The city was divided by a river. As she stared at the buildings on the far side, Samantha Carter couldn't quite dispel her sense of despair. Even crossing a body of water seemed beyond her right now. She was so, so tired. The walk through the Arctic wasteland, the days of interrogation had taken their toll, and for what? Her life, her world was gone. And there was no way she was going to be allowed to get it back. Perhaps that was what was bothering her the most. They wouldn't even let her try to put it right... to give the human race a fighting chance when the Goa'uld eventually showed up.

Sam felt like she had died the moment Ba'al had stuck his knife into Jack.

Jack... in this universe, he didn't even know her. He was busy playing happy families with Charlie and Sara. A Colonel, he was still able to do the field work that he loved and Sam should have been pleased for him. Would have been if he hadn't looked at her like she was some kind of freak. Sam had found his lack of faith profoundly disturbing. This O'Neill was a closed minded as they came... nothing more than a jar-head, she admitted to herself.

The apartment the government had provided for her wasn't her taste at all. Beige, was her immediate first impression. Whoever had been responsible for the interior design was obviously a person of little imagination. There were no bookshelves. Sitting on the beige couch resting on the beige carpet in the beige living room, Sam found herself wanting to curl up in a corner and cry. Bad enough to be stuck here, bad enough that she was supposed to be dead but the government had deftly taken away everything that meant a damn to her. There was nothing left of Samantha Carter.

Sam spent the first night on the couch and slept in her clothes. It seemed easier that way. If she didn't sleep in the bed then she could still make believe that this was a temporary arrangement. However, waking with a stiff neck and an aching back was enough to convince her of the reality of her situation. At that moment that she almost caved and called Daniel. But Sam knew that, if she were to disobey orders, she would have to have a damn good reason for it and not just the desire to see a familiar face. Besides, the powers that be would be watching her closely, especially during these first few weeks. Sam felt trapped here but she knew it was nothing compared to military prison. Even though she was technically dead, she knew that the courts would find some way to charge her. She was a national security risk.

Looking at the small bag that contained all of her worldly goods, Sam wondered if she should unpack. A half dozen pairs of underwear, two pairs of pants, five t-shirts and a toothbrush. Paranoia had left her bereft of anything of her past life. They hadn't even let her keep her BDUs... the probably thought she had some kind of nuclear reactor sewn into the lining. Reluctantly, she opened the bag and pulled out the details of the new identity that she had been given.

Tiffany Randall... someone, somewhere was having far too much fun at her expense. Drivers licence, credit card, bank account ... 'Tiffany' had more than enough money to live on. Probably a good thing since Sam was forbidden from taking a job in her chosen field. Without any qualifications, she'd probably have to wait tables.

"Hello, my name is Tiffany, how can I be of service?" Sam said to the empty room.

It wasn't enough that she had been handed a comfortable life. Without conflict, without challenge, Sam knew that she'd go stir crazy within a month. As soon as the thought crossed her mind, Sam was assuaged with guilt. At least she still had her health. She couldn't imagine how Daniel was coping without any friends to help him out. Part of her hoped that Teal'c and Vala were out there somewhere. Perhaps they could find a way to change all of this.

Sam still couldn't work out quite why so much had changed. Jack's son, General Landry's wife... she understood causality better than most but she had tried and failed to find the link between those particular events and the Stargate. She could only imagine that the alien artefact had touched their lives in ways that no one could imagine.

With a sigh, Sam pushed herself up off of the couch. She had no choice but to get used to this. Stripping off her rumpled clothes, she headed towards the shower.