Part Two: A Tricky Kind of Problem
As Jack approached the General's office, he caught a glimpse through
the etched window of two persons and Hammond himself, sitting around
his desk. They were talking animatedly but in a friendly fashion. Jack
allowed himself to appear relaxed, but inside he was still trying to
determine what danger might exist behind this unexpected recall. He
tapped on the panel with his knuckles, waiting for the General's bassy
invitation of 'Come!' before opening the door.
Inside, Jack was mildly alarmed to find Jacob Carter. He braced himself
for whatever bomb the Tok'ra were about to drop on him and his command.
Visits from Jacob and his symbiote Selmak were almost never purely
social, and the person now standing next to Jacob was not his daughter
Sam. The individual was as tall as Jack, lean but fit, and put off the
distinct aire of a ready, capable warrior. He held himself calmly with
his hands behind his back, as if at parade rest. Jack assessed him
automatically, tiny caution flags popping up in his mind.
"Colonel O'Neill, thank you for coming back down." General Hammond met
Jack's gaze with the slightest of nods. "We tried to catch you before
you left level 16."
"You did, sir. Marlin Perkin's assistant couldn't have set a better
trap." Jack gave his CO a lazy salute. He turned to Jacob and after a
moment of hesitation, extended a handshake. "Jacob. It's good to see
you.... maybe..." He let the sentence end with a suggestion of a
question mark.
"Jack." Jacob smiled at him, his eyes conveying his understanding at
the tension in Jack's handshake. "No imminent crisis. You can relax and
disarm."
Jack released a limited smile and let his hands fall to his sides.
Hammond's nod indicated that all was well, but that the situation was
still one for caution. The strange Tok'ra was looking curiously at
Jack, his eyes out of character with the rest of his body. There was
something almost shy about him, which contradicted Jacks initial
assessment of this man.
"What's going on, Generals?" Jack asked, ignoring the chair beside him
as he leaned against the wall in a parody of laconic insolence. "Those
fish aren't going to catch themselves, you know."
"Jack, I know you are off-duty and I apologize for delaying you like
this," said Hammond, further disarming Jack with the use of his first
name, "but Jacob's come rather unexpectedly, and he's got a tricky kind
of problem."
Jack turned to Jacob, his eyebrows lifting in a Teal'c-like expression. "Unexpectedly...?"
"I'm not on an official mission, Jack. Call this a social call. First, I
want to deliver a message, Jack. Charlie Reetou asked me to say hello."
"How's he doing?" Jack asked, trying to ignore the catch in his chest
as he thought about the fragile child he had turned over to the Tok'ra
to become a host.
"He is well. Growing stronger everyday. He hopes you will still come and visit him."
An uncomfortable icy silence occurred then. Jack could tell that Jacob
regretted the ending of the Earth -Tok'ra alliance, and knew that the
man and his symbiote were still working to repair the breech between
the two races. Jack felt a deep ambivalence toward the subject. No
relations with the Tok'ra meant not having to give any poor sick people
an impossibly difficult choice between death and sharing their body
with a symbiotic parasite. But then again, Jack had to admit to himself
that he did miss Jacob and he knew Sam was torn up about the whole
affair. And he had not yet been able to go and visit Charlie Reetou as
he had promised.
Jack sighed and said, "I'd like to do that, Jacob, but I don't know how that will happen unless he can come here."
"With the General's permission, that may happen soon. Not for a while
though. The boy has serious healing to endure, and gate-travel isn't
the best therapy for him. I'll be happy to give him a message, though.
I know he would like to hear from you."
Jack nodded. "That would be nice, Jacob. Thank you." He cocked his head
at the person that neither general had made any effort to introduce.
"Who's your tall, silent friend?" he said bluntly.
Jacob pivoted so that Jack and the man could see each other clearly.
"This is my 'tricky problem', as George so delicately puts it.
"Colonel Jack O'Neill, meet Rhoark, Host to Calliope of Thebes. They have a unique problem."
Jack looked the man up and down again. Every inch of him conveyed to
the AF colonel capability, preparedness, and alertness; a soldier
waiting for orders. Only the eyes didn't fit. Still strangely
vulnerable, they returned Jack's examination with a scrutiny that made
his skin tingle.
"Hiya, Rork." The man nodded slowly in acknowledgment. Jack tipped his head and asked, "First time to Earth?"
The Tok'ra's eyes darted toward Jacob, who offered him an encouraging
smile. "You can trust Jack, Calliope," Selmak said in the throaty
inflection with which the symbiote spoke through the host. "He can help
you."
"Help you with what.... exactly?" Jack asked soberly.
The Tok'ra man looked the colonel in the eye, the reedy voice of his
symbiote speaking softly, "I need you to help me find a new host,
Colonel Jack."
Jack paused, his mind reeling a little with the outrageousness of the whole situation. "You want me... to what?