The Other Side of Halloween by Lady FoxFire

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Author's Chapter Notes:

I should tell you that this is chapter 2 out of 3. Yes it’s a short story.

In the two hours that had passed since Jack’s collapse in Daniel’s office and his being taken to the infirmary, his friends and co-workers had gathered only to be barred from the infirmary.

During the wait Teal’c had settled into kel’no’reem while Carter questioned Daniel about what happened to Jack.

“No! I told you there was no flash of light, no sound… no nothing,” Daniel ran his hand through his hair in frustration; frustration because Carter kept asking him the same questions over and over again but in different way, frustration from what was wrong with Jack and not knowing how he was doing. “Jack was being his usual self. He was trying to convince me to come to his house for Halloween, to watch horror movies. I told him I couldn’t. I took some of my artifacts that he’d decided to juggle away and told him to ask Teal’c instead. The next thing I knew he was lying on the floor, his eyes open. When I checked him over everything seemed to be ok except as Jack would say, the porch lights were on but no one was home.”

“What artifacts was O’Neill handling before his collapse?” Teal’c asked having finished his kel’no’reem.

“Huh?” Daniel said in surprise before recovering. “They were some figurines of Egyptian gods that I found in a market in Cairo. I haven’t been able to discover where they came from but I know they’re not the source of whatever happened to Jack. He plays with them practically every time he comes into my office.”

“We can’t ignore the possibility that might have something to do with the Colonel’s condition,” Carter stated her brow furrowed as she mentally reviewed what they knew. “I’ll need to collect the artifacts for testing.”

Before Daniel had the chance to reply General Hammond entered the waiting room. “Is there any word on Colonel O’Neill’s condition,” he asked.

“No, sir,” Carter replied with a shake of her head. “We were trying to see if we could figure out what triggered it in the first place while we were waiting for Dr Frasier to let us what is wrong with the Colonel and how long it will be before he’s back to normal. It’s possible that the Colonel’s condition is related to some artifacts in Dr. Jackson’s office that the Colonel had been handling before his collapse”

Daniel shook his head. “And as I told Sam, Jack plays with those artifacts all the time. If they were the source of Jack’s condition then why hasn’t it happened before or happened to me or someone else.”

“While those artifacts have not previously shown the ability to do this, it would be foolish of us to ignore the possibility that O’Neil might have accidentally triggered something within one of them,” Teal’c said. “Did not one of your world’s greatest detectives not say ‘when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth’?”

The other members of SG-1 and General Hammond looked at Teal’c in surprise.

“I didn’t know you read any of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Teal’c,” Daniel said.

“I have not yet read any of the books, I only know of Mr. Holmes from the BBC America show that O’Neill showed me several episodes of,” Teal’c replied.

“You haven’t read them!” Carter sputtered. “How... how could you not have read them!”

Teal’c raised a single eyebrow at Carter’s comment. “I am currently reading the works of Jules Verne.”

“Journey to the Center of the Earth was always one of my favorites,” Hammond commented.

“I too found the book most enjoyable,” Teal’c stated.

The door that led to the infirmary opened and Dr. Frasier entered; holding her clipboard to her chest. Everyone’s attention turn to the red haired doctor as all conversations abruptly ended.

Dr. Frasier looked at all the faces that were staring at her, then down at her clipboard. A weary sigh escaped her lips.

“Dr. Frasier?” General Hammond spoke up since the doctor hadn’t said anything yet.

Frasier look up at the General and then at everyone else. “As you know Colonel O’Neill was brought in non-responsive, but his respiration and pulse rate were normal. None of our tests indicate that he’s had a heart attack or stroke. The preliminary report on the Colonel’s blood work doesn’t show any indication of a virus or bacteria. His white count is normal. All the indications are that Colonel O’Neill is completely healthy.”

“But there is something,” General Hammond said. “Something you have told us yet.”

The doctor nodded her head. “The EEG test showed that the Colonel had no higher brain functions,” she told them.

“Isn’t that typical with coma patients,” Carter asked.

“It varies with coma patients. It really comes down to what cause the person to fall into a coma and how seriously injured the person is,” Frasier replied. “My concern that is that the Colonel is showing signs of being in a very deep coma but I can’t find any physical reason for it.”

“But Jack will wake up, right?” Daniel’s voice betrayed his concern. “I mean things like this have to happen every day.”

“If I knew what happened to the Colonel I would be better able to answer that,” Frasier replied. “Right now all we can do is wait.”

~*~

It was nearly 2 in the morning as the nurse made her rounds in the base infirmary; with the only noise coming from the machines monitoring their patients and the sound of footsteps as she moved from sleeping patient to patient.

Her eyes were on her clipboard as she read over the information; her steps were sure as she walked around the room with the confidence of knowing where everything was at in the room.

As she neared the bed on which Colonel O’Neill was ‘resting’ on she glanced away from the clipboard and came to a complete stop.

Sitting on the edge of the bed his legs hanging over the side was a wide awake Colonel O’Neill, who was groggily running a hand through his hair.

“Colonel O’Neil,” she called from where she stood a short distance away, knowing what could happen to someone who startled someone as well trained as the Colonel was. “Colonel?”

Colonel O’Neill looked over at her, a confused look on his face. “Yeah. Hi,” he said. “Ummm… what happened? Why am I here?”

“You collapsed, sir,” she told him as she walked over to press the emergency call button located near each bed. Setting her clipboard down on the bed, she took hold of the Colonel’s wrist in order to record his pulse rate.

“Collapsed?” Jack’s brow furrowed as he watched her jot down his pulse rate on her clipboard.

“Yes, sir,” she pulled out her blood pressure cuff and put it on his arm. “You’ve been unconscious for almost 8 hours.”

Before the Colonel could ask any more questions, Dr. Frasier walked into the infirmary. Her eyes widened as she spied the Colonel sitting up in bed, talking to one of her nurses. Her hand immediately grasped her pen light as she walked over to the bed.

“How are you feeling, Colonel?” she pointed the light into his eyes.

“Well I was feeling alright until you appeared with the penlight of doom,” Jack said.

Dr. Frasier lowered the penlight from where it shone in the Colonel’s eyes and gave him a look that would cause many battle hardened Marines to quake in their boots.

She then turned to the nurse. “I want a full check done on the good Colonel. Complete blood work.”

“Yes, ma’am. Will that include a prostate exam, ma’am,” The nurse asked in an innocent tone of voice as her eyes betrayed the mirth she was feeling.

“Yes. Yes, I believe it will,” Frasier replied with a grin on her face.

“Me and my big mouth,” Jack moaned.

~*~

In the morning, General Hammond walked to the infirmary upon hearing that the Colonel had awakened from whatever had happened to him. He found his second in command lying back on his bed, looking a little pale.

“Save me,” Jack begged as he spied his commander. “Please save me.”

“Jack,” Hammond’s voice showed his concern as he walked over to his friend.

Jack grabbed hold of Hammond’s arm when he was close enough. “You have to help me before she comes back.”

“Who comes back,” Hammond asked.

“Janet. I know I’ve said it before but it’s true. It’s really true. She’s a sadist!” Jack explained.

Hammond sighed warily. “Colonel,” he said in a disapproving tone. “I’m sure that the doctor is not that bad.”

Jack let out a little laugh that was tinged with a trace of hysteria. “12 vials of blood. MRI and CAT scans. Full physical.” Jack shivered. “Prostate exam. And she’s planning on doing more. Please, sir, you have to get me out of here.”

“Colonel,” Hammond said once again, in the same disapproving tone, “I’m sure that the good doctor is only doing what she has to figure out what caused you to collapse.”

Jack shook his head no. “No. No. She wants revenge against all my little cracks about the penlight of doom and her being a Napoleonic power monger

Hammond shook his head. “I’m sure the good doctor is above getting petty revenge for such harmless teasing.”

“You’re wrong,” Jack laid back into this bed, accepting his fate. “I probably should update my will since she’ll be the end of me.”

“I doubt that Colonel,” Dr Frasier walked over to his bed. “I’m sure I’ll be treating you for many years to come.”

Jack whimpered softly to which General Hammond gave the doctor a look that told her enough was enough. Janet nodded her head slightly to indicate that the message had been received.

Janet looked down at her clipboard before starting to report her findings. “So far we’ve not been able to find a reason for why he collapsed and slipped into a coma nor can we find a reason why he suddenly regained consciousness.”

Hammond nodded his head. “So we’re left with a mystery unless you know something Colonel?”

Jack shook his head. “No, sir, unless you believe in magic, vampires and demons.”

Dr Frasier and Hammond looked at the Colonel questioningly.

Jack sighed. “I dreamt of … I think I dreamt that I was in the body of a teenager in who was in a soldier’s uniform. And all around him were vampires, demons, princesses, pirates, superheroes… the list goes on. It was like all the costumes had come alive. As in horror movie came alive…but without the well-endowed blond who always runs toward the danger instead of away. But I did have a girl who seemed to be an escapee from one of those bad romance novels you see some women reading. Kept fainting at the drop of a hat,” he said. “Definitely a B rated movie.”

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The Other Side of Halloween by Lady FoxFire [Reviews - 4] Chapter or Story Table of Contents - Text Size + Author's Chapter Notes: I should tell you that this is chapter 2 out of 3. Yes it’s a short story. In the two hours that had passed since Jack’s collapse in Daniel’s office and his being taken to the infirmary, his friends and co-workers had gathered only to be barred from the infirmary. During the wait Teal’c had settled into kel’no’reem while Carter questioned Daniel about what happened to Jack. “No! I told you there was no flash of light, no sound… no nothing,” Daniel ran his hand through his hair in frustration; frustration because Carter kept asking him the same questions over and over again but in different way, frustration from what was wrong with Jack and not knowing how he was doing. “Jack was being his usual self. He was trying to convince me to come to his house for Halloween, to watch horror movies. I told him I couldn’t. I took some of my artifacts that he’d decided to juggle away and told him to ask Teal’c instead. The next thing I knew he was lying on the floor, his eyes open. When I checked him over everything seemed to be ok except as Jack would say, the porch lights were on but no one was home.” “What artifacts was O’Neill handling before his collapse?” Teal’c asked having finished his kel’no’reem. “Huh?” Daniel said in surprise before recovering. “They were some figurines of Egyptian gods that I found in a market in Cairo. I haven’t been able to discover where they came from but I know they’re not the source of whatever happened to Jack. He plays with them practically every time he comes into my office.” “We can’t ignore the possibility that might have something to do with the Colonel’s condition,” Carter stated her brow furrowed as she mentally reviewed what they knew. “I’ll need to collect the artifacts for testing.” Before Daniel had the chance to reply General Hammond entered the waiting room. “Is there any word on Colonel O’Neill’s condition,” he asked. “No, sir,” Carter replied with a shake of her head. “We were trying to see if we could figure out what triggered it in the first place while we were waiting for Dr Frasier to let us what is wrong with the Colonel and how long it will be before he’s back to normal. It’s possible that the Colonel’s condition is related to some artifacts in Dr. Jackson’s office that the Colonel had been handling before his collapse” Daniel shook his head. “And as I told Sam, Jack plays with those artifacts all the time. If they were the source of Jack’s condition then why hasn’t it happened before or happened to me or someone else.” “While those artifacts have not previously shown the ability to do this, it would be foolish of us to ignore the possibility that O’Neil might have accidentally triggered something within one of them,” Teal’c said. “Did not one of your world’s greatest detectives not say ‘when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth’?” The other members of SG-1 and General Hammond looked at Teal’c in surprise. “I didn’t know you read any of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Teal’c,” Daniel said. “I have not yet read any of the books, I only know of Mr. Holmes from the BBC America show that O’Neill showed me several episodes of,” Teal’c replied. “You haven’t read them!” Carter sputtered. “How... how could you not have read them!” Teal’c raised a single eyebrow at Carter’s comment. “I am currently reading the works of Jules Verne.” “Journey to the Center of the Earth was always one of my favorites,” Hammond commented. “I too found the book most enjoyable,” Teal’c stated. The door that led to the infirmary opened and Dr. Frasier entered; holding her clipboard to her chest. Everyone’s attention turn to the red haired doctor as all conversations abruptly ended. Dr. Frasier looked at all the faces that were staring at her, then down at her clipboard. A weary sigh escaped her lips. “Dr. Frasier?” General Hammond spoke up since the doctor hadn’t said anything yet. Frasier look up at the General and then at everyone else. “As you know Colonel O’Neill was brought in non-responsive, but his respiration and pulse rate were normal. None of our tests indicate that he’s had a heart attack or stroke. The preliminary report on the Colonel’s blood work doesn’t show any indication of a virus or bacteria. His white count is normal. All the indications are that Colonel O’Neill is completely healthy.” “But there is something,” General Hammond said. “Something you have told us yet.” The doctor nodded her head. “The EEG test showed that the Colonel had no higher brain functions,” she told them. “Isn’t that typical with coma patients,” Carter asked. “It varies with coma patients. It really comes down to what cause the person to fall into a coma and how seriously injured the person is,” Frasier replied. “My concern that is that the Colonel is showing signs of being in a very deep coma but I can’t find any physical reason for it.” “But Jack will wake up, right?” Daniel’s voice betrayed his concern. “I mean things like this have to happen every day.” “If I knew what happened to the Colonel I would be better able to answer that,” Frasier replied. “Right now all we can do is wait.” ~~ It was nearly 2 in the morning as the nurse made her rounds in the base infirmary; with the only noise coming from the machines monitoring their patients and the sound of footsteps as she moved from sleeping patient to patient. Her eyes were on her clipboard as she read over the information; her steps were sure as she walked around the room with the confidence of knowing where everything was at in the room. As she neared the bed on which Colonel O’Neill was ‘resting’ on she glanced away from the clipboard and came to a complete stop. Sitting on the edge of the bed his legs hanging over the side was a wide awake Colonel O’Neill, who was groggily running a hand through his hair. “Colonel O’Neil,” she called from where she stood a short distance away, knowing what could happen to someone who startled someone as well trained as the Colonel was. “Colonel?” Colonel O’Neill looked over at her, a confused look on his face. “Yeah. Hi,” he said. “Ummm… what happened? Why am I here?” “You collapsed, sir,” she told him as she walked over to press the emergency call button located near each bed. Setting her clipboard down on the bed, she took hold of the Colonel’s wrist in order to record his pulse rate. “Collapsed?” Jack’s brow furrowed as he watched her jot down his pulse rate on her clipboard. “Yes, sir,” she pulled out her blood pressure cuff and put it on his arm. “You’ve been unconscious for almost 8 hours.” Before the Colonel could ask any more questions, Dr. Frasier walked into the infirmary. Her eyes widened as she spied the Colonel sitting up in bed, talking to one of her nurses. Her hand immediately grasped her pen light as she walked over to the bed. “How are you feeling, Colonel?” she pointed the light into his eyes. “Well I was feeling alright until you appeared with the penlight of doom,” Jack said. Dr. Frasier lowered the penlight from where it shone in the Colonel’s eyes and gave him a look that would cause many battle hardened Marines to quake in their boots. She then turned to the nurse. “I want a full check done on the good Colonel. Complete blood work.” “Yes, ma’am. Will that include a prostate exam, ma’am,” The nurse asked in an innocent tone of voice as her eyes betrayed the mirth she was feeling. “Yes. Yes, I believe it will,” Frasier replied with a grin on her face. “Me and my big mouth,” Jack moaned. ~~ In the morning, General Hammond walked to the infirmary upon hearing that the Colonel had awakened from whatever had happened to him. He found his second in command lying back on his bed, looking a little pale. “Save me,” Jack begged as he spied his commander. “Please save me.” “Jack,” Hammond’s voice showed his concern as he walked over to his friend. Jack grabbed hold of Hammond’s arm when he was close enough. “You have to help me before she comes back.” “Who comes back,” Hammond asked. “Janet. I know I’ve said it before but it’s true. It’s really true. She’s a sadist!” Jack explained. Hammond sighed warily. “Colonel,” he said in a disapproving tone. “I’m sure that the doctor is not that bad.” Jack let out a little laugh that was tinged with a trace of hysteria. “12 vials of blood. MRI and CAT scans. Full physical.” Jack shivered. “Prostate exam. And she’s planning on doing more. Please, sir, you have to get me out of here.” “Colonel,” Hammond said once again, in the same disapproving tone, “I’m sure that the good doctor is only doing what she has to figure out what caused you to collapse.” Jack shook his head no. “No. No. She wants revenge against all my little cracks about the penlight of doom and her being a Napoleonic power monger Hammond shook his head. “I’m sure the good doctor is above getting petty revenge for such harmless teasing.” “You’re wrong,” Jack laid back into this bed, accepting his fate. “I probably should update my will since she’ll be the end of me.” “I doubt that Colonel,” Dr Frasier walked over to his bed. “I’m sure I’ll be treating you for many years to come.” Jack whimpered softly to which General Hammond gave the doctor a look that told her enough was enough. Janet nodded her head slightly to indicate that the message had been received. Janet looked down at her clipboard before starting to report her findings. “So far we’ve not been able to find a reason for why he collapsed and slipped into a coma nor can we find a reason why he suddenly regained consciousness.” Hammond nodded his head. “So we’re left with a mystery unless you know something Colonel?” Jack shook his head. “No, sir, unless you believe in magic, vampires and demons.” Dr Frasier and Hammond looked at the Colonel questioningly. Jack sighed. “I dreamt of … I think I dreamt that I was in the body of a teenager in who was in a soldier’s uniform. And all around him were vampires, demons, princesses, pirates, superheroes… the list goes on. It was like all the costumes had come alive. As in horror movie came alive…but without the well-endowed blond who always runs toward the danger instead of away. But I did have a girl who seemed to be an escapee from one of those bad romance novels you see some women reading. Kept fainting at the drop of a hat,” he said. “Definitely a B rated movie.” Previous Next You must login (register) to review.

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