Stronger Now Than We Ever Were
Starting after Family Ties and going roughly AU from there, this is a tale in which Cameron is tortured, Teal'c says 'indeed', Daniel is baffled, and Sam tries to figure everything out in time. Also featured are General Landry, Doctor Carolyn Lam, General Jack O'Neill, Vala Mal Duran, and others. Cam/Carolyn primarily, but major appearances from Daniel/Vala, Jack/Sam, and light Hank/Kim.
Disclaimer: Stargate and its characters do not belong to me. I'm just playing in the Cosmic Sandbox here.
Chapter II: The Great Outdoors
It took every ounce of willpower and determination to get Cameron Mitchell out of bed. He arose an hour early, careful to not disturb the sleeping Carolyn as he went about preparing for the day. His first stop was the shower. Cam quickly slipped out of the clothes he'd fallen asleep in, discarding them in the bathroom hamper, and stepped under the steaming downpour. Though he never spent enough time enjoying it, there was something about a warm, steamy shower that Cameron found blissful and immensely satisfying. However it, like all good things, must come to an end. He reluctantly switched off the water supply and stepped out. Cam dried off briskly and wrapped a towel around his waist, brushing his teeth as he leisurely strolled to the bedroom.
As Cameron dressed into the familiar Air Force blue battle dress uniform that was his dress of the day, he hummed a tune his father used to whistle when he was a kid. Cam was almost fully dressed by the time Carolyn appeared, leaning bodily against the bedroom door. He smiled as she stifled a yawn with the back of her hand and looked the consummate 'sleepyhead'. She came over and joined him on the edge of the bed while he finished lacing up his Magnum boots.
"Morning," she murmured at last, leaning into him as she had the door. "You smell good," she added, evoking a chuckle and the barest hint of a blush from Cameron.
"Thanks," he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her in for a hug. "I think I'm gonna miss you."
She nodded against his shoulder, face buried in his neck. "We can survive a week, right?"
"I sure hope so."
Cam pressed a kiss to her forehead, climbing to his feet and grabbing his partially loaded rucksack from the easy chair. He struck a superhero pose, feet wide apart and his fists at his hip. "How do I look?"
"Like a goof," she announced and joined him across the room. As they embraced again, she felt Cam melting into her arms. When they were together he was more like a big teddy bear than an Air Force colonel, the commanding officer of SG-1. Maybe Cameron wasn't the most complicated of men, but Carolyn didn't care. They got along well, he treated her like an equal and loved her very much, but most importantly, he showed her how much he cared at every opportunity. They held the embrace for a little longer, but Cam forced himself to break it. He offered her a half smile and said he had to get going or her father would have his ass.
Carolyn nodded knowingly. "Stay safe."
"That's not exactly a SG-1 prerogative," he remarked, but seeing her stern look, nodded. "I'll try. Stay out of trouble without me, hey?"
Her lips curled up in a big smile as she herded him out the door. On the porch she paused for one last goodbye kiss before watching him jog off to his car. As she watched the Mustang drive off, Carolyn couldn't shake an overwhelming feeling of dread.
Cameron parked the Mustang in the personnel parking area at Cheyenne Mountain and shouldered his rucksack. He paid careful mind to ensure nothing valuable was left in the classic car. After locking the door manually, Cam pocketed his keys and turned just in time to get a vivid eyeful of General O'Neill and Sam Carter just across the parking bay. He couldn't help but feel like a third wheel or a voyeur to an intimate moment as Jack leaned down and kissed his new wife, sharing a quick embrace before Sam left on yet another mission. It was the same goodbye that Cam had just gone through moments before with Carolyn; he knew exactly how they felt. Cam, like most of the SGC, knew that the Sam and Jack relationship had only been waiting to be free of Air Force chain of command regulations. As soon as General O'Neill had been transferred to DC, they'd been engaged shortly thereafter.
He walked past the couple, clearing his voice loudly. Jack glanced over Sam's shoulder and released her from his embrace, shooting Cameron a nasty look. "Don't you have a team to brief or something, Mitchell?"
"Yes, sir," Cam replied, winking at the general. "But you seem to be holding a quarter of it hostage."
Sam gently shoved Jack back. The older man grumbled about mutiny. "It's not mutiny anymore, Jack. It's insubordination now," she laughed at her husband.
"You've always been insubordinate," Jack groaned, glancing at Cameron. "But now you're something else entirely!"
"A wife?" a new arrival suggested with a well-natured chuckle.
Jack looked like he was about to agree with Daniel Jackson when Sam playfully punched him on the shoulder. He, unlike Daniel, Cam, and his own wife, was dressed in civilian clothing, just jeans and a jacket. There was no decorum for an off duty general officer, especially for a Major General Jack O'Neill. "Control your team, Colonel," Jack asked of Cam.
"I've long since given up trying to control these people," Cam said, gesturing widely. "I just supervise. I'm more like a babysitter, really."
Jack just glared.
----
Less than an hour later the team had been briefed by Cameron, were issued weapons, and were waiting in the Gate room for their go ahead. General Landry had just arrived and gave last minute approval for SG-1's mission. He winked at Cameron and wished them all luck.
"We're doomed," Cameron muttered as they checked their weapons and waited for the Stargate's event horizon.
"What do you mean, Colonel Mitchell?" Teal'c's grave voice and raised eyebrow intoned to the team leader.
Daniel and Sam were both watching Cam with looks mirroring Teal'c's curiosity while Cam finished checking his mag pouches and grenade pockets. "He's never done that before."
"Done what?"
"Winked at me."
"You're right," Daniel said with a heavy sigh. "We're doomed. Anyone give me seven-to-one odds on Mitchell getting hurt?"
"Hey!" Cam protested.
His indignation was lost on Teal'c. "I too have noticed that Colonel Mitchell is often injured on missions."
"Hey!" Cam realized he had lost the upper hand and was at his team's mercy now. "If anyone gets hurt, it's Teal'c."
"Teal'c is more prone to capture," Daniel supplied, peering over his glasses.
"And you're the one who gets transported, teleported, or transmogrified by some alien doohickey," Cameron muttered, very satisfied to finally get a hit in.
Daniel was about to muster a retort when Sergeant Harriman announced the last chevron had been locked and the event horizon bubbled outward, creating the stable wormhole through which SG-1 would be traveling to P4X-911. At the briefing with General Landry earlier in the week, all three human members of SG-1 had expressed their shared distrust in any planet with a codename of '911'. It was just begging for the team to spend the following week in the infirmary. General Landry had laughed off their concerns. Even Teal'c, who only realized the numbers from his experience with human television and movies, expressed his concern, citing it as a 'bad omen' for the SGC's flagship team that seemed to find ample trouble on their own without having to go looking for it.
"Move out," Cameron commanded, pointing his hand like a pistol. Daniel took point, Sam behind him, with Teal'c and Cam bringing up the rear. General Landry's good wishes were the last thing the team heard before stepping through the horizon and being near-instantaneously transported to their destination.
----
When SG-1 had arrived at P4X-911, they were in for a long hike over treacherous terrain. The village they were doing anti-Ori reconnaissance on was a good fifteen miles from the Stargate. While that meant a great deal more exercise than anyone had desired, it also gave them ample time to plan and prepare their reconnoitering plans. Cameron had drawn up a route map ahead of time that detailed their goal progress, fallback points, ideal recon positions, and emergency rendezvous areas. They went over a last minute briefing before leaving the Stargate behind and making their way inland toward their destination.
As they walked, the picturesque scenery of '911' struck each team member. Blue and purple snow-capped mountains seemed to stretch for the very clouds. Their slopes were covered with great expanses of coniferous forest; small breaks in vegetation allowed for crystal clear mountain rivers and springs, visible even from SG-1's patrol route. So far they'd made no contact with natural wildlife or indigenous people, though that had been expected as per the initial mission briefing. SG-7 had conducted the initial route recce and was the scouting party that the entire SG-1 follow-up mission had been based off.
Hiking toward the central village had taken the better part of the day. By the time Mitchell ordered the team to make camp, they were still around two miles from their destination. SG-1 went about preparing their bivouac site, selecting ideal locations to set-up groundsheets and the digital-camouflage tarp that, when secured with bungee cords, would serve as the ceiling to their pup tents. The sun had set earlier than expected. SG-7's daytime estimate had obviously been off, but it made little matter for SG-1, who were long-used to settling in after dark. Cameron had finished rolling out his sleeping bag beneath the small tent and set to gathering foliage to mask his sleeping area. Even though their tarps and equipment were camouflage, anyone who came close enough would still recognize the tents as being out of place, so they saw to thoroughly masking their location.
"Reminds me of camping with my uncle," Daniel remarked finally, sitting on a stump he'd found and brought over near his campsite.
Cameron looked up from cleaning the bolt of his Heckler & Koch G36 assault rifle. "Dad an' I always used to go camping, sleep out under the stars. Before he got hurt, at least."
Sam glanced sideways at her friend, noting the sallow expression that had taken over Cam. He always seemed to wrap himself up inside an emotional cocoon when something reminded him of his father's injury. That memory always lead to the one of his own injuries, which, she knew, made his knees ache sympathetically. "At least there's no fishing," she remarked, trying to lighten the mood by making mention of her husband's favorite pastime.
"I for one am glad there is no fishing," Teal'c announced quietly, adhering to noise discipline, but enjoying their moments of camaraderie. Teal'c had told them all, more than once, that he enjoyed the opportunities they had for sharing stories and memories. He often listened more than he offered, but the other members of SG-1 past and present never seemed to tire of hearing their own voices.
The rest of the team shared Teal'c's assessment, sharing a quiet laugh together before racking out. Cameron watched Daniel check his watch, muttering about offworld timezones. "Rack time?"
Daniel nodded briefly. "The way I figure, despite SG-7's inaccurate assessment, we've got about 6 hours until sunrise. Which..."
"...Gives us about 5 hours of sleep," Cam added, returning the newly greased bolt to his rifle and running over a quick functions test. "Alright, people," he whispered. "Hit your 'sacks. Reveille at 0530 local."
As per schedule, SG-1 rose at 0530 and quickly collapsed the bivouac site, returning their tents and groundsheets to the valises on their rucksacks. On the far horizon, the side without mountains, the sun's earliest rays of light were only just beginning to paint a broad streak of blue-purple with the barest hints of day. Teal'c, now taking point with his P90 held ready, lead the patrol toward the town. When they were within approximately five hundred yards of the town they came to the first recce point. With hand signals, Cameron gestured for Sam and Teal'c to stay and recon for that point while he and Daniel crawled along a low ridge toward another several yards away.
The sun had began to rise as Daniel and Cam arrived at their cover. The small village slowly came to light. What SG-1 saw was certainly not what they expected. Bodies littered the city streets, but not enough to suggest the entire village had been wiped out. Several of the forms appeared to be wearing the armor of Jaffa guards, while others seemed to be clad in the heavy leather and plate armor of Ori soldiers. There were few if any dead civilians in site, as Teal'c mentioned over the radios.
"Carter, Teal'c," Cam whispered over their mics. "Move out from your position nice and slow like. We're moving closer to recon the village and see if anyone is left."
"Acknowledged," was his reply, though it was voiced so quietly that Cameron didn't know who had replied.
Cam took point as he and Daniel crawled over the ridge on their bellies, slowly maneuvering to a better vantage point. As they grew nearer the village, Daniel crawled up and tapped Cam on the boot. Cam quickly glanced back to see Daniel point toward a Jaffa patrol. The four armored men were advancing on the well behind which Teal'c and Sam were hiding. Cam's first instinct was to alert them by radio, but as he reached for it, Daniel shook his head. They both knew that any sound would definitely give away both positions, so Cam chose to remain quiet and hope the patrol bypassed Sam and Teal'c.
It did. The four men, with martial precision and dedication to drill, turned on a dime and marched back into the town silently. With the coast clear, Daniel and Cameron advanced on their originally planned cover, a low hut, likely for livestock or a pet, on the very outskirts. Cam was just checking the safety on his rifle when Daniel tapped his foot animatedly again. He turned around and came face to face with the heads of two staff weapons.
"Drop your weapons," the impossibly large Jaffa leader growled.
Cameron sighed with the same enthusiasm Daniel had shown just seconds earlier. He surrendered his Beretta, rifle, and zat to the second Jaffa patrol. As he handed over the last weapon, the mic on his radio clicked.
"Colonel Mitchell," Teal'c whispered. "I believe these Jaffa serve Ba'al."
Holding his hands up in surrender and noticing the tattoos on the Jaffa's foreheads for the first time, Cam glanced at Daniel. Together they said, "We know."
And thus concludes #2. I had alot of fun with this one, considering I just finished an all-weekend reconaissance exercise. Hope you all enjoyed it. The next chapter should be up by the weekend or early next week, time permitting.
NOTE: I refuse to apologize for the cliffhanger.