authors notes: WOW! It's been a long, long time since I've updated. I've always wanted to finish this story, and apparently being sick in bed for the whole first week of the year gave me the perfect opportunity to overcome my writer's block.

I've made changes to the existing chapters (minor, but important) and added a couple new ones. I have more chapters in the works, and they're WAY better than my older version of this story. : ) And hey, its a new year - why not try again.

Thank you SO MUCH to my previous reviewers.

And of course, as for SGI - I don't own them, and I don't make a profit.

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"JACK"

To Daniel, this just wasn't a good day to die. Not a good day, and not a good fashion.

Damn he was freezing. Really cold. He hated the cold more than anything. He hated the way it sapped every ounce of his strength. He hated the way it clouded his mind. At the moment he especially hated the way it made his arms and legs move like lead – because at present, he really needed to be more mobile.

But he wasn't all that mobile, numbed by the cold water he was in. And because of that, he kept slipping under the surface. Only to come up with more and more difficulty, spluttering for breath.

"JACK!" He shouted again. He could really only hear a few things. He could hear the echo of his voice in the not-so-large chamber. He could hear his ragged breath in his ears and the thudding of his heart pounding each time he slipped beneath the surface. He could hear the rush of the rising water. He actually thought it was amazing it rose so quickly considering the size of the space he was in.

But he didn't hear a response.

And that troubled him.

He could only tread water for so long before exhaustion started to claim him.

And no matter how much stamina he had, it wouldn't do him any good if the water continued its rise and claimed the last of the airspace there was.

And it was happening quickly. Too quickly, in fact.

"JA…" Daniel spluttered again, slipping under as he tried again to call for help.

When he came back to the surface, he knew it would be for the last time.

In retrospect, perhaps coming to this planet hadn't been such a great idea after all. But you know what they say about hindsight.

He barely had time to catch a breath, never mind call out again.

"I'm sorry Jack," Daniel thought as he slipped beneath the cold water.