Characters: Jack O’Neill, Sam Carter, Daniel Jackson, Teal’c
Part: 8

ESRB Rating: Teen - Mild Language, Violence
Themes: AU/Stranded, Teamy Goodness, Violent Imagery

Prompt: 025 Strangers
Season: 2-esque

Written: January 06
Revamped: August 06

Bessie the Wannabe Cow Thing didn’t actually have much to say, funny enough. SG-1 popped over her fence and approached all in relative ease.

“It’s used to having people around it then,” had been Daniel’s conclusion, his hand running over the shaggy beast’s flank.

Jack slapped his hand away, scowling. “I know I’ve told you about touching things before.”

“Yes, and I don’t see any ‘big red buttons’ anywhere on her.” Sarcastic air quotes hung in the air between them.

“It could have… it could have intergalactic mad cow disease.”

Daniel held his tongue between pressed lips and just Looked at Jack. Jack scowled again and moved on. Fine. Pet the shaggy cow dog thing, see if he cared.

Teal’c held his staff weapon aloft, pointing down the fence line when Jack joined him. “I believe I see a road in this direction.” The blades of grass were ankle to knee high in places and were already swaying energetically in the building wind. Jack pulled his cap down again as he acknowledged the man.

“Alright, kids. Let’s head this way, but keep an eye out. Let’s not… pet anything we don’t have to, okay?”

It was a road and it did lead to a little collection of buildings one would associate with people who kept cow-dogs. Like everything else here, the place really wanted to be something but fell just short of the mark. In particular, this place seemed to want to be a village without actually making it.

O’Neill pulled his sunglasses off, squinting into the paling afternoon. “Daniel?”

“They’re probably subsistence farmers. Small group of families, farming together, pooling resources. That kind of thing…”

“Okay. But where are they?” There were maybe six structures in total: two very big and distinct houses, a barn, a windmill, and then a handful of sheds. The whole layout was designed around a central courtyard with a well in the middle. But not a single person to be seen for it all.

In fact, the place had seen some better days. Benches seemed to be knocked over and buckets dumped over where they might have been dropped. The chicken coup for the almost-chickens seemed to be damaged, or at least left open some how and the almost-chickens were wandering aimlessly behind it.

“O’Neill.” Jack saw it half a second after Teal’c did.

“Yeah,” he squinted, but it had nothing to do with the light this time. The front door of the smaller of the two homes had rattled closed in the wind. When it hit against its frame, the very distinct bloom of a staff blast was clear as day.

“Daniel, you’re with me. Carter, Teal’c.” He motioned they should take the left side, he’d head up the right. Everyone had their weapon of choice ready.

Everything seemed quiet, almost peaceful what with the gentle squeak of the windmill just behind and the steady cluck-cluck-cluck of the not-chickens. But a staff blast was a staff blast and they were only six days behind an entire Stargate exploding.

Motioning with his hands, the Colonel laid his silent plan out and waited until he got acknowledgments from everyone before giving Teal’c the go-ahead. The Jaffa burst up the steps and into the house, Carter behind him. Daniel held just inside while Jack covered the door itself, keeping it open as both a means of escape as well as preventing anyone else inside from trying to use it similarly.

Weapons up and muscles strung like piano wire, the long table gave them little resistance. The spinning wheel gave it up without a fight. A rocking chair was taken so by surprise it sat perfectly still. But there were stairs, so Jack made the two finger ‘go go’ motion to Carter for her to keep in that direction. She went up. Teal’c covered her.

They came back down. “Clear, sir.” Jack’s chin flicked so Sam laid it all out for him. “Single room, several beds, but not much else. And no people.” Her face scrunched momentarily in puzzled confusion.

Daniel was already frowning with interest at his new surroundings. For, oh, the one billionth time Jack marveled at what a terrible, terrible wing man Daniel Jackson could be. Sacrifice it all to save entire planets by blowing himself up on a space ship? Sure, no problem! Ask him to watch your back for three seconds while you storm the castle? ‘Oooh, shiny.’

Which is why Jack more often then naught kept Daniel with him then Sam or Teal’c. Someone had to watch SG-1’s stray kitten, and as commanding officer, Jack figured that fell to him.

“It looks like they had to leave in a hurry. Or… were told to leave in a hurry.” Daniel’s mouth was pursed full as he absently picked up an abandoned sewing project.

“Indeed.” Teal’c was inspecting the long cold pot still balanced over the long cold fireplace.

“Right.” O’Neill had little time for sewing or pot lucks; he had to secure the area. “Let’s check the other place.”

The second house was in significantly better shape. Whether the people had already been gone when whatever happened happened, or they were all congregating over at the first, smaller house - who knew. But this door’s latch was still in tact, and work wasn’t hastily dumped on any surfaces. But it was just as empty as anything else they’d seen so far.

The sheds held various tools and stored food stuffs, and all of them rested on foundations a good two or three feet up. They hadn’t approached the barn yet.

Knuckling his glasses up his nose, Daniel ran a hand down the foundation work to the clay-based soil of the ground. “The design is primitive enough to really be indicative of anything pre-industrial, but if I had to guess — these people know a thing or two about flooding. Solid frame work, cured wood, raised foundations, no signs of basements…”

Sam’s chin lifted, eyebrows crunching together over her bright blue eyes. “The rains?” She thought back to the brief shower a few days back as well as the approaching storm.

Jack wanted to throw his hat into the mix. “Maybe something that happens a lot?” There. He felt smart too, now.

“How long do we have before that storm gets here?”

Sam looked over her shoulder. It wasn’t just a silvery line off in the distance anymore. It was very much the leading edge of a storm that was making good on its word to mean business. Already the wind that had just stirred her hair when they got to the field was pushing her blonde curls against the nape of her neck. Her lips pressed together as she made the calculation for Daniel.

“Maybe six hours? Eight? Sometime tonight for sure.”

Turning his face, Daniel scratched at the back of his neck as he sighed. “Well. We could stay here. I’d guess the buildings would easily hold. It’s just…”

“Where are the people.” Teal’c lifted his own chin, feet spread in a parade rest as he gave another scrutinizing glare around the tiny enclave.

Nodding wearily, Daniel sighed. “Exactly.”

They looked at the barn.

As a whole they were trying to be delicate about it, but the smell pushing off from the largest of the buildings wasn’t just the usual ‘farm funk’ of livestock or hay. It was bad. Real bad. Bad on multiple levels.

“Alright. Teal’c, you and me in the front; Daniel, you and Carter around back. Don’t pay attention to anything you might hear. Unless, you know. It sounds like we need you.”

Daniel made to protest, hands sketching up into the air. He knew when he was being ‘protected’. “Ja-ack…”

“Not now.” This wasn’t ‘Jack’, this was Colonel O’Neill and he’d done enough special operations to have a pretty good idea what they were about to walk in on. Sam tugged on Daniel’s arm, but Daniel was trying to put up a fight.

She didn’t like being coddled or shielded anymore then Daniel did, but this wasn’t their decision to make. It was the Colonel’s and if he wanted to carry that burden alone, there was literally nothing Sam or Daniel could do to stop him. That was simply the beast that was chain of command. Ironically, the best thing they could do for Colonel O’Neill - for their friend - was to do as he was telling them to. Make it as simple a transition as possible.

Jack stood, eyes hard and expression harder, waiting for them to listen and follow through. “Captain?”

“C’mon,” Carter murmured, urging Daniel to follow. He did, but with angry reluctance. She gave Jack a heavy look over her shoulder, nodding once before stearing Daniel behind the barn.

They’d been corralled into here. The ‘examples’ laid dead where they’d been shot: up front near the barn’s doublewide doors. Two were hung by their wrists from the rafters and had probably starved to death. But the vast majority of the people - not that there was many of them - were crowded into the corners. Most shot in the backs. While running, no doubt. Men, women, children.

“These people have been dead for many days.”

“Yeah, I couldn’t help but… notice.” Jack’s frown was scattered around his face, trying to work itself in too many directions at once. “We can’t leave them here. Like this. Not with the rain.” His voice was clipped with efficiency.

Teal’c seemed to consider this, his head angling in thought. “We do not know the burial rights of these people.”

“No, we don’t. But with as much rain’s coming in… We can’t leave them here. Like this.” Maybe if he repeated himself, with emphasis, Teal’c wouldn’t make him have to explain the whys in detail.

Jack didn’t. Carter was every inch a soldier, born of the blood and cut from the cloth — but Teal’c was a warrior. Like Jack. And warrior’s were practical. Experimentally Teal’c raised his zat and fired a tripple-blast at the closest of the dangling men. He disintegrated.

They took care of the barn in silence.

:: TBC ::

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