Stargate/Sentinel crossover
Title: Past, Present, Prologue
Author's Note: Since I'm a long-time fan of the works of Cindy Combs, I obtained permission to use her idea of MacGyver as Blair's father for my stories. Since MacGyver and Jack O'Neill were both played by Richard Dean Anderson, there will obviously be a physical resemblance between the characters that I have included in the story. I assume a familiarity with the Stargate premise and characters.
Timeline: This story takes place a couple of years after the last episode of the Sentinel, with Blair working as a detective in the Major Crimes unit as Jim's partner. In the Stargate universe, it takes place in the fourth season. The year is 2001.
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Chapter One
Daniel followed Jack through the maze of corridors, zat at the ready. He spared only a glance for the intricate writing lining the walls, knowing that he could not afford to be distracted now. If the mission went as planned, he would be able to return later to explore this massive complex of ancient temples and support buildings. Turning his attention back to the matter at hand, he saw Jack stop at a cross-corridor and motion for them to split up. Daniel nodded and broke off to follow Sergeant Simmons of SG-15. They had pored over the blueprints of this place in planning the mission, hoping that the intelligence was accurate. Supposedly, there were only a few guards posted on this base, but if there were more than they thought, this could get messy very quickly.
It was not long before they heard the sound of gunfire echoing through the empty hallways. Running footsteps approached their position, and Daniel turned his weapon toward the sound. It was only a second after he saw the stranger round the corner that he fired, sending the soldier crashing to the ground in a crackle of electricity. Listening for any further sounds, Daniel moved to the prone man on the floor while Sergeant Simmons moved to the corner and peeked around, checking that the hallway was empty. He nodded to Daniel, who quickly pulled out a set of plastic flexi-cuffs and bound the man's hands behind his back, then tied his feet together, immobilizing him, before joining Dave again to continue clearing the complex.
After another fifteen minutes of skulking through the corridors, they reached the end of their assigned section. They had taken down two more guards as they went, and luckily both had fallen to the zat's energies, so they had not had to use their backup weapons. Daniel was glad of that, for although he was becoming more accustomed to the violence that seemed to be part of their lives, he never condoned the taking of a life. He looked up as Dave spoke into the radio attached to his vest.
"Beta section clear." The Sergeant listened to the reports from the other teams and then nodded. "Returning to rendezvous point with three prisoners." Nodding to Daniel, he smirked. "Now we just need to drag them back to the others."
Daniel rolled his eyes and sighed. "That second guy looked pretty heavy, too." He turned and headed back the way they came, Dave at his side. When they reached the first of their captives, Daniel bent over and placed his hands underneath the man's arms, walking backwards and dragging the unconscious man as they re-traced their steps. By the time they reached the second prisoner, Daniel had to drop the man to the floor and straighten up. His back popped as he stood upright again and he groaned softly. "He's heavier than he looks."
"Do you want that one?" Dave asked, pointing to the heavier of the two. He knelt down and hauled the man into a sitting position, then pulled him swiftly into a fireman's carry. A grunt escaped his lips as he did so. "OK, he's really no lightweight. We might move quicker if you try carrying yours, too, though."
Daniel had to acknowledge that the marine was right, and pulled the smaller man up and across his own shoulders. "At least we don't have quite as far to go, now." They struggled through the corridors, trying to keep their weapons at the ready in case they had missed someone. When they were almost back to their starting point, Daniel slowed and stopped in front of a locked door. He knelt to place his burden back on the floor and stepped closer to the door.
"Dr. Jackson?" Dave asked, re-tracing his steps to stand beside Daniel and dropping the prisoner to the floor.
"This is the only door like this we've seen," Daniel pointed out. "This place has been here a long time. Any of the original wood doors have long since deteriorated. We've only seen a few modern doors installed here and there, and none of them have been metal." He pointed at the external locks that looked as if they would resist even an enraged Unas. "What do you think they're keeping in there?"
Stepping closer, Daniel touched a metal plate that was mounted on the door with a single screw and it swung easily to the side, revealing a small tinted window. Glancing aside to Sergeant Simmons, he got a raised eyebrow and a shrug in response. Daniel peered in through the window into the room beyond. At first, he couldn't see anything in the darkness. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust, and he could just make out a few faint shapes in the room. Along one wall was something that must be a cot, and in the other corner, there was a faint movement. Daniel stared at that corner for several minutes before he made out the shape of the occupant of the locked room.
Reaching to the radio attached to his vest, he keyed it and spoke. "Jack, I think you'd better come see this."
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Heading back toward the entrance, Daniel crouched down beside their first captive, who had come to and was squirming around, trying to break the plastic ties binding him. He glared at Daniel, but didn't speak.
"Hi," Daniel started. "I don't suppose you'd like to tell us just who you have locked in that room back there?" Getting only another glare in response, Daniel shrugged. "Yeah, didn't think so. But since you seemed to be guarding the room just around the corner, I figure you'll have the key to get in. I'm going to need that key."
Reaching forward, Daniel started rifling through the man's pockets, only to have him try to kick Daniel with his bound legs. "Simmons!" Daniel called back over his shoulder. "I could use a little help here."
Sergeant Simmons came around the corner and took in the situation. "He giving you trouble, Daniel?" There was a hint of humor in his voice.
"Just keep him still, would you?" Daniel asked. "I'm sure he has the keys to open the door." Seeing the protest forming on Dave's face, Daniel waved his hand in the air. "I'm not going to open it, but eventually we'll need the keys, correct?"
Simmons nodded and pulled out his zat'ni'katel. "You've got a point."
"You're not going to just shoot him, are you?" Daniel asked. "He's already tied up. It's not like he's going anywhere."
"You want him to hold still don't you?" He shrugged. "It's been long enough since the first shot. I'm pretty sure it won't kill him."
Daniel just shook his head and turned back to the silent man on the ground. "I don't know if I want to risk that. I don't think he'll fight the both of us. Just be ready if he gets rowdy." After a quick search, Daniel retrieved a set of keys from a pocket and stood, nodding to his marine companion. "If you don't mind babysitting, I'm going to head back to the cell and wait for Jack."
"Go ahead," he said, waving Daniel off. "We'll be fine here."
Daniel hurried back to the door and started searching through the keys in his hand, trying to decide which keys might fit the locks. He was holding one key up to the lock when he heard a voice behind him.
"You're not thinking of opening that door, are you Daniel?" Though the voice was light, there was a hint of steel underneath it.
"No, Jack," Daniel said, turning around. "Not until you'd cleared it, but we need to know if we have the right keys, don't we?" He gave Jack an innocent expression that was sure to irritate him.
Jack just rolled his eyes and Daniel had to hide a small grin. "So, what do we have?" Jack asked, stepping up next to Daniel at the door.
"Take a look," Daniel answered, gesturing to the swinging plate over the window on the door.
Jack gave Daniel a sidelong look. "There's nothing in there that's going to grab my head, is there?"
"No, Jack," Daniel said with a sigh. "I'm pretty sure there's no Ancient repository in that window. Just take a look, would you?"
Jack slid the plate aside and looked through the window. "It's dark, Daniel. What am I supposed to see?"
"Just give it a minute," Daniel said. "Look in the right back corner of the room." Jack was silent for a moment as he stared into the room. When he turned back to face Daniel, his face was grim. "OK, Daniel, I saw her. Now what do you want us to do about it?"
"Let her out," Daniel said, staring at Jack. "It's obvious she's not in great shape. Don't you think we ought to get her some help?"
"Damn it, Daniel," Jack said, rubbing a hand over his face. "You know the mission as well as I do. The NID was working on creating super-soldiers. If she's one of their experiments, there's no telling what they've done to her. I can't let her out of there until I'm sure she's not going to start killing everyone in sight."
"She hardly looks like a threat, Jack," Daniel protested, the image of the woman huddled in the corner burned into his memory.
"Neither did Cassandra or Rya'c," Jack retorted.
Daniel sighed, just as frustrated with Jack as Jack apparently was with him. "We're dealing with humans, Jack, not Goa'uld. I doubt they've booby-trapped her."
"You don't think that humans are capable of booby-trapping another human, Daniel? If they really created a super-soldier, do you think they'd want one in enemy hands? Trust me on this, these people could just as easily plant a weapon in another human as any Goa'uld, and without a hint of remorse." Jack's voice was firm, implacable, and Daniel held his tongue. It was obvious that Jack had made up his mind on the matter. The tone of his voice indicated that he was reliving something in his past, and Daniel decided he didn't want to know what that something was.
"Are you just going to leave her in there indefinitely, Jack?" Daniel made sure that his tone of voice was matter-of-fact, not confrontational.
A sigh escaped Jack as he looked back toward the door. "No. We obviously can't do that. Look, Carter is digging through their computers now. We caught the scientists off-guard, so they didn't have time to wipe the data. We'll see what she can find on our mystery guest here. If it turns out that she's not a threat, we'll get her out of there and get her to Frasier. If she's unstable or dangerous, we'll take her out once things are cleaned up a bit here and we have more back-up and a better idea of how to handle her. I'm not just going to leave her here to die, Daniel."
Brushing his hand back over his head, Daniel met Jack's eyes. "I know that, Jack. Glad you have a plan. Do you mind if I stay here until you make a decision?"
Jack looked between the door and Daniel. "No, go ahead and stay here. Just don't unlock that door, all right?"
"You got it," Daniel said, walking over and looking back through the window. He didn't know if she even knew he was there, but he didn't want to leave the woman alone any longer. In the background, he could hear Jack asking for back-up to help escort their prisoners back to the gate.
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Daniel was watching through the window again when a voice emanated from his radio.
"Daniel, I think I found the information you need." Sam sounded pre-occupied, and Daniel imagined that she was scanning through whatever she had found on the computer as she spoke.
"Do you know who she is?" Daniel asked. "Is she one of their experiments?"
"The files I found never refer to her by name, so I don't know who she is, but from all appearances, there's something about her that they want to re-create in their super soldiers. They were apparently mapping her DNA, and running all kinds of tests on her. Daniel, you wouldn't believe the number of drugs they've given to her over the past two weeks. I'm not sure what most of them are, since I'm not a medical doctor, but I would imagine that she's not going to be very coherent, based on the notes I've read here." Her voice shook with anger as she continued. "They were testing her sensory responses to various stimuli, and far too many of them were tests on how she responded to pain. What they've done to her…" Sam's voice broke off, and Jack's voice picked up.
He was apparently in the room with Sam, because Daniel heard Jack more distantly over Sam's radio. "Is she a danger, Carter?"
"She hasn't been altered, sir," Sam responded. "I can't say much more than that. So I wouldn't expect things like super strength, but I don't know anything about her natural abilities."
"Should we approach her?" Jack asked, a faint hint of irritation in his voice. Daniel knew that Jack preferred clear-cut answers to his questions, and Sam wasn't giving him that.
"I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving her locked up any longer, sir. She's obviously a victim here. But I would recommend approaching her with caution. We have no way of knowing how she'll react to someone entering the room. I doubt she's had any pleasant experiences as a result of that door being opened."
"So, do I have a go-ahead?" Daniel asked Jack.
Daniel heard what could have been a faint sigh before Jack turned on his own radio. "Yes, Daniel, we'll go in. But you are not to open that door until I get there. I'm on my way."
"Got it," Daniel said, clicking the radio to respond, then let his hand fall away as he started fingering the keys. Over the last hour while he was waiting to hear from Jack and Sam, he had figured out which keys opened which locks. Thinking that it couldn't hurt to get started, he opened two of the three locks on the door, then leaned against the wall to wait for Jack.
When Colonel O'Neill arrived, he glanced at the opened locks and turned a firm look on the younger man. "Daniel?"
"I didn't open the door," Daniel replied calmly. "I just got a head start on the locks."
Jack narrowed his eyes at the archeologist, who responded by widening his own in a look of innocence. Jack just shook his head and drew his zat gun. "OK, Danny, since you're in such a hurry, go ahead and open the door. But I'll be entering first."
Knowing better than to argue, Daniel fitted the last key in the lock and slowly swung the door open. Jack filled the doorway, weapon held at the ready, and only when there was no reaction from inside did he step aside, nodding at Daniel. "You're on."
Daniel entered the darkened room and walked slowly toward the figure huddled in the corner, her arms resting on her drawn up knees, face buried in her arms. He was aware of Jack entering behind him, taking a position near the door. "Can you get the light, Jack?"
Jack glanced around and found a pull string for the single light bulb in the room. The NID had rigged up electricity from generators when they set up shop in the ruins, and all of the occupied rooms had at least a light bulb. The moment he turned the light on, the woman gave a pained yelp and buried her head deeper in her arms.
"Turn it off," Daniel said, as Jack reached to do just that, putting the room back into near dark.
"I'm sorry," Daniel apologized as he crouched down in front of the woman.
She reacted as badly to his voice as she had to the light, whimpering and clapping her hands over her ears. Daniel remembered what Sam had said about the drugs she had been given, and the tests that had been run on her sensory reactions and winced, realizing that he had inadvertently caused her pain. Not the best way to gain her trust.
"Sorry," he whispered again. There was a little light coming in from the open doorway, and he studied what he could see of her. With her face tucked so tightly in her arms, he could only see the top of her head. Her hair seemed to be brown, maybe shoulder-length, but it was so tangled and dirty that he couldn't be sure of that.
"We're here to help you," Daniel said softly, reaching forward to touch her shoulder. When she flinched back, he quickly withdrew his hand. "OK, I won't touch you. But I need to know how to help you. I promise I won't turn on the light again. Can you look at me? Can you tell me how to help you?"
There was no answer for a long time, so Daniel decided to try again. "My name is Daniel. The man by the door is Jack. We're going to take you out of here, try to get you back home. Can you tell me your name, where your home is?"
For a long moment, Daniel thought she was never going to answer. Then suddenly, she reached out and grabbed hold of his wrist. He jerked in surprise at the motion, and was amazed at the strength in her grip as she maintained her hold on him.
"Daniel?" Jack asked, the word a warning and a question.
Daniel always wondered how Jack could convey so much in just saying his name, but put the thought aside and held up his free hand. "It's ok, Jack. We're fine." He relaxed his arm and felt her fingers circle his wrist until they came to rest over the pulse point located there.
"You sure, Daniel?" He could hear Jack behind him, moving closer, likely into a better position to shoot if he thought she was a threat to Daniel.
"Yes, Jack," Daniel said patiently. He noted the tensing of her hand every time they spoke and realized that their exchange was louder than the woman was comfortable with. He lowered his voice again. "How can I help you?"
Slowly, her movements stiff, she raised her head up to look at him, and Daniel studied her face in the dim light. She seemed young, maybe in her twenties, and her eyes were wide, wild, the pupils so dilated that there was almost no hint of her iris. Now he knew why the light had bothered her so badly. The expression in those glazed eyes was wariness, distrust, and Daniel couldn't blame her. "Home?" Her voice was hoarse, slow, pained, and it seemed that each word was an effort for her.
"Yes," Daniel said, feeling as if her eyes were boring into him as he answered. "The people who were running this… lab, are in custody and are not going to hurt you again. We're going to take you home, if you'll let us help you."
For a long moment, she studied his face, and Daniel thought she was cataloguing each and every one of his reactions, looking for the truth. As she did, her eyes grew unfocused and she seemed to drift away for a moment before blinking and staring at him in confusion. With a shake of her head, she seemed to remember what was happening.
A short nod seemed to indicate that she had decided to trust him, but she didn't let go of his wrist, though her grip did loosen. Her gaze drifted back to Jack, and Daniel saw her eyes widen in surprise, then drift downward. He was shocked to see the hatred that flared in her eyes as she did. He looked back and followed the direction of her gaze to see the zat in Jack's hands.
"Uh, Jack. I think you should put that zat away."
"I don't think that would be a good idea, Daniel," Jack's tone of voice made it clear that he didn't trust the woman still clutching Daniel's arm.
"She's not a threat, Jack. And I think she's very aware of what a zat is and what it does. I don't think she likes them." From the look in her eyes, that was an understatement.
"Bast… sho' me," her words were slurred, but she managed to relay her feelings on the subject quite well.
Jack stared at her for a moment before nodding and putting the weapon away.
Daniel turned his attention back to her, and her eyes slowly drifted back to his face. "Can you tell me your name?"
She shook her head.
Daniel waited for something more, but when there was no response, he tried to get more information. "Do you mean you can't tell us your name, or you won't?"
"danger…"
"Dangerous?" he jumped on her words. "Dangerous to whom?"
"Me," she answered, looking down at her arms.
Following her gaze, Daniel saw raw red marks circling her wrists. Restraint marks. A surge of anger welled up in him that people were capable of this. "Fair enough," he allowed, forcing his anger aside as her gaze shot up to meet his. "You don't have to tell me your full name. Will you tell us your first name? I'd like to have something to call you."
She stared at him for a long moment before responding, her gaze going distant again before she came back to herself and bowed her head, "Megan."
"Megan," Daniel repeated her name. "Good. Now Megan, we need to take you out of here. Do we need to call for medical help to do that?"
"No," Megan said, struggling to pull her thoughts together enough to speak. "Can walk… too bright, loud."
That was the most he had heard from her, and Daniel thought about what Sam had told him, and Megan's reactions to the light and their voices. "OK, let's see what we can do about that." After thinking about it a moment, he reached into his pocket and withdrew a pair of wraparound sunglasses. He extended them toward her. For a moment she simply stared blankly at him, then she slowly reached out and took the glasses from his hand, carefully putting them into place. She looked toward the doorway, as if to check how well the glasses blocked the light.
"Better?" Daniel asked. A short jerky nod was the only response she gave. "Good. Let's see what we can do about the noises. I should have some earplugs in here somewhere." He patted down his pockets with his free hand and found the packet of earplugs. Tearing it open, he put the earplugs in her hand, and she withdrew her hand from his wrist long enough to roll the foam plugs and put them securely in her ears.
"How's that?" Daniel spoke in a more normal voice, and was pleased when she didn't flinch at the volume. "Did it work?" When she nodded, he looked back at Jack briefly before focusing on her again. "Ready to try standing?" He stood and offered her his hand.
She looked at it for a moment before placing her hand in his and allowing him to help her up. When she swayed on her feet, Daniel reached out a hand to support her, but she swatted his hand away, grabbing onto his arm to steady herself. "OK," he said. "I get it. Don't worry, we'll play this your way."
"What's that all about?" Jack asked, as Megan slowly gained her balance by holding on to both of Daniel's arms.
"She's establishing the rules, Jack," Daniel explained. "We're not supposed to touch her. If she needs help with something, we can offer it, but it's up to her to accept it." He looked back at Megan. "Is that right?"
She nodded slightly, taking one hand off his arm and waggling it back and forth in a way that Daniel interpreted as meaning he was close before tilting her head toward the door.
"And it seems she would like to leave now," he said. "Can't say I blame you," he added in an aside to her. She kept a firm grip on his arm with both hands, using it as a support as Daniel started leading her toward the door.
