hundred plus years.
But Jack knew one thing and he knew it very well.
Fight to win.
Plain and simple.
Having that oily, good-for-nothing ambassador throw Jack’s personal shibboleth back in his face had driven him crazy. Intentionally so, no doubt. But as he hit the ground and began the short walk toward the others, Jack refused to give up on the very core of what had kept him alive all these years.
Jack would get Daniel back. There was no way he would give Yu the satisfaction of winning.
Or Oma, for that matter. Even though he had to grudgingly admit his gratitude for her saving Daniel’s ass the last time.
Jack strode by the cargo ship. Teal’c and Bra’tac were eating MREs. Knowing his Jaffa buddy, they were probably eating turkey. Knowing Teal’c’s appetite, probably their third round. They both nodded silently as he went by, their mouths full with good old American stale nourishment.
Ten yards beyond them, Carter was shoving gear into a pack. Her ever ready scanner, a first aid kit, some energy bars. That damned Goa’uld telly ball lay on the ground beside her. Jack wondered briefly if Huang was getting his fix watching her from the safety of twenty thousand or so light years away.
Coward.
Jack briefly considered sticking his middle finger up in salute. He decided against it.
He went past the ball, past Carter who wouldn’t even look him in the eye. She kept her focus on shoving one item into the bag after another. Jack offered her a sloppy salute and got nothing in return. Well, almost nothing. The Major’s arm shot up. In her hand was a zat gun, his for the taking. Jack took it and kept on walking.
No doubt about it. Carter was pissed.
And yet, he couldn’t bring himself to care.
Chapter Five
Black stones chased white across the Wéiqí board, Daniel doing his best to keep up with Lord Yu. Even with his glasses returned, his eyes blurred when trying to focus on the board. Hunger had as much to do with his fatigue as anything else. The only thing that kept Daniel going was the unspoken fear that if he lost, Yu would kill him. He didn’t even want to think about what would happen if he won.
He had to find a way out. A way past Yu, past the Jaffa, and through the Stargate.
Peering through the lattice screens on the west side of Yu’s throne room, he located the gate on a lower terrace that stretched out from the cliff that formed the foundation of Yu’s fortress. A glint of late afternoon sun reflected off the top chevron like a beacon, urging Daniel to go through.
The squadron of Jaffa surrounding the gate would make that impossible. Not without serious weaponry, and more importantly, not without his friends. No. Getting to the gate would be an impossible task. In his position, even Jack would admit the same.
Wouldn’t he?
With a sigh, Daniel pushed away the absurd idea of trying to compare himself to Jack, to Teal’c, or even Sam. It was a waste of time. Daniel would have to use his own techniques, develop his own strategy if he was going to make it out.
Low lying fog shrouded a lake only a few miles beyond the gate, blanketing the dilapidated shacks on its shores in a mist of obscurity. If Daniel could make his way out of the fortress, he could possibly hide there until he found a way off the planet. No doubt, Yu’s slaves lived in those tiny hovels. Though ‘live’ wasn’t exactly a word that worked well when your life was owned by a Goa’uld hell bent on universal domination, Daniel was pretty sure the slaves would turn him back in, hoping to curry some favor with their ‘God’.
Frustrated, he turned back to the game. At first, he’d avoided the center of the board which Yu dominated so early on. He made an effort to build up his left corner, but each time he dropped another white stone in place, Yu plunked down another black, cutting him off. Daniel would keep trying to extend a chain of stones in one direction, only to be surrounded by more of Yu’s pieces. Each
But Jack knew one thing and he knew it very well.
Fight to win.
Plain and simple.
Having that oily, good-for-nothing ambassador throw Jack’s personal shibboleth back in his face had driven him crazy. Intentionally so, no doubt. But as he hit the ground and began the short walk toward the others, Jack refused to give up on the very core of what had kept him alive all these years.
Jack would get Daniel back. There was no way he would give Yu the satisfaction of winning.
Or Oma, for that matter. Even though he had to grudgingly admit his gratitude for her saving Daniel’s ass the last time.
Jack strode by the cargo ship. Teal’c and Bra’tac were eating MREs. Knowing his Jaffa buddy, they were probably eating turkey. Knowing Teal’c’s appetite, probably their third round. They both nodded silently as he went by, their mouths full with good old American stale nourishment.
Ten yards beyond them, Carter was shoving gear into a pack. Her ever ready scanner, a first aid kit, some energy bars. That damned Goa’uld telly ball lay on the ground beside her. Jack wondered briefly if Huang was getting his fix watching her from the safety of twenty thousand or so light years away.
Coward.
Jack briefly considered sticking his middle finger up in salute. He decided against it.
He went past the ball, past Carter who wouldn’t even look him in the eye. She kept her focus on shoving one item into the bag after another. Jack offered her a sloppy salute and got nothing in return. Well, almost nothing. The Major’s arm shot up. In her hand was a zat gun, his for the taking. Jack took it and kept on walking.
No doubt about it. Carter was pissed.
And yet, he couldn’t bring himself to care.
Chapter Five
Black stones chased white across the Wéiqí board, Daniel doing his best to keep up with Lord Yu. Even with his glasses returned, his eyes blurred when trying to focus on the board. Hunger had as much to do with his fatigue as anything else. The only thing that kept Daniel going was the unspoken fear that if he lost, Yu would kill him. He didn’t even want to think about what would happen if he won.
He had to find a way out. A way past Yu, past the Jaffa, and through the Stargate.
Peering through the lattice screens on the west side of Yu’s throne room, he located the gate on a lower terrace that stretched out from the cliff that formed the foundation of Yu’s fortress. A glint of late afternoon sun reflected off the top chevron like a beacon, urging Daniel to go through.
The squadron of Jaffa surrounding the gate would make that impossible. Not without serious weaponry, and more importantly, not without his friends. No. Getting to the gate would be an impossible task. In his position, even Jack would admit the same.
Wouldn’t he?
With a sigh, Daniel pushed away the absurd idea of trying to compare himself to Jack, to Teal’c, or even Sam. It was a waste of time. Daniel would have to use his own techniques, develop his own strategy if he was going to make it out.
Low lying fog shrouded a lake only a few miles beyond the gate, blanketing the dilapidated shacks on its shores in a mist of obscurity. If Daniel could make his way out of the fortress, he could possibly hide there until he found a way off the planet. No doubt, Yu’s slaves lived in those tiny hovels. Though ‘live’ wasn’t exactly a word that worked well when your life was owned by a Goa’uld hell bent on universal domination, Daniel was pretty sure the slaves would turn him back in, hoping to curry some favor with their ‘God’.
Frustrated, he turned back to the game. At first, he’d avoided the center of the board which Yu dominated so early on. He made an effort to build up his left corner, but each time he dropped another white stone in place, Yu plunked down another black, cutting him off. Daniel would keep trying to extend a chain of stones in one direction, only to be surrounded by more of Yu’s pieces. Each
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