It was as if they had a vendetta against the whole human race, Cameron Mitchell thought as he watched the creatures moving beyond the force field. More seemed to gather every day and Mitchell realised that they were intent on wiping out this little corner of humanity. At first, he'd been sure they weren't the only ones left alive, but as time went on, he started to have his doubts. It had been weeks since they'd had any contact with anyone else and the last reports hadn't been encouraging. Mitchell realised that their survival had been down to Sam Carter's genius … and everyone knew it.

Sometimes, he admitted to himself, he did get a little jealous. He didn't have the smarts to do the things she did. If she were just some geeky scientist then maybe he could have coped, but the fact she seemed to be superwoman got to him. If sometimes he was an ass to her then it was only to be expected. At least that was what he told himself.

He could see himself living out the rest of his days here, trapped behind a fence. These creatures didn't seem to want to give up and go away. Why should they when they were within a gnat's whisker of genocide? Some nights Mitchell actually found himself praying that the Ori would show up and destroy these things… and he'd gladly bow down and worship them. His trips through the Stargate seemed like nothing more than a distant memory, a childhood fantasy. Mitchell knew he'd never walk among the stars again.

All he'd wanted was to live up to everyone else's expectations. To be the hero everyone told him he was, and now… now he couldn't even fly the damned time ship. God knew but he'd tried. Almost every night for the first month, he'd crept into the hanger where the time ship was stored and tried his hardest to make the lights come on. Cam knew there was nothing he could do about his genetic make-up, but it still annoyed that there was an aircraft he couldn't fly.

It was almost dawn. Almost the end of his shift. He would be glad when he could start working days again. Right now his body clock was completely screwed, but the secret of a good command was to do every job yourself at least once. Someone had told him that, but right now, he couldn't recall who it had been.

God, he needed to sleep. He was starting to hallucinate. Like, if he looked towards the horizon he could see the kind of dust cloud raised by a small bus. It was just a figment of his tired brain. As was the muffled roar of an engine and the whiff of diesel…

Or not!

There really was someone out there! For a second Cameron stood there transfixed, unable to decide what to do. The forcefield was their only means of protection, but the nutter in the bus was heading straight for it. He'd kill himself… and any unfortunate sap he might have with him. Mitchell wasn't about to let that happen. There were too few humans on this planet.

"Carter!" he yelled into his radio.

"What?" her sleepy voice demanded.

"We got incoming."

"Hostile."


"No… at least I hope not."

Sooner than he imagined was possible, Sam came running out. She saw the bus and went straight for the Naquadah reactor. That was one thing he liked about Carter. She made her own decisions. He didn't have to think for her.

"Lock and load!" Cam ordered.

As soon as the force field dropped, the creatures would swarm. The electric fence would fry a few of them but… Mitchell hated to think what might happen if any of them managed to get inside the compound. Carter was crouched over the reactor, ready to switch it off when the moment came. This was not some random event. Whoever was driving the bus knew exactly where they were heading. Mitchell signalled for two men to man the gate.

The creatures, alerted by the noise, were moving towards the vehicle but the driver didn't even slow down and drove straight over them. Cameron found himself cheering as the screams of anguish rent the air. Score one for the humans. The victory, however, was short lived. More and more of them swarmed towards the bus and soon it was lost to view beneath the seething mass.

"Carter, kill the force field," Mitchell ordered. "You, you and you with me."

He wasn't about to stand there and let a busload of people get slaughtered. Mitchell signalled for the gate to be opened just wide enough for a small team to get through.

He just hoped they'd be enough of a distraction.

They started firing as soon as the shimmer of the force field died. Even though their bullets had little effect, attacking on two fronts, it was enough to attract some of the creatures away from the bus. Sometimes Mitchell wondered how intelligent these things actually were… or weather it was pure hatred that made them want to kill every human that came within reach. All he knew was there were suddenly dozens of heading towards him.

"Fall back!" he screamed.

As they scurried back into the compound, he had to hope they'd done enough. The forcefield was still down and the creatures were heading towards them… but the bus was closer.

"Carter now!"

In the seconds it took for Sam to respond to his order, the bus had passed the threshold and the forcefield shimmered into life. There was a certain amount of satisfaction to be gained from the sight of their enemy hurling themselves helplessly against the invisible wall.

The bus skidded to a halt, a cloud of black smoke billowing from the exhaust and Cam realised they had to be almost out of fuel. It was a miracle they'd made it.

XOXOXO

Sam checked the Naquadah reactor as quickly as she dared. There was no way they could risk it failing. As such, her attention wasn't focussed on the people climbing out of the bus. It was only as she heard a child's scream that she looked up. There had to be upwards of twenty people gathered around the vehicle, most of them children. Sam's first thought was how they were going to feed them all. But it wasn't one she was about to vocalise. They'd find a way.

Dusting off her knees, she climbed to her feet, ready to join the group surrounding the newcomers. However, someone was coming to meet her. A small blonde child carried on his hip, there was no mistaking the swagger in his walk or the smirk on his face. Sam just stood there, torn between rushing towards him and running away.

"Sir?"

She hadn't meant to make it sound like a question. It was him… but so much time had passed. So much had happened and she had no idea what he'd been through to get here. He put the child down, letting her sit down in the dirt and play with the toy she had clutched in her hand.

"Carter," he said.

"Landry?" Sam asked. She could see Teal'c amongst the gathering, but there was no sign of the General. Confirming her worst fears, O'Neill shook his head and Sam felt another little part of her would crumble. To disguise her grief, she turned her attention to the little girl. She ruffled the child's hair.

"Let's see if we can find you some place to sleep," she said.

The child glanced at O'Neill before taking the hand that Sam offered. Of all of them, the kids seemed to be the least affected by the dramatic arrival. Sam guessed this was the stuff their dreams were made of. Exciting escapes for the jaws of death were something out of childhood imagination. They weren't old enough to realise that it wasn't part of 'normal' life.

Even if food was scarce, there was plenty of dormitory space and Sam spent the next hour making sure everyone was settled … anything to avoid talking to O'Neill. He was here and they had a far better chance of putting their plan into action. They didn't need to contact Atlantis now. Changing all this should be as simple as taking the time ship back to a point in time where the box was present in the tomb. All they had to do was remove it… and make certain that Daniel Jackson never found it again.

And then what?

The truth was Sam had no idea. They'd changed the past before and their lives hadn't changed because of it. Or if they had, the alterations had bypassed their awareness. Did their alternative selves live out their lives in Earth's past? Or did they just fade away? For some reason the idea scared her. The last few months had been tough and she would give anything for her life to return to normal… but she didn't want to lose an essential part of what she had become.

Sam managed to avoid O'Neill for most of the day, but she couldn't keep away forever. She was in her lab. when he found her, and Sam cursed herself for choosing to hide out in such an obvious place. There was a certain thrill of familiarity when she looked up to see him leaning against the door.

"Did you get the kids settled?" she asked.

"Bedtime stories and all," he replied.

It was late. Despite the early start to her day, Sam hadn't taken the opportunity to rest. There was still so much to be done. Even if they left tomorrow, there was no guarantee that their mission back in time would be successful. Certain safeguards had to be left in place… just in case.

"Happy to see me?" he asked.

"Always, sir," Sam smiled.

Her grin was genuine, if a little tentative. He'd certainly lost weight. Last time Sam had seen him, it had been evident that life behind a desk had expanded his waistline slightly. There was certainly no sign of that now.

"Did Mitchell fill you in?" she went on, all business. It seemed safer that way.

"Yeah, I'm ready to go when you are," he replied.

"There's just one more thing I want to finish up."


Sam turned back to her workbench, only to find that her hand had been gently but firmly taken in his.

"The past's not going anywhere," he reprimanded her.

"I know… it's just… this is for Vala."

Nodding his understanding, Jack released Sam's hand.

"I'll see you in the morning."

XOXOXO

Vala didn't look convinced. Daniel knew that Sam had slaved all night to get this finished, but he couldn't help feeling that the other woman was taking it as some kind of insult. He couldn't exactly blame her. Daniel wasn't certain how he would have responded to this obvious reminder of her disability. On the other hand, if it helped her become more independent then surely it was worth persevering.

"Shall we go outside?" he offered.

She shrugged giving the impression that she didn't care one way or the other.

"Give us a moment," Daniel told the others.

He didn't want a parade of people following. Walking round behind Vala, he grasped the wheelchair and started to push it out of the room.

"Wait," she stopped him.

"What?"

"I'll do it myself. Isn't that the point?"

Daniel immediately stepped back, letting Vala wheel the chair herself. She got a little stuck at the door, but he didn't dare help.

"Ha," he heard her say as she finally managed to get herself out into the corridor.

"Thank you," Daniel whispered to Sam, before following Vala.

"You're welcome," Sam smiled.

Vala was wheeling herself down the corridor with a certain amount of determination. Daniel had to hurry to open the door otherwise he suspected she would have gone right through it. She'd spent the last six months more or less imprisoned in the same room and no one but no one, was going to stop her getting outside. The expression on her face, when she finally reached her goal, was beautiful to behold.

The sun was shining and she turned her face towards it, closing her eyes as she took deep breaths of the warm air. Figuring she was going to be there for a while, Daniel sat down beside her. It wasn't a particularly inspiring view. The grey blocky buildings could never be described as attractive, but if you hadn't been outside in months…

Somewhere in the distance, Daniel caught the sound of childish laughter. There was a rumour going around that Jack had turned up with a bus load of kids. Daniel hadn't had the chance to see for himself but it seemed the stories were true. Three children dashed into view, playing some incomprehensible game that defied adult logic. They ran around Vala's chair, Daniel wanted to stop them, just in case they banged against it and knocked it over, but the expression on her face stopped him. She was smiling, genuinely happy.

Eventually the game took them to another part of the compound, and the smile faded.

"Do you want to go in?" Daniel ventured, wondering at this sudden change in mood.

"Not yet," she said.

He had the feeling she'd stay exactly where she was, even if it started raining.

"Daniel?" she began.

"What?"

"You're going to leave… aren't you?"

"How did you…?"

"It's only my legs that don't work."

She wasn't angry. There was a resignation in her tone that made Daniel think she'd been expecting this.

"I have to," he replied.

When Jack turned up Daniel realised that there was no longer any reason why Sam's plan couldn't be put into action. He also knew that he had to go. Archaeologists were just as rare as those who carried the Ancient gene.

"I know," she smiled.

"Vala if there was another way…"

"It's okay. I mean… I'm okay…"

"I'll be back soon, I promise."

She nodded, almost as if she didn't believe him. Which he supposed was the truth. If they succeeded then none of this would happen… and he wouldn't be back. If they failed… Daniel just didn't know. He couldn't offer false promise, not to this woman. She had been disappointed too many times before.

"Let's just sit here," she went on. "Enjoy the day."

Taking his hand, Vala held it tightly… as if she didn't want to let him go.