweep of the outer chambers of the cave and began making his way back to the main room, which held the stargate. As he neared his goal he once again became uneasy. Keeping a sharp eye on the darkness beyond his flashlight, he barked into the radio. "Carter, come in."

"Sir?" came the rapid reply, the slight static not hiding the echo of his own discomfort in her voice.

"Report."

"Sir, these caverns seem to go on forever. We haven’t found an end yet. Other than the gate room, there is no sign of, well, anything."

"Yeah, same here, and the entrance is barricaded from the inside. All right, you and Teal'c head back towards Daniel's position. I'll meet you there."

"Yes sir," Sam all but sighed, relief evident in her tone.

Jack resisted the urge to sigh himself as he made his way back towards the gate. The cave was naturally dark of course, but the walls were shiny and reflected light in every direction. This gave the place an eerie other world feeling, appropriately enough. The bouncing light was balanced with multiple shadows, which danced and retreated all around.

When he entered the largest chamber, the one that housed the stargate as well as some inscriptions and artifacts, Jack felt relief. He put it down to nerves or maybe a few too many unpleasant surprises on recent missions, but he couldn't help but feel like he was being watched, stalked by the shadows that faded in and out of his flashlight as he moved. All in all, the place gave him the creeps. He was glad to catch sight of another human being as the halo of light surrounding the oblivious archaeologist came into view.

Daniel was still in the general vicinity where Jack had left him over an hour ago, writing intently in a note book as he studied the ancient wall behind the stargate. The only thing that had changed while Jack had been gone was that at some point Daniel had removed his BDU shirt and draped it over the MALP. The place was dusty and hot with stale, dead air. Sweat formed a dark ring on the back of the younger man's olive drab tee shirt.

For a fraction of a second Jack thought he saw a man shaped shadow looming over the inscriptions on the wall that Daniel was working on. Jack brought his weapon up rapidly, eyes wide and alert, but there was nothing there. As he lowered the gun, he realized that he had Daniel's full attention for a change.

"Close your mouth, Daniel," he said dryly, trying to act like he hadn't over reacted just a tad.

"Jumpy?" Daniel asked the slightest bit acerbically as he turned back to the wall, not really expecting an answer.

Jack felt secure enough in his manhood to nod a little, especially since Daniel wasn't looking at him anymore. "What's it say?" he asked as casually as he could through his parched throat.

"Um, well, there appear to be several different languages. This one looks a little like Greek, but as faded as it is, it’s hard to tell. I took a lot of pictures, but I'd like to do some frottage here." Daniel splayed his fingers along the rock as he spoke.

"And it says..." Jack prodded patiently.

"Oh, right. This says 'heart of darkness' or more accurately 'dark of the heart'. I think. Of course, I'll have to work on the rest through here."

"That sounds.... ominous," Jack mused. "You think it's a warning or something?"

"Possibly," Daniel said as he squatted down and began a rubbing. "If these are all the same message in different languages, this could be a Rosetta Stone of sorts."

Jack could feel the excitement practically vibrating the scientist. He moved his light to better see Daniel's face in the shadows and caught a glimpse of a dark smudges on his arm, that almost looked like finger prints.

"What happened here?" Jack asked with a lift of his chin toward Daniel.

"Huh?" the doctor asked intelligently, glancing up at the wall in the direction Jack had indicated.

"No, Daniel, I mean your arm," Jack corrected pointblank. "Don't tell me you hurt yourself. I was only gone an hour."

"Oh, uh, it's nothing. I'm fine," Daniel said, turning his attention back to his rubbing.

"Run into a door again?" Jack asked suspiciously. He reached down a hand to catch Daniel by the chin and maneuver his face in the halogen light to study last week's bruise on his face. Although it was more green than purple at this point, Jack could easily make out the edges even though the cave seemed to swallow the light as it spread out.

"No, Jack, I didn't," Daniel said irritably when Jack didn't immediately free him from his grasp. "I told you I'm fine. If you don't mind, I'd like to get as much of this down before we have to leave. This could be important."

"You always say that," Jack said with a sigh, releasing his hold on Daniel's face.

Daniel looked back up with a trace of a smile that only someone who knew him well would see. "Yes, well, maybe someday you'll believe me," he stated as he stood, not able to hide an involuntary grimace of pain quickly enough for Jack not to notice.

Jack shined his light on the spot where Daniel still held a tightly clamped hand over a rib. "Something you want to tell me?" he asked.

"No," Daniel assured him as he pulled away, wiping a dusty forearm across his sweaty face, more or less making mud.

"Daniel, if someone is giving you a hard time, I need to know about it," Jack persisted. "You've got bruises on your face, your arms, and now you act like you've got a cracked rib. We haven't seen any action, so I'm gonna have to assume that someone is beating the crap out of you back on earth."

"Leave it alone, Jack! I don't need you to protect me," Daniel spat out, harsher than he intended. He calmed down a little and continued. "It was a blanket party, okay? Just another military tradition. Happens all the time, right?"

"This happened inside the mountain?" Jack asked incredulously, his eyes flashing dangerously. Someone was treating one of his team, one of his kids, with less than the proper respect. He could see how certain hard ass military types might like to harass someone like Daniel, a civilian, a scientist, but not within the very walls of the SGC. As far as Jack was concerned, Daniel Jackson owned the place. He was sacrosanct there. If not for him, there would be no SG teams, no wormholes, no little off world jaunts.

"Take your shirt off," Jack demanded suddenly.

"I beg your pardon?" Daniel asked, taken aback.

"That's an order," Jack amended quickly.

"You can't order me to take my shirt off, Colonel," Daniel protested loudly, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I just did, Dr. Jackson. Now lose the shirt!"

"No," Daniel said softly, but the defiance in his eyes and body language screamed 'not gonna happen!’

When Jack reached to untuck the tee shirt himself, Daniel flinched and involuntarily made a fist as if to protect himself. "Sorry," Jack said urgently as he immediately backed down, knowing better than to corner the archaeologist. "What's going on, Daniel? Tell me," he pleaded, changing tactics. "Frasier will see it in the post mission exam. You'll have to explain everything then anyway, so you might as well tell me now."

Daniel sighed and moved along the wall to just outside the perimeter of the lights. "I can handle this, Jack," he said wearily.

"Please, Daniel. The cat's out of the bag now. Let me see."

Hesitantly, Daniel tugged at the hem of his tee shirt and gingerly pulled it free from his waistband. Jack grasped his arm and pulled him back into the light to exam the array of bruises, some old, some new that were layered around the mistreated torso. He also examined the other linear marks the size and shapes of fingers along Daniel's arms where he had to assume that someone had held him against his will. "My God, Daniel, why didn't you tell me? Who's doing this to you?" he breathed.

"I don't know exactly," Daniel said, drawing back and retucking his tee shirt. "It started after that fiasco on 239. I've been jumped three times, but I don't think they're really trying to hurt me. I mean, they only bruised me a little. They could have done much worse if they wanted."

"Those bastards! And you didn't feel like this was worthy of bringing to your CO's attention?" Jack growled. "I swear to God, I'm going to kick some Marine ass when we get home."

"That's exactly why I didn't tell you," Daniel exclaimed. "You automatically assume it was Marines. It could have been anybody. You don't know who it was. I don't even know."

"Well there's going to be an investigation. We are going to get them. You should have reported this immediately," Jack stuttered angrily, waving a finger in the air. "This is a security matter. It's not up to you to handle it or not. What if this had happened to Teal'c? Or Carter? Wouldn't you want the culprits caught?"

"If it happened to either of them, you could find the culprits by following the trail of blood," Daniel answered drolly.

Jack smirked a little in spite of himself, knowing it was probably true. "What if another civilian gets hurt? What if it doesn't stop with you?"

"God, Jack. I didn't think of that," Daniel gasped. "I'm sorry. You're right, I should have reported this. I'll do whatever I can to help catch them. It's just..." Daniel swallowed and looked away.

"It's just what?" Jack asked quietly.

Daniel sighed. "I just wanted to handle it myself this time."

"Aw fer cryin' out loud, Danny," Jack soothed, running a hand up and down Daniel's arm for a minute. "That's why we have friends, to watch our backs."

Daniel nodded and managed a small smile before pulling away again.

"How many people, and I use the term loosely, are we talking about here?" Jack asked, unable to let it go just yet.

"Two, sometimes three. Jack? Can we talk about it when we get back? I've got a lot of work to do, and I'd really like to get out of here. This place feels... wrong to me."

"You too?" Jack asked, bringing his attention back to the eeriness of the cavern. "Okay, get back to it. We'll talk later. But we are going to talk about this."

Daniel rolled his eyes and turned back to the wall. As he did, the man-shaped shadow appeared again and moved across his back, almost instantly disappearing into the damp area on his tee shirt.

"Whoa! Daniel!" Jack said, raising his weapon rapidly. "What the hell just happened?"

"What?" Daniel asked breathlessly, looking around for signs of danger with wide eyes.

"I don't know," Jack answered lamely as he lowered his gun and reached out to grab Daniel by the arm. "Something just happened. Didn't something just happen?"

"Like what?" Daniel asked, caught up in the urgency of his friend's voice.

"Something went in you, or something," Jack tried to explain, clutching Daniel's forearm in a steel grip.

"What? Are you sure?" Daniel asked with alarm. "A Goa' uld?"

"No, no. More like a... a shadow. It moved across you and then it disappeared."

"I don't feel anything," Daniel said cautiously. "Do you see anything?"

"No, not now," Jack assured, still looking carefully for signs of…. he didn't know what he was looking for signs of. "Carter, Teal’c," he snapped into his radio.

"Sir?" came Carter's rapid reply.

"Double time it. We're gettin' out of here."

"Yes, sir. We're on our way."

"Jack!" Daniel protested.

"Finish up what you can, I'll start gathering up our stuff," Jack said and walked out of the lamp's glow.

Daniel turned back to the wall as a shiver ran up his spine.

Daniel sat on the bed with his shirt off and glared back at Dr. Fraiser. He hadn't seen her this angry in a long time. It started the second she took a look at his abs, and hadn't dissipated one bit, even though he had tried to explain why he hadn't come to her sooner. The standoff came to an end when Jack entered the infirmary with General Hammond in tow.

Hammond's face flushed as he took in the bruises that Colonel O'Neill had filled him in on in route. "Dr. Jackson, I want you to make a full report to the security officer that I'm sending down," he said coolly when he found his voice.

"Yes, sir," Daniel said resignedly as he reached for his shirt. Dr. Fraiser let him know with one quick look that she wasn't finished with him, so instead he just crossed his arms over his bare chest.

"I can't believe this has been going on under my nose," Hammond muttered darkly and started to pace at the foot of the bed.

"I'm sorry, sir," Jack said, causing Daniel to raise his head in surprise.

"Jack, this is not your fault. Or yours, General," Daniel said. "Don't take it personally."

"That's where you're wrong, Dr. Jackson," Hammond said caustically. "This is personal. This is a personal affront to my command. Not only is one of my people being abused on base, but he doesn't even have enough faith in me to tell me about it."

"Sir! That's not it at all!" Daniel protested. "I thought it would just be rocking the boat to complain about it," he tried desperately to explain. "I thought it would just further the military versus civilian divide here."

"I think you're missing the issue here, son," Hammond said, a little calmer. "This kind of thing shouldn't ever happen on a military base, especially not one as well guarded as this one."

"I'm sorry," Daniel said softly. "I should have said something sooner."

"Yes, you should have," Dr. Fraiser interjected, getting her two cents worth in, ready for round two with the stubborn archaeologist. "You can't just wander off through the gate with a broken rib. From now on, I want to see you before missions as well as after."

"Yes, ma'am. Can I go now?" Daniel asked, sounding too much like a naughty schoolboy as he gathered his shirt and prepared to cover the evidence of his ordeal.

"Wait a minute," Jack said holding up a finger. "There's something else."

"There is?" Daniel asked with a frown.

"Yes, something happened on the planet. I mean, I think something happened. Okay, something might have happened."

"Oh, right," Daniel said, snapping his fingers. "Jack thinks he saw something."

"What did you see?" Hammond asked in exasperation, wondering what else could be wrong.

"I don't know. Maybe it was nothing. I saw a shadow thing, like... go into Daniel."

"Daniel?" Janet asked expectantly.

"I didn't see anything. I didn't feel anything. I feel fine now," Daniel rattled off.

Frasier sighed. "The MRI was clear, but we need to do some more tests," she said firmly.

"Great. Thanks a lot, Jack," Daniel muttered.

"Anytime," Jack said with a smile. "Listen, I've got to go if I'm going to catch that game."

"Teal'c?" Jack asked as he tapped on the big Jaffa's door.

"O'Neill," Came the response from the candle lit room as Jack quietly peeked inside.

"Hi, I, uh, wanted to talk to you about something. Is this a bad time?"

"It is not." Teal'c rose from the floor and gestured to a seat for the Colonel. "Something has upset you?"

"Yeah," Jack sighed as he took the offered chair and ran a hand through his hair. "Someone's been using Daniel for a punching bag after hours. Here. Inside the mountain."

"I do not understand," Teal'c said, his voice deepened with ire. "Why have I not been informed of this?"

"I'm informing you now," Jack said matter-of-factly. "None of us knew. Daniel didn't tell anyone."

"Who would do such a thing?"

"I have my suspicions. This started right after the Marines saved our butts on 239. One of them got wounded pretty badly, and I think the rest of them blamed Daniel."

"That is incorrect. Daniel Jackson saved that man's life."

"Well, you know that, and I know that, and Daniel knows that, although he'd never admit it, but the rest of the goons probably don't believe it. They weren't around when Danny pulled the kid out of the building as it collapsed."

"Are we to seek retribution?" Teal'c asked with a deadly calm.

"No. We can't do that," Jack answered reluctantly, thinking what he'd like to do to the jerks if he ever caught them. "I just wanted to ask you to help me keep an eye on Daniel."

Teal'c bowed slightly, but there was fury burning deep in his brown eyes.

"So everything checks out?" Daniel asked as he looked up from the bed where he lay waiting not so patiently for the test results.

"Yes, Dr. Jackson, everything that we know to look for checks out. But there's always the unknown," Dr. Fraiser said quietly.

"Well, since we can't check for the unknown, I guess I can go?" Daniel eyed his clothes as he sat up and swung his feet down, keeping one hand on the back of the hospital gown careful not to expose himself as several nurses seemed to be always hanging around whenever he was in the infirmary.

"Not so fast. I want you to stay here."

"But I'm not sick!" Daniel protested. "Why can't I just come back in the morning?"

"I don't think you should leave the mountain until we know that nothing is amiss," Janet insisted. "You don't necessarily have to stay in the infirmary, just on base."

"Okay," Daniel gave in reluctantly. "For how long?"

"At least twenty-four hours."

"From when we got back or from now?" Daniel asked as he checked his watch noting they had been back for over four hours already.

"From now," Janet clarified, flashing a grin at her unwilling patient. “Check with me first thing tomorrow.”

"Fine," Daniel said in a tone that indicated that it was anything but fine as he grabbed his clothes and headed for the bathroom to dress. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Good. And Daniel?" she said as he looked back. "Stay out of trouble."

Teal'c and O'Neill spent the next couple of hours checking the areas where the attacks had taken place. They also dropped by the security office to have a little chat with the airman on duty and look at security tapes taken on the dates in question. They found nothing out of the ordinary, which in itself was suspicious. Whoever the perps were, they knew what they were doing. After talking to Dr. Fraiser, Jack headed home and Teal'c went in search of Daniel to make sure he got something to eat, but also to keep an eye on him, secretly if necessary.

Daniel carefully stretched out his sore muscles before lying down on the couch in his office. Exhaustion overtook him quickly, but no sooner was he asleep that a knock sounded at the door. "Come in," Daniel said, instantly alert. He moved to sit on the edge of his desk as an officer entered the room.

"Dr. Jackson, I'm Major McClure, head of security," the tall, muscular man introduced himself, holding out a hand.

Daniel ignored the gesture and studied the man intently for a minute before moving around the desk to have a seat. "What do you want?" he asked rudely.

"General Hammond sent me to get your statement." The man seemed unfazed by his greeting. He sat in a chair that hadn't been offered and pulled out a notepad and a pen. "Just tell me in your own words what happened."

"Fine," Daniel said. "Ten days ago I returned to my office after being on a mission off world for almost a week. When I opened the door and tried to turn on the light, someone grabbed me and pulled me into the room. I was hit twice in the abdomen by one man while another held my arms. The one who hit me told me that my planet hopping days were over and that if I didn't resign from SG1 that I would be sorry."

"You didn't report this?" McClure asked. Jackson's unemotional, dispassionate attitude about the whole thing took him by surprise. If it wasn't for the bruise on his face, it would be hard to believe the man had been attacked.

"No. Some marines had been injured during the mission and I figured that these people thought that it must have been my fault. You know, the brave soldier got hurt protecting the stupid civilian."

McClure ignored the sarcasm and continued. "So you think it was marines?"

"Not necessarily," Daniel said offhandedly, glancing over the tops of his glasses.

"What happened next?"

"Three days later, I was jumped in the locker room. I fought back this time and ended up getting hit in the face. Then two days ago I was grabbed on my way to the commissary in the middle of the night and dragged into a storage room. There were three of them this time, and they worked me over pretty good. But they were careful not to mark me up where it could be seen. Mostly."

“What were you doing here in the middle of the night?” McClure asked, sounding a bit suspicious.

“Working.”

“Do you often work late?”

“I don’t have to explain my work hours to you,” Daniel replied stiffly.

McClure shook his head and changed directions. "You didn't see your attackers’ faces?"

"No, they wore masks and sterile BDUs."

"Did they speak again?"

"No," Daniel answered curtly, clearly growing tired of the conversation.

"Do you think you could identify the voice if you heard it again?" the Major asked cautiously.

"Oh yeah," Daniel said with calm, cool certainty, meeting the bigger man's gaze without flinching. "I'd know that voice anywhere."

"Good," McClure answered in a flat tone after a minute of writing in his book. "I'll try to set something up and get you to listen to some voices."

Daniel laughed a soft, treacherous laugh. "Yeah, sure. You do that," he said at last as he switched on his computer and turned his attention to it, effectively dismissing the head of security.

Major McClure leaned heavily against the wall to get his thoughts together. He was certain that Jackson had never seen his face. And yet he also knew that the man was toying with him. If in fact he had recognized his voice, why didn't he come out and say so. Was Jackson man enough to play this dangerous game of cat and mouse? And just who was the cat this time? Maybe he had underestimated the mild mannered scientist.

He'd have to take drastic measures to clean this mess up. And if that meant getting rid of one pain in the ass archaeologist, well then that's the way it had to be. Stargate missions needed to be more about protecting Earth than digging up artifacts, and McClure intended to do everything he could to shift the focus back to where it should have been all along.

Jackson poked his head out of his office as if he knew McClure would still be there. "Something else?" he asked with a charming smile, the cold blue eyes dispelling any notion of warmth.

"No. I was just looking over my notes," McClure hedged as he turned and walked away.

"Sure you were," Jackson called out after him, and laughed again.

McClure startled at the cold, hateful sound and turned in time to see the man step back into his office. As he headed for the elevators he had the nagging feeling that he was indeed the mouse.

Teal'c knocked softly on the half open door. He became concerned when he noticed Daniel lying face down on his desk. "Daniel Jackson, are you unwell?" he asked as he entered the office.

"Teal'c?" Daniel sat up, rubbed his eyes and found his glasses on the desk. "No, I'm okay. I guess I fell asleep." He turned and looked at the information on his computer screen with a confused frown. With a mental shrug he switched it off. "What's up?"

"I came to see if you had eaten," Teal'c explained.

"I'm not really hungry," Daniel said as expected.

"I must insist that you accompany me to the dining facility," Teal'c dug in, preparing for a fight.

"Oh, okay," Daniel glanced at his watch. "I guess it is dinner time. Let's go." He stood and found his shirt as a surprised, but pleased Teal'c stepped into the hall.

McClure was sweating by the time he reached the security office. "Dammit," he muttered as he sat at his desk. He knew he should have sent someone else to interview Jackson. It was too big a risk for him to go himself, but he had been certain that the man would be too terrified to accuse him of anything. And he had wanted to savor the moment. He thought he'd had nothing to fear. After all, the fox was watching the henhouse. There was no evidence. Security tapes had all been discretely altered, everyone was alibied. Even if Jackson did point the finger, he would never be able to prove anything.

But Jackson didn't do the expected. He should have been quivering in fright when he realized that his interviewer was in fact his persecutor. Instead he laughed in McClure's face. Something was up. The phone should have been ringing by now. At the very least, SF's should have arrived to escort him to the General's office. Or the brig. That would be a hell of a note, the security chief in the brig.

All he was trying to do was make gate travel safer for everyone. Civilians should not be allowed off world. It placed the military personnel in too much jeopardy to have to protect them and rescue them every time they got in a scrap. There were at least six other people who not only felt the same way, but were willing to do something about it. They'd have to take care of Jackson soon. There were seven careers on the line.

Taking a chance, McClure decided to confront the smug archaeologist and headed quickly back down to find him. As he neared the office, he realized that SG1's resident Jaffa was already at Jackson's office door, apparently waiting for him. The doctor was pulling on his shirt as he came out of the office and glanced up at McClure, giving nothing away. His large escort gave McClure the once over as well before the two men made their way down the corridor towards the commissary. Neither acknowledged McClure as they passed him, but Jackson grinned bashfully to himself.

"A body guard," McClure sighed. "The little bastard went and got himself a body guard."

Major Carter stopped dead in her tracks. She had only intended to grab a sandwich and head back to the lab but had caught sight of Daniel and Teal'c deep in conversation at a table off to the side in the commissary. Daniel was smiling as he spoke. Not one of his usual flash in the pan Daniel grins that was over and gone before you really saw it. He was actually smiling.

"Hey, Sam," he said warmly and motioned her over. "Come sit with us."

"Yeah, ok. Let me get something to eat," she said. Daniel nodded and turned his attention back to Teal'c as she made her way through the line, keeping one eye on the counter and one on her friends. Something strange was going on.

"Are you not going to eat your vegetables, Daniel Jackson?"

"I guess I should," Daniel said meekly and began to rack up the carrots onto his fork.

"Hey," Sam began as she joined them. "I heard you're stuck on base for twenty-four hours. What happened?"

"Jack thought he saw something on the planet. It's nothing." Daniel finished his dinner and pushed his plate away. "Of course he ratted me out and then took off for some dumb hockey game. The jerk," Daniel laughed easily.

"You're taking it awfully well."

"You do appear in good spirits," Teal'c agreed.

"Yeah, as long as I'm not stuck in the infirmary, I don't really care. I've got a ton of material to work on in my office. I’ve barely even started on the stuff we just brought back." Daniel smiled again, and Sam felt her heart melt. He seemed so cheerful.

"I, um, also heard something else," Sam fished carefully, not wanting to ruin the mood, but needing to hear if the rumor was true.

Teal'c raised an eyebrow, but Daniel didn't seem to mind too much. "What exactly did you hear?" he asked timidly as he studied his half full cup of coffee.

Sam cleared her throat. "I heard that someone threatened you and that you were attacked several times here on base."

Daniel blinked once and then nodded. "That about sums it up. Listen, don't worry about it. I'm sure General Hammond will get to the bottom of it. It's funny. I don't seem to remember the details. It's almost as if the memories are repressed."

"That's... odd. Don't you think?" Sam asked with concern.

"I guess," Daniel said dismissively. "But it's kind of nice, too. Who wants to remember getting pounded on?"

McClure called a meeting to discuss the Jackson problem, and then went to the duty barracks to change into some sweats before running laps in one of the larger storage areas. He was full of nervous energy, and the exercise helped him to focus. After working up a good sweat, he checked the time and found he still had long enough to lift some weights. The small gym was empty, so he settled in for some serious bench pressing. It never crossed his mind to get a spotter. As he was finishing his second set of reps and muscle fatigue was setting in the lights went out. He struggled to place the bar on the rack above his head, but met resistance half-way up.

"Need a little help, Stan?" a voice asked from above him. The bar was pushed onto his chest and it became a harder to catch his breath.

"You'll never get away with this," the big man warned as he struggled against the bar. His mind raced for a way out of his predicament.

"It is Stan, right? Major Stanley Aaron McClure, United States Air Force, newly appointed chief of security of Cheyenne Mountain Complex, home of the super secret stargate project. You like secrets, Stan?"

"Get off me!" McClure screamed before the weight suddenly increased as his unseen enemy leaned into the bar effectively cutting off his air supply.

"I need some intel, Stan. I think you can help me out here."

"Go to hell," McClure rasped out, feeling the impending black out.

"Have it your way, Major. We'll go there together."

Teal'c allowed himself a light trance knowing that Daniel Jackson was sleeping in the room just down the hall and not wandering around making a target out of himself as he had been known to do of late. Once again, Daniel Jackson had agreed easily when Teal’c suggested that he retire for the evening and get some sleep. He had dozed off as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Unfortunately, all the cooperation he had been given was beginning to make Teal'c feel that something was wrong. It wasn't like Daniel Jackson to eat and sleep when asked. The general air of joy around his friend, while pleasant, was out of place. Teal'c began to worry. He would speak of this to O'Neill first thing in the morning.

McClure woke up naked with his hands bound behind him and a hood over his head. As he staggered to his feet his arms were drawn up and back by another rope that went up to the ceiling and presumably came back down to the person holding the other end. The pull continued until McClure was painfully standing on his tiptoes, unable to move, leaving him in a precarious and very exposed position. The situation was frighteningly familiar and often figured into his nightmares. The cold tile floor and dripping from at least two faucets told his close to panic brain that he was probably in the gym shower area.

"What do you want?" he spat out, hiding his fear behind false bravado.

"Information," came the maddeningly temperate reply.

"I'm not talking."

"I read your file, Stan. All of it. Even your psych eval. It wasn't even all that hard to get my hands on. A few key strokes really. I read all about your post-traumatic stress disorder. I know exactly what your demons are. And I'll use them to find out what I want to know."

"You want to know why," McClure stated as tears welled up in his eyes. He couldn't do this again. Anything but this. This would destroy him.

"I don't care why, Stan. I just want to know who."

"Oh, Christ. Don't ask me that. Please. Anything else," McClure began to bargain. As he felt a little tug on the rope and heard it being tied off, he began to weep in earnest.

"Names, Stan. I need names."

"You won't do it. You don't have it in you," McClure cried. Then his blood ran cold as he heard the laugh. "Oh Christ. Oh Christ."

"Last chance."

"There's a meeting tonight, right now. They'll all be there. Dear God, please don't do this to me," McClure screamed and tried to move as a hand rested on his bare back. "They'll be in the storage room next to the armory. They should be there now! Jensen, Harris, DeLeon, Putnam, Jordan and Williamson!" he shouted. The hand moved away leaving a warm spot on his back and a chill in his soul. Suddenly the rope became slack and he fell to his knees, sobbing as the feeling of being totally at the mercy of a man bent on revenge slowly resided. Using his feet, he pushed himself into the corner for a long, hard cry.

"I know Harris is on duty, but where the hell is McClure?" Jensen asked impatiently as he paced the confines of the narrow room.

"Settle down, Joey. You're making me nervous," Williamson complained. "He'll be here. He's only twenty minutes late."

"Did he say why he wanted to meet?" Putnam asked.

"I'm not sure, but I think Dr. Jackson figured out it was McClure in one of the assaults," Williamson said softly.

"Oh, shit, man. We're toast. We are so done," Jensen exclaimed, stopping to slump into a chair.

"No way. McClure will protect us. There's nothing they could do to make him talk. He's one tough son of a bitch. He was held captive for awhile during the Gulf War. Besides, it'll be Jackson's word against his."

"Hello, campers," a cheerful voice called as the door opened. "This is the Daniel Jackson fan club, isn't it?"

"Shit," Jensen said again as he rose slowly to his feet, staring intently at the zat gun.

"Stan sends his regards."

The men backed into the corner and crowded together, making it easy to hit them all with one solid shot. Trauma shears from the infirmary made quick work of the clothes, then all were bound with the plastic strips the SFs used for handcuffs and gagged.

As Williams woke he felt nauseous, like his head would explode. He tried to form words, but his tongue didn't seem to work, along with every other muscle in his body. He watched in mute horror as their captor put on a ski mask, covering his face. The man turned to Williams and laughed as he pulled him up and then over a shoulder. "Don't worry, boys. I'll be back for you soon," he promised the others, as he ducked out of the storage room with his first victim, mindful of the security cameras.

"Colonel O'Neill, General Hammond wants to see you in his office as soon as possible, sir," the guard at the gate informed him as soon as Jack drove up.

"Thanks, Sarge. What's up?"

"I can't say, sir," the guard told him nervously as he saluted.

"You don't know or you can't say?" Jack questioned as he returned the salute.

The guard looked around as if to make sure no one was listening. "I heard that strange things happened around here last night."

"Dr. Jackson?" Jack asked, suddenly apprehensive.

"He's fine as far as I know. Please, Colonel. I've already called down and let them know that you're here," the guard pleaded.

"Right. I'm going."

Jack parked, signed in and reached the General's office in record time. "Sir?" he asked as he entered the room, tapping on the door as he opened it.

When Hammond turned around it was obvious he wasn't happy. "I need to know your whereabouts last night, Colonel."

"I was at home," Jack answered, raising his eyebrows in an unasked question.

"I thought you were going to a hockey game."

"No. I stayed too late here checking into the assaults on Daniel. I missed the game. Teal'c can verify that."

"What time did you sign out?"

"Around eight-thirty I think. General, what's going on?"

"Five airmen were attacked last night on base. They were found scattered around the SGC tied up and in their underwear. One was even left strapped to a table in the commissary."

"Were they injured?"

"Nothing but a few bruises. They were more embarrassed than anything."

"Daniel?" Jack asked holding his breath.

"He's fine. Teal'c says no one bothered him."

"You think the attacks were retribution for the assaults on Daniel?" Jack asked finally putting two and two together.

"I don't know what to think. All five men deny any knowledge of the attacks on Dr. Jackson. None of them saw their own attacker."

"None of them saw anything? Sounds like he was black ops trained maybe?" Jack asked accusingly.

"Or a highly trained Jaffa," Hammond countered.

"Did you ask Teal'c if he did it?"

"He denied any involvement. But he did state that if these are the men who injured Dr. Jackson that they got off too easy."

"If Teal'c says he didn't do it, then I believe him."

"So do I, Colonel. I just had to ask."

"I don't suppose anyone asked Carter," Jack joked dryly. "You did," he amended at the look on the general's face.

"I want SG1, Dr. Fraiser, and the security chief in here at eleven hundred. It's time we found some answers."

"Yes sir. It is," Jack agreed wholeheartedly.

"How did you sleep?" Dr. Fraiser asked as she looked in first one ear and then the other with her otoscope.

"Fine. I feel great," Daniel said with a shrug.

"You look tired."

"I do? I don't know why, I slept like a rock. Really, Janet, I feel wonderful. It's almost like a weight has been lifted off me or something."

"I see. So you feel an unnatural euphoria?"

"I didn't say that," Daniel laughed lightly. "Come on, let me go," he pleaded playfully as he grabbed Janet by the shoulders and shook her gently.

"Daniel!" Dr. Fraiser exclaimed with a laugh. "I can see that you feel good, but you aren't acting like yourself. I think we need to wait and see. I'm recommending another twenty-four hour observation period."

Daniel let out a soft sigh of resignation. "You're the boss," he said smoothly.

"No argument? Now I'm really worried," Janet teased. "Come see me again in the morning."

"You got it, Doc," Daniel said as he jumped off the bed and headed for the door, doing a right, left dance with a nurse as she entered the room. "Hi, gorgeous," he said with a smile as he left.

"What's up with him?" the nurse asked, a little dazed by the uncharacteristic greeting from the shy but irresistible man.

"I hate to say it," Dr. Fraiser said wearily, "but it's got me worried."

Daniel yawned again. As hard as he had slept the night before, he felt a strong urge to lie down on the couch in his office. He was working on the rubbing he had brought back from the cave, but couldn't seem to concentrate on it. A quick glance at his watch told him that he had an hour and a half before he had to be in the briefing room with the rest of the team so he gave in and lay down. Sleep claimed him almost immediately.

Captain Nate Harris had a rough night and an even worse morning. It was bad enough that all his partners in crime had been captured, stripped, and left on public display; now no one could seem to locate Major McClure. He had signed out around zero four hundred this morning, and hadn't shown up for the duty day yet. After repeated, unanswered phone calls, Harris had, as second in command of security, send a car out to the man's address. Strangely enough, McClure wasn't there either.

So of course, after working all night now Harris had to stand in for the AWOL McClure in the briefing that the General Hammond had called to go over the rash of assaults in the mountain. Harris was nervous. Not one of the victims would talk about what had happened during night, not even to him. As he questioned each man, both officially and not so officially, they all politely refused to name their attacker. They obviously were afraid. Only two men who were closely associated with Dr. Jackson could instill that kind of fear, Harris reasoned. Colonel O'Neill, although not exactly alibied, had signed out a little after eight, and Teal’c, who was on base all night, and not alibied at all. As the final member of the guilty party, that thought left Harris more than a little disconcerted.

With less than an hour before the briefing, Harris swigged a cup of coffee and headed for the shower. He'd have to be on his toes for this, or they all might go down in flames. Feeling a little more alive as he grabbed his towel and stepped out of the shower, Harris came face to face with the person who would make his bad morning take a turn for the worse.

"Hello, Nate."

Even as they watched the security tapes from the night before, Hammond was beginning to get steamed. First Major McClure had not shown up, and then Captain Harris, who was acting chief of security, had failed to show as well. To top it off, Dr. Jackson hadn't arrived yet either, and had not as yet been located.

The perpetrator of the night's activities had been very careful, but had none the less been captured on tape three times. Covered head to toe in black, and only caught in glimpses, it was hard to tell anything other than height and weight.

"That's obviously not Teal'c," Jack pointed out needlessly.

"It could be you, sir," Carter said without thinking. "But it's not!" she added quickly.

"Where is Dr. Jackson?" General Hammond asked for the third time when Teal'c entered the room from his attempt to locate his errant teammate.

"Daniel Jackson is not in his office," Teal'c informed the General as he seated himself at the corner of the conference table.

The General's anger gave way to relief, along with everyone else, as Daniel swept into the room several minutes later, clutching a coffee cup in one hand and a shirt in the other.

"Sorry I'm late," Jackson said softly as he deposited the cup on the edge of the table next to Teal'c and slipped the shirt over his damp tee shirt. "Sorry."

"Daniel?" Jack asked quietly.

"Hmm?" Daniel asked as he buttoned up, unaware of the trail of soggy footprints he was leaving behind him.

"How'd you get wet?"

"Oh. Um, I'm not sure really. I fell asleep on my couch. When I woke up I was all wet and couldn't find my glasses," he explained.

"Have a seat Dr. Jackson," Hammond said. "Let's get finished here."

Daniel moved along the table to a seat between two of the latest victims. Everyone at the table noticed when the two men flinched away from the gentle archaeologist. Daniel looked around expectantly. "Sorry," he said again. "What did I miss?"

Before anyone could respond, an SF entered the room and spoke quietly with the General, handing him something wrapped in a handkerchief.

"Dr. Fraiser, you're needed in the infirmary," Hammond said as he slowly unwrapped the object.   He turned to Daniel and offered the item to him as Janet moved swiftly out of the room.

"My glasses," Daniel exclaimed. When he reached across the man on his right to retrieve them, the man bolted from his chair and cowered next to the wall.

"Don't touch me!" Jensen screamed, eyeing Daniel as if he held a flamethrower on him.

"Excuse me?" Daniel asked in shock.

"Captain Harris was just found in the locker room," Hammond said as he rolled the glasses back into the hanky. "Apparently someone dunked him repeatedly in the whirlpool until he passed out."

Daniel looked down at his sodden boots. "My glasses?" he asked, barely above a whisper.

"Evidence. They were found by Harris' unconscious body," Hammond supplied. "Dr. Jackson, I'm afraid I'm going to have to place you into custody," he added sadly indicating to the SF to do so.

"It was him," Jensen said in a shell-shocked voice. "He's the one who attacked us."

"It was Dr. Jackson," Williamson agreed quietly, looking at the floor.

"Me?" Daniel gasped as the SF pulled him to his feet.

"You're a dangerous man, Dr. Jackson," DeLeon said with a hint of admiration. The other victims nodded at his assessment.

Daniel lay on his back with an arm thrown over his eyes. He had refused to eat or talk to anyone since he had been confined. Even coffee was refused.

"This isn't like Daniel," Sam said forlornly, watching him through the monitor.

"Well neither is hunting down Air Force personnel, zatting them, and leaving them draped all over the compound in their underwear," Jack offered dryly.

Sam nodded. "Apparently that's not all. Those men were terrified."

"Daniel Jackson appears to have utilized a particularly effective form of Jaffa torture that leaves only psychological consequences. We spoke of it at length some time ago. I did not think him capable of implementing the practice. Only the most vile of Jaffa achieve the desired results."

"He didn't have time to torture all those airmen," Sam insisted.

"It requires only spoken words and specific knowledge of the enemy."

"And you taught Daniel how to do it?"

"Indeed."

Jack groaned and left the room, ending up in front of Daniel's cell. The SF let him in and he moved a chair over to the side of the bunk where Daniel lay motionless.

"So, read any good books lately?" Jack asked conversationally.

Daniel answered by rolling onto his side, away from Jack.

"Come on, Daniel. Talk to me. I know you didn't do this. It has something to do with that planet, I'm sure of it. You didn't intentionally hurt anyone."

"They said I did," Daniel sighed wearily. "They wouldn't lie about it, would they?"

"Do you remember doing it?"

"No," Daniel said with a sniffle.

"Aw, Danny, don't cry. You've been through way worse than this," Jack said and placed a hand on Daniel's shoulder. To his surprise, Daniel reached a hand up and Jack grasped it firmly.

"I have?"

"Sure you have."

"I don't remember."

"What do you mean you don't remember?"

"This is the worst thing that's ever happened to me," Daniel insisted.

"Daniel this is chicken scratch. This is nothing compared to what you've been through. How many times have you been dead for Christ's sake?"

"Dead? I've been dead?" Daniel asked and rolled back to face Jack with a horrified expression on his tear streaked face.

"You don't remember?"

Daniel swallowed and shook his head no.

Jack narrowed his eyes as he thought for a minute. He shuddered mentally at the first thing that popped into his mind. “You remember Hathor, right?”

“Of course, she was a Goa’uld. She tried to take over the base, but Sam and Janet stopped her.”

“And….” Jack prodded.

“And what?”

“Something of a more personal nature?”

“Like what?”

“Um, does the phrase ‘beloved’ mean anything to you?” Jack queried, watching for signs of recognition. “Collecting of DNA?”

“What are you talking about?” Daniel asked with a frown, but no evidence that there was any memory of the event.

Jack sighed and went for the big guns. “Shau’re?”

“My wife,” Daniel said and managed a smile.

“Where is she now?” Jack asked softly, kicking himself for the low blow.

“I… I don’t know,” Daniel stammered. “On Abydos? Waiting for me?”

“No, she’s dead. Remember?”

“What? How?” Daniel demanded, his face a mask of shock.

“She was taken over by a Goa’uld. Teal’c had to kill her to keep her from killing you.”

“No!” Daniel sobbed. “You’re lying! It’s not true!”

“I wish I was lying, Daniel,” Jack soothed. “Something’s messing with your head, again.”

“Again?”

“Dammit,” Jack muttered. “Don’t worry about it. Okay? We’ll get to the bottom of this.”

Daniel didn’t say anything but nodded his head. Tears continued to stream down his face, but his trust and confidence that Jack could make things right were apparent.

“We’ll fix this,” Jack promised as Daniel rolled away from him again. He gently patted his friend on the back as he cried himself to sleep. When he was sure Daniel was asleep, he wearily padded to the door. He glanced back once when the SF let him out and went in search of Dr. Fraiser.

As soon as Jack was gone Daniel rolled onto his back. “Shau’re,” he whispered mournfully. He lay there for only a minute before searching out the room for anything he could use to escape.

“You’re telling me he’s faking the little boy lost routine?” Jack asked angrily as he watched the screen in the briefing room.

“No, sir,” Janet insisted. “I don’t think he is. There’s a definite pattern to his behavior. Watch this.”

Dr. Fraiser fast-forwarded the tape of Daniel lying motionless on the bed, remorsefully looking at the floor. When a guard opened the door and brought in a tray of food she slowed the tape to normal speed. Daniel ignored the guard and rolled away. The SF implored him to eat something, but Daniel shook his head. A few minutes after the guard left, Daniel’s breathing evened out and it was obvious that he’d fallen asleep. Within a minute he was on his feet, searching the tray. When he found the plastic spork instead of cutlery he threw the tray against the wall and started pacing the cell like a caged animal.

“That’s quite a difference in attitude,” General Hammond said. “But what is the significance?”

“Dr. Jackson hasn’t slept more than a few minutes at a time in the last twenty-four hours. I’d hazard a guess that he hasn’t slept much more than that since SG1 returned from the mission.”

“So, what?” Jack asked impatiently. “He’s cranky because he’s not sleeping?”

“Not exactly. Keep watching. You’ll see that he appears to go to sleep, and then his personality literally changes when he wakes up a few minutes later. That’s the turning point. He goes to sleep one way and wakes up the other. Every time. Even the expressions on his face are different.”

“Could something be, I don’t know, hijacking his subconscious?” Sam asked.

“Maybe,” Janet replied earnestly. “His conscious mind might be too strong to fight so what ever it is takes control only when he goes to sleep.”

“You’re saying he’s possessed?” Jack asked in disbelief.

“By something, yes. Probably by the shadow you saw ‘go into him’ in the cavern.”

“Shit,” Jack murmured under his breath.

“That must be what’s affecting his memory as well,” Sam added.

“So what do we do about it, Doctor?” Hammond demanded helplessly.

“I’m sorry, sir. I don’t know. We don’t have a clue as to what this thing really is.”

“Is Daniel Jackson in any danger at this time?” Teal’c asked reasonably.

Dr. Fraiser sighed. “I’m concerned that he’s working his way toward physical exhaustion. His body isn’t ever allowed to rest. When he’s asleep the ‘thing’ is in control and it’s a lot more active right now than he is. I don’t know how long he can take it. I’m troubled by his mental state as well. When Daniel is actually Daniel, he’s very despondent. As it is, I’ve placed him on suicide watch.”

The people around the briefing room table exchanged worried glances.

“Daniel’s stubborn,” Jack said with determination. “Once we explain to him what’s happening, that ‘thing’ is in for a fight.”

“Sir,” an SF said anxiously to the general as he entered the room. “Dr. Jackson has escaped.”

“Seal off the mountain,” Hammond ordered as he rose to his feet. “Let’s find him.”

SG1 was already sprinting towards the holding cell.

“I’m sorry, sir,” the airman explained from the infirmary bed. “I saw the boots through the monitor and thought that he was lying in the floor on the other side of the bunk. When I opened the door to check on him he jumped me.”

“You wanna explain to me how a man under constant video surveillance sets up an escape like that?” Jack asked sarcastically.

“Sir, he was on suicide watch. I checked him every fifteen minutes just like I was supposed to. I had no idea he’d hit me and I sure didn’t think he could put me down like he did. He’s always been so… nice.”

“Daniel’s been on an SG team for over four years. You don’t think he might have picked up a thing or two about hand to hand combat on the way?”

“We believe that Dr. Jackson is under an alien influence,” Dr. Fraiser added, shooting an annoyed look at the colonel.

“He changed clothes in the locker room,” Sam exclaimed as she burst into the infirmary, Teal’c on her heels. “We found the uniform he had on. He must be in civvies now.”

“And no one saw anything?” Jack demanded.

“No sir. I don’t believe he’s still in the mountain.”

“I concur,” Teal’c said.

“He’s not,” General Hammond declared as he came into the room waving a computer printout. “This memo was sent around shortly before I ordered the mountain closed off. Essentially it advises everyone that Dr. Jackson is no longer considered a security risk and to stand down from alert. He walked right out the front door approximately ten minutes ago.”

“How could something like that happen?” Jack asked in frustration.

“Well, he attacked the main security hub and had them send out the message. Then he tied them up and left them locked in their own office. That’s why no one responded to the alert. Remember, only two days ago he effectively wiped out the experienced members of the security cadre.”

“So what do we do now?”

“I’ve notified the police. They’re putting out an APB on his car, but I’ve ask them not to approach him. They’ll let us know if they find him. In the meantime, I want you to check out his apartment. He may go there.”

“Yes sir,” Jack said as he went to change. Daniel couldn’t have gotten far.

Slowing as he made the treacherous curve, Jack did a double take. Daniel’s car sat outside of a dubious establishment just down the road from the base. He pulled into the dirt lot and parked next to the familiar vehicle. After a quick look around outside he made his way to the door.

Jack entered the pool hall cautiously. Even the marines didn't frequent this dump even though it was close in and handy. It was too dangerous. Too many unsavory types hung around looking for the wrong kind of action. Not a great place for a service man, let alone a geeky scientist. The thought that maybe Daniel wasn't really here crossed Jack’s mind more than once, even though his car was parked conspicuously out front. That line of reasoning was quickly put to rest when he spotted the man in question looking right at home. Daniel wore a pair of chinos and a white, untucked tee shirt, but his glasses were still locked up as evidence. The fading black eye and the sneer on his face actually made him look kind of tough. He held a pool cue in one hand and a leggy blonde in the other.

Standing next to the bar, Jack watched as Daniel released the girl to light up a smoke and clear the table in an efficient, scientific way just like Carter had taught him, the cigarette dangling from his lips casually as he did it. The same lips curled in a cruel smile as he picked up the money dropped onto the felt and called out "Rack 'em up, boy," to the large, mean-looking man he had just defeated.

"Asshole," the other man said as he retreated from the table.

Daniel watched him leave with an amused smirk which didn't change a bit as he caught sight of Jack standing there staring at him. "Any more suckers?" he asked the room in general and took a long pull off a bottle of beer.

"Dr. Jackson, may I have a word with you?" Jack asked formally.

"You're a doctor?" the girl asked Daniel excitedly.

"That's right," Daniel whispered into her hair as he pulled her in tight for a full body hug. "And later, I'm going to give you a thorough examination," he cooed. She giggled and for a minute, Jack thought he might be sick.

"Come on, Daniel, let's step outside."

Jackson flipped his cigarette into a bucket on the floor and downed the rest of his beer. "I'll be right back," he told the girl and kissed her quickly on the lips and handed her the empty.

Jack followed him out the back door and into the alley. Daniel leaned against the wall and lit another cigarette. "What do you want, Jack?" he asked coldly.

"I need to speak to Daniel," Jack said.

Daniel broke out in an angry sounding, hollow laugh. "What? You think I'm some evil monster who took over poor Danny's body while you weren't looking?" he asked. "I am Daniel. What do you want?" he added seriously, as if Jack was wasting his time.

"No," Jack argued. "You can't fool me. I know Daniel Jackson, and you ain't him, Buddy."

Taking a long, deep drag, Jackson inhaled and held it a second before blowing it out slowly, seductively, watching the smoke curl up towards the streetlamp. "How can you be so sure?" he asked at last, making eye contact and holding it.

"Look, I know Daniel better than anyone.  You're not him."

"Why? Because of the pool hall? The woman? What?"

"Because of the string of broken Air Force personnel in your wake. Daniel's not capable of that kind of violence," Jack explained, less than patiently.

"Oh right. You don't think that I can take care of myself, let alone get revenge."

"Daniel wouldn't do that. He's a peaceful man."

"Even I have a primitive, basal side, Jack. We all do, or we wouldn't be human. You seem to think that Dr. Jackson is all happiness and light. Well even Saint Daniel has a dark side. And I'm it." He thumped his cigarette away angrily as if to make a point.

"Look, Daniel's no saint. I know that. Believe me; I've seen him at his worst."

"I know you have. I remember. All the bad stuff anyway. None of the good. How fucking fair is that?" Jackson asked bitterly with a familiar pout, keeping his voice low, but letting it carry all of his emotion. "All I know is hurt. I am the failures, the betrayals, and the shame. I am the accumulation of all of his grief. And you believe me, Jack, Daniel Jackson is a wellspring of pain."

Jack nodded speechlessly in agreement, feeling the anguish roll off the younger man in waves.

"I know nothing of happiness or friendship or comfort. I don't know anything about love. When I look at you all I see is disappointment, anger, and loss. Some of the more recent wounds here," Daniel said as he placed a hand over his heart, "where made by you."

"Daniel forgave me. He always forgives me," Jack croaked out as his emotions bubbled to the surface.

"I forgave you, but I never forgot," Daniel said softly, tears beginning to pool in his eyes as he sank down to sit dejectedly on the damp, rancid ground. "And now it's all that I know."

"Are you really Daniel?" Jack asked desperately, kneeling in front of the despondent man.

"Yes," Daniel answered, wiping away the tears as they began to fall. "I'm half of him anyway. He needs me, you know. If he loses me, he loses more than his pain. He loses his passion, his tenacity. Without the anger, he really will be the naïve innocent you all believe him to be. Without the lessons that came with the pain, he'll be a helpless victim to every two-bit hustler that comes along. I am his strength and like it or not, I am every bit as much Daniel Jackson as he is."

"No pain, no gain?" Jack asked. "We have to fix this."

"Yes."

"You'll help me?"

"Of course. I want what he has. When our soul is pieced back together, I get it all back. The pain is too much without any comfort."

"Come here," Jack said as he reached out a steady hand.

"Why?" Daniel asked suspiciously as he tried to push Jack away.

"I can't stand to see you this way. Come on," Jack urged. He tugged the resisting man into his arms and began to rock him gently. "This is comfort," he explained.

Daniel relaxed slightly. "It is?"

"Yeah."

A shuddering sigh escaped Daniel's lips. "I think I like it," he said as he returned the embrace. "I guess this is why I always forgive you, you prick."

"Shhh." Jack continued to hold his friend, keeping an eye out for any threat that might come out of the bar. Slowly Daniel relaxed into the embrace, his breathing easing off as he drifted off to sleep. Suddenly he stiffened.

"Jack?"

"Daniel?"

"What's going on?" he asked as he pulled away.

"You don't remember getting here?" Jack asked.

"Um, no. Oh shit. I wasn't supposed to leave the mountain. Janet's going to kill me."

"It's okay. I'll send an airman to get your car. We need to get back right away." Jack got to his feet and pulled Daniel up after him. He took a whiff of the alley and realized what they had been sitting in. "On second thought, we'll take your car and send an airman to get my truck. Give me your keys. I'm driving."

Daniel placed his newly recovered glasses on his face and cleared his throat. "It's classic nature verses nurture. We are the sum of all our experiences. If we could take away all the good things we’ve ever experienced or even all the bad stuff, we'd be completely different people, wouldn't we?" he asked solemnly looking around the briefing room. “That’s what the text says, at least what I’ve managed to decipher so far. I can’t believe I didn’t realize it sooner.”

“You did,” Jack said softly. “Your dark side did anyway. He just didn’t share the information with the rest of us because he didn’t trust us.”

“Um, I’m not sure that dark side is exactly right,” Daniel corrected thoughtfully. “Nor good side, bad side. I think happy side versus sad side, or even lucky side versus unlucky side is probably closest.”

“What do you mean, Dr. Jackson?” General Hammond asked.

“These people, these scientists thought they were on to something. They thought they could separate good and bad memories. Apparently, the planet was some kind of penal colony and they developed this… mind separator as a means of rehabilitation, going on the theory that there are no bad people, only people who have had bad things happen to them.”

“Like a serial killer who had been abused as a child?” Sam asked.

“Yes, thank you,” Daniel replied. “They theorized that if you took away all the bad memories the inmates would become better people. But it didn’t work. Instead of ridding the person of the bad memories, they only managed to displace them to the subconscious.” Daniel made an imaginary ball in the air with his hands and turned it over to emphasize his point. “Consequentially while these poor people were happy while awake, they were tortured by the ‘darkness of their hearts’ when they slept.

“It somehow got out of hand and infected almost everyone. It drove them all mad. There was a riot and most of them were killed. A few of the scientists managed to barricade themselves in the stargate cavern and escape through it. They left us these warnings in as many languages as they could. In fact, since one of the languages is very similar to Greek, this discovery may be very useful in the future if I can….”

“Is it reversible?” Jack butted in to stop the tangent.

Daniel paused and looked away. “I don’t know. I haven’t finished the text yet.”

“Very well, Dr. Jackson, your priority as of right now is to finish the translation,” Hammond ordered as he prepared to dismiss the meeting.

“No,” Daniel answered quietly.

“Excuse me?” Jack asked in disbelief.

“I don’t want to.”

“Why the hell not?”

"I know that a lot of bad things have happened to me," Daniel began hesitantly. "I even know, thanks to you, what some of those things are.  But I have no specific memories of them. I feel happy now. I'm not weighed down by those horrible, terrible things. Please, Jack. I'm free. Don't make me take up those burdens again. Let me be happy."

“Dr. Jackson, you said yourself that this separation drove all the inmates insane,” Janet pointed out.

“Yes, but they didn’t understand what was happening to them. I do. I can handle this.”

“No you can’t,” Janet argued. “You’re on the verge of collapse as it is.”

“I don’t care. I won’t do it.”

“What about your other half?” Jack asked. “Are you so selfish that you don’t care what happens to him?”

“He’s still me, Jack. I’m only hurting myself.”

“Exactly. And I won’t stand around and watch you hurt someone I care about.”

“Guards,” Hammond said with a sigh. “Take Dr. Jackson back to the lockup until he decides to cooperate.”

“It’s okay,” Jack assured everyone as Daniel was escorted from the room. “You heard how excited he is about all those languages. There’s no way he won’t finish the translation.”

“Yeah, but how long will he stay this way in the meantime?” Sam asked.

“He’ll come around as soon as he goes to sleep,” Jack reasoned and then thought about what he had said. “That didn’t sound right did it? Shouldn’t his other half be the stubborn one?”

Janet smiled. “No, I think that stubbornness is just an integral part of Daniel’s nature.”

“So both sides are gonna be stubborn. Swell.”

“What do you mean he won’t go to sleep?” Jack asked irritably.

“I think he knows that his counterpart will be willing to do the translation,” Sam explained. “He’s doing everything in his power to stay awake.”

“Can’t we sedate him or something?”

“I don’t think that will work either,” Dr. Fraiser explained. “If we put him out completely, his other side won’t be able to come out and play. Although it would give him the opportunity to rest for awhile.”

“We’ll hold that option in reserve for now,” Hammond decided.

“We can try warm milk and lullabies,” Jack said sarcastically as he left the group and headed for the cell.

“When he does go to sleep, I want you to be careful, colonel,” Hammond called out after him.

Jack stopped and stared. “Sir? It’s Daniel.”

“He assaulted five airmen, almost drowned Harris, and McClure is still missing. I’m sorry Jack, I still think he’s dangerous.”

“McClure just took off because he couldn’t handle the fact that a mere scientist bested him at his own game. And he knows he’s in deep shit. Um, sir.”

“Jack,” the general warned.

“Yes, sir. I’ll be careful.”

Daniel glanced up but continued to pace in an effort to keep from falling asleep as Jack entered the cell. “Can I get some coffee?” he asked with a pout, arms crossed over his chest.

“No, you’re off caffeine for now. Wouldn’t want to keep you up, now would we?”

“Speak for yourself.”

“Dammit, Daniel, look at you. You don’t look very damned happy to me.”

Daniel snorted and stopped to rub his eyes.

Jack moved to the bed and patted the pillow. “Looks comfy, huh?”

“Go away, Jack.”

“Come on, lay down. You’ll be out before you know it.”

“What do you want?”

“I want you to finish the translation. If you won’t do that then I want to talk to your other half. The reasonable side. To do that, you have to go to sleep. You can’t stay awake forever.”

“I can stay awake long enough,” Daniel said drowsily as he held up a finger.

“There’s a time limit, isn’t there?” Jack asked. “Past a certain point you can’t go back.”  The slight surprised widened of Daniel's eyes told Jack he was right.  “How long?” he demanded.

Daniel shook his head and moved away with a smirk. “I’m not telling you anything else.”

Jack looked up at the camera. “Sorry, sir,” he said clearly. Then he spun Daniel around with one hand and connected with an upper cut to his chin with the other. Daniel hit the floor, out cold.

“Colonel!” Dr. Fraiser exclaimed as she rushed into the holding cell.

“It’s all right,” Jack assured as he patted the other man’s cheek. “He’s coming around. Let’s just see who it is. Daniel. Come on, open your eyes.”

Daniel groaned and opened one eye to glare at Jack. “What the hell happened?” he asked, pushing away Janet’s hand to rub his face gingerly.

“You fell,” Jack lied, resisting the urge to shake out his hand.

“I’m back in custody,” Daniel said as he took in his surroundings.

“Yeah, we need to cut to the chase,” Jack supplied. “There’s some kind of time limit on this thing. If we don’t do something soon, you’re gonna be stuck this way. We need you to finish translating the rubbings you took on that planet.”

“I can’t.  Get him to do it.”

“He won’t. He doesn’t want to remember.”

“That’s absurd. Make him do it!”

“I’m afraid it’s up to you,” Janet interjected.

“I can’t,” Daniel repeated insistently.

“Why not?” Jack asked, trying to be patient.

“Because I’ve never accomplished anything in my life. I fail at everything. You know that.”

“No, I don’t. I know you can do it. You just have to have confidence in yourself. Daniel, you’re the only one who can do it.”

“Get Hammond to call in another linguist. Surely there must be someone,” Daniel beseeched desperately.

“There isn’t time. Do you want to stay this way?”

“No! Of course not!”

“Then try,” Jack urged.

Sam appeared in the door clutching the documents. “Please, Daniel. Try.”

Daniel found his glasses and struggled to his feet, exhaustion written in his body language. He reached out without a word and took the papers. Sam caught him by the hand and smiled reassuringly at him. He stared back at her uncertainly.

“That’s just encouragement,” Jack offered and patted him on the back. “When you get done I’ll show you praise,” he teased. “Maybe a doggie biscuit.”

“Beat it, Jack. I can’t work with you hanging over my shoulder,” Daniel said sarcastically, a tiny smile tugging at his lips.

Daniel looked up warily as Teal’c entered the room carrying a cup of coffee. “What’s that for?” Daniel asked when the cup was placed in front of him.

“You are in need of refreshment, Daniel Jackson,” the Jaffa told him matter-of-factly.

Picking up the cup, Daniel sniffed it tentatively. He sighed. “Thanks, I guess.”

“You have no reason to trust me,” Teal’c said softly. “Although my actions in the past have hurt you deeply, I have tried to prove myself to be your friend. You do not know this to be true, but in time you will remember our bond of brotherhood.” He bowed slightly and turned to go.

“Why Shau’re?” Daniel asked quietly, a very slight edge of anger in his voice.

“Her spirit was strong. I knew that she would please my master. I am sorry.”

“You killed her.”

“Yes. I would do so again under similar circumstances.”

“I see.”

Teal’c laid a hand on Daniel’s back. “I would give my own life if I could undo what I have done. I pledge my life now to do whatever I can to mend your spirit that is torn asunder. When you are whole again, we will talk of this further.”

“I can’t do this,” Daniel sighed wearily and lowered his head to the table.

“You must,” Teal’c insisted. He pulled Daniel upright in the chair and gently squeezed his shoulders. “You must,” he repeated, releasing one hand to hold the cup under Daniel’s nose.

“I’ll try,” Daniel said unconvincingly and took a sip of the coffee.

“We will not desert you,” Teal’c announced and stood with his hand resting on Daniel’s shoulder.

Finishing the coffee, Daniel patted Teal’c’s hand hesitantly and looked up into the dark eyes. He found encouragement there and settled back down to the translation.

Teal’c bowed and left to meditate when Jack showed up with a tray of food.

“I did it,” Daniel said with a wane smile as Jack entered the room. “I really did it. And I think it’s right,” he added hopefully.

“Of course it’s right,” Jack assured as he gently took the paper out of Daniel’s shaky hand. “How are you feelin’?”

“Um, tired, I guess. But I feel good. Really good.”

“That’s just the thrill of accomplishment. Are you gonna tell me what this says or am I gonna have to actually read it?”

“Heaven forbid you should have to read something,” Daniel shot back with a grin. He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes wearily. “Um, it seems that the scientists figured out too late that they couldn’t control their creation. It ran amok and pretty much took over the facility. They hadn’t intended to ever reverse the effects, so they had no way of shutting it down. A couple of them were accidentally electrocuted during the siege of the prison. The one who survived woke up in one piece, so to speak.”

“So we shock you? How much voltage?”

“It doesn’t say. They tried different wattages. It worked on some and not on others. Any one who had been, um, infected for over seventy-two hours wasn’t…. fixable.”

“Shit. We’re down to the wire then. I figure it’s been,” Jack counted quickly in his head, “roughly sixty-eight hours since it got you. That’s too damned close. Let’s go.”

“Go where?” Daniel asked as he climbed to his feet uncertainly.

“The infirmary. Dr. Fraiser can shock you with that medical thingy,” Jack suggested as he led the way.

“The defibrillator?” Daniel questioned, following quickly.

“You got a better idea?”

“I was thinking of a zat gun. Either way, I suppose. We’ve got nothing to lose.”

Jack stopped and stared solemnly at his best friend. “We could lose you.”

Daniel swallowed and nodded. “Let’s go,” he urged, feeling a strange warmness inside. He wanted the rest of his memories more than ever. Teal’c, who hadn’t yet reached the elevator, picked up on the commotion and joined them in their sprint.

They ran down the corridors dodging the people not quick enough to get out of their way. Both humans were out of breath when they reached the infirmary. Daniel leaned against a bed while Jack went to look for Janet. Teal’c helped as Daniel began to peel off his tee shirt and climb into the bed.

“All will be well, Daniel Jackson,” Teal’c assured, not exactly knowing what was going on, but sensing the excitement and slight anxiety.

Daniel clutched the Jaffa’s hand and closed his eyes as he lay back on the bed. “Don’t leave me,” he said softly.

“I will not.”

With a soft sigh, Daniel relaxed a little. His exhaustion caught up with him and he drifted off.

“What’s going on?” Sam asked as she burst into the room.

“Good news travels fast?” O’Neill asked as he rushed Dr. Fraiser into the room, having already explained the situation on the way.

“Is it? Good news?” Carter asked hopefully.

“It could be. Teal’c, don’t let him go to sleep,” Jack warned a little too late.

“What’s going on?” Daniel asked weakly as he looked at his hand where Teal’c still held him and struggled to sit up.

“Just rest, Daniel. I want to have a look at you,” Dr. Fraiser covered quickly as she moved around the bed and motioned for a nurse to push the code-cart closer to the bed.

“Why?”

“You were out for a long time,” Jack lied. “We were starting to get worried.” Slowly he pulled the curtain around the bed, limiting Daniel’s view.

“I was out? Completely out?”

“Yeah.”

“For how long? What time is it?”

“After midnight,” Jack blurted out before anyone could provide the correct time and inadvertently tip off the dazed archeologist.

“Oh,” Daniel smiled and rested back. “It’s okay, Jack. Don’t worry. Everything is gonna be fine now.”

“I know,” Jack whispered as the blue eyes blinked a couple of times before shutting completely. “Now,” Jack demanded under his breath. “Before he wakes up again.”

The machine next to the bed whined as it charged. “I’m going to start with fifty joules, that’s not a lot. If that doesn’t work, he might be stunned long enough to try again at a higher level, but I don’t like this, colonel,” the doctor warned as she dollopped gel onto the paddles and rubbed them together. “Clear,” she said as she decided the best spots for paddle placement, away from his heart, but with enough muscle mass to absorb the charge.

Everyone stepped back as she stood on her tiptoes and placed one paddle on each deltoid. She hit the red buttons on the handles simultaneously just as Daniel opened his eyes. He looked surprised as he cried out and arched off the bed. Teal’c caught him on one side while Jack grabbed the other, both careful of the reddening skin on his upper arms.

“I’m so sorry, Daniel,” Janet said shakily.

Daniel turned accusing eyes to Jack. “You tr… tricked me,” he stammered with a half sob, half laugh.

“Please don’t tell me we have to do it again,” Jack groaned.

“No! It’s me,” Daniel assured quickly, wiping tears from his face with a chuckle. “All of me. God, don’t do it again.”

“How do we know that you’re, you know, you?” Sam asked frantically.

“Ask me something. Ask me something bad.”

“Where is Kawalsky?” Jack managed, still holding onto Daniel’s arm.

“He was taken by a Goa’uld. Then he was killed,” Daniel answered sadly, but with a steadier voice. “Now ask me something good, just keep Janet away from me with those things,” he added, eyeing the little doctor nervously.

“What did Colonel O’Neill call you when we found out you didn’t die on Apophosis’ ship?”

Daniel grimaced. “Spacemonkey."

“Oh, yeah. There’s my Spacemonkey now!” Jack said and pulled Daniel up for a hug.

Sam burrowed her way in on the other side while Teal’c stood by looking ecstatic in his stoic, non-emotional Jaffa way.

“That’s it,” Janet announced seeming to grow a foot or two in height. “Out! All of you. I want an EKG and then I want Daniel to sleep for at least eight hours uninterrupted.”

SG1 protested, then gave in, one by one after offering heartfelt congratulations and see-you-laters.

“Jack, wait,” Daniel said as O’Neill moved away. “Thank you.”

“For what?” Jack asked quietly.

“For believing in us.”

Jack smiled and nodded. “Always. Both of you.” He patted Daniel’s leg and then joined the rest of his team in the hall.

“Hello, gorgeous,” a nurse said as she wheeled the EKG machine in next to the bed.

Daniel raised an eyebrow at her, but was too tired to comment.

“Ow,” Daniel complained as he slid his arm into his shirt.

“Still sore?” Jack asked in sympathy.

“Oh yeah. Like getting zatted, only more localized.”

“You would think it would have worn off by now,” Jack teased. “You slept for two days straight.”

“I was tired, okay?” Daniel shot back, still a little loopy. He looked around but couldn’t find his glasses.

Jack reached over and slid them down from the top of his head to rest on his nose. “You’re a dangerous man, Dr. Jackson,” he mocked.

Daniel tried not to laugh. “I still remember everything, you know.”

“Like what?”

“Like how to make big bad Air Force grunts cry like babies.”

“Oh yeah,” Jack said thoughtfully. “What did you do to McClure anyway? He’s still AWOL.”

“You’re kidding? Oh shit, Jack. You don’t think he did anything stupid do you?”

“Yeah, I think he did a lot of stupid things. To start with he took it upon himself to decide who should and shouldn’t go through the stargate. Then he conspired against and assaulted a very valued member of the SGC. Harris hung him out to dry. When they catch him, he’ll pay big time.”

“That’s not what I meant. I was really rough on him, and believe me the wounds I dug into were already too deep. I can’t even believe that I did what I did,” Daniel confessed, guiltily wringing his hands.

“You weren’t exactly yourself.”

“What if he lost it completely? Or worse, what if he….”

“No. I’m sure he’s fine. I just think he realized that he was caught and took off. That’s all. You can’t blame yourself for any of this.”

“I don’t know, it’s kind of scary to realize what I’m capable of.”

“We’ve all got a dark side, Daniel,” Jack soothed. “You told me that. And we both know you’re never wrong.”

“Never say never, Jack,” Daniel said as he left the infirmary at last.

Major Stan McClure sat in silence and tried to calm his trembling hands. If he’d been rational, he might have found forgiveness in his heart. After all, turn about was fair play and he had been the one to start the game. Jackson had turned the tables on him and somehow won. Somewhere in his fried brain cells he knew that his Air Force career was over. He’d been caught out and the penalty would be extreme. But he wasn’t able the think rationally now. The only thoughts now were of survival and revenge. Sooner or later, Jackson would have to leave Cheyenne Mountain. And Stan would be waiting for him when he did.

The End

Disclaimer - Images, characters, and settings taken from various television shows are the property of their respective owners, producers, etc.  No copyright infringement intended, I'm just having a little fun.