Chapter One- The Clock Starts Now
The bitter cold of the snow bit at his fingers and knees as he crashed once more to the ground. The sharp rocks pricked through the BDUs into his skin. His breath was a puff of mist on the cold mountain air. His chest heaved with effort, his muscles straining as he climbed to his feet. The snow falling lessened his vision greatly as he continued trekking forward, his body numbing further in the desolate world.
General Hammond watched with dismay as the medical team bustled around the three members of SG-1. Three. Not the four he had been hoping for when the Stargate opened and the computers signaled the early return of his premiere team. According to Colonel O'Neill, Dr. Jackson was still on that god-forsaken world in the middle of a mother-of-all snow storm.
"General." Dr. Fraiser appeared at his side, concern deeply etched into her features.
"What the condition of SG-1, doctor?"
"It seems they advertently walked on top of a frozen river. The ice cracked and they all fell in. The river was still active underneath all the ice and they were swept away. Lucky for them, there were hot springs located along the riverbed. All four of them clutched at the rocks at the base of a cliff. Unfortunately, when they fell, they dislodged some of the ice, which forced Dr. Jackson to lose his already precarious grip on the cliff. From what the major told me, Dr. Jackson was sucked again underneath the ice."
"I think I know they tried looking for Dr. Jackson once they got of the river." Hammond guessed.
"Yes, sir. They did. It was only when they began to lose sensation in their outer limbs did they return."
"Hence their condition."
Fraiser nodded. "Teal'c should be able to help in the rescue effort in a day or so. As for the colonel and the major, they have a serious case of exposure and frostbite besides a case of hypothermia."
Hammond closed his eyes. "Keep me informed on their condition, doctor."
"Will do, sir." Dismissed, Fraiser went back to where her nurses were tucking her new patients in for a long stay.
The pack on his back was getting heavier, icicles forming in his hair and straps. Night was beginning to fall. The forest was coming alive as the nocturnal creatures were awakening. He spotted a tree with a huge hole at the base of the trunk, nestled between the roots. His fingers stung with sharp pains as he carefully undid the pack. Placing the pack near the hole, he began to collect pieces of wood and twigs. What felt like an eternity later, he used his boot to dig a hole in the ground in front of the hole, placing the gathered wood into it.
He shuffled into the hole, his pack on his stomach. Taking out the water-resistant matches from a pocket, he lit the small campfire. The light and warmth began to spread throughout his shivering body, forcing the cold back. He knew sleeping was a dangerous enemy but exhaustion was also. Feeding the flames he pulled the emergency blanket put and tightly wrapped himself in it, trying to conserve the little heat he had. Slowly, his mind drifted and Daniel fell into a light sleep.