Fading Memories
By Terri D. Thomas
Part 10
The early signs of the approaching dawn appeared through the trees. Daniel squinted and thought he could see the outline of the foothills on the eastern horizon. 'Good news,' he thought to himself. The daylight might afford him a better opportunity to find help for Teal'c.
He risked glancing over his shoulder. The large Jaffa was still following behind him. They had been walking through the woods, heading back to the clearing for the past hour. 'Correction,' Daniel frowned, 'Teal'c walks, I stumble.' Even with the head injury, Teal'c was sure-footed, showing no signs of tiring. Daniel, on the other hand, was having trouble putting one foot in front of the other and every missed step caused a flare of agony to shoot through his shoulder.
Daniel hadn't realized how far they had been from town. The silence between the two men made the distance seem even greater. Every time Daniel started a conversation in an attempt to jolt Teal'c's memory, the warrior would jab him in the back with the branch and demand his silence.
His friend didn't seem to have any recollection of Jack, Sam or him. Hammond and the SGC were strangers to the warrior. In fact, it appeared that everything that had happened to the man since leaving Chulak for Earth was missing. It was clear that the Jaffa believed he was still Apophis' First Prime, and he didn't seem too keen about hearing information which would change that belief.
'Well, Jackson, it's been at least fifteen minutes since he last poked you, how about giving it another try,' the little voice in the back of his mind suggested. Daniel already knew it was because of that little voice he was in this predicament in the first place, however, he still couldn't ignore the suggestion.
Taking a deep breath, he tried to start a dialog again. "This area looks a lot like Chulak, don't you think?"
"Silence," the booming voice commanded.
"Why?" Daniel asked. "What harm can it do for us to at least talk?"
"It is waste of energy. You are not strong. You should conserve the strength you have."
"I didn't know you cared," Daniel muttered.
"I do not. However, if I am to return home, I need you to have the stamina to take me to your world's Chaapa'ai."
Teal'c's words caused a shiver to run down Daniel's spine. Despite knowing that Teal'c's memory had been taken from him by the head injury, it was disconcerting to hear the man speak about Daniel's welfare in such a callous manner.
"I have the energy to talk," Daniel finally responded. "I have information that would be helpful to you."
"Information?"
"Yes."
"You are attempting to bargain for your life, slave?" Teal'c asked, eyes narrowed. "Do not bother. It would not matter. If you give me reason, I will kill you."
Daniel stopped walking and turned to the larger man. "No, Teal'c. I know you. You know me. We're friends. I know that you wouldn't do that to me."
"You are in error," Teal'c said, looking down at the doctor. "If you give me cause, I will take your life."
"After everything you've done in the past year to save my life, you'd just kill me? That doesn't seem very efficient, does it."
The suspicious brown eyes changed to those of confusion. "You speak lies."
"No, Teal'c. No I don't. I speak the truth. We're friends. You saved my life and the lives of others like me on Chulak. You saved us from being killed by Apophis' guard. It's just that you don't remember these things because you were injured. We call it amnesia."
Teal'c took a step backwards and straightened to his full height. "Save you? I would do no such thing."
"Yes. . .you would. You did. And do you know why? Because you hate what Apophis and the other Goa'uld are doing as much as we do. You joined us because you know that we can help free the Jaffa from enslavement."
Teal'c looked around the clearing as if suspicious that the conversation was being monitored. "I know nothing of what you speak." He raised the branch and pushed it into Daniel's injured right shoulder causing the man to gasp in pain and stumble away from his friend.
"Let that be a warning," the man growled. "We will not speak of this again. You will be silent."
"Hammond," the gruff voice answered.
"Sorry to wake you, Sir."
"Colonel?" the voice was laced with surprise. "I've been up for awhile. Had a report to finish before SG-4's mission at 0700. What are you doing up so early? I thought I put SG-1 on standdown for the next few days."
"Uh. . .well, Sir, we might have a problem."
"Might? What kind of problem, Colonel," Hammond asked impatiently.
"It appears that Jackson and Teal'c ran into some trouble last night."
"Trouble? What kind and how much?"
"They apparently were witnesses to a murder."
"A what?" the man exclaimed.
"A murder, Sir."
There was silence for a moment. Jack O'Neill knew that the General was contemplating which of the thousand questions that were shooting through his mind he should ask next. "Where are they?"
"Ah. . .well, Sir, that's the other part of the problem."
"Colonel O'Neill, I don't have time for your games. Now, spit it out."
"Yes, Sir," Jack responded obediently. "They're missing, Sir."
"Missing?!?" came the shout through the phone receiver, loud enough that O'Neill had to remove it from his ear.
"Yes Sir, missing. I've been looking for them all night and can't find them."
"Maybe you should start at the beginning."
"Okay. Daniel and Teal'c went to a bar. As they were leaving, they stumbled onto a murder. Teal'c went after the killers and never returned. Daniel was hurt and. . ."
O'Neill's narrative was cut off by a sigh. "Dr. Jackson was hurt?"
"Yes Sir."
"Again?"
"Yes Sir. At least that's what the bartender said. Head injury, I think."
"And you haven't seen either Teal'c or Daniel?"
"No. I've been looking. . .," Jack repeated.
"Are the police involved?"
"Well," Jack answered hesitantly. "Yes Sir. There's an APB out on Teal'c."
"My God, Colonel. Can this get any worse?"
"With Daniel and Teal'c involved? Probably," Jack responded sarcastically.
"Not funny, Colonel. Meet me at the SGC immediately and we'll go through this thing from start to finish."
"Sir, I'd like to keep looking for them."
"Do you have any idea where they are?"
Jack was silent for a moment. "No Sir. I've tried phoning Daniel at his home, but he's not answering. I think they are still in the area, but. . ."
"And the police haven't found them?"
"No."
"Then Colonel, we don't have time to be playing games with this matter, not when two members of one of my teams are missing and a murder is involved. Now, report to the SGC immediately."
Jack closed his eyes, regretting that he had ever called the General in the first place. "Yes Sir."
The Colonel hung up the phone and started the car. He looked into the night, desperately trying to identify any sign of his friends one last time. There was nothing. He turned on the Jeep's headlights and made a U-turn.
Daniel staggered down the hill into the clearing. He heard the hard steps of Teal'c directly behind him. Straight ahead was the street that he had taken earlier when he was tracking his friend. It was deserted except for a vehicle about a quarter of a mile away. Daniel debated trying to escape from Teal'c's custody and make a run for the car in an attempt to get help for both of them, but he knew that in his current state, Teal'c would be able to quickly over take him. Furthermore, there was concern about what the man would do to an innocent bystander in his amnesiac condition.
Before Daniel could think any further about his options, the vehicle's engine started and the headlights were turned on. It did a U-turn and drove away in the opposite direction.
The street was now completely devoid of activity, except for a lone Jaffa and his prisoner.
End Part 10
To Part 11