The colonel stared at Teal'c in disbelief. "Stop?....Now??"

"O'Neill, darkness falls, and I cannot track without light...I am sorry."

Carter reached out to lay her hand on the colonel's arm. "Teal'c's right. I know time is of the essence but if we lost the trail and had to backtrack....Besides, I think we could all use some rest." They had been humping over the hilly country for hours and were all at the point of exhaustion, even the seemingly tireless Jaffa.

"Captain Carter is correct, O'Neill."

Jack's face twisted resentfully. He knew they were right, but that didn't lessen the driving urge to find the scientist. "But, Daniel might....not have...time." he uttered lowly.

"Sir, we'll find him..." Carter tried to reassure him.

His dark eyes cut into her. "Dead or alive...wasn't that what you were going to say, Captain? Well I refuse to bring him back dead! You hear me?" O'Neill stared at her defiantly, daring her to deny his words. "I refuse!"

"Sir..."

His raised hand silenced her. "No Carter....don't." Turning, he moved away from them.

Sam exchanged looks with Teal'c who moved up beside SG-1's leader. "O'Neill, I too am concerned for DanielJackson, but this does not assist him."

Swallowing hard, Jack looked up into the Jaffa's somber face. "Yeah, your right....It isn't." Straightening he nodded to Carter. "We'll make camp here then and start out again at first light."

"Yes Colonel." She dropped her pack and moved to gather wood for a fire. While she knew no one was hungry, Sam also knew they needed a fire to ward off the night creatures. A guick glance at the colonel told her he wouldn't be sleeping this night.

Daniel drifted with no sense of time passing. He felt detached from his body, withdrawing to a place where the pain was absent, and everything was as it should be. As he struggled to open his eyes, some small part of him realized the creature's attack had moved him closer to the den opening. Stubbornly, weakly, he hitched his battered body over the hard rocks, moving slowly an inch at a time, not wanting to attract the creature's attention and because he hadn't the strength to do much more.

His body was numb with pain. Shock and blood loss were beginning to affect him as his ears buzzed and his head rang. Daniel felt as if he were under water, drowning, fighting to gain the surface and fresh air. If he could just make it to the opening.

It was foolish, he knew. Even if he did reach it, he didn't have the strength left to escape. As weak as he was, even one of the babies could catch him. He didn't have the strength to run, "Or even crawl away", his mind jibed sarcastically sounding remarkably like Jack.

Jack....was he and Sam and Teal'c looking for him? Had they come back? Maybe they had and not finding him, they'd left again. "No! Jack wouldn't do that...would he?" His pain racked mind sniped, "You fucked up Jackson...you went to far!" Daniel had damaged the only friendship that mattered in his miserable life. And Jack did matter!

For reasons beyond his understanding, Daniel craved the soldier's approval. He needed to know he was wanted and that someone cared enough to listen to him. It was important O'Neill trusted his judgment and believed in him. The hell of it was, Jack had until he'd opened his big mouth. Daniel knew better than to mention Charlie. If Jack spoke of him first that was okay, but Charlie was the one subject that was still a sore spot with him. To bring up his son courted O'Neill's wrath and invited disaster. Hell, Daniel had not only mentioned Charlie, he practically told Jack it was the older man's fault his son was dead!

"I'm sorry Jack," he whispered as he dragged himself inch by painful inch toward the opening as if somehow salvation waited for him there.