!!!SPOILERS FOR STARGATE: UNIVERSE PROMO/SYNOPSIS!!! All speculative.
So, this idea entered into my head when I was watching the series finale of Battle Star Galactica (you will be missed - so say we all) and the premeire promo for Stargate: Universe came on. After my initial reaction (HOLY SHIT, ROBERT CARLYLE - OMG!), I quickly scrounged the internet for all news of SGU, and once I had my fill, I thought of how Jack would react to losing a base that he is in charge of; especially if Sam were some how involved.
This is my idea made manifest.

Title: Hard to Swallow
Author: Chozen Rogue
Rating: Teen; sexuality
Characters: Jack/Sam; established relationship
Summary: Jack is woken in the middle of the night by a phone call bearing bad news; Sam is there to pick up the pieces.
Spoilers: 2x16 The Fifth Race; Stargate: Universe (the new promo and also the synopsis – all speculative)
Disclaimer: Stargate: SG-1 belongs to MGM, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Films. I just took the characters out for a spin.

"For cryin' out loud, when?!"

Eyes opening, her lover's blurry form slowly came into focus as she registered the tone of his voice. It was weak with shock.

"Jack?" At her whispered question, he held up a hand to motion for her to wait as he listened to the muffled words coming from his cell's speaker.

Eyes now adjusted to the darkness of the bedroom, she could see his features silhouetted in the moonlight streaming through the blinds. His silver hair, gleaming in the bracketed light, was sticking up in all directions and was made worse by the hand he ran through it. Noticing the slight tremor in his hand, she immediately sat up and moved closer to him, giving comfort in the touch of her hand on his arm.

Watching his jaw tense, she heard him sigh heavily into the phone. "I'll be there in thirty. Tell them I want to know how the hell this could have happened and who the hell is responsible and I want it yesterday!" He flipped the phone closed, effectively ending the call and throwing them into a tense silence.

Suddenly, his body started to shake, muscles tensing under her hand. Terror coursed through her as she tried to get him to look at her. He resisted her touch at first until she applied more pressure and his eyes finally met hers. Reading the emotions behind his stare, her mind raced with images of what could possibly happen that could make him react like this, most of which settled on those that involving either Daniel or Teal'c dead.

"What happened?!"

Instead of answering the question, he was suddenly forcing her lips to open under his, not caring if their teeth clashed as his tongue demanded entrance. Jack's hand roughly tangled in her hair as the kiss continued, Sam grasping at him with equal intensity and letting him take his sudden anger out on her.

Slowly, his kisses became softer and finally he stopped to rest his forehead against hers, their ragged breaths mingling. Opening her eyes, Sam framed his face and whispered his name.

His eyes met hers and held them for moment before he sighed and moved to stand up. Moving to the window, he stood there, his naked form catching the moonlight as it glided across his skin.

"The Icarus Base was attacked sometime between 2100 and 0300."

She couldn't help the gasp that left her body. "How?"

"They were ambushed, Sam." He shrugged as he turned around to face her. "We don't know who yet, though they were about to send a team through to check the records when they called me."

"Is the base secure?"

Walking over to the drawers, he pulled out a set of underwear, pants, and socks before reaching into the closet to grab a t-shirt. Dropping them on to the bed, he finally answered her question as he began to dress. "Yes, a group of Jaffa on a supply run came through the gate and found that the base had been attacked. They secured the area and then contacted us. That was thirty minutes ago."

She watched him pull on the pair of jeans, not bothering to zip or button them before he grabbed the white tee and quickly pulled it over his head. Sam moved to the edge of the bed where she gently placed her hands on top of his, effectively stopping him from doing up his pants. Leaning into him, she ran her lips over the base of his neck in a tender caress before asking, "How many?"

He tensed. "Seventy-seven dead."

Quickly running over the numbers in her head, Sam said, "That leaves another fifty-two unaccounted for."

He nodded into her shoulder as she took over the task of zipping and buttoning his jeans while whispering, "Are you gonna be okay?"

Weakly he shrugged and laughed harshly against her before moving away. "Eventually, but the repercussions of this attack are going to make the next few months impossible." He moved to sit beside her as he started to pull on his socks. "A senator and his daughter were there to oversee the progress of the research." At her worried look, he added, "I haven't gotten word if they're listed as casualties or M.I.A."

"Speaking of which, those fifty-two who are unaccounted…"

He looked to her and she arched an eyebrow. "They're searching the area but they haven't found anyone yet, which either means they've been captured or they dialed the gate and escaped." Running a hand through his already ruffled hair, he sighed. "But if they did, why haven't they contacted us?"

A thrill of hope caused Sam to bounce slightly as she moved even closer to him. "The ninth chevron, we had unlocked it!"

Jack's eyes widened as he caught onto her train of thought. "You actually think they traveled through the gate using it?"

She nodded excitedly. "Dr. Nash and the others were still having problems with stabilizing the wormhole when I left three months ago but"— She felt him tense against her suddenly. "Jack, I'm here. I'm okay."

"I know Sam, but it doesn't change the fact that you could have been there… In fact, you were going to use your time off originally to help further with the research."

She kissed him softly and ran a thumb over his bottom lip as she said, "But I chose to come here. I was with you, not there. Just keep that in mind; you haven't lost me."

A slight smile crossed his face as he leaned in to steal another kiss before pulling back so he could reach under the bed for his boots and cleared his throat. "So if Nash found a way to stabilize the wormhole, you really think he would use it? A pretty big chance, don't you think?"

"Yes, but he is known for taking chances." She ran a hand through her hair as endless theories and equations ran through her mind. "Jack, if they did dial using the ninth chevron, they could be too far away to make an immediate contact, much less know where they are to do so."

She saw a flicker of understanding in his eyes. "The eighth chevron acted as a long distance phone call and the ninth, with enough power, could travel farther?"

"We theorized that it connects to specific gates instead just one in the vicinity of the area or planet dialed. If they did a random dial and somehow managed to get a hit, they could be anywhere in the known or unknown gate system."

He swallowed roughly as he digested the information. "I guess it's better than them being dead, so I'm praying that your crazy theory is correct. I really don't want to mount a rescue mission for captives; I just want to blow away whoever did this."

The look in his eyes and the quality of his voice told her that whoever was responsible for the attack would be sorry once Jack found them. He sat there for a few moments, eyes focusing on something she couldn't see, jaw tensing as he ran the facts through his mind and how he would deal with them.

Suddenly a smile lit up his face, eyes brightening as they met hers. She gave him a somewhat bemused look as he said, "You know at this rate, I'll never retire."

She blinked. "What?"

"Every single time I am about to retire, something happens and I can't."

Her brow furrowed slightly as she thought about it and then her own smile split her face. "You know, I think you have a point, sir."

His grin widened at his salutation. "That always sounds so dirty when you say it now."

She laughed slightly and then kissed him. "So, you don't retire in a week."

"Sadly, no." He shook his head and the smile melted from his face as he was once again reminded of the situation that had roused them from sleep.

Rising from the bed, she started to pull out clothes from the drawers he had set aside for her. She couldn't help the gentle smile that appeared across her face as she took in her shirts next to his in his closet before grabbing one off the hooks. Even after a year, it still warmed her to know that they had finally gotten over their reservations and had pursued this relationship.

Turning back to him, she watched as he made his way over to the bathroom to turn on the light and grab his toothbrush. She started to dress as she listened to him quickly going through his routine, though he didn't bother shaving. He was about to finish up when she came in and ran the comb through her hair, trying to untangle the knots that had been caused by their late night activities.

Meeting his eyes in the mirror, she said, "I'm coming with you, I don't care what anyone thinks."

"Wouldn't have it any other way, Carter." He continued to watch her until she had her hair was fully combed and pulled up in a pony tail before moving to wrap his arms around her. Kissing the back of her neck, he sought out her eyes in their reflection.

"Thanks." She felt the word whispered against her skin more than heard it.

"Always."

-fin-

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