Stargate SG1: Cocidian (8/11)
All disclaimers, notes, warnings and summary are in the Master post: Cocidian
Chapter Eight
"The night was uneventful," Teal'c continued. "I was assigned the final watch. O'Neill and Captain Carter had both awakened before the sun had risen. O'Neill was patrolling the perimeter. Captain Carter was preparing the morning meal. I observed that Daniel Jackson had not yet awakened, and I endeavored to rouse him ..."
"Daniel Jackson? Are you awake?"
Teal'c paused momentarily, listening for sounds of movement before he approached. Hearing nothing, he walked forward slowly.
"Daniel Jackson?"
Teal'c could see him still lying on the ground. Noting that the steady rise and fall of the archeologist's chest had not changed, Teal'c stepped forward and knelt down at his side. After reaching out to grasp Daniel's arm in his hand, he shook the sleeping man gently.
"Daniel Jackson?" he said again.
"Hm?" Mussed hair fell away from Daniel's face as he rolled, and his eyes opened partway before fluttering closed again.
"It is morning, Daniel Jackson. It is time for you to rise."
The blue eyes opened completely, blinking twice in confusion. "Teal'c?" Daniel squinted up at him. He appeared to be having trouble keeping his eyes open. "What time is it?"
"It is 0630 hours. O'Neill wishes to break camp before sunrise."
"Oh! Oh, yeah." Daniel pushed himself up from the ground and sat up, turning his head toward Teal'c and opening his mouth to speak. Suddenly, his face became a mask of pain and he pitched forward. He let his head fall between his knees, wrapping his arms around it as he did so.
"Daniel Jackson!" Teal'c called in alarm, reaching for the younger man's arm once more. "You are unwell. I will summon O'Neill."
"No!" Daniel replied emphatically. "Don't. Don't call Jack. Just... give me a minute."
"You are in pain," Teal'c observed.
"I'm fine," Daniel countered. "It's just a little headache." Daniel leaned back slightly, lifting his head. He wrapped his fingers through his hair and pressed the heels of his hands against his temples. "Just a headache," he said again, opening his eyes slightly and glancing at Teal'c. "It'll go away as soon as I get up and around a bit."
Teal'c watched until Daniel had removed his hands from his head and blinked a few more times. "Are you certain that you do not require assistance?"
Daniel flashed a smile. "I'm fine, Teal'c. Really." He pressed his hands against the ground and pushed himself to his feet. "See?" he asked weakly. "I'm fine." Daniel took one unsteady step forward, and his face went white. "Just a little ..."
Teal'c had moved forward immediately upon seeing the blood drain from the younger man's face, and so was in the perfect position to catch him before he hit the ground. Teal'c wrapped his arms around Daniel's waist to keep him on his feet.
Teal'c didn't see the grimace that crossed Daniel's face in response to the pressure against his lower back.
"You do not appear to be fine, Daniel Jackson."
Daniel took a deep breath and banished the pain from his face. He patted Teal'c on the shoulder twice, and then pushed away. He swayed slightly, but managed to stay on his feet without falling over again. "Don't worry about it, Teal'c," Daniel said, giving another weak smile. "That fight just took a little more out of me than I thought. I'll be fine in a minute."
Daniel turned slowly, taking more care than Teal'c would have thought necessary. His measured, deliberate steps carried him past Teal'c and to where Sam was gathering the last of their minimal supplies. Teal'c could not help but notice that Daniel's efforts to walk normally made the limp that much more pronounced.
Teal'c felt O'Neill step up beside him. Together, they watched in silence as Daniel slowly lowered himself to the ground across from Captain Carter.
"Teal'c?"
The Jaffa didn't turn toward the sound of his commander's voice. His attention never wavered from the pale man on the ground and his obvious attempts at hiding his discomfort.
"Daniel Jackson appears to be in a great deal of pain, O'Neill. He was nearly unable to stand without assistance. Had I not been there, he would have fallen."
Jack nodded slowly, his own gaze locked on the side of Daniel's head. "Let me guess. He's fine, right?"
Daniel turned toward them. The expression on his face made it clear that he knew the two men were talking about him. The smile that he gave them, Teal'c was certain, was intended to reassure them. Instead, as Daniel turned back toward his conversation with Sam, Teal'c found his initial concern mounting.
"Daniel Jackson is not fine, O'Neill."
"I know. I figured that out last night." Jack touched Teal'c on the shoulder lightly. "Keep an eye on him today, Teal'c," he said quietly. "If you see him having trouble, let me know. If we have to make some accommodations to get him home, we will."
Teal'c nodded as Jack walked past him to join the others.
"We broke camp right after breakfast," Sam explained. "Daniel was obviously in quite a bit of pain by then, but he was doing his best to hide it. If one of us said something to him, he said that it was just a pulled muscle and a headache. Said that he should be in some pain after the night before. And it wasn't exactly like we had a choice; we had to go. We thought that if he was having serious trouble, he'd tell us. And so we started hiking back to the gate ..."
Jack jerked his head in Daniel's direction, and Sam slowed her pace. A few seconds later, she found herself walking side by side with Daniel. She turned her head to look at him, uncertain of just what it was she should be looking for.
Daniel's eyes were partially closed against the sun, even behind the darkness of his sunglasses. His gaze was locked on his feet, which were shuffling along the ground much slower than his normal speed. His limp was even more pronounced than it had been an hour before.
They had been walking for five hours already, and should have reached the gate easily. However, the circumstances of the day required extra caution while traveling, and Jack had been making certain that they stopped at least once every hour, for no less than fifteen minutes at a time. At first, the frequent breaks had seemed to do Daniel some good, and he'd been able to maintain a fairly moderate pace for the first three hours of their hike. The last two had seemed to have the opposite effect. Daniel had had more difficulty getting to his feet each time, and his pace had been slowing noticeably.
"Hey, Daniel," Sam said cheerfully. "How's it ..."
"I'm fine, Sam," Daniel answered quickly without looking up.
"Okay." Sam looked at Jack. Catching his expression of concern, she shrugged. How much longer could Daniel go on like this? With every minute that passed he was limping a bit more, walking a bit slower, stumbling a bit more often.
Almost as if in response to her thoughts, she felt Daniel wavering beside her. She reached for his arm automatically, only to feel him pull away from her. "Damn it, Sam, I said I'm ..."
The statement ended in a sudden gasp of pain. Sam jerked her head toward Daniel to see him grasping his head with both hands. He was trembling, and his face was ashen. He fell to his knees hard. Sam was on the ground at his side in an instant, and only her hands on his forearms kept him from collapsing to the ground face-first.
"Daniel? Daniel!" She saw him open his mouth to speak, but no words escaped his lips. He gasped again, and fell heavily against her. "Colonel!"
Jack had seen Daniel go down, and he was reaching for Daniel even as Carter called his name. He pulled Daniel away slowly, and together he and Carter gently lowered him to the ground. Jack removed Daniel's sunglasses from his face quickly, and leaned down. Daniel moaned and threw his arm across his eyes.
"All right, Daniel. That's it," Jack said. "I want to know what's going on with you, and don't you dare tell me that you're fine! You can't even walk, for crying out loud. Now, tell me what's wrong."
Daniel clenched his teeth and pressed the heels of his hands against his temples again. "I... don't... know ..."
"Well, are you sick? Injured worse than we thought? Having an allergic reaction to something? What?" When Daniel didn't answer, Jack reached out and grabbed his left hand, squeezing it tightly. "Come on, Daniel. Talk to me here. Tell me what's wrong."
"It hurts," Daniel gasped.
"What, Daniel?" Sam asked. "What hurts?"
"My back," Daniel answered softly. "My head... my neck... my eyes ..." Daniel flinched as another wave of pain washed over him, and tears began to flow from his eyes. "Oh God, it hurts!"
Sam and Jack looked up at each other, and each saw the panic in the other's eyes. "Teal'c!" Jack called out.
"I am here, O'Neill."
Jack spun toward the voice, and was surprised to see Teal'c standing right behind him. "How long have you... never mind." Jack turned back to Daniel long enough to put his sunglasses back on him. "That's it. We're helping you. Carter, grab his other arm. Teal'c, grab her pack."
Jack and Sam each grabbed one of Daniel's arms, and pulled him slowly to his feet. They each pulled an arm across their shoulders and wrapped their arms around his waist.
"Okay, Daniel," Jack began. "We've got a long way to go. We're at least another three hours from the gate. Can you make it that far?"
"Do I have... a choice?"
Jack pressed his lips together and shook his head. "Not really, no."
"Then we'd better... get going ..."
Jack nodded, and then turned his attention back to Teal'c again. "Teal'c, take point. Back to the gate." As Teal'c moved off, Jack turned back to Daniel. "We'll stop whenever you need to, Daniel. Just let me know when it hurts too much to keep going, okay?"
Daniel squeezed his eyes shut momentarily, steeling himself for the long walk ahead. He opened them again, blinking repeatedly against the sunlight, and nodded slowly.
"Ready, Carter?" When Sam nodded in ascent, Jack tightened his grip on Daniel's waist. "Come on, kids. Let's go home."
Chapter Eight
"The night was uneventful," Teal'c continued. "I was assigned the final watch. O'Neill and Captain Carter had both awakened before the sun had risen. O'Neill was patrolling the perimeter. Captain Carter was preparing the morning meal. I observed that Daniel Jackson had not yet awakened, and I endeavored to rouse him ..."
"Daniel Jackson? Are you awake?"
Teal'c paused momentarily, listening for sounds of movement before he approached. Hearing nothing, he walked forward slowly.
"Daniel Jackson?"
Teal'c could see him still lying on the ground. Noting that the steady rise and fall of the archeologist's chest had not changed, Teal'c stepped forward and knelt down at his side. After reaching out to grasp Daniel's arm in his hand, he shook the sleeping man gently.
"Daniel Jackson?" he said again.
"Hm?" Mussed hair fell away from Daniel's face as he rolled, and his eyes opened partway before fluttering closed again.
"It is morning, Daniel Jackson. It is time for you to rise."
The blue eyes opened completely, blinking twice in confusion. "Teal'c?" Daniel squinted up at him. He appeared to be having trouble keeping his eyes open. "What time is it?"
"It is 0630 hours. O'Neill wishes to break camp before sunrise."
"Oh! Oh, yeah." Daniel pushed himself up from the ground and sat up, turning his head toward Teal'c and opening his mouth to speak. Suddenly, his face became a mask of pain and he pitched forward. He let his head fall between his knees, wrapping his arms around it as he did so.
"Daniel Jackson!" Teal'c called in alarm, reaching for the younger man's arm once more. "You are unwell. I will summon O'Neill."
"No!" Daniel replied emphatically. "Don't. Don't call Jack. Just... give me a minute."
"You are in pain," Teal'c observed.
"I'm fine," Daniel countered. "It's just a little headache." Daniel leaned back slightly, lifting his head. He wrapped his fingers through his hair and pressed the heels of his hands against his temples. "Just a headache," he said again, opening his eyes slightly and glancing at Teal'c. "It'll go away as soon as I get up and around a bit."
Teal'c watched until Daniel had removed his hands from his head and blinked a few more times. "Are you certain that you do not require assistance?"
Daniel flashed a smile. "I'm fine, Teal'c. Really." He pressed his hands against the ground and pushed himself to his feet. "See?" he asked weakly. "I'm fine." Daniel took one unsteady step forward, and his face went white. "Just a little ..."
Teal'c had moved forward immediately upon seeing the blood drain from the younger man's face, and so was in the perfect position to catch him before he hit the ground. Teal'c wrapped his arms around Daniel's waist to keep him on his feet.
Teal'c didn't see the grimace that crossed Daniel's face in response to the pressure against his lower back.
"You do not appear to be fine, Daniel Jackson."
Daniel took a deep breath and banished the pain from his face. He patted Teal'c on the shoulder twice, and then pushed away. He swayed slightly, but managed to stay on his feet without falling over again. "Don't worry about it, Teal'c," Daniel said, giving another weak smile. "That fight just took a little more out of me than I thought. I'll be fine in a minute."
Daniel turned slowly, taking more care than Teal'c would have thought necessary. His measured, deliberate steps carried him past Teal'c and to where Sam was gathering the last of their minimal supplies. Teal'c could not help but notice that Daniel's efforts to walk normally made the limp that much more pronounced.
Teal'c felt O'Neill step up beside him. Together, they watched in silence as Daniel slowly lowered himself to the ground across from Captain Carter.
"Teal'c?"
The Jaffa didn't turn toward the sound of his commander's voice. His attention never wavered from the pale man on the ground and his obvious attempts at hiding his discomfort.
"Daniel Jackson appears to be in a great deal of pain, O'Neill. He was nearly unable to stand without assistance. Had I not been there, he would have fallen."
Jack nodded slowly, his own gaze locked on the side of Daniel's head. "Let me guess. He's fine, right?"
Daniel turned toward them. The expression on his face made it clear that he knew the two men were talking about him. The smile that he gave them, Teal'c was certain, was intended to reassure them. Instead, as Daniel turned back toward his conversation with Sam, Teal'c found his initial concern mounting.
"Daniel Jackson is not fine, O'Neill."
"I know. I figured that out last night." Jack touched Teal'c on the shoulder lightly. "Keep an eye on him today, Teal'c," he said quietly. "If you see him having trouble, let me know. If we have to make some accommodations to get him home, we will."
Teal'c nodded as Jack walked past him to join the others.
"We broke camp right after breakfast," Sam explained. "Daniel was obviously in quite a bit of pain by then, but he was doing his best to hide it. If one of us said something to him, he said that it was just a pulled muscle and a headache. Said that he should be in some pain after the night before. And it wasn't exactly like we had a choice; we had to go. We thought that if he was having serious trouble, he'd tell us. And so we started hiking back to the gate ..."
Jack jerked his head in Daniel's direction, and Sam slowed her pace. A few seconds later, she found herself walking side by side with Daniel. She turned her head to look at him, uncertain of just what it was she should be looking for.
Daniel's eyes were partially closed against the sun, even behind the darkness of his sunglasses. His gaze was locked on his feet, which were shuffling along the ground much slower than his normal speed. His limp was even more pronounced than it had been an hour before.
They had been walking for five hours already, and should have reached the gate easily. However, the circumstances of the day required extra caution while traveling, and Jack had been making certain that they stopped at least once every hour, for no less than fifteen minutes at a time. At first, the frequent breaks had seemed to do Daniel some good, and he'd been able to maintain a fairly moderate pace for the first three hours of their hike. The last two had seemed to have the opposite effect. Daniel had had more difficulty getting to his feet each time, and his pace had been slowing noticeably.
"Hey, Daniel," Sam said cheerfully. "How's it ..."
"I'm fine, Sam," Daniel answered quickly without looking up.
"Okay." Sam looked at Jack. Catching his expression of concern, she shrugged. How much longer could Daniel go on like this? With every minute that passed he was limping a bit more, walking a bit slower, stumbling a bit more often.
Almost as if in response to her thoughts, she felt Daniel wavering beside her. She reached for his arm automatically, only to feel him pull away from her. "Damn it, Sam, I said I'm ..."
The statement ended in a sudden gasp of pain. Sam jerked her head toward Daniel to see him grasping his head with both hands. He was trembling, and his face was ashen. He fell to his knees hard. Sam was on the ground at his side in an instant, and only her hands on his forearms kept him from collapsing to the ground face-first.
"Daniel? Daniel!" She saw him open his mouth to speak, but no words escaped his lips. He gasped again, and fell heavily against her. "Colonel!"
Jack had seen Daniel go down, and he was reaching for Daniel even as Carter called his name. He pulled Daniel away slowly, and together he and Carter gently lowered him to the ground. Jack removed Daniel's sunglasses from his face quickly, and leaned down. Daniel moaned and threw his arm across his eyes.
"All right, Daniel. That's it," Jack said. "I want to know what's going on with you, and don't you dare tell me that you're fine! You can't even walk, for crying out loud. Now, tell me what's wrong."
Daniel clenched his teeth and pressed the heels of his hands against his temples again. "I... don't... know ..."
"Well, are you sick? Injured worse than we thought? Having an allergic reaction to something? What?" When Daniel didn't answer, Jack reached out and grabbed his left hand, squeezing it tightly. "Come on, Daniel. Talk to me here. Tell me what's wrong."
"It hurts," Daniel gasped.
"What, Daniel?" Sam asked. "What hurts?"
"My back," Daniel answered softly. "My head... my neck... my eyes ..." Daniel flinched as another wave of pain washed over him, and tears began to flow from his eyes. "Oh God, it hurts!"
Sam and Jack looked up at each other, and each saw the panic in the other's eyes. "Teal'c!" Jack called out.
"I am here, O'Neill."
Jack spun toward the voice, and was surprised to see Teal'c standing right behind him. "How long have you... never mind." Jack turned back to Daniel long enough to put his sunglasses back on him. "That's it. We're helping you. Carter, grab his other arm. Teal'c, grab her pack."
Jack and Sam each grabbed one of Daniel's arms, and pulled him slowly to his feet. They each pulled an arm across their shoulders and wrapped their arms around his waist.
"Okay, Daniel," Jack began. "We've got a long way to go. We're at least another three hours from the gate. Can you make it that far?"
"Do I have... a choice?"
Jack pressed his lips together and shook his head. "Not really, no."
"Then we'd better... get going ..."
Jack nodded, and then turned his attention back to Teal'c again. "Teal'c, take point. Back to the gate." As Teal'c moved off, Jack turned back to Daniel. "We'll stop whenever you need to, Daniel. Just let me know when it hurts too much to keep going, okay?"
Daniel squeezed his eyes shut momentarily, steeling himself for the long walk ahead. He opened them again, blinking repeatedly against the sunlight, and nodded slowly.
"Ready, Carter?" When Sam nodded in ascent, Jack tightened his grip on Daniel's waist. "Come on, kids. Let's go home."