her
voice, nothing human in it, nothing mortal. "You who once served
one dear to me. "
Her eyes flash white, pure white with black centers, and then the
pack of hunters is on him, and no amount of worship or prayer can
save him.
Everyone screams, in the end. His is drawn from him as a blade
is driven deep into the vulnerable center of him, and his symbiote is
cut and slashed and dismembered. They hold its mutilated, twitching body before him, laughing silently behind their jackal smiles, and
their eyes are black and wide and avid.
Then they begin to take him apart, alive.
His last vision is of the goddess of the hunt, smiling, drinking his
dying like smooth dark wine.
"Teal'c!"
Jack bolted upright, aware he'd said it out loud but not aware of
much else, initially; his heart was thudding as if he'd run a marathon,
flat out, and under the thick BDU fabric his whole body was dripping
with sweat.
The dream was fading, but the images, the sickening sense of
inevitability...
He turned his head and saw Teal'c moving toward him. The big
Jaffa crouched next to him, frowning.
"All is well, O'Neill," he said. "There is no cause for alarm." Even
so, he looked spooked. Distressed.
"Yeah. Yeah, okay." Jack took off his hat and rubbed his hands
over close-cropped hair, then ran his sleeve over his face to wipe off
the worst of the sweat. Felt like he was choking, tried to pull at the
neck of his shirt and bumped fingers into cold metal.
The collar hadn't been a dream. He tugged at it, but it was as firmly fastened as ever.
Teal'c was still watching him with concern.
"Just a nightmare. Sorry. Shit. You didn't dream, did you?"
"Jaffa do not dream."
"Right." Jack looked at him for a second, but Teal'c's eyes were
unreadable. "So you didn't see yourself out there, running in the
moonlight."
Teal'c changed the subject. "There has been no movement. The
dawn is coming soon."
"Good." The word tasted like ashes in his mouth. He tried to
remember the dream but it slid away, fish in the night river. He
remembered running, and moonlight, and dying. Not much else.
Screw it. Just a dream. No shock that a place like this would bring
up nightmares, considering their nearest neighbors seemed to be dismembered corpses.
Jack tugged his cap back on, seated it carefully with one hand at
the back, and gestured for Teal'c to help him up. His ankle had taken
the opportunity to swell until his whole foot was numb; that was both
a blessing, from a pain point of view, and a curse, from the point
of trying not to fall on his ass. He hobbled around experimentally,
bracing himself against the wall, until he felt some of the numbness
subside and a deep-seated hot ache return.
Ah. Better.
Carter was sacked out in the far comer, huddled up in a small ball
but still clutching her MPS. Daniel was on the floor, on his side, facing the wavering glow of the brazier. He hadn't taken off his glasses.
They were knocked cockeyed on his face.
"All quiet?" Jack asked Teal'c, who'd gone back to his post by the
door. The Jaffa nodded. "You didn't sleep at all?"
"No."
"I'm up now. You take a rest period." When Teal'c didn't move,
Jack limped over and nudged him. "Hey. That's an order."
Teal'c nodded, rose from his crouch like some perfectly balanced
machine, and moved to the spot Jack had abandoned against the wall.
He sat down in a lotus position, put his palms upward on his knees,
and closed his eyes.
"I kinda meant sleep," Jack said, but there was no point in push ing the issue. He negotiated his way to a sitting position - too old for
crouching, definitely, not to mention the ankle - and laid the weight
of his MP5 across his lap. The world outside was dark and quiet. No
movement. No moonlight. He was glad of that, even though it would
have made things easier to see.
On the other side of the room, Captain Carter made a soft whimpering sound. He glanced over at her, but she shifted position, moving dream-slow, and
voice, nothing human in it, nothing mortal. "You who once served
one dear to me. "
Her eyes flash white, pure white with black centers, and then the
pack of hunters is on him, and no amount of worship or prayer can
save him.
Everyone screams, in the end. His is drawn from him as a blade
is driven deep into the vulnerable center of him, and his symbiote is
cut and slashed and dismembered. They hold its mutilated, twitching body before him, laughing silently behind their jackal smiles, and
their eyes are black and wide and avid.
Then they begin to take him apart, alive.
His last vision is of the goddess of the hunt, smiling, drinking his
dying like smooth dark wine.
"Teal'c!"
Jack bolted upright, aware he'd said it out loud but not aware of
much else, initially; his heart was thudding as if he'd run a marathon,
flat out, and under the thick BDU fabric his whole body was dripping
with sweat.
The dream was fading, but the images, the sickening sense of
inevitability...
He turned his head and saw Teal'c moving toward him. The big
Jaffa crouched next to him, frowning.
"All is well, O'Neill," he said. "There is no cause for alarm." Even
so, he looked spooked. Distressed.
"Yeah. Yeah, okay." Jack took off his hat and rubbed his hands
over close-cropped hair, then ran his sleeve over his face to wipe off
the worst of the sweat. Felt like he was choking, tried to pull at the
neck of his shirt and bumped fingers into cold metal.
The collar hadn't been a dream. He tugged at it, but it was as firmly fastened as ever.
Teal'c was still watching him with concern.
"Just a nightmare. Sorry. Shit. You didn't dream, did you?"
"Jaffa do not dream."
"Right." Jack looked at him for a second, but Teal'c's eyes were
unreadable. "So you didn't see yourself out there, running in the
moonlight."
Teal'c changed the subject. "There has been no movement. The
dawn is coming soon."
"Good." The word tasted like ashes in his mouth. He tried to
remember the dream but it slid away, fish in the night river. He
remembered running, and moonlight, and dying. Not much else.
Screw it. Just a dream. No shock that a place like this would bring
up nightmares, considering their nearest neighbors seemed to be dismembered corpses.
Jack tugged his cap back on, seated it carefully with one hand at
the back, and gestured for Teal'c to help him up. His ankle had taken
the opportunity to swell until his whole foot was numb; that was both
a blessing, from a pain point of view, and a curse, from the point
of trying not to fall on his ass. He hobbled around experimentally,
bracing himself against the wall, until he felt some of the numbness
subside and a deep-seated hot ache return.
Ah. Better.
Carter was sacked out in the far comer, huddled up in a small ball
but still clutching her MPS. Daniel was on the floor, on his side, facing the wavering glow of the brazier. He hadn't taken off his glasses.
They were knocked cockeyed on his face.
"All quiet?" Jack asked Teal'c, who'd gone back to his post by the
door. The Jaffa nodded. "You didn't sleep at all?"
"No."
"I'm up now. You take a rest period." When Teal'c didn't move,
Jack limped over and nudged him. "Hey. That's an order."
Teal'c nodded, rose from his crouch like some perfectly balanced
machine, and moved to the spot Jack had abandoned against the wall.
He sat down in a lotus position, put his palms upward on his knees,
and closed his eyes.
"I kinda meant sleep," Jack said, but there was no point in push ing the issue. He negotiated his way to a sitting position - too old for
crouching, definitely, not to mention the ankle - and laid the weight
of his MP5 across his lap. The world outside was dark and quiet. No
movement. No moonlight. He was glad of that, even though it would
have made things easier to see.
On the other side of the room, Captain Carter made a soft whimpering sound. He glanced over at her, but she shifted position, moving dream-slow, and
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