A/N: I'd like to thank everyone for their amazing reviews for the last chapter. It was exciting to hear from some people I hadn't heard from in a while. :0) My parents visited this week, so I didn't get a lot of time to write (just enough to eek out this one chapter), but since my mom is completely addicted to Jack, I did get to watch several episodes of our favorite show. They rejuvenated me and reminded me why I love these characters so much. And the banter! Oh, the banter! I'm still cracking up at the subtlety of the dialog and how extremely genius it is.

Warning! This is perhaps my most serious warning yet. Take heed to my words. Don't bother with going to see "Year One." I was actually grateful for the tornado warning that shut off the movie after 45 minutes and sent us scrambling to the shelter. Consider yourselves warned. :0)

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Do Not Go Gentle

Chapter Twenty-Three

“Your god?!” Iain asked, his face twisted with shock. “You have betrayed your people for a deceiver!”

Darvan’s lips drew back from his teeth. “He is Goa’uld,” he said. “His power is far greater than our own. I am lucky he found me in the mines as the betrayer Thor intruded upon his kingdom. I helped him and he in return bestowed upon me his mercy and trust.”

“But your sister,” Iain cried, “your family!”

“Have been spared if you did what I asked,” Darvan said. “Had you remained with them, you, too would have been spared from the town’s destruction.”

Iain shook his head. “Darvan, do not do this.”

“It is done,” Darvan said. “I serve my god.” He brought his other hand up to steady his aim at Kailan.

Kailan felt Galek stiffen beside him.

“And there is just one more task to be done before the king’s fleet arrives.”

“Fleet?” Kailan asked.

Darvan sneered and pulled the trigger.

Kailan heard the shot and flinched. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a blur of blue and heard a pained shout before Galek’s body tackled him to the ground. In a panic, Kailan pushed at Galek’s weight. He couldn’t see what was happening. “Galek! Where are you hurt?!”

“I am not,” Galek said into his ear. He lifted his weight off of Kailan and moved to the side.

Kailan sat up and saw Iain, his body on the ground… still. Kailan’s eyes widened. He crawled to him and rolled him onto his back.

Iain’s eyes opened with a grunt. Blood had begun to flower on his blue shirt from the wound in his chest.

“Why?” Kailan asked.

Galek pressed his hands to Iain’s wound, but Kailan knew it was no use. Already, blood bubbled from the man’s lips.

“He spoke… of the Goa’uld as if…” Iain sucked in a warbled gasp. “As if he were a god.”

Kailan nodded.

Iain reached up a hand and grabbed Kailan’s shoulder. “You must not let… the Goa’uld win. Darvan betrays… us all.”

Kailan nodded and looked up to find that the man at least partially responsible for the chaos around them was nowhere to be seen.

OoOoOoOoO

Jack felt sweat run down the middle of his back. He listened to the sound of his teammates’ breathing. He tried to shift his hip a bit, but there was nowhere to move. Teal’c’s large hulk pressed tight against his chest so he barely had room to breathe, much less find a comfortable position on his hip.

“I feel like a sardine that’s gone bad,” he grumbled.

“We’re not exactly comfortable either, Jack,” Daniel said. “It’s not like we had a lot of choices.”

“Don’t get testy, Daniel. I’m just saying.” Jack gave a sigh and closed his eyes. It didn’t make any difference. Their hiding place was just as dark with them open.

“Why did the lights go out?” he asked.

“I think the explosion broke the sarcophagus.” Daniel said.

“We can still get out though, right?”

“Yeah,” Daniel said quickly.

Relief flooded through Jack. “Good.”

“Well,” Daniel added, “I’m pretty sure we will, I mean it’s not exactly like I’ve ever tried it--”

“You are on my arm, Daniel Jackson,” Teal’c interrupted.

“Oh, sorry.”

Jack rolled his eyes. Maybe it would have been better just to take his chances with the guards outside. He wondered how long it would take them to search the room, realize they weren’t there, and leave— that was, if the king had kept the presence of the sarcophagus a secret as he suspected. However long it was, it couldn’t be too soon.

OoOoOoOoO

“Are you sure you don’t want to rest?”

Sam fought the urge to snap at Stone. She was growing tired of him asking her that. Instead, she just shook her head. “If I sit down, I won’t get back up,” she said. Unfortunately, there was a lot of truth to the statement. Her legs shook more than she let on and it took all her strength to force each step. The stairs had been the worst. Stone wasn’t the strongest man in the world, so she’d had to hold herself upright all the way down. Once at the bottom, she stood against the wall while he checked her wound.

“You’re bleeding through your shirt,” he told her.

“Popped some stitches when I fell in the closet.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Stone asked angrily.

She glared. “Because it took so damn long to get you to agree to leave, I didn’t want to press my luck!”

Stone pursed his lips. “I didn’t bring anything to stitch you up.”

“I’ll live,” she said. “Let’s just get moving.”

Twenty minutes later and she thought if they didn’t find what they were looking for soon, she’d fall down again.

“Have we been down this way yet?” Stone asked. He pointed down a long hallway that appeared to be a dead end.

Sam’s eyes narrowed. “There aren’t any rooms down that hall.”

Stone shook his head. “So?”

“…So why build a hallway that leads to nowhere?” Sam felt a shiver run down her spine and tried to ignore the fevered soreness that ran through her muscles with each movement.

“He likes mazes?”

Sam chuckled despite the situation. “Not likely. Let’s take a look.”

Together, they headed down the hallway. Sam’s eyes ran across the walls floor to ceiling as they went. Nothing seemed odd or out of place… aside from the fact that the hall existed.

“I don’t see anything.”

Sam pursed her lips. “Me either.” They stopped at the end of the hall. “Nowhere else to go,” she said. There had been far too many dead ends that turned out to be anything but in her day for her to ignore this one. She reached out her hand and ran her palm along the cool stone.

“What is it?” Stone asked at the curious frown that crossed Sam’s brow.

“This stone doesn’t feel like stone,” she said, then winced. She looked sheepishly at her partner. “No pun intended.”

His smile reached his eyes. “Har har,” he said.

Sam turned her attention back to the wall. It definitely wasn’t stone… and it was warm.

Stone reached out to touch it. His hand slid along one of the grooves between the bricks. His eyes widened. “You’re right,” he said.

Sam flinched as a pain shot from her stomach. She was suddenly very aware of all the time she’d spent on her feet. The wall in front of her appeared to expand and contract and the floor shifted underneath her. She shook her head. “I need to sit down,” she said.

Stone nodded and quickly moved her to the wall beside him. With his help, Sam slid down to the floor and stretched her legs out in front of her. She leaned her head back and sighed heavily while she tried to force the world to stop wavering.

He held out a canteen and she took it. Its weight was almost too heavy for Sam to lift. She put it to her lips and took a long pull. The water was warm, but it felt good going down. She held onto the canister but let it rest against her thigh as she raised her gaze back to the odd wall. Something was off, but what? “That wall isn’t supposed to be there,” she said. “It’s going to move somehow.”

“How do you know?”

She smiled. “I just know.” She gestured with the canteen as she brought it back up to her lips. “Feel around the edges.” She took a sip.

Stone rose from where he knelt beside her and stepped up to the wall. He started at the far side and began running his hands along the corners. “What am I looking for?”

Sam shrugged. “A button. An indention. A sign that says ‘press here…’” She let the canteen fall to the floor between her legs and pressed her fingers to her pounding temples.

“Right,” he said. His fingers searched the stone for what she described.

Sam laid her head back against the cool wall and closed her eyes. The next thing she knew, hands were shaking her awake. She blinked hard and forced Stone’s worried face into focus.

“There you are,” he said with a relieved sigh.

“I’m here,” she croaked, though she wished she were still asleep. The ache in her head had become a strong pounding and the fire in her stomach was magnified. Her shirt felt damp across her back and shoulders, but wet against her stomach.

“I couldn’t wake you,” he said. “I was beginning to worry.”

She nodded and accepted the water he offered. “We don’t have time for worry,” she said.

“I should go back and get the supplies to sew you back up,” he said. “You’re losing blood again.”

Sam shook her head. “Like I said…”

“We don’t have time,” Stone finished. “It’s a wonder you’ve survived this long with that death wish of yours.”

“Death wish?” She gave a weak smile. “No. We just won’t get through the gate until we figure out what this Goa’uld’s game is. And I’m betting,” she gestured with her head, “the answer’s behind that wall.”

“Speaking of that,” he said with a sudden smile, “I think I found something.”

Sam sat up straighter. “What?”

“There’s some writing carved into the edge on the right side,” he said. “It’s so small you’d miss it if you weren’t looking for it.”

She felt excitement brush past the pain and tried to push herself from the floor. “Show me.”

He helped her get to her feet and led her to the wall. The writing was tiny. Stone was right; you’d never see it if you weren’t looking for it. “I don’t have Daniel’s talent for language,” she said, “but I think this is the Goa’uld equivalent of a ‘press here to enter.’” She touched the symbol. They both stepped back quickly as a loud grinding sound filled the corridor. The far side of the wall scraped inward across the floor. The opening stood just wide enough for a person to pass through.

“How’d you…?”

Sam smiled. “I knew the magic word.”

“Open sesame,” he said.

“Something like that,” she said. “Let’s go.”

“Shouldn’t we wait and let Colonel O’Neill know where we’re going? I mean, going through this wall isn’t exactly the same as roaming the halls.”

Sam sighed and leaned heavily against the wall. Stone was right. She’d pushed it just coming down here. The Colonel would be angry if she went any farther without at least checking in. She reached up and pressed the button on her radio. “Colonel,” she said. “Come in.”

“Copy, Carter.” The Colonel’s voice was hushed and sounded a bit muffled. “Everything alright?”

“We’re back in the dungeon,” she said. She took his cue and lowered the volume of her voice.

“You’re what?”

“Something didn’t feel right, sir, so when the explosions went off outside I decided to check things out down here.”

“You decided?” There wasn’t any mistaking the anger in his voice. “You’re in no condition to be trekking around this castle.”

“We found a hidden passageway,” she said quickly. “We think it’s definitely worth checking out, Colonel.”

Silence, then. “You’re injured, Major. The passageway can wait. Get back to the closet and rest.”

“Jack,” Daniel’s voice came through the radio. It was hushed as well. “We probably shouldn’t be talking. They may hear you.”

“Sir?” Sam asked.

“No worries, Carter. We’re just hiding from the bad guys.” His voice grew firm. “Which is exactly what you should be doing. If they catch you you’re in no shape to fight.”

Sam pursed her lips in frustration. “Sir,” she said. “We’re here. I’m fine.” The last was a lie, she knew, but he needed to hear it. “We may not get another chance at this and it’s possible the answer to why we’re here may be yards away.”

Silence.

“Sir, I think it’s more than worth checking out and from the sound of things on your end, you’re in no position to get here.”

From the sigh on the other end, Sam knew she had won. “Fine, Major,” he said. “Check it out, but I want you to get back to safety the second Major Stone feels it has become too much for you.”

Sam met Stone’s eyes. “Yes, sir,” she said.

“I mean it, Major,” the Colonel said, “he’s the boss.”

She frowned. “Copy, sir.” She released the talk button on the radio and turned back to Stone.

“We should mark the wall somehow so they can find us,” Stone said.

Sam nodded. She reached her hand down to her wet shirt. Her palm came back red. She pressed it against the wall atop the symbols.

“That’s morbid,” he said.

“But effective,” she answered. “Let’s go.”

OoOoOoOoO

Reynolds exited the castle ready to fight. What he saw instead was a town in chaos and the soldiers at a loss as to why it was happening or how to stop it. It became instantly obvious that only the guards who remained within the castle walls had been privy to the knowledge of the king’s true agenda and identity.

Also obvious was the fact that the only part of the town that didn’t seem to be on fire was the castle itself. Instantly, he made a decision. “Get as many as you can into the castle!” he yelled to his men. He reached and tied his bandana over his mouth and nose to keep from inhaling debris.

Nearby guards responded to the authority in his voice and took up the mission as well. They began catching people as they ran by and herding them through the narrow opening at the entrance of the castle.

Since the guards’ goal was no longer to keep people out of the castle, Reynolds and his team ventured a bit farther than he would have originally allowed. Along the way, they guided people in the direction of safety until he decided they’d gone far enough.

On their way back another explosion took down a building beside them. When Reynolds pulled himself up off the ground he heard screaming coming from underneath the rubble. Without thought he jumped up, intent on freeing whoever was trapped inside.

Reynolds shoved hard against a heavy section of wall that lay atop the wreckage. Beside him a man in the blue uniform of the king’s infantry stepped in to help. His face twisted with the effort.

Around them it was a hot war zone. Explosions rocked the ground almost constantly, sending shrapnel blasting into the air. Reynolds had to duck to avoid being hit by the larger pieces.

“Move around to check the other side!” he called to his men, who followed his order immediately.

The guard beside him groaned as they hefted the downed wall piece. It wasn’t enough. Reynolds felt his arms shake and its weight began to slip from his hands.

Then it didn’t seem so heavy.

He looked up to see a few more men, their strong arms straining as they took on the bulk of the lifting. The wall section rose again and they were able to move it, finally, off and away. He stepped aside to let two of his men bend down to help the bloodied man they’d freed. Reynolds turned to face the newcomers warily. He’d recognized them the second he saw them.

“Have your people been successful within the castle?” Kailan didn’t waste any time.

Reynolds nodded. “They’re working on it,” he said. “I was sent out to clear a path for you to get inside.”

Kailan pursed his lips. “It appears we are not the only ones to move in that direction.”

“No. The attack is on the town, but the castle seems to be safe,” Reynolds said. “We couldn’t allow--”

“I understand,” Kailan interrupted.

“Once inside, where are we to go?” Galek asked. It was the first time Reynolds had heard the man speak.

“Colonel O’Neill, Teal’c and Daniel went to the upper floors to look for the king,” Reynolds answered. “And I just intercepted some radio chatter saying that Major Carter and a member of the medical team are searching down in the dungeon.”

Kailan’s eyes took on a look Reynolds wasn’t able to interpret. “Sam is alive?”

Reynolds nodded. “And doing what Major Carter does.” He met the confused looks of the two men and chuckled. “She can’t stand to stay out of the action even when she should.”

Again, he couldn’t read Kailan’s gaze. Still, the leader turned to his companion decisively. “I must go up to join O’Neill. You find Sam in the dungeon.”

Galek’s eyes narrowed noticeably, but he said nothing. Reynolds had a feeling he wasn’t happy with his assignment. Then he remembered. This was the man who had stabbed Carter. At that point, he made a decision. He watched the two men go and motioned to Sands.

“Follow the shorter one. Make sure his agenda is to help.”

“And if it isn’t?”

Reynolds met his soldier’s eyes. “Take him out.”

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Thanks for reading. Reviews are more than welcome. Random ponderings are also fun. They make life more interesting. :0) By the way, I completely recommend you go see "Up." So good. To quote my favorite character (loosely): "You are my master. I just met you and I love you. Squirrel!"