Three AM.
Samantha Carter slipped the engagement ring from her finger and placed it carefully on the night stand.
'Can't you put it on your dog tags or something?'
She plastered a smile on her face before turning to her sleepy fiancé.
'I'd hate to lose it.'
He slipped his arms about her waist, his lips lingering against her skin.
'I'd buy you another. I'd buy you a hundred. One for each planet in the sky.'
She laughed and pushed him away.
'The one I have is fine.'
Sam picked up her leather jacket, fishing in the pocket for her keys.
'You taking the Indian?'
'Yes.'
There were times when she found his concern for her well-being sweet but this wasn't one of them. Sam was on the verge of being late.
'It's the middle of the night…'
'… and the roads will be empty.'
'Sam…'
She silenced his protests with a kiss.
'Don't wait up.'
'Call me when you get there.'
The night air was heavy, the tarmac bleeding the heat of the day. She could smell rain. At the back of her mind Sam wondered if she should have listened to Pete, but there was no turning back now. With luck, she'd get to the mountain before the worst of the weather hit.
She needed this tonight. Just herself, her bike and the open road. Sam opened up the throttle.
It was better than chocolate cake.
Better than sex.
Better than a trip through the Stargate.
It was freedom.
When Pete had announced his transfer to Colorado Springs, Sam had known that they'd have to spend more time together. Pete had an apartment but only used it when she was off-world. They were getting married. It was only logical that they should at least try to live with each other first. Most of the time the arrangement worked just fine. Tonight however, the house she'd rattled around in when single, had suddenly felt too small.
The wind was picking up. Sam put on another burst of speed, leaning into the bend as the first, fat drops of rain hissed onto the tarmac. The sky flashed white and Sam laughed out loud as she raced the storm.
/\/\/\
He was getting too damn old for this.
Jack O'Neill eased his legs off the bed, gently working out the stiffness in his knees. He could hear rain splattering against the windows. After the heat of the past few days it was almost a relief.
There hadn't really been much point in going to sleep, not when Carter had insisted that they be on P4X654 at the crack of dawn. Her explanation had made sense at the time. Of course that had been before SG-11 had gotten themselves infected with God only knew what and the base had been placed under quarantine for twelve hours. The rest of SG1 had already left. Jack made it home at midnight.
At any other time he would have jumped at the chance of heading back through the Stargate. All he could feel now was the ache in his bones. The Ancient technology Carter wanted him to switch on had better be worth the effort.
Jack pulled on the pants he had discarded barely an hour before. A piece of paper fluttered to the floor. A phone number.
Kerry Johnson.
She'd told him to call her. It wasn't like he had a reason not to. She was smart, attractive …
Maybe he would.
Maybe.
He had this mission to get through first.
'Head in the game, O'Neill,' he told himself as he dragged a razor across his face.
/\/\/
'Sir!'
Jack paused and waited for Carter to catch him up. Cheeks flushed, water streaming from her soaked leathers. He couldn't help but grin back at her.
'Bring the Indian?'
'Yes sir.'
'Nice.'
She frowned. It was just for a second but he caught the fleeting change in her expression.
'It's nothing, sir,' she said, somehow anticipating his next question.
'Okay.'
He wasn't going to push. It had been hard but somehow he'd learned to let it go. He was the Man now. Carter had her own command. If she said it was nothing then he had to believe her.
She changed the subject.
'Looking forward to another trip through the 'gate, Sir?'
'Sure … as long as you promise me Maybourne's not gonna be there. He gives me gas.'
'Not this time. MALP readings say the whole planet's deserted.'
'And?'
'There's no one there, Sir.'
'Sweet.'
He could probably do with some time away for the desk. Jack couldn't remember the last time he'd had an actual holiday. Sure, he'd tried to get to Minnesota a couple of times but somehow his plans had always gone awry. If it wasn't the Goa'uld it was the Tok'ra. If it wasn't the Tok'ra it was the President …
'It'll be good to have you back, Sir.'
She was looking straight ahead, as if the walls of the elevator were some fascinating new piece of alien technology. Jack knew that Sam had doubts about her command abilities. It was the one thing that hadn't come easily to her. She was a brilliant 2IC and Jack truly believed that she would be an equally brilliant commanding officer … if she just had faith in herself. He sometimes wondered if giving her command of SG1 had been the right move. Teal'c and Daniel had made it easy for her. Carter didn't do well with easy. Six impossible things before breakfast was more her style.
'So … no lions, tigers or bears? What's this place have to offer?'
'It was in my report.'
'Ah.'
'You didn't read it?'
Jack thought back. He must have read it at some point otherwise he would never have approved the mission but the exact details escaped him for the moment. Too many damn reports crossed his desk.
'Not so much,' he admitted. 'Why don't you tell me when we get there?'
'I'll do that, Sir.'
She left him then, walking off to the women's locker rooms; the sway of her hips accentuated by the tight leather pants. Jack watched her go, taking a moment to appreciate the view. There was nothing wrong with that. Any other woman and he would have sworn she was doing it on purpose. But not Carter. Jack glanced around making sure he was alone before adjusting his pants slightly.
She really had no idea.
/\/\/
'Good morning campers.'
He hadn't said that in a while, Sam realised. Not since he'd been promoted … or maybe even before that. She couldn't remember.
Sam watched as he adjusted the brim of his cap and fixed his sunglasses in place. His P90 rested easy against his chest. And beneath the calm façade something of the child he had once been still lurked. Eager. Excited. A man who would never be completely happy flying a desk.
Sam fell into step beside him. Daniel and Teal'c to their right. It was automatic. Familiar. They stood together, watching as the Stargate flared into life.
'SG-1 you have a go,' Sergeant Harriman's voice echoed through the Gateroom.
'Thank you, sergeant,' Sam said.
She took the first step onto the ramp. Despite O'Neill's superior rank, leading her team through the Stargate had become habit. Sam glanced back for a second. There was a small smile on his face. He didn't begrudge her this moment. Sam paused before the event horizon. Just has she had done on that first trip. She let her fingers graze the surface, watching the ripples and fluctuations.
Perhaps it was because she knew that this moment was precious?
Maybe she knew in her heart that it was an ending of sorts?
A flush of hot breath caressed her skin,
'Get your ass through the gate, Carter.'
Harriman's voice rang out through the Gateroom.
'Colonel Carter, there's a call for you…'
Ignoring the sergeant, Sam took that step.
She knew something was wrong the second the wormhole captured her body. Usually the discomfort was minimal. An instant of intense cold and then you were someplace else. This time her body was stretched and twisted until it was spat out the other end of the wormhole. She hit the ground hard, no breath in her lungs. Heaving and gasping as she fought to keep her stomach contents intact, whilst trying to count how many ribs she might have broken this time. And cold. She was reminded of the words of the late Charlie Kowalski. Ice blasted through the air; the shards shining in the light of the open gate.
A body landed next to hers. Thumping down onto the packed snow with enough force to produce a stream of coughs and swear words from its owner. He recovered before she did, pulling her upright in an effort to ease her laboured breathing. Sam slapped his hands away without thinking.
'I am not your dumbass boyfriend! On your feet Carter!'
And she tried, she really did, but her feet slipped and slid on the ice. She ended up on her hands and knees, head down as she threw up what remained of her supper.
'Daniel! Teal'c!'
The General's words were stolen by the storm.
What little light the gate had provided faded quickly, leaving them in a blackness that scared Sam with its intensity. She fumbled with her P90 shining its light in the direction the General had disappeared. She could just about make out his dark shape hunched over the DHD. Then the wind picked up and all she could see were the tumbling flakes of snow.
'Sir!' she called out.
Her head hurt, her chest hurt. It felt like the air in her lungs had frozen solid.
'Sir!'
His dark shape emerged out of the storm.
'There's something wrong with the DHD. Can't get a lock.'
'I'll take a look…'
Sam struggled to her feet, but O'Neill stopped her.
'We've gotta get out of this. Phoning home can wait.'
Sam stumbled after him for a few steps before the General grabbed her hand and dragged her along beside him. It wasn't romantic, it wasn't glamorous. They were tripping over discarded stonework, running into trees. If anything the storm was worsening. Sam couldn't see anything at all. She had to trust that O'Neill had some idea where they were going. Her body was already half frozen and yet she followed him.
Why was that?
The question kept running through her mind. If anyone else had dragged her bodily into this storm, away from the Stargate, she would have questioned their sanity. Perhaps they were both mad?
'Here!'
O'Neill pulled on her arm and Sam followed him; slipping down the steps he had somehow seen in the whiteness.
The room wasn't much. Daniel could have probably made some guess as to its purpose but at that moment Sam didn't really care. She was out of the wind, out of the snow. Sam let herself slide to the floor. Ice was melting from her hair, dribbling down her face. Annoying, but she was too tired to wipe it away. It didn't help that General O'Neill was shining a light in her eyes.
'Carter … Carter … look at me.'
She tried very, very hard to follow his orders. But the ground was feeling particularly comfortable. She needed to sleep.
'No … no… Sam … Sam…'
He didn't call her Sam … not anymore. She started to wonder whether this was all some kind of vivid dream. Give it a few more minutes and she'd waked up in her bed with Pete snoring away next to her. Sam curled up on herself, suddenly noticing the red liquid that covered her hands.
'Oh God … Carter you hit your head coming through the Gate. I need to stop the bleeding. Okay?'
'M'kay.'
She raised her head just enough to let him wipe away the blood and seal the wound with some steri-strips. A gentle touch.
'That's nice,' she said as he smoothed back her hair.
His hand dropped.
He moved away, rummaging in his pack, pulling out the thermal blankets. Sam watched as he spread one out on the ground. She had no hesitation in crawling onto it and letting him cover her up with the second.
'Try to get some sleep,' he said.
'And you?'
He didn't answer.
/\/\/
Jack sat back on his heels, watching as Carter slipped into dreams. She'd be OK, he figured. Only when he was sure that she was resting peacefully did he pick up his P90 and head to the entrance of their temporary haven.
Snow was still falling in thick clumps. It was getting colder by the second and even his Minnesotan blood was protesting. He hoped to God that, come the morning, Carter would be able to fix the DHD and get them out of this. And then there was Teal'c and Daniel. Jack was fairly certain that they hadn't followed through the Gate but somehow that wasn't quite enough. He still had that nagging doubt that they were out there somewhere. Alone. Hurt. Dying.
And if not, then where the hell were they?
There really wasn't much point in freezing his ass off. It looked as if the planet was pretty much deserted … just as Carter's report had said. Despite his earlier words, Jack had read the damn thing. Seemed he didn't do much else these days. And to think that he'd been looking forward to going off world again… The sad thing was that, in some perverse fashion, he was actually enjoying this. Of course he was worried about Carter, about his friends, but it still felt good to be away from his desk. There was something very wrong about that.
'Jack?'
Carter's voice. Jack went back to her immediately but it was clear that she was still asleep. She only used his first name when she was delusional.
'You should get some rest,' she said.
He rubbed his face, suddenly drained of adrenalin, tired. Carter was right, he needed sleep. There were only two blankets and she had them both. They would need to share. As much he liked to pretend otherwise, things were different now.
Screw it. Pete wasn't here. What Mr. Potato Head didn't know wouldn't hurt him. Moving as carefully as he could, Jack lifted up the edge of the blanket and crawled underneath.
'Not now Pete, got a headache,' Carter mumbled.
Jack turned his back to her, doing his best to ignore her presence. It was going to be a long night.
/\/\/\/
Sam's head was pounding. She pulled the blanket over her face, hoping to grab a few seconds relief from the freezing air and the bright morning sun. Funny, she could have sworn that the General had joined her last night but there was no sign of him now. She vaguely remembered pressing her back against his, feeling the warmth spread from his body to hers. Very slowly, she sat up. The room span around her but it wasn't enough to deter Sam from getting to her feet. She took a couple of tentative steps towards the door. So far, so good.
The world outside was blanketed in white, blurring the ruins of what must have been a great city. Sam looked around, mentally tracing the outline of elegant spires and shining buildings. There was something very wrong. This place wasn't what she expected, the snow and her violent exit from the 'gate had blinded Sam to her surroundings. Only now, in the strong blue light of the new day was she seeing the world for what it was.
It was almost as if they were on the wrong damn planet.
A set of foot prints led back towards the Stargate. Sam followed them, wincing as the wetness seeped over the top of her boots. The temperature had dropped with the clearing of the skies and the snow was already beginning to form an icy crust. She didn't want to stay here a moment longer than she had to.
The General, it seemed, had the same idea. He was standing over the DHD, pushing symbols at random. Sam suspected he had given up trying to dial Earth a while ago and was now venting his frustration.
'Sir, let me,' she said.
He looked up.
'How's the head?'
'Fine.'
'Carter… '
'A little sore, but I'll live.'
She knelt down by the DHD and started to remove the access panel.
'Do you think you can fix it?'
'I hope so, sir.'
Sam could feel him peering over her shoulder, breathing down her neck.
'Any sign of Daniel and Teal'c?' she asked, hoping to distract him.
'No. Nothing. I don't think they're here. Maybe the 'gate malfunctioned before they came through?'
Sam noticed that he didn't mention the other possibility. She was also painfully aware that the SGC hadn't tried to contact them. Whatever the problem was it looked as if it was affecting both sides of the wormhole. She turned her attention back to the DHD.
The panel felt like it had been welded shut. She pulled at it, feeling her nails break under the pressure … so much for the bride having a perfect manicure. Sam sucked at her thumb where the skin had split. Looking closer she could see the faint traces of carbon around the seal. The General handed her his pocket knife. Sam inserted the slim blade in the crack and tugged hard. The panel came away and Sam suddenly found herself on her ass.
'It looks as if there's been a burnout,' she said, peering at the mess inside. 'Maybe I can swap out some crystals…?'
'Anything I can do?'
His expression was serious.
'Maybe take a look around? There should be some kind of Ancient technology here. I might be able to cannibalise it for spare parts. '
'Okay … keep in radio contact.'
'Yes sir.'
He patted her once on the shoulder, before stomping away, his footsteps muffled by the blanket of snow. Sam watched him for a moment, then blew on her hands and set to work.
/\/\/\
Jack knew at the back of his mind that something had gone badly wrong. He just couldn't think what … yet. Maybe it was the cold or maybe old age was finally catching up with him. He felt he should be able to put the pieces together, or at least nudge Carter in the right direction.
The cityscape was vast. Daniel might have had an idea where to start looking but Jack didn't have a clue. He had the distinct feeling that Carter was placing too much faith in him. It wasn't like he had some kind of ancient detector wired into his brain. Jack picked a direction at random, walking down a narrow street, ruined buildings rising up each side. The place was too damn quiet. He couldn't see how he and Carter could survive here for an extended period of time. Not unless they planned on eating tree bark. There was plenty of that.
It was difficult to tell when the city might have fallen. The re growth of the trees was enough to make him think it had been centuries and not mere decades. The city seemed to be centred on the Stargate, spilling out over the surrounding hills. Wanting a better vantage point, Jack took a left, then a right, striking upwards. The streets twisted and turned, making it hard to keep a straight line. As much as he tried to ignore the ache in his knees, Jack had to acknowledge that this had all been a lot easier ten years ago.
He stopped and looked back. Carter was walking round the DHD, observing it from every angle. And the Stargate itself … Still silent. There had to be a reason why the SGC hadn't attempted to make contact. The longer he thought about it, the more worried Jack became. He might have hated being stuck behind that desk but right now he felt that was where he should be; protecting the men and woman under his command … not out here. Powerless. Impotent. Carter was the one who would save his sorry ass.
Jack pushed himself onwards, faster than he should have. His breath coming in clean, sharp gasps as he tried to trick his body into thinking it was twenty years younger.
He only let himself rest when he finally reached the top of the hill. The city still sprawled in all directions, no sign of any boundaries. Not everywhere seemed to be in a similar state of decay. Jack picked out several buildings, more complete than the rest, figuring that they might be the best place to start his search.
Nothing moved.
'Sir?'
The crackle of the radio seemed to echo around the hills.
'I'm here, Carter.'
'There's something you should see.'
'On my way.'
The downward journey was far more painful. So much so that Jack was almost tempted to break into their meagre supply of pain killers. He forced himself to slow down. Tearing his ACL again wouldn't help anyone.
Carter seemed to have abandoned the DHD. She was shovelling snow with her hands, clearing it away from an object that Jack couldn't quite identify. He watched her for a moment. Her cheeks were flushed with something other than the cold. She was excited.
'Carter?'
He had to raise his voice. She was so focussed on her task that she hadn't noticed his arrival.
'It's the MALP, sir.'
'And … so … therefore?'
'Look at it.'
He looked.
'It was buried,' Carter went on.
'We had a lot of snow.'
'The tracks are frozen solid. And look here…'
At her bidding, he moved closer. The metal was spotted with rust.
'It's been here a while, sir.'
'Longer than we have?'
She nodded. Jack stood back, looking around once more.
'How long?'
'I should have figured it out sooner. This place, it's wrong … all wrong.'
She started digging at the MALP again, hacking at the ice with her knife. Jack didn't know what to say. The only time he ever saw Carter this frustrated was when she was annoyed with herself, at her perceived failure.
'Carter stop!' he ordered, covering her hand with his and preventing the downward plunge of the blade. 'We must have travelled in time, right? So the wormhole got nudged by a solar flare.'
She nodded.
'Nothing you could have done.'
'I checked the MALP's chronometer. It's December twenty-third, sir,' she said. 'We've been missing for three months.'
He released her hand.
'The plan stays the same. We get the DHD working and go home. Okay?'
It looked for a moment as if she was going to argue, but eventually she nodded. Jack patted her shoulder.
'Don't worry, Carter, you'll get your wedding.'
/\/\/\
The wedding.
Sam tried not to think about her upcoming nuptials or Pete waiting for her back home. She deliberately pushed both to the back of her mind, focussing on the problem at hand. But even though she worked on the DHD for the rest of the short winter day she only managed to confirm her original assessment. The control crystals needed replacing. When the light finally failed, Sam straightened her aching back, blew on her freezing hands and made her way back to the makeshift camp.
The General had returned from his second scouting mission. He'd managed to find enough wood for a fire and it was burning brightly when she returned. Sam hoped it would be enough to make their second night here more comfortable than the first.
'Macaroni or chicken?' he said offering her two grey packets of mush.
'There's a difference?'
Sam selected at random. One day she might get used to eating this crap.
'Do you think they're still looking … for us, I mean?' she said.
'Tough to say.'
He was looking very hard at his macaroni.
'I mean three months isn't really very long when you think about it,' he went on.
'Daniel disappeared for a whole year.'
'Daniel died, sir.'
She didn't mention the fact that he had given up on their friend pretty damn quickly on that occasion. Her chicken tasted suspiciously of cheese. Sam threw the remains into the fire.
'I was supposed to call him,' she said.
'Who?'
'Pete.'
'Why?'
'He was worried about me taking the bike. He asked me to call him when I got to the base. I didn't do it. I just left.'
'Carter…'
'What does that say about me, sir?'
'Nothing. You were going to work, Carter. Just like you do every day.'
He tossed another log onto the fire. The wood hissed and spat, sending a cloud of sparks towards the open doorway. The sky was heavy and grey. There would be more snow tonight.
'Pete worries too much,' he said.
'Does he?'
'It's his problem, not yours. He knows what he's getting into. Hell, he knows more than anyone else outside top level government and SGC staff.'
Sam didn't reply immediately. Her head was aching again. She pressed her fingers to her temples in the hope that the pain would go away.
'Do you really believe that, sir?'
'Does it really matter?'
She let her head rest on her folded arms. This was really too much for her to deal with right now.
'Carter?'
'My head hurts, sir.'
He dug about in his pack for a moment.
'Here. Doc gives 'em to me for my knee. They'll knock you out for a couple of hours.'
O'Neill handed her a couple of pills. Sam gulped them down with a mouthful of melted snow. It was only as she settled down next to the fire and pulled the blanket over her head that Sam realised the General hadn't answered her question.
/\/\/\
There was snow that night and the blizzard was still raging when the thin grey light of dawn fought its way into the room. Complete white out.
They spent the day huddled around the glowing embers of the fire; feeding it only when necessary. Neither of them dared to venture outside for more. When the fuel ran out they had no choice but to make the best of the blankets, wrapped around each other closer than any lovers. They ate their last MREs.
'Carter… Carter.'
She was vaguely aware that the wind had stopped howling and that there was no longer a warm body pressed against hers.
'You've gotta come see this.'
But Sam didn't want to move. She was just so cold. Her head didn't hurt anymore but her brain felt like it had been switched off.
'Come back to bed, sir,' she mumbled.
Her hand reached out for him, dragging at his BDU pants in a futile attempt to pull him down beside her.
'On your feet now soldier! That's an order!'
Sam's eyes opened ready to yell at her CO, but he was smiling that boyish, brilliant smirk that told her he'd found something really cool. Keeping the blanket tightly wound around her body, Sam followed him out into the night.
The sky was burning in shades of copper, cobalt and gold. And each time the flickering light faded its brilliance was replaced by a river of bright stars running over their heads - far brighter and closer than the ones which graced the Earth's heavens.
'Wow,' was all she could think of to say … At least for about five minutes. 'The magnetic field around this planet must be…'
'Ah … What have I told you about sucking the fun out of this?' O'Neill said but he still had that smile on his face.
She grinned back.
'This is the fun part for me, sir.'
'Of course it is.'
And there, under the light of the alien stars he slipped his arm around her and dropped one soft, sweet kiss on her forehead.
'Happy Christmas Sam,' he breathed.
Sam hugged him a little closer. Actually, as Christmas presents went, this was right up there with the Major Matt Mason doll.
'Happy Christmas, sir.'
And in that moment she knew … she knew that she would never marry Pete.