Author: Debi C

Feedback: Enlist or to dcole6@satx.rr.com

Rating: G

Pairing: J/D for smarm and angst.

Category: Gen. POV Alpha Gate FNF#12 Challenge: Downtime.

Date: September 4, 2002

Status: Finished

Series: None

Season/Spoilers: Fourth Season maybe. Gamekeeper, Forever In A Day.

Archive: Alpha Gate. Area 52. TheBoy. Anyone else please ask.

Synopsis: A cave-in on an alien planet brings back very bad memories.

Notes: Just a short thing, beta'd by celtic angel and maddy baby.

Warnings:
A
R
N
I
N
G
S
P
A
C
E: Minor bad language by usual person. Maybe a tissue warning here. Don't go fishing in a lightning storm or spelunking with Daniel.

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em. Showtime/ Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions do. I seem to take better care of them. This is the way they should be. Don't sue me. I'm poor. No copyright infringement whatsoever is intended. The story is for entertainment purposes only. At least I hope it's entertaining. Any original characters, situations and story are mine. Please check with me first if you want to archive or link to this story.

With a Little Downtime
by Debi C

Teal'c and I had just finished policing the campsite when I heard it. It was a dull, rumbling sound that seemed to rise up from the very ground we were standing on. It wasn't a big earthquake as they go, but it was enough to vibrate the surface and knock over the cooking tripod, spilling the coffee and putting out the fire.

The next thing I heard was a voice screaming my name. Teal'cs and mine. I don't think I've ever heard such a note in that voice. It rose to a pitch and volume I've never experienced before and never ever want to again. Daniel was yelling for us.

At the first sound of the voice, we both dropped whatever we had in our hands and ran as fast as we possibly could towards that voice.

Daniel and the Colonel had been finishing up his survey of a small temple. The only unusual thing about this particular temple was that it was housed in a medium sized cave. Our Archaeologist had only been a little excited in its discovery. It was an early classic Greek temple to some minor deity, the inscriptions were slightly different, and leading him to speculate on the origins of the people who had lived here some several hundred years ago. He was sure it was Goa'uld related, but not anything that we hadn't already seen several times. Daniel had promised to finish up this evening so that we could go back home tomorrow morning. Then we could go on some well-deserved down time.

But now, all thoughts of any rest and recreation were long gone from our minds. As we rounded the copse of trees that separated our campsite from the cave's mouth both Teal'c and I realized what had happened. The opening was partially collapsed, and a fine haze of dust still floated lazily in the air. It was now deadly quiet.

Teal'c led the way as we plunged into the semi-darkness of the cave's interior, several yards in we began to encounter boulders and piles of rubble that almost blocked our path. He began calling my teammate's name and that of our leader.

"Danieljackson. O'Neill. Where are you? Are you injured?"

I had finally thought to pull out my flashlight to help us navigate the blocked tunnel. "Daniel! Where are you? Daniel!" I called. There was no answer. All I had was the memory of his voice to guide me. "Daniel, answer me!" I was beginning to get angry at him for not answering as my lungs began to burn in the dust of the cave's chamber. Then I began to hear a sound. I couldn't identify it, it wasn't loud, but it was a steady, tedious, droning noise.

We continued to fight our way back into the cavern's space, when my light played across a scene that will live in my mind for, well, a very long time.

Daniel was crouched over the still form of our commanding officer. He had his arms halfway wrapped around a huge boulder that crouched above the Colonel like a colossal beast. He was trying to push, pull, move, lift the huge rock from O'Neill's body. And he was making that sound that I don't believe I have ever heard anyone make before and hope to never hear again. It was a kind of a keening sound, maybe a wail, or even a cry. There were no words, no sobs, no real inflections, just a high pitched moan as if some one was ripping his heart out while he was still alive.

Teal'c and I rushed to his side. He wrapped his large, strong arms around Daniel and pulled him off of the boulder and away from the Colonel's side. I dropped to my knees and felt for a pulse. Miraculously there was one, faint but steady. As I flashed my light across the boulder, I could see where the huge rock had come to rest against another of its brothers, causing the cornered edge to split and separate. This was where my C.O.'s head and neck were jammed. By the act of a kindly God--the real one--he had been spared a crushed skull, a broken neck and a grizzly death. He hadn't gotten out unscathed, by any means. There was blood a plenty and probably a concussion or even a fracture on that hard Irish head. But he was alive and breathing, and trapped under the huge weight.

I looked at the two men locked together by Teal'cs strength. "He's alive! Hurt but alive. We have to get him free."

Teal'c nodded his understanding, but I knew by the look in Daniel's eyes that he was past comprehending anything that I had said. The Jaffa looked down at our youngest teammate. "Danieljackson, O'Neill is alive. We must assist Majorcarter. I will release you now."

There was no reaction in Daniel's face. He was wearing an expression of profound desolation. I got up from my knees and came to stand directly in front of him.

"Daniel. The Colonel's alive. We have to get him out."

Nothing.

"Daniel! Daniel, listen to me." I repeated directly into his face.

Teal'c slowly released him to stand unmoving in front of me. Then, the big warrior went to kneel down by our fallen leader.

"Daniel, we don't have time for this. The Colonel is alive. Do you hear me?" I demanded of him.

He stood on his own two feet and looked through me. His glasses were long gone and his eyes were unfocused. "Daniel, I need you here." I reached up and put my hands on his face, as if in a caress. "Daniel?" Holding my left hand on his right cheek and gritting my teeth, I drew my right hand back and slapped him, hard. "Daniel!" He didn't react from the blow except his eyes finally began to focus. I slapped him again, sharply. "Daniel!" He looked at me.

Daniel took a deep breath, the first one I remember and said in a bleak monotone. "Jack's dead, he's dead."

"No, Daniel." I gripped his face in my two hands again. "He's alive! He needs our help, sweetie, but he's alive."

Daniel looked down at his hands. They were covered with the Colonel's blood. "Alive?"

"Yes, Danny, alive!"

He jerked out of my hands and stumbled back to where the rock lay seemingly on our O'Neill. He dropped onto his knees again and lay his hands on the Colonel's exposed shirt covered back. "Jack?"

"He is alive, Danieljackson." Teal'c assured him in a gentle voice. "We must free him."

Daniel didn't verbally reply, but he nodded his head slightly. He continued to stroke our team chief's unconscious body gently, as if it would shatter at his touch.

Teal'c rose and came back over to me. "We must waste no time, Majorcarter. O'Neill is gravely injured."

"We have to get that boulder off of him before we can move him..." As I spoke the words, I felt another rumble under my feet. Teal'c grabbed me by the shoulders and pushed me up against the cavern wall, placing himself strategically over my body to block any falling rocks from striking me. When the tremors finally stopped, and he released me, we turned to see Daniel lift himself up from a prone position over Colonel O'Neill's unconscious form. There were several fairly large sized rocks lying on and beside his back where he had taken blows protecting O'Neill. The back of his head was now bleeding. Immediately he touched his friend, assuring himself that the Colonel was still breathing.

As I turned to look towards our path of escape, I realized that the passageway was now almost completely blocked by rubble and debris. Only an area large enough to serve as an airway remained.

My first reaction was to clear the passageway, but after a brief second of indecision I turned back to our trapped leader. Daniel was still there by his side, looking down at him with inconsolable eyes. I looked at Teal'c. He nodded. We both went back to O'Neill's side.

Another apparent blessing in disguise had occurred. The aftershock had shifted the large boulder so that it was in a more balanced position. Teal'c and I removed our shirts, tying the sleeves together and tossing the long clothing length across the top of the rock. With both of our combined weights and strength we were able to roll the huge chunk off and away from Colonel O'Neill. Daniel also had slipped between the prone man's form and the huge stone adding his shoulder to the cause, and at the same time blocking any expected debris from coming down on O'Neill with his body.

Once we'd freed the Colonel, I was able to assess his condition more completely. The boulder that had struck him down had grazed his head; gashing the scalp and laying it open to the skull's bone. He'd lost a lot of blood from that wound alone. His shoulder appeared to be either dislocated or broken by its position. His shirtsleeve was torn, his left arm and hand badly contused and lacerated. His right arm had been trapped under his body and I couldn't see it yet. Surprisingly, there was no apparent injury to his back, neck, and hopefully spine. Daniel sat and stared at him as I did the exam, seemingly holding his breath the entire time.

"Daniel, give me your pack. I need the med kit out of it." He moved quickly, not saying a word, removing the kit from the canvas bag and handing it to me. He resumed watching my actions.

Teal'c had gone to the site of the new cave-in, but he returned as I continued my work. "I believe that we are not deeply buried. We should be able to dig ourselves out in a short time."

"Good," I replied. "Once I get through here, I can come and help you." I glanced up at Daniel. He was staring down at the unconscious man, as if willing him to awaken. He not only had blood on his hands, but on his face, and in his hair also. His wounds would also need tending.

Teal'c followed my line of sight and turned to his young friend. "Danieljackson, you are wounded. Let me see to your injuries." Daniel looked at him, not saying a word, but after a few moments he nodded silently.

Once I got Colonel O'Neill's wounds cleaned and treated as best I could under these less than ideal conditions, and Teal'c had managed Daniel's injuries, we turned our efforts to moving the seriously injured man to a less dangerous location. My worst fear now was shock, for both of them. I didn't have a cervical collar but I was able to use an extra pair of fatigue trousers from a pack to make a roll of cloth that would immobilize his neck and head somewhat. We had a Mylar emergency blanket but we had no available fuel of any kind for a fire. But, I thought to myself, we do have a human heat source. "Daniel."

He looked up at me. I nodded towards O'Neill. "Daniel, I've done the best we can for first aid, but I'm afraid he'll go into shock and he needs to be kept warm when it cools down this evening. You're also injured and shouldn't be digging. So, I need you to help hold him and keep him warm." I tried to smile encouragingly at my distressed teammate. "Can you do that for me, and him? Just hold him steady, don't let him move, and keep him warm."

His blue eyes met mine and he nodded.

"Daniel, he's alive. He's going to be all right. You just need to keep him warm, okay?" I pressed him. "Can you say that for me, Daniel?"

He continued to stare at me, no sound coming from him.

"Daniel? Talk to me." I reached my hand out to him, to the face that I had slapped earlier. He ducked his head. "Daniel...say it. Say it for Jack."

He nodded.

"No, sweetie. I need to hear it. Say it for Jack."

He ducked his head again, as if almost a nod. Then, finally, in a very low voice, he spoke. "Jack's alive, he'll be all right, keep him warm."

I smiled and he tried to answer that too, but it was too quick to identify completely as a smile. But it worked for me. With Teal'c's help, we all three gently moved the Colonel until he lay braced up against Daniel and between his legs as he sat leaning against the wall. This allowed Daniel to support the Colonel's head and neck, to wrap his arms around O'Neill to help keep his body temperature constant, and still not put too much strain on our human heating pad.

Teal'c and I then turned our attention to the collapsed cave entrance. Luckily we had Daniel's excavation tools, a small collapsible shovel and a short handled rake. The quake had hit late in the afternoon, so we only had a relatively short time that evening before it became extremely dark in our cave prison. After several hours, I finally gave in to the creeping exhaustion that was sapping my strength. I went to check on my two patients. The Colonel was still unconscious; I had expected nothing else. Daniel was still awake though and was gently stroking O'Neill's face neck and good arm, murmuring quiet things to him. I smiled and nodded in encouragement. Under the emergency blanket, 'our' patient's body temperature was good, his pulse strong and his breathing regular. As for Daniel, he still looked a little shockey, but he was relatively alert and his vitals were also in acceptable range. His mental state had improved, though still not communicative, he was at least responsive.

It was just dawn when Teal'c woke me. He'd continued to work all night, unheeding of my command for him to rest and his body's demands. The dirt, debris, and rocks had been cleared from the path to where we could easily leave our trap while carrying our injured member. I arose and we walked out to greet the dawn of the alien sun. We immediately went to our campsite and put a stretcher together out of a sleeping bag and two tent poles so that we could transport the Colonel. Then we returned to our injured men.

When we reentered the cave, we saw--either by some accident, or perhaps the cave was designed to do this--a single beam of light had penetrated the interior of the cave and spotlighted the two men as they lay against the far wall. The Mylar blanket reflected the sunshine with a metallic luminosity that lit the cave. But the sight that met our eyes upon return was even more warming. Daniel had finally succumbed to his exhaustion. He was lying against the wall, his arms wrapped protectively around the Colonel. Colonel O'Neill was leaning against his friend's chest, nestled in Daniel's embrace. If it hadn't been for the stark whiteness of the bandage on his head, he would have appeared to be sleeping peacefully.

After a few moments we regrettably went over and awakened the younger man. "How are you doing Daniel?"

Daniel opened his eyes and looked up at us. In a low voice, he said, "Jack woke up last night."

This news pleased me to no end.

"He said he was hot." Daniel continued. "So I moved the sheet for a little while and he went back to sleep. That's good, right?"

"Yes, that's very good." I answered. Teal'c nodded. "Now, are you ready to get rid of the weight of the world?" I indicated our patient.

He shook his head. "No, he can stay here as long as he needs to."

"Well, he needs to get back to the SGC and to the infirmary. So, lets get going, shall we?" And we gently transferred the Colonel to our make shift stretcher.

*******

Several hours, a few miles and one wormhole later, the Colonel and the Archaeologist were both now firmly entrapped by the friendly keepers of the SGC infirmary. Janet had done her worst with the Colonel. He lay pale and wan in the hospital bed, head now completely wrapped in white bandages. It was shaven underneath this time, and he'd be very pissed off when he discovered that particular fact. The blow to his head had given him a severe concussion and a hairline fracture. He also had suffered a dislocated shoulder, cracked collarbone and a badly bruised and scraped left arm. Luckily, he had fallen on his right arm, affording it some protection so he'd be able to function within reason when he was finally released. He'd been in and out of consciousness, only managing to speak a few words of comfort to Daniel.

But Daniel refused to be comforted. He'd been at the Colonel's side since he came out of the emergency treatment room. He was also back to being nonverbal, which I must say frightened me no end. A non-talkative Daniel Jackson is a traumatized man. I believe that I've only seen him like this one time, when poor Sha'uri died.

I'd mentioned it to Janet and she'd nodded, stating that the only medicine for him now was for the Colonel to regain consciousness, which he would in due time. Teal'c and I had tried to take him to the dining facility but he'd refused to go, shaking his head wordlessly. Finally, we'd left him to his Guard Position and gone to debrief the General without him. General Hammond had understood about Daniel not coming and said for us to go on and take care of the guys.

When we'd returned to the infirmary with a sandwich, chips and a cold milk for Daniel, I was very happy to see the Colonel had awoken and was talking to the younger man, who was holding his hand and looking very...spellbound... at his friend. It looked as if they were in the middle of one of their 'talks', except Daniel wasn't doing any talking.

As we came into the cubicle, the Colonel looked over in our direction. "Hi, Sir! Glad to see you're back with us."

"Glad to be back, Carter." He replied, voice still weak. "Is that food for me?"

"It is not. It is for Danieljackson." Teal'c answered. "He has not eaten since your adventure."

"Since my 'adventure', hum." He looked at his friend. "Well, since I'm sure Doc won't let me have the sandwich, you'd better eat it."

Daniel shook his head no. The Colonel gave him the patented look. "Eat, Danny, you look like shit." He shook his head again. The Colonel caught on to the obvious and shook the hand that he held. "Not eating and not talking will get you zip, Danny. Please, for me."

The blue eyes glared at him then softened perceptibly. He finally took the bag from Teal'c and opened it, pulling out the sandwich and the banana that the girl on the serving line had slipped in there 'for Dr. Jackson'. He peeled it and began to eat. The Colonel, nodded then closed his eyes again, satisfied. Maybe Daniel would finish the sandwich later, but right after he finished the piece of fruit, Janet came and grabbed her uncooperative patient.

"Come on, Daniel, we need to finish those tests that you wouldn't allow earlier. They'll just take a few minutes, and Sam and Teal'c will stay with the Colonel." Daniel gave her a look to freeze the Nile, but our friendly doctor took him by the hand and tugged gently. The Colonel opened his eyes long enough to nod at him, and the doctor and her victim finally left the room. I sat down in the chair that O'Neill's guardian had vacated and took the now lonely hand in my own.

The brown eyes opened and searched mine. "Carter, what happened?" He asked hoarsely. "He won't talk to me."

"Sir," I began. "You and Daniel were caught in a cave in. A boulder hit you and knocked you down. You were caught under it for a while until an aftershock loosened it and we were able to get you free and then..."

"After shock?"

"O'Neill, there was an earthquake. It caused the cave wall to collapse on you and Danieljackson."

Realization hit all of us at the same time. It had finally occurred to us what was wrong with our friend and teammate. I had been the one with him in the Keepers 'Museum', the one to see exactly what had happened to Daniel's parents. How, by default, his home, his security and his life had been so terribly altered on that fateful day in 1973 when a large Egyptian cover stone fell from it's insecure mooring and crushed the life out of Melbourne and Claire Jackson. But we had all been there in the end, and we had all seen the terrible results of the accident. There was certainly no wonder at his reaction, watching history repeat itself again in front of his very eyes to the one man who had come to mean family and safety to Daniel. If it weren't so horrible, it would be ludicrous. That's when I realized that we'd almost lost two team members that day.

Colonel O'Neill closed his eyes and sighed. Then he spoke quietly. "When we brought Daniel back the first time, I had to do the security background check on him so he could stay with the program. I found out that Daniel didn't speak for almost a year after the accident and that it had cost him at least one foster home. They brought him back after a month or so, saying they didn't want a 'special needs' child."

"Special needs child?" Teal'c looked at us curiously. "I do not understand."

"That means that they thought he was retarded or something." I answered not a little ashamed for the stupidity of that long ago family.

Our alien friend looked puzzled. "So he was rejected for something that was not his fault, and he could not have prevented." The warrior only shook his head. "I do not understand."

The Colonel met his eyes sadly. "I don't either. But now, at least we've figured it out, and I can do something." I squeezed his hand and he smiled a sad smile at me.

Shortly after that, Janet returned our friend to us and pronounced his condition satisfactory if not fit for duty yet. I gave him his chair back and we three left Colonel O'Neill and Daniel alone. When I left, I pulled the curtains around the cubical to give them as much privacy as possible. As the last opening was covered, I saw the Colonel speak softly to our young friend and pull him onto the bed with him and into his arms. Daniel carefully buried his face into O'Neill's good shoulder, and began to shake quietly with inaudible sobs.

As Janet, Teal'c, and I left the room, my teammate looked down at me. "I believe he will be all right."

I nodded, saying a little prayer to myself for the two men behind the hospital curtain. "Yes, I think you're right, with a little down time."

The end