Chapter 4

Six days later, Sam sat waiting for the lights to change at the crossing, on her way back to the SGC, her woefully short mission report on the seat next to her. Normally she would be itching to get back to work, but today all she wanted to do was crawl back under her bed covers, something she hadn't wanted to do since she had started working on the Stargate project.

She felt like she was going insane. Maybe she was. Normal people did not know when their teammates were going to call them on the phone, half an hour before they actually did. Normal people also did not know what they called to tell her was that there was a glitch in the computer system that needed fixing as soon as she got back. Sam sighed. Doing anything with the computers was not what she really wanted to be doing at the moment.

She just felt...off. There wasn't anything she could pinpoint with complete certainty, but normally work inspired a child like glee within her. It was like her curiosity had been sucked out. She snorted to herself; obviously one of the unforeseen side effects of body possession.

The lights were changing when an image of Jack flashed into her mind. A few seconds later she heard the shrill tones of her mobile, demanding her attention. Keeping one eye one the road she dug her phone out from the bag on the seat next to her. Flipping it open, she went to answer as the road started to meander, leaving the Springs and going up towards the mountains.

'Carter' she said, trying to sound as perky as she normally did. Not again she thought as she heard Jack on the other end of the line.

'Yes sir, I'm on my way now.'

'Yes Daniel made me aware of it. It's my first priority.'

'No, no problem.'

'I'll see you soon then Sir.'

Sam frowned and turned the mobile off, before steering into the first security checks of Cheyenne Mountain. Slowing down to pull out her pass, she wished once more she were somewhere else. This was beginning to seriously get to her.

*~~***~~**~~***~~*

Jack waited impatiently for Sam to arrive in the control, oblivious to the people he was obstructing with his lingering. He was surprised she had willing stayed away as long as she had; unusually only one of Janet's little cocktails could keep her away for any substantial length of time. And she hadn't sounded too thrilled on the phone to be coming in; she had been too perky for somebody who was being sincere. Admittedly if it were him, he wouldn't be that keen on computers at the moment, but still...

When she eventually arrived, Jack had to restrain himself from ordering her right back home again. When she had left earlier that week, he would have said it was impossible to look much worse than she had then. But her face was pallid and drawn, with huge bags under her eyes and a haunted look in them. He doubted in she had got more than a few hours sleep a night.

Wearily she lowered herself down at a console, with a barest nod towards him. With a quiet query to one of the technicians about the root of the glitch, she set to work, although even if it escaped everybody else's notice, it didn't escape Jack's that her hands trembled slightly before they started to batter away at the keyboard.

'So, how long d'you reckon it'll take to work your mojo on this?' he asked as he walked up behind her chair.

'Hmmm?' she said looking up, noticeably distracted. 'Oh. Not long.' and with that she fell silent again. If he hadn't been so worried, Jack probably would have whooped at the lack of long and impossibly complicated explanations. When he had called her (several times in fact) during the week, she had been curt and brisk, though not at all surprised to hear him, almost like she had expected him. And her hearing had improved. She had heard Daniel ringing the bell at his house before he had. Although how she knew it was Daniel was (like so many things) beyond him. Maybe he had a special ring or something.

Pondering this, Jack almost missed the gate chevrons starting to lock until the technician (what was his name anyway? Jack had never managed to find out) blared the news out over the base.

'Unscheduled incoming wormhole. Locking the iris. Wormhole established'

'Is a GDO code being transmitted?' the portly General demanded, coming down the stairs to the control room, moving to where the gate was in full view, while Jack moved from next to Sam to Hammond's side. After a few seconds the tech replied.

'Yes sir. It's SG8'

'They're not scheduled back until 1600. Open the iris'

'No!' Sam's voice was quiet, but forceful, with just a hint of desperation in it. "Sir you MUST not open that iris!'

'And would you like to tell me why Major? The General asked in an exasperated manner.

'Sir, I...' Her voice faltered and it was then Jack noticed that her hands were clutching the desk so tightly they were white and her eyes were softly closed. A few beads of sweat ran down off her forehead and her cheeks were a flushed point of colour in her ashen features. Stiffening, forming a resolve, she reiterated 'you cannot open that iris Sir'. Opening her eyes she turned to look at them, the pleading clear. 'Please' she begged.

'Major Carter without good reason, you know I cannot knowingly let SG8 impact on that iris; it'd kill them' When Sam remained silent, Hammond turned back to the technician, but Jack kept his view on his Major. 'Sergeant, open the iris'.

SG1's brash Colonel watched while Sam despondently turned back to her computer, before starting to hurriedly type again. Just as the iris opened, the blast doors on either side of the gateroom closed with a grinding hiss.

'Major Carter! What the hell do you think you're...' the General stopped mid-bellow, when out from the watery blue disc, instead of SG8 stepped half a dozen Jaffa. Without stopping to wait for the orders, Sam shut the iris and started to power down the wormhole.

'Sir, get down!' Jack slammed down on the button that lowered the protective panel in front of the control room as the staffblast shattered the glass. After a few minutes, when the gunfire and staffblasts seemed to have subsided, he let the shield rise again, to a scene of carnage, laid out around the gate and ramp. All the Jaffa lay dead or dying, while several airmen also looked slightly worse for the wear. Alarms blared all around them, and Jack felt his head start to pound.

'Major, how did you know?' both Jack and the General expectantly turned their heads towards Sam. 'If you hadn't closed those doors, those Jaffa could have got out into the base.'

Hesitantly, shakily, Sam pushed herself to her feet. Jack started towards her, to offer his support, but she held out her hand to stop him.

'I, I... I'm not crazy' she whispered before she collapsed bonelessly to the floor.

Jack dived to catch her, missing by inches, so kneeled beside her and pulled her onto his lap. He briefly exchanged a confused look with Hammond, before the older man span round and reached for the nearest telephone, hastily calling the infirmary.

*~~***~~**~~***~~*

ok, so slightly gimmicky ending, but it seemed the best point at which to cut it off