Jack was in the bedroom, alone. He was scrutinizing a drawer on which he saw frames he hadn't paid attention to when he had woken up. Sam and he were standing in one of the frames. The picture had been taken at their wedding. They looked beautiful, blessed. That was definitely a very nice picture to look at. Another one had been taken a few hours after the twins were born, Jack supposed by the look of Sam. She and Jack were holding each of the boys in their arms. Sam was in the bed, exhausted, offering the best smile she could offer at that moment. Jack was grinning in a way he never thought he was capable of, ecstatic about his newborns. Another very nice picture to look at.
Was Jack in an alternate reality?
Or in a fantasy dream in which everything was perfect?
Or did he travel forward in time?
Or was he in the reality but had no recollection of the last few years, and how was it possible?
He didn't touch a mirror.
He did travel through the stargate. Thus, it was possible that a solar flare occurred at the same time he was stepping through the gate or that the wormhole went near a black hole... Wait, was he thinking about these options by himself? Jack smiled, proud of himself.
The banquet was the last thing he recalled doing. He left the banquet, fell onto the cot, and bam, woke up in this bedroom. In conclusion, something happened after he fell onto the cot, which explained why he didn't remember anything since that moment.
Maybe he normally awoke in that cot the next morning, touched something that sent him in an alternate reality. Maybe he normally awoke and the solar flare or the black hole occurred when he used the gate to go back to the SGC. If he integrated an alternate dimension, why didn't Sam react differently? She would notice he wasn't her Jack, wouldn't she? Maybe he normally awoke in that cot, returned to the SGC and resumed his everyday life until he had an accident that erased his memories of at least the last two years.
The general shook his head. There were too many questions but no many leads right now. He had to act as he was expected to act. Keep a low profile and investigate as much as he could without making everyone panic.
Where could he start?
Sam had mentioned Sergeants Monroe and Fox. It made sense to Jack to wear his blue dress. Besides, there was a black leather briefcase next to the valet. Jack approached the valet and a detail on the uniform stroke him. He spotted four stars on the epaulets. Did he leave Homeworld Command for another position? The man searched the bag. There was no relevant documents. It was normal, he wouldn't bring sensitive papers at home. He grabbed the wallet in the briefcase and took a business card that was inside.
Another surprise blew Jack's mind.
General Jack O'Neill was the Vice Chief of Staff of the US Air Force.
"What in God's name..." the general sighed.
Who had this crazy idea to appoint him Vice Chief of Staff? How did Jack accept this?