This is a missing scene story for the Stargate movie "Continuum." It is new and was written with help from zeilfanaat.

Warnings – spoilers for the movie and the series and minor profanity


"Reality Check"

From the movie –

Retired General Hank Landry had informed them, "The decision has been made at the highest level. I'm sure that, in time, your advice will be welcome. If and when the Navy gets this stargate up and running, you can come aboard as consultants, but you will never ever be allowed to step through that thing."

Samantha Carter had guessed the reason. "You're afraid we're going to try and repair the timeline."

"You've made that intention abundantly clear."

Daniel Jackson had jumped in, "Because we have a responsibility."

Landry had bellowed, "But you don't have the right. If you were to succeed, events in the lives of thousands if not millions of people would never have happened. My goodness people, the arrogance of what you're asking us to help you do is mind-boggling!"

He had added with much less volume, "Maybe if I wasn't woken in the middle of the night and flown to Alaska, I might be more like the kind, sympathetic former general you were hoping I'd be. But trust me, if you lived in this timeline..."

Cameron Mitchell had confirmed, finishing the sentence. "We'd want it to stay the way it is."

Landry was ready to leave. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to go back to my wife, and my very pleasant retirement. And you all have new lives to begin."

The retired general had then shouted to the waiting AF personnel, "They're ready to board the aircraft." Addressing SG-1 one last time, he had said, "It was a pleasure meeting all of you," before walking away.


SG-1 sat at the table in stunned silence. The sandwiches were stale. The coffee was cold. Their breathing seemed to echo in the hanger. Cam felt like throwing up. Sam had a stomach ache. All the frustration of the last few days had changed to anguish and despair. They were being sent away, hidden in plain sight, their lives shelved. Shut out of all decisions, they were at the mercy of their own government. A government they believed in and had defended was now calling all the shots.

Cam didn't exist so maybe he could at least keep his name.

Samantha Carter was deceased, so SG-1 Sam would have to become someone else. Her face was very recognizable, which meant she might have to alter her appearance too. Would she color her hair, cut her hair, wear tinted contact lenses or glasses? It was bewildering.

The timeline already had a live Dr. Daniel Jackson, so SG-1 Daniel would also have to become someone else. At least his double was out of the country and basically an outcast.

All that they were, all that they had, all that they'd done, all that they knew, was gone. Erased by a violent, arrogant, maniacal egomaniac named Ba'al.

Cam looked ready to cry and Sam's eyes were already a little teary. Daniel was the exception. His jaw was clenched so tight it had to hurt. He was fuming; much too angry to feel anything else.

None of them moved. They couldn't move. If they did, it would become real. All of it. It was much too painful.

The personnel in the hanger didn't react, but they were all affected. An SF finally walked over to the table and asked that they accompany him out the door to the tarmac, where a plane was waiting for them.

The time it would take to get to the continental United States was all the time they had left to spend together, but they had each chosen a place to sit that was several spaces away from the others. A psychiatrist named Murphy was on board the plane, trying to get them to talk about how they felt 10 days ago, how they felt 5 days ago, how they were feeling now, and how they had felt all the time in-between. He seemed to think that SG-1 would handle everything better and accept their situation if they vented to a total stranger.

They didn't welcome the man's presence to start with, and things got even chillier when he told them why he was there. None of them liked psych evaluations, and they didn't appreciate what he was trying to do. Things got worse when he addressed Sam as Ms. Carter and Cameron as Mr. Mitchell. It was one more reminder of their lost identities, their lost careers, their lost timeline. For some reason Daniel was still Dr. Jackson, though the degrees that defined him belonged to someone else.

Daniel was basically held captive in his seat, the wheelchair and crutches stored until landing. His emotions overflowed with anger in the forefront, and he exploded. "Get the hell away from me!"

The looks from Sam and Cameron convinced the man to try a different approach. He was following orders, but he did want to try to help them. If they would let him.

"Dr. Jackson, I only want to help. Let's start over."

If looks could kill, the man would be toast, but Daniel stayed silent while the guy retrieved papers from his briefcase.

"I'd like for each of you to have a copy of this." He handed them each a stapled two page handout. Daniel took one look, yelled, "Analyze this!" and threw it back.

Raising his voice over the plane noise, Murphy told them, "I will be available for the remainder of the flight, but one of you will be getting off each time we land." He paused while that information sunk in, and then added, "You won't be allowed to talk to each other for at least a year. Please talk to each other now, before your time is up."

He picked up Daniel's handout and gave it to Sam before walking away a few steps and taking another seat. Two of the three team members reluctantly looked at what he'd given them. At the top was their name, a title, and a list. Beside the topics were handwritten notations. Sam passed Daniel his paper, and after a few seconds of reluctance, he finally took it from her. The title was, The Seven Stages of Grief, and he snarked, "I thought there were five stages of grief. This says there are seven."

Sam and Cameron didn't respond to his outburst. They were busy reading, and in time, they would find themselves agreeing with much of what was on the paper. The psychiatrist had written down his observations about each member of SG-1. At first they just read their own papers, but curiosity and Murphy's words had gotten to them, and soon they were comparing notes.

The list started with shock and denial. He'd written that they were still numb. That was mostly true. A scribbled question asked if they'd cried, hit something or thrown anything. Daniel had thrown the papers, did that count? Murphy had written that in his opinion they had survived the shock of what had happened to them, to their families and friends, and to the TL, but were still in denial. They hardly noticed that 'timeline' was substituted by 'TL'. After all, what if someone without clearance saw the paper?

Pain and guilt was the next topic. He'd written that they were all feeling the pain of loss. Loss of their previous lives. Loss of control over their situation. Loss because of the death of O'Neill. Their O'Neill. Loss of the other members of SG-1. Loss because O'Neill and Landry hadn't recognized them as friends. Daniel's paper stated that he was also feeling loss because of his leg. And physical pain. All were suffering survivor's guilt. Cam's also said he was feeling guilty because he'd used the explosive that dislodged the ship from the ice, causing Daniel to get frostbite and lose his leg. Sam's said that she was feeling guilty for not providing Cam with another option so he wouldn't use the explosive, and she was also feeling guilty for leaving Daniel behind on the ice.

Next was anger and bargaining. It said they were all displaying anger, while hiding lots of anger at the same time. They were angry with 'Ball'. Cam had to smile when he noticed the spelling. To use the correct spelling would present a security risk if just anyone saw it. This way it seemed like it was just someone's name. The report said they were angry with their interviewers. That was an understatement. It said they were angry with Colonel O'Neill and General Landry. Angry with General O'Neill for confronting Ball. Angry with him for dying. Angry because it seemed like nobody understood or cared about what happened to them. They were angry because the TL was wrong, and nobody except them wanted to change it. That was true. They were angry because nobody asked them where they'd like to live. Daniel's said he was angry about losing his leg. It also said he was harboring anger toward Cam for being stupid enough to blow a hole in the ship. And angry at both Cam and Sam for leaving him behind, even though he had told them to go, and they really had no choice. Daniel read Murphy's words and realized most of it was true. After bargaining the psychiatrist had written, 'There is none'. Then as maybe an afterthought, 'They feel powerless'. And that was true too. They felt powerless because they were. They had control over absolutely nothing.

The three members of SG-1 looked at each other. It was time for each one of them to take back control over what little they could. Starting with how they spent the time left on the plane. Daniel wasn't mobile, so Sam made the first move and moved over to sit by him on his right. He appeared grateful and happy to see her, and in another few seconds she was hugging him and they were whispering to each other. Their friendship was as strong as ever, and being separated wasn't going to change it. Sometime during the hug, or maybe the whispers, emotions boiled over and Sam started crying. She wept for what they all had lost. She wept for Daniel's leg. She wept for their situation and for their futures. Her tears turned to sobbing as she wept for herself. It was all so hard, almost too hard. Any hope of fixing the timeline seemed out of reach. And now they were going to be separated.

Cam gave the friends a little time alone, before he moved over to sit at Daniel's left, reaching across the man's body to rest his hand on Sam's arm. He didn't know how much comfort he'd be, but he knew she was only expressing what both he and Daniel were feeling too. Daniel lifted his head to look at Cam, and in that instant he realized that the archaeologist was crying too. Weeping for his lost leg, lost friends and everything that was wrong with the whole situation, Daniel didn't hold back. Nobody could understand what he was going through... nobody. No longer self conscious, a few tears hit Cam's cheek, and he quickly wiped them away with his hand. The hopelessness that had replaced frustration, was being washed away, and then he and Daniel hugged. They were alive. They didn't know what was going to happen tomorrow, in a month or in a year, but they were still alive. And as long as that was the case, there was still hope. A while later, the three were past feeling sorry for themselves, and were sitting quietly, looking over the last stages of grief on the handouts.

Murphy had written, '4,5,6 & 7 will happen while you're still in pain, in denial, feeling guilty and feeling angry. These all overlap. Be patient.' And he'd commented next to each of the remaining topics.

4 - Depression, reflection, loneliness – Please call for assistance if this goes beyond six months

5 - Things change for the better – You'll start to adjust. Smile and laugh again. Start enjoying things.

6 - Reconstruction, coping, learning to deal – You'll figure out how to live in the new TL. You'll learn to live without each other and without lost friends/family.

7 - Acceptance and hope – Due to the situation, this will take a long time. It will happen faster if you're allowed to talk to each other.

Sam, Daniel and Cam read what had been written and knew most of it was correct. They weren't wrong. They weren't right. They weren't damaged or insane. They were humans with human frailty, and they were getting ready to face the unknown once again. It was something they had experience with, and they'd get through it because they were survivors.

Dr. Murphy observed the three as they looked at the handouts. Jackson's body language betrayed his bravado as his whole body slumped. Carter moved over next to him, no longer able to keep her sorrow at bay and sobbed into his shoulder. Mitchell moved to Jackson's other side and reached across. She turned to look at him and he had tears too. Soon Jackson was relaxed in a Mitchell hug, and a few minutes later they were sitting close together and talking quietly. They'd made some headway, past the shock and denial. They were still angry, hurting and feeling guilty, but it was a start. They just needed some time.

He tried not to smile. It wasn't a pleasant thing to witness, but it was necessary to get them heading in the right direction. Not wanting to eavesdrop, just be close enough in case they wanted to talk, he thought about the exchange with Landry as the retired general had left the hanger.

"Reality caught up to them," he'd explained to Landry as the man closed the door to the hanger behind him, his chore accomplished. Sadness, and even a little regret, was very evident on his face, but before the psychiatrist could say anything to try to make him feel better, the older man had silenced him with a long, hard look. Finally breaking the gaze, and before ambling away, Landry had declared, "Reality catches up to everybody."

The End


Thanks for reading. Please let me know what you're thinking. :)