CHAPTER TWO
Lunchtime came and went before Daniel even realized it. Though he wasn't really hungry, he decided to go see if Sam wanted to grab a bite to eat. Despite his lingering anger, he was starting to get really tired again. Unfortunately, his coffee pot was empty, and he'd just used the last of the coffee he had in his office. He'd have to hunt down some more. Maybe Sam would have some.
"Hey, there," he greeted as he walked in the door of Sam's office. He glanced over at the coffee machine and was disappointed to see that the pot was as empty as his had been. So much for that. Oh, well. They had coffee down in the commissary. It wasn't nearly as good as the coffee he made, but it still had caffeine. "You ready for some lunch?"
"Sorry, I can't right now," Sam told him. "In fact, you caught me on the way out."
"So, what is it that you're working on?" Daniel asked as Sam got to her feet and headed for the door.
"It's a new jamming device. It jams the frequencies the Goa'uld use for communication and the remote control devices like the ring transporters. Right now, we're working on making it portable enough to. . . ." Sam's voice trailed off as Daniel gave a huge yawn. "At least pretend that it's interesting," she said, a little irritated.
"No, it was very interesting," Daniel insisted. "Please, go on."
Sam studied his face. "Are you tired?"
"Ya think? I had the weirdest dream last night."
Sam looked at him sharply. "You had a dream?"
"No, not one of those kinds of dreams," Daniel hastily assured her. "There is nothing prophetic about these. Just the opposite, in fact. They're about something that happened in the past, about Sarah, when I was working with her back in Chicago, before the Stargate Program. But it was kind of weird."
"How so?"
"Things were all mixed up," Daniel replied. "For one thing, I looked like I do now rather than the way I did back then."
"Well, no offense, Daniel, but it's not like you don't have some issues to work out regarding her."
"Oh, yeah. I can definitely say that."
"Maybe you should talk to someone."
Daniel smiled. "I thought I was."
Sam returned the smile.
They had just reached the elevator. The doors opened, revealing Jack within.
"Colonel," Sam greeted.
"Carter."
Daniel yawned again and pointed down the hall. "Coffee."
"Talk to you later, okay?" Sam said to him.
Daniel nodded and headed over to Bill Lee's office, where he got himself a cup of coffee and chatted with the man for a while. Feeling a little bit more alert, he returned to his office. He'd been there for only a short while when Jack came in, making Daniel wonder if he was going to get much of any work done today.
"Hey, I heard the news earlier," the colonel said.
"News? What news?"
"About how you went to the gym and made Teal'c look like a ninety-eight-pound weakling."
Daniel cursed the base grapevine under his breath.
"Would you like to explain how you did that?" Jack asked.
"I wasn't paying any attention to what I was doing. I didn't even notice how much weight was on the barbell."
"Not even when you added sixty more pounds?"
"No. My mind was on something else. The only thing I can figure out is that my abilities kicked in and . . . gave a helping hand. I'm certainly not that strong physically."
"Well, regardless, you've got the Marines in awe of you now," Jack told him. "The last I heard, they were arguing about who would win in a fight between you and Teal'c. Some figured that Teal'c's experience would win out, while others thought that your superior strength would give you the upper hand. Me personally, I think that, if you've found a way to use your abilities to increase your strength in a fight, Teal'c wouldn't stand a snowball's chance in hell. He may be a big son of a gun, but he weighs a whole lot less than a Stargate."
"Which is why I can never get into a workout with him or anyone else again. I can't take the chance that I'll hurt someone."
"Daniel, you said that you were distracted, that you weren't paying attention to what you were doing. I bet that, if you were focused on the workout, it wouldn't happen, not unless you wanted it to."
"Nevertheless, I don't think it's worth the risk," Daniel stated firmly.
"Well, as your C.O., I need to remind you that you're required to pass various fitness exams each year, including proficiency in hand-to-hand combat."
"No, I'm not, Jack, and you know it. I'm a civilian. I'm not required to pass any fitness exams except the medical ones performed by Janet. I went through those other exams because it made you happy and kept you off my back. And I learned how to fight because . . . because it was a way to deal with Sha're and everything else."
Jack sighed loudly. "Yeah, okay, so you don't have to take them. But I don't want you losing your edge, Daniel. You never know when you may be forced to get into a fight with someone. Now, I bet that Teal'c would be willing to work out with you despite this thing that happened."
"Jack—"
Jack's finger shot up. "Ah! That's my final word on the matter, Daniel."
The archeologist closed his mouth. Then he thought of something. "What about you?"
"What about me?"
"Would you be willing to work out with me considering what happened?"
"Uh . . . sure."
A faint smirk twisted the corners of Daniel's lips. "You don't sound all that certain, Jack."
Jack cleared his throat. "Sure I'm sure. Just say when, Daniel."
"Tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow. Say two o'clock?"
"Um . . . yeah, okay. Two it is."
"All right. See you then. And if you change your mind, let me know."
Jack glared at him. "I'm not going to change my mind, Daniel. You just prepare to get your ass kicked."
As Jack walked out of Daniel's office, the thought that ran through his mind was, 'I sure hope I've still got some Bengay in my locker.'
Daniel bolted upright in bed, breathing heavily. He'd just had yet another dream about Sarah. It was as if his subconscious mind was replaying his entire relationship with her from the beginning. But something was wrong. Little things were different from the way it had really been, more than just his and Sarah's appearances. The portrayal of Sarah was off. In these dreams she was way too coy, and he sure didn't remember the real Sarah fawning over him quite so much.
And then there was something else, something that Daniel couldn't quite pin down. That sixth sense of his was talking to him, telling him that there was something going on, but Daniel didn't know what it was.
To top it all off, when he woke up just now, he could have sworn that there was someone in the room.
Though Daniel still felt exhausted, he decided to get up and do some things around the house for a while, then attempt to get some more sleep later. He just hoped that he wouldn't have any more dreams.
If, a few months ago, anybody had told Jack that he was going to be nervous about a hand-to-hand combat workout with Daniel, he'd have called them nuts. But then, several months ago, Daniel hadn't lifted a barbell that would give Teal'c a hernia. Jack kept telling himself over and over again that the archeologist had not physically lifted that much weight, that his telekinetic abilities had done most of the work. He also kept telling himself that Daniel would not be using that ability in today's workout. In fact, that was the whole point of this exercise, to prove to Daniel that he didn't have to worry about accidentally using his abilities during a workout. But Jack was still nervous. He couldn't back out, though, for two reasons. Reason number one was his pride. Reason number two was that, if he did, it would show Daniel that he wasn't certain that the archeologist could maintain control, and that would do a number on Daniel's self-confidence. No, he had to go through with this. He just hoped that his own confidence in his friend's control would not prove to be misplaced.
Jack got to the gym about fifteen minutes before he was supposed to meet Daniel there. Teal'c was with him. There were a few people working out on the weights. Jack had decided that it would be best if nobody witnessed this workout just in case something went wrong. That was the reason for Teal'c being here. He would keep everyone out.
One by one, Jack asked the other men to leave. Though they were curious, they did so without question. The last man had just departed when Daniel came in. He looked around in surprise.
"Where is everybody?" he asked. "And why is Teal'c standing outside the door like a nightclub bouncer?"
"I figured that you might not want an audience for this," Jack explained.
"Oh." Daniel looked at Jack closely. "We don't have to do this, you know."
"I know."
Daniel gave a short nod. "So, um . . . are we going to do anything different?"
"Nope, same as always."
The two men got into position and began their workout. Three times Jack tried to get Daniel onto the mat, and three times the younger man dodged away from him. After the fourth try, Jack stopped.
"Daniel, you're running away."
Daniel cast his eyes to the floor. "I know. I'm just. . . ."
"Stop worrying, will you? It'll be fine. Now, come on. Let's do this right."
Daniel drew in a deep breath. "Okay." He assumed a combat-ready stance. Concentrate. He had to concentrate. As long as he stayed focused, paid attention, he would not lose control of his abilities.
That thought in mind, Daniel let everything else fade out of his awareness until there was nothing but him and Jack. This was not the first time that Daniel had focused his attention so utterly on something. He'd learned the trick many years ago and had used it more than once in his work, particularly when attempting to decipher some linguistic puzzle. Daniel knew that some athletes could do something similar, referring to it as being "in the zone," but this was the first time that he'd used the technique during a physical activity.
His mind focused entirely on Jack, Daniel waited for the man to make his move. It came an instant later. Three seconds after that, Jack was lying flat on his back after having been neatly flipped by Daniel. Surprised but unhurt, Jack held out his hand and let Daniel help him off the floor. Saying nothing, the men faced off again.
It was Daniel who attacked the second time. Before Jack even realized that he was vulnerable, Daniel had slipped under his guard and pulled him down to the mat, locking him into an unbreakable grip. Again, Jack said nothing as he rolled away and stood, though he knew that something was going on. Daniel had never taken him down two times in a row. Looking at Daniel's expression, he knew that the man was also aware that this was not normal.
The third time, Jack took the initiative first. He managed to get hold of Daniel and had him down on the mat. But, at the last second, before Jack could complete his move, Daniel somehow broke his hold, grasped his arm and flipped him over onto his stomach. Planting his knee in Jack's back and holding the older man's arm twisted up behind him, he wrapped his free hand around Jack's throat and applied just enough pressure to make Jack stop attempting to get free. Knowing that he was beat, Jack ceased struggling. Daniel instantly released him.
As Jack got up onto his knees, he looked at Daniel. There was an expression on the younger man's face that was part confusion, part fear.
"Daniel? What's going on?" Jack asked him.
"I, uh . . . I don't know."
"Well something is going on because you have never taken me down three times in the same workout, much less three times in a row."
"Don't you think I know that?" Daniel exclaimed. He got to his feet and walked over to where his towel was. Jack followed him.
"Daniel?" the colonel softly inquired.
"I don't know what it is, Jack," Daniel said quietly.
"Could it be that sixth sense thing?"
"Maybe. I guess. I just somehow knew what to do every time. It's like I was . . . 'reading' your body, sensing your weaknesses, how you were vulnerable. That last time, I knew that in the position you were in, your balance was off, and if I moved just so, I could get you off me. After that, I just used some techniques that you'd taught me to take you down."
Jack stared at him closely. "Anything else, Daniel? Because I gotta tell ya. If I didn't know better, I'd swear that you knew almost every move I was going to make before I ma. . . . Wait a minute. I don't know better, do I?" Daniel's silence answered him. "You were predicting what I was going to do before I did it, weren't you."
"Maybe a little, just . . . just a second before."
"Which would make it pretty darn near impossible for me or anyone else you were fighting to get the upper hand. You can't beat a guy who knows what you're going to do before you do it."
Daniel's head dropped. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry? What for? Daniel, this is fantastic. I'll never have to worry about you being able to handle yourself in a fight again."
Daniel shook his head. "I don't think it would be this way in a real fight. I was worried about accidentally using my telekinetic abilities, and I figured that if I was completely focused on you and the workout, it was less likely to happen. I zoned everything else out. I was so focused on you that I wasn't even aware of my surroundings. In a real fight, it wouldn't be that way. There would be distractions, other concerns."
Jack nodded. "Yes, you're right about that." He made a sudden decision. "I think I need to explain something to you, Daniel, probably something I should have told you a long time ago. Have you ever wondered why, after all these years of being trained by both me and Teal'c, you rarely ever managed to beat me?"
"Because you're better than I am."
"Yes and no. I have more experience than you, but the one thing that keeps you from being better at hand-to-hand is that you don't want to fight. You don't have the heart for it. You lack the . . . killer instinct."
Daniel stared at the towel gripped in his hands.
"You've always preferred the peaceful way out of situations, Daniel, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's saved our lives and the lives of others more than once. But your reluctance to fight hinders your effectiveness in hand-to-hand. Deep down, you really don't want to learn how to hurt and kill with your hands. That's contrary to who you are. And, until that changes, which, quite frankly, I hope never happens, you will continue to fight with less skill than what you would be capable of if you had a different attitude." Jack smiled a little. "Of course, that's not counting what you just did." He clapped Daniel on the back. "Come on. I don't think there's anything else we need to prove here today."
Entering the commissary, Sam saw Teal'c in line and decided to join him. And then she saw Daniel. He was sitting at one of the tables, his face hidden by his crossed arms, which were resting on the tabletop. Sam knew that Daniel was continuing to be plagued by his dreams of Sarah and wasn't getting much sleep because of it. When she saw him this morning as they both arrived at the mountain, he'd mentioned that, in his latest dream, Sarah had presented him with a tablet to translate.
Sam and Teal'c got their food and went over to the table. Sam sat down beside Daniel and gently rubbed his back.
"This makes no sense," he said, not lifting his head.
"Maybe you should eat something," Sam told him.
Daniel lifted his head and looked at her.
"Did I mention in the dream, the table was written in Ancient, and in the dream, I could read Ancient?"
"Well, that's not so odd considering you can also do that when you're awake."
Daniel stared at her, eyes narrowing. Though he uttered not a word aloud, Sam could almost hear him say, "That's not the point, Sam. The dream is supposed to be taking place in the past, when I couldn't read Ancient."
"Perhaps you are attempting to reveal something to yourself," Teal'c suggested, understanding the significance of the discrepancy in the dream.
Daniel looked at him. "Like?"
Sam realized what the Jaffa was saying. "Like something from when you were ascended."
"Such as you prior vision of Bra'tac and Rya'c in danger," Teal'c said.
"The tablet sounds like it might be similar to the one you found when you were on Abydos."
"That was to lead to the Lost City of the Ancients."
"But didn't," Daniel reminded them. "You think that, somehow, I know the location of the Lost City, and I just don't remember?"
"If you have the dream again, perhaps you should translate the tablet," Teal'c recommended.
Daniel looked at Teal'c and Sam. He nodded his head faintly, rolled his eyes upward, and dropped his head back onto his arms.
'Poor Daniel,' Sam thought. "Have you tried to put yourself into a deeper state of sleep with biofeedback?"
"No, I don't want to take the chance. Every time I've tried to do that, I ended up having a vision of some kind. I'd rather not tempt fate."
"Daniel, you can't keep on going like this. You need sleep."
The archeologist lifted his head again. "I know." He let out a sigh. "Okay, if it happens again tonight, I'll try biofeedback tomorrow."
Daniel dragged himself out of bed with a groan and stumbled to the bathroom. Another night of dreams. In this one, he had made a lot of progress with translating the tablet. It definitely had to do with the Lost City of the Ancients, which excited him greatly. The problem was that, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't complete the translation. His dream self had tried for hours, Sarah encouraging him patiently and faithfully. It was very frustrating.
Daniel took a very long, hot shower in an attempt to wake up. It helped only a little. Forty minutes later, after having consumed two cups of coffee and placing a third one in the cupholder of his car, Daniel pulled out of his driveway and headed for work.
Upon arriving at the base, Daniel went straight to his office, having picked up breakfast on the way. The day dragged on endlessly, mostly because he was so tired. Jack came into the office at one point and told him that he should go home and to bed, but the archeologist figured that, if he did, he'd probably just have more dreams. Instead, he planned on making himself so exhausted that he couldn't help but sleep deeply. He was intending to get in a strenuous workout at the gym tonight for that very purpose.
Daniel had promised Sam that he would try the biofeedback tonight. Between it and the exhaustion, he was sincerely hoping that his brain would finally decide to call it quits with the dreams.
Teal'c was in the gym when Daniel got there. There were also a few other guys there, every one of whom looked at the archeologist. Choosing to ignore them, Daniel started his workout, being very careful not to use his telekinetic abilities. He was actually pleased upon finding out that he really was no stronger physically than he had been before all this stuff started.
Teal'c was bench pressing when Daniel took a seat beside him and started doing some arm curls. After a moment, he began talking with the Jaffa about his dreams. This led to Teal'c doing an impersonation of Sigmund Freud, attempting to decipher the reason for the dreams, which resulted in the linguist feeling even more frustrated. After taking a shower, he went back to his office and worked for a couple of hours, then headed home.
It was way too late to eat, and Daniel wasn't hungry anyway, so he decided to go straight to bed. He was so tired that he thought for sure that he'd fall instantly into a deep sleep, but he'd thought the same thing yesterday. This time, he wasn't going to take the chance.
Though it had been a while since he used biofeedback, Daniel had no trouble quickly lowering his brainwave pattern down to a theta frequency. He then slowly lowered it further. At last he reached a low delta frequency. Instead of falling asleep, however, Daniel let himself float in a peaceful, trance-like state as the minutes ticked by, letting the balance of his mind and body be restored after all those days of little to no delta sleep.
Daniel did not know how long he was like that when he became aware of something. Even in this state of having no awareness of his surroundings, his sixth sense was telling him that he was no longer alone. Instinct took over.
Daniel's eyes snapped open, and, with a quick, fluid motion that would have made Jack proud, he rolled off the bed onto the floor and came up into a crouch. His eyes met those of the surprisingly familiar intruder.
"Well, good evening, Doctor Jackson," Osiris said with a smile. "What a shame that you had to wake up. I suppose this means that our time together is at an end."
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