Author: mak5258
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters; the stargate wasn't my idea even though I think it's really cool
This story is really a prequel to all of the rest of my stories that I haven't written yet.
Lt. Colonel Sam Carter jerked awake in her chair, surveying her surroundings groggily. General O'Neill was gone from the observation room where she was seated, but the room below her hadn't changed much at all. Her father, still weak from Selmac's recent coma, was sleeping peacefully below, computer monitors blinked, and a few nurses kept watch nearby.
It had been a long week for Sam, her father had almost died when his Tok'ra symbiote fell into a coma, and she had almost proclaimed herself to her CO only to find that his affections were otherwise occupied. Then, everything had turned around. Jack had sat with her when her father was at his worst, and then her father had turned around. Selmac hat awaken from his coma for no apparent reason and, with generous amounts of medication and sleep, the pair of them were recovering well. Sam had refused to leave the area; she stayed by her father's side when he was awake, and watched him sleep from the observation room. For once, Jack hadn't made her leave to sleep, understanding how she felt.
Sam settled back down in her chair, folding her arms on the table and resting her chin on them, The next time she woke, she found that her father was awake and sitting up in bed. He had a tray of infirmary food on his lap, but he hadn't touched it. Looking up at her, he motioned for her to come to him. When she arrived at his side she could tell he was feeling better. His color was returning, his eyes had more life behind them, and he was giving her 'the look.'
"Sam, you should be at home… sleeping," he told her. His voice sounded perfectly normal, so different from the raspy whisper it had been only a few days ago.
"But I get paid to sleep here," she countered, attempting to smile and failing due to an interrupting yawn. Her father smiled appreciatively but his tone remained stern.
"Whether you're here or at your house, I'm not going to get better any faster," he reminded her. Sam nodded and was eventually convinced to go and find a bed somewhere on base.
Having left her father (with a satisfied look on his face) starting on his jello, Sam stumbled into a room with two sets of bunk beds. Trying one lower bunk and finding it occupied, she twisted around and fell into the other bed. She had barely gotten her coat and shoes off before she was asleep.
Red warning lights and cursing from the neighboring bunk woke Sam a few hours later. In the emergency lighting, Sam could see the General rubbing the side of his head and giving the bed a foul look as he put on his boots. Sam followed suit, making sure to avoid connecting her head and the top bunk. Sitting up quickly she surprised Jack into bumping his head again.
"D'oh!" He exclaimed. "Dammit Carter…"
"Sorry, sir. I didn't mean to startle you."
"Course, that's what you'd say if you did anyway," he pointed out, not making much sense.
"What's going on?" Sam asked, glancing at the flashing red lights as she laced up her boots.
"No idea, just woke up… hit my head too," he said grumpily.
The hallway outside their bunk room was empty, bringing suspicions and worry to the top of their minds. All of the connecting hallways were empty as well so the pair of them made their way to the armory before heading to the security center, the room where all of the security feeds displayed. The room was dead. Not only was it unmanned, but none of the monitors would turn on, and none of computer interfaces responded to Sam's various attempts to reboot.
"Control room," O'Neill ordered. Nodding, Sam followed.
The control room was in shambles. Chairs were strewn about, and keyboards were overturned, but everything seemed to be intact.
Sam righted a chair and tucked herself into the station. The blast door rose, revealing the shimmering blue event horizon and a roomful of nervous-looking SGV personnel. The 'gate shut itself off and the dialing computer went black. From the 'gate room, Jack yelled up to Sam, "Everybody's been drugged and tied together!" He poked one of the soldiers' cheeks and the poor man began to drool. Turning around he found a familiar face. "Siler! Siler, who did this?" No response.
Returning to the control room he was surprised to see Sam hit the monitor before spinning around in the chair, rolling over to what Jack only knew as a box of wires and flashing lights, and began pulling wires out and realigning them, "Don't break anything, this junk is expensive," he warned.
"I wouldn't be pulling it apart if it weren't broken already, sir," she assured him.
Twenty minute later, the dialing computer finally came back to life. Sam ran diagnostics and found security footage that made her worry. "Sir," she explained to her CO, "it's my dad; he's not himself."
As evidenced by the security footage, Jacob Carter had become violent about a half an hour after his daughter had left the room. He'd hurt the nurse who tried to get him back in bed, and the security that had been summoned weren't to happy about responding either. Sam reviewed the tapes and realized that Selmac had died and her father's sudden awakening had been the result of a goa'uld symbiote implanted by the last "tok'ra" to see her father before he passed out.
Jack found the "tok'ra" in the crowd of drugged sleepers, though he wasn't tied. Unfortunately, he was dead. "There went the easy answers," Jack said. He looked at Sam with pity in his eyes, knowing that she was wondering why she hadn't noticed and what she could've done to stop this from happening.
"O'Neill…" came a strangled call from the crowd, Teal'c's voice, only very quiet, muffled.
"T?"
"Over here, sir!" Sam called, tipping Walter onto his back in order to get to her friend. Teal'c was bound just like the rest, but the drug didn't seem to be working as effectively on him, probably due to his tretonin.
"ColonelCarter," he began, but slipped sideways. His eyes closed for a moment. Then, he sat bolt upright and began talking very fast. "You must hurry; the drug that was given to us will be fatal unless the antidote is administered soon… Your father had it with him; he went through the stargagte… But, he didn't want us… he could not find what he was looking for so he left hoping… you should not…" Teal'c was unconscious by the time Jack made it to his side.
"What'd he say?" He asked. Sam shrugged in response, looking confused.
"He was hard to understand…"
"Teal'c? No way!" Jack interrupted.
"… They were given a drug that will be fatal unless we get them the antidote soon…"
"That's not cliché," Jack said sarcastically. Sam continued to ignore his interruptions.
"What I want to know is how he got them all in here and all the computers offline without help…" she shrugged, unable to answer her own question. They prepared to dial out to the planet Jacob had retreated to.
The planet that the goa'uld controlling Jacob had fled to was a dismal place: Rain poured from black clouds onto muddy paths surrounded by gray foliage. The area around the 'gate was in such a hectic state that nobody noticed another addition to the crowd; soon after the 'gate shut off it activated again, letting a family jog through, leading a horse pulling a cart full of things to sell in the bustling market place.
Jacob traded various goods stolen from the SGC for clothes, discarding his hospital gown as quickly as possible, and other useful items. A wide brimmed hat hid his face and kept the rain away from his eyes. The planet he now occupied was very familiar o him, it was controlled by his master, Ba'al the fifth (the fifth clone Ba'al had made of himself.)
Jack and Sam arrived almost an hour after the goa'uld they chased, ad were very surprised at what they found. The planet was at peace, the marketplace was booming with business, and poster of Ba'al decorated the sides of the buildings. Luckily, Ba'al was not in the flesh anywhere near, and they passed unnoticed through the crowd. None of the merchants would say whether they'd seen Jacob or not without some sort of bribe. Unfortunately, the pair of them had nothing worth the information they desired. They decided a goa'uld would go straight to the top position in the new place, especially if the person in power happened to be another goa'uld.
The town hall was the most ornate building in the small town, and therefore it wasn't difficult to find. There was only one entrance, decorated lavishly with gargoyles that would've sent Daniel into excited speech lasting for hours. The challenge with the single entrance was that it would be difficult to sneak in. The merchants had set up their shops all over the building; some even displayed their wares from the stairs.
Jack and Sam entered the building, trying to be covert as they approached but failing. The merchants didn't say anything, but they watched them closely. Inside, it was colorful and architectural. Jack looked over at Sam ad was immediately reminded of an excursion to the waters of Antarctica, and the loss of a mothership. The rain had completely saturated her hair and was dripping off her nose in a way that reminded him of their near-death experience. He had wanted to kiss her, to tell her that he loved her, and hold her as they drowned; luckily, it hadn't come to that. He glanced away, fearing she'd read his face. Sam caught him looking at her and glanced away, thinking the same things about the same incident.
Moving away from each other to search for Ba'al and Jacob; they were quickly reunited. Townsfolk, jaffa and human, surrounded them, pointing various weapons at them. They were pushed and shoved until they were in from of Ba'al's previously unnoticed throne. Ba'al was seated in the throne, dressed in clothes tailored like the locals' but of brighter colors, and he was smiling. Behind him was Jacob, still wet and dripping from his recent trek through the rain, but smiling at Sam and jack's dumfounded faces.
They were disarmed and made to kneel before Ba'al. Ba'al proceeded to question them about the SGC, their IDC codes, the Asgard, the status of the other Ba'al clones… everything. Unfortunately, neither officer would say a word. Ba'al used a hand device and a pain stick relentlessly, getting no response. Finally, he had the goa'uld inside Jacob take Sam into a cage behind a closed curtain. Jack could only hear Sam's attempts at escape before he realized what was happening.
Too weak to react, he watched as Sam dragged her father from behind the curtain, her eyes glowing.
"No…" Jack yelled, attempting to go to Sam, the locals held him back. Sam stared at jack, her eyes not leaving his face. "Sam…" he said, the word almost inaudible. To his horror, Sam smiled. Everything inside him turned foul. Memories of Sam flooded into his mind their first meeting, her anxiety when she blew up her first sun, and her experience with Jolinar. He turned and attempted to get to Ba'al and strangle him; unfortunately the locals did not stand down.
"My queen," Ba'al said, addressing Sam.
Sam came forward calmly taking her weapon from the jaffa woman. She passed Jack very closely, brushing against his shoulder on her way to stand behind Ba'al. Within, Sam was screaming. She couldn't control her body or what she was saying; it was a thousand times worse than when Jolinar had taken over her body. This time, there was no communication from the creature occupying her, she was completely cut off. She could see her father slouched on the floor next to her CO, who was being held back from Ba'al with pain and anger in his eyes.
Jack and Jacob were sent back to Earth. They would've been worried about deactivating the iris, but it didn't seem to matter. Sam was the one that sent the code through, and the one that pushed them through the event horizon.
On the other side, the 'gat room was still filled with personnel. All of them were unconscious, and a few had already died. Jacob held up the small flask containing the antidote, explaining to Jack that it had to be airborne to work. Giving a rare example of his intelligence, jack retrieved a pair of tongs and a Bunsen burner from Sam's lab. He heated the liquid over the flame and watched the fumes penetrate the room, the soldiers and scientists coming out of the stupor as the fog in the room grew thicker.
In his office a few hours later, Jack was informed by the doctors that everyone that had received the antidote was going to be all right. Only six people had died before treatment had been administered, not including the man who had delivered the virus. Jacob was back in his familiar isolation room, recovering from Selmac's death and the other symbiote's abrupt departure. It had been lucky that the goa'uld had taken over or Selmac would have taken Jacob with him, but Jacob would rather that Ba'al's queen had never entered his life (or his head.)
Unfortunately, Jacob could remember nothing useful from his short experience with Ba'al's bride, however, frequent calls to and from the President enabled Jack to authorize SG-1 and -3 to go through the 'agate after Sam. Jack had become distanced from his friends concerning Sam, but made it clear at the briefing he wanted her back.
The table in the briefing room was full, Daniel and Teal'c sat on either side of Jack, and Colonel Reynolds and his team filled the rest of the chairs.
"I can't believe you just left her there, Jack!" Daniel complained. Jack didn't respond verbally, but the look he gave Daniel kept anybody from making any similar comments for the rest of the briefing. Teal'c observed the conversation with is usual stoicism.
"The President had given us authorization to bring her back whether we get the goa'uld out of her there or not. The tok'ra have offered to help with the… extraction… when she's here," Jack explained. His voice was even and business-like, but Daniel and Teal'c could tell he was hurting.
After a few more questions and an explanation of the layout of the marketplace and the building Sam was most likely to be in, SG-3 and the remaining members of SG-1 left. Jack visited Jacob to explain what was going on. "Why did they let us go?" He asked after Jacob was satisfied that Sam was going to be brought back.
"He just wanted Sam," Jacob shrugged. "The goa'uld that took me, Ba'al's queen, wanted Sam for the knowledge she possessed, and Ba'al just wanted Sam to be his queen's host," pain was evident on both men's' faces.
"Why did he torture us then, why not just take Sam as a host right away, it doesn't make sense," Jack sighed. Knowing there was no explanation for what had happened other than what Jacob had already said. Jack left a short while later, planning to go to the commissary for awhile and eat some pie. Jacob rolled over and feigned sleep to keep the nurses away.
In the commissary, Jack searched the selections for something good, but everything reminded him of Sam. Eventually, he stalked out without eating anything.
SG-1 and SG-3 were having trouble locating Sam. Not only had Ba'al decided to go on vacation, he'd packed up the town and taken most of them along. Daniel questioned everybody present relentlessly until one villager finally cracked. The 'gate address they were given was a known goa'uld hot spot. Probably showing her off to all his snakehead buddies… Daniel thought to himself.
They went after her, ending up chasing Ba'al and his queen across four different worlds before they caught up.
"I'm sorry, Jacob," Jack said. "The President won't authorize anymore manpower for Sam."
The pair of them were sitting together in the commissary at what would've been a pleasant breakfast. Two days had passed since the last time Sg-1 or -3 had made contact. Jack was forcing Jacob to eat and walk around despite the fact that Jack hadn't touched anything but coffee since their return.
"UNAUTHORIZED GATE ACTIVATION" The call came across the PA, with accompanying bells and whistles.
Jack and Jacob were out of the room before the message had even finished.
'What've we got, Walter?" Jack asked, trying to sound nonchalant. The airman glanced up at him before continuing.
"SG-3's IDC, sir, but its not coming from the planet they left from…" he glanced at the screen again before softening. "They're coming in under fire, sir."
"Open the iris," Jack instructed.
The teams came through at a trot as soon as the iris opened. Sam was being detained by Teal'c, with most of SG-3 keeping their guns trained on her.
Sam was brought to the Sam cell she'd been held in when Jolinar had visited. The goa'uld in her head wasn't happy about it at all either. She paced up and down the length of the cell, sulking in the corner whenever anybody so much as looked at her through the window in the door.
In the briefing room, Daniel explained their troubles locating her and then capturing her. Jacob, finally well enough to attend something like a briefing, listened without saying a word.
The extraction was a difficult thing to watch. Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c were the only ones present when Jacob brought the device in. Teal'c held her still while her father pressed the device to the back of her neck. "You cannot do this!" The goa'uld yelled at them. It only made it more difficult. Jacob was stony faced as he activated the device. Daniel crossed his arms and held them there, most of the color draining from his face. Jack kept eye contact with Sam, not thinking about the device that was now making as ominous humming noise on her neck, thinking only about getting Sam back.
Sam collapsed back on Teal'c, the device deactivating with a disgusting squelching noise. Jacob put the device on the bed, inspecting Sam. The extraction technique had been perfected by the tok'ra, making it painless, but it could still be a traumatic experience.
Three days after the extraction Sam was cleared by the doctors and she decided to spend the rest of her time off at home. She hadn't had a pleasant experience and she couldn't help but want to get away from everything. Jacob would've offered to go with her, but he had been called back by the tok'ra, he was due to leave that evening. He would be discussing his future with them, though he wanted to continue as liaison between the council and Earth, he was also considering retirement. He had recovered well from the stress and the loss of Selmac; he obviously missed the symbiote's presence but he hadn't said anything so nobody else had either.
"I'm fine, sir," Sam assured Jack when he stopped by her lab when she was gathering her things together. She hadn't spoken to anyone about the time she'd been Ba'al's queen, as usual she was playing the silent soldier. When her father had inquired she had asked him to leave so she could get some sleep.
"Good," was all he had to say.
"They told me you barely ate anything while I was… gone," she commented softly.
"You were gone for a long time," he responded with a perfectly timed growl from his stomach. Sam nodded in agreement. "Sam…" he started. "Are you ever going to talk about it…? I mean… Daniel thinks it'd help," Sam's face had gone quiet at the comment.
"Being… a host… this time wasn't the same as it was with Jolinar," she started. Jack was surprised that she was telling him, he had been right outside the door when he had heard her dad asking the same questions. "Last time… last time Jolinar was trying to explain why she was doing what she was doing the entire time, she really felt bad about it. This time… I don't even know what its name was. I was just… stuck. In my head, alone…" she broke off seeing the look he was giving her. He came away from the door and stood close to her, a more personal distance.
"Sam, after Jolinar… I never wanted you to have to do that again… well, none of us did, but… especially after your reaction to even the tok'ra's request," he looked uncomfortable. Finally, he looked at her again, "I wish I could've traded places with you this time," he admitted.
Sam didn't know what to say. It was rare that her CO showed this kind of emotion, and even rarer that he would express himself to her. The moment ended quickly however, voices coming from the hall towards the lab caused them to step apart, Sam began searching her drawers for something.
"Hey, Dad, guys," she said, smiling, giving her father a hug. Daniel immediately got the look on his face that said "Oh no! We didn't interrupt, did we?" Jack shook his head to settle his friend down.
"Hey, kid," her dad responded. "I just dropped by to say good-bye," they hugged again. Jacob seemed rushed.
"Why the rush?" Jack asked.
"The tok'ra will be moving again soon within a week; if I'm out I need to be out before the move, if I'm in, I need to have everything packed by the time we leave."
"Ah," Jack responded. They all walked to the 'gate room and shook hands while the 'gate dialed.
Sam left soon afterwards, promising to lie down and sleep, and not do any work for at least another day.
When Jack dropped by that night he smiled to see her laptop next to her on the couch. "Carter!" He said, "You promised!"
Smiling sheepishly she nodded and turned it off. "Happy, sir?"
"Very," he said. He watched her for a moment, and she watched him. It was a few moments before they realized what they were doing, but when they did neither wanted to stop. It was funny how just looking at each other, without having to worry about security cameras or who might walk in, was the most wonderful thing they could've wished for.