Holly.
They were already waiting when she arrived, a young woman scared, alone and injured and far away from home. As she entered the conference room escorted by two officers something struck those present, the incredible sadness and sense of knowledge radiating as if from her spirit. She was a youngster of seventeen years, her light brown hair tangled and glistening with sweat, her face dirty and tear stained and her green eyes dull as if their light had gone out. She sat down, her escorting officers leaving, preparing herself for the questioning that was about to commence.
"So...you're from an alternate universe huh?" Jack O'Neill asked the young woman.
"Technically yes, a future one by the looks of it." She answered him just as quickly as he had asked his question.
"And you know that..."
"Holly..." she answered reading his mind "because you guys look just a little bit older in my universe. You'r kinda...bald." She said pointing to Jack.
"And you got here through the quantum mirror?" Samantha Carter asked surprised.
"Technically I was sent here through the quantum mirror, but yes."
"But I thought that had been destroyed." she turned around and stated to General Hammond. "after what happened last time..."
"I know Major, but we didn't quite get around to it. We have had more pressing matters to attend to."
"But surely something could've been done to prevent this sort of thing from happening again" she answered.
" Look Ma'am, I'm sorry if I've inconvenienced you by arriving here and if I've stirred up memories you're uncomfortable with, but it wasn't my choice to come here. My mother sent me. Every single person sitting at this table did, along with another sixty or so kids from my homeworld."
"Then where are they?" Carter asked intrigued by the young woman.
"Before it was my turn to go through the mirror there was an explosion. It caused the device to turn off and reset itself before I could follow the others through. My home, my planet is under attack by the Goa'uld, a scenario I'm sure you're familiar with. After the explosion they began to approach the room the mirror was in. Uncle Daniel didn't have time to find the same world as the other kids, if he had I would be dead, so he just sent me through to one where there seemed to be no attack, where I could be safe. That's here."
"Damn those Goa'uld bastards.." Jack O'Neill stated getting angry. "Why can't they just let people live, instead of attacking every damn thing that's different?"
"It's not in their nature is it." Holly answered him remorsefully. "My home, my family is dying Colonel. I don't know who's alive, who's dead, if my mom's okay, or even where all the other kids from the base ended up. I'm alone sir, and we need your help."
"Well we stopped the attack on the other alternate version of earth by helping Samantha to contact the Asguard. That made the Goa'uld run like hell." Daniel Jackson contributed.
"Actually they retreated and flew off Daniel Jackson." Teal'c answered not quite understanding the term Daniel had used.
"It's a figure of speech Teal'c." Daniel answered making the others smile, even the young woman, her face black with dirt.
"So.. do you have the Asguard in your universe?" Jack O'Neill asked trying to find out if there was a glimmer of hope in that respect.
"Yes we do. They managed to scare most of the Goa'uld fleet away, but I guess in eighteen years the scare factor of the Asguard must've lowered. We've had one or two ships, big ships..." she added sarcastically before stating "...constantly attacking Earth and the base for two weeks now, holding on for dear life."
"But surely some shuttles could be sent up, or some sort of ship to fight against them." Janet Fraiser who was still in the conference room asked.
"We just don't have the kind of fire power to do that." Holly stated "I mean sure in eighteen years the technology has developed to use to fight any threat to the planet, or the mountain, but the Goa'uld...no-one can create enough fire power to destroy them." she turned to the doctor. "Janet anybody who's gone up to fight against them, well lets just say they never came back."
"They're being used as hosts?" Major Samantha Carter asked the youngster.
"Yeah or killed. I couldn't tell you how many times I've seen one of our guys killed by a colleague who was taken over by one of those things. Too many to count." she answered getting upset.
"I'm a goddamn kid." she told them tears running down her face. "I'm meant to be going to the movies, going to school, not seeing things like this happen, not watching that damned ugly race kill my friends and take over my planet. No offense." she said then turning to Teal'c.
"None taken." he answered softly.
She noticed Janet Fraiser looking at her sleeve, blood was appearing through the fabric.
"I got caught in an explosion. I'm fine really."
"I'll be the judge of that." the Doctor answered going over to her and taking off her blood stained jacket. Her arm was burnt and bleeding. "We're going to have to finish this later I'm afraid, Holly should be in the infirmary." She told the General helping the young woman up.
"Agreed." he told her, "We'll carry on this conversation later see if we can find a way to help your world."
"Thank you General." she answered him before going up to him and giving him a kiss on the cheek, a gesture that reminded Jack O'Neill of an alternate version of Major Carter, a doctor in her universe rather than a military officer who did the self same thing to her friend after his being tortured by the Goa'uld trying to take over her planet. Her Earth.
Something fell on the floor.
"It's my locket." the youngster answered.
Sam picked it up.
"Thanks. It was a birthday gift from my mother. Grandpa gave it to her when she was a teenager."
The look of shock on Sams face caused everyone in the room to go quiet.
"You say this was your mothers?" she asked.
"Yeah." the youngster answered quietly.
"Sam..." O'Neill asked his her concerned, wanting to know what could be the matter.
She pulled a necklace out of her uniform, the same necklace though a little less worn than Holly's. It contained a gold heart which held inside a picture of her mother and father.
"So that means..."
"I'm your mother." Samantha Carter finished.
"Oh brother." Jack O'Neill said sitting down again.
"Well if I'm your mother then who's your father?" She asked the young woman with a sense of dread. In so many other alternate universes she had been involved with Jack, in one they were engaged, well before she died there, and in another they were married for a year before Jack's death in a similar invasion situation. It was not that she perceived this as anything bad, it just confused things between them. It was hard to know they could be so happy in those places, so in love, but that here there was just no way it could ever happen. He was her superior officer and it was against the regulations.
"I don't know." the youngster told her going back to their earlier conversation.
"What do you mean you don't know." Jack O'Neill asked her.
"Exactly what I said. My mother never told me who my father is just that he is someone who she loves very much. She told me doesn't regret the fact I was conceived, just that it could never be, no matter how painful that is. I figure there must be a reason."
"Obviously." the General stated before heading for the door. "I'll see you in four hours, hopefully by then someone will have some idea of how to help you and your world."
"Looks like it's gonna be one of those days" Daniel stated joining Jack at the table.
Suddenly the young woman collapsed onto the floor.
"We've got to get her to the infirmary stat." the Doctor told them checking her pulse. "Someone call for a crash team."
"I have a better idea." Jack O'Neill told her going over to the young woman and taking her into his arms, noticing blood seeping from a wound her leg nobody had known was there."
"Ah hell." he shouted, the others joining him on a desperate run to the infirmary.
They were already waiting when she arrived, a young woman scared, alone and injured and far away from home. As she entered the conference room escorted by two officers something struck those present, the incredible sadness and sense of knowledge radiating as if from her spirit. She was a youngster of seventeen years, her light brown hair tangled and glistening with sweat, her face dirty and tear stained and her green eyes dull as if their light had gone out. She sat down, her escorting officers leaving, preparing herself for the questioning that was about to commence.
"So...you're from an alternate universe huh?" Jack O'Neill asked the young woman.
"Technically yes, a future one by the looks of it." She answered him just as quickly as he had asked his question.
"And you know that..."
"Holly..." she answered reading his mind "because you guys look just a little bit older in my universe. You'r kinda...bald." She said pointing to Jack.
"And you got here through the quantum mirror?" Samantha Carter asked surprised.
"Technically I was sent here through the quantum mirror, but yes."
"But I thought that had been destroyed." she turned around and stated to General Hammond. "after what happened last time..."
"I know Major, but we didn't quite get around to it. We have had more pressing matters to attend to."
"But surely something could've been done to prevent this sort of thing from happening again" she answered.
" Look Ma'am, I'm sorry if I've inconvenienced you by arriving here and if I've stirred up memories you're uncomfortable with, but it wasn't my choice to come here. My mother sent me. Every single person sitting at this table did, along with another sixty or so kids from my homeworld."
"Then where are they?" Carter asked intrigued by the young woman.
"Before it was my turn to go through the mirror there was an explosion. It caused the device to turn off and reset itself before I could follow the others through. My home, my planet is under attack by the Goa'uld, a scenario I'm sure you're familiar with. After the explosion they began to approach the room the mirror was in. Uncle Daniel didn't have time to find the same world as the other kids, if he had I would be dead, so he just sent me through to one where there seemed to be no attack, where I could be safe. That's here."
"Damn those Goa'uld bastards.." Jack O'Neill stated getting angry. "Why can't they just let people live, instead of attacking every damn thing that's different?"
"It's not in their nature is it." Holly answered him remorsefully. "My home, my family is dying Colonel. I don't know who's alive, who's dead, if my mom's okay, or even where all the other kids from the base ended up. I'm alone sir, and we need your help."
"Well we stopped the attack on the other alternate version of earth by helping Samantha to contact the Asguard. That made the Goa'uld run like hell." Daniel Jackson contributed.
"Actually they retreated and flew off Daniel Jackson." Teal'c answered not quite understanding the term Daniel had used.
"It's a figure of speech Teal'c." Daniel answered making the others smile, even the young woman, her face black with dirt.
"So.. do you have the Asguard in your universe?" Jack O'Neill asked trying to find out if there was a glimmer of hope in that respect.
"Yes we do. They managed to scare most of the Goa'uld fleet away, but I guess in eighteen years the scare factor of the Asguard must've lowered. We've had one or two ships, big ships..." she added sarcastically before stating "...constantly attacking Earth and the base for two weeks now, holding on for dear life."
"But surely some shuttles could be sent up, or some sort of ship to fight against them." Janet Fraiser who was still in the conference room asked.
"We just don't have the kind of fire power to do that." Holly stated "I mean sure in eighteen years the technology has developed to use to fight any threat to the planet, or the mountain, but the Goa'uld...no-one can create enough fire power to destroy them." she turned to the doctor. "Janet anybody who's gone up to fight against them, well lets just say they never came back."
"They're being used as hosts?" Major Samantha Carter asked the youngster.
"Yeah or killed. I couldn't tell you how many times I've seen one of our guys killed by a colleague who was taken over by one of those things. Too many to count." she answered getting upset.
"I'm a goddamn kid." she told them tears running down her face. "I'm meant to be going to the movies, going to school, not seeing things like this happen, not watching that damned ugly race kill my friends and take over my planet. No offense." she said then turning to Teal'c.
"None taken." he answered softly.
She noticed Janet Fraiser looking at her sleeve, blood was appearing through the fabric.
"I got caught in an explosion. I'm fine really."
"I'll be the judge of that." the Doctor answered going over to her and taking off her blood stained jacket. Her arm was burnt and bleeding. "We're going to have to finish this later I'm afraid, Holly should be in the infirmary." She told the General helping the young woman up.
"Agreed." he told her, "We'll carry on this conversation later see if we can find a way to help your world."
"Thank you General." she answered him before going up to him and giving him a kiss on the cheek, a gesture that reminded Jack O'Neill of an alternate version of Major Carter, a doctor in her universe rather than a military officer who did the self same thing to her friend after his being tortured by the Goa'uld trying to take over her planet. Her Earth.
Something fell on the floor.
"It's my locket." the youngster answered.
Sam picked it up.
"Thanks. It was a birthday gift from my mother. Grandpa gave it to her when she was a teenager."
The look of shock on Sams face caused everyone in the room to go quiet.
"You say this was your mothers?" she asked.
"Yeah." the youngster answered quietly.
"Sam..." O'Neill asked his her concerned, wanting to know what could be the matter.
She pulled a necklace out of her uniform, the same necklace though a little less worn than Holly's. It contained a gold heart which held inside a picture of her mother and father.
"So that means..."
"I'm your mother." Samantha Carter finished.
"Oh brother." Jack O'Neill said sitting down again.
"Well if I'm your mother then who's your father?" She asked the young woman with a sense of dread. In so many other alternate universes she had been involved with Jack, in one they were engaged, well before she died there, and in another they were married for a year before Jack's death in a similar invasion situation. It was not that she perceived this as anything bad, it just confused things between them. It was hard to know they could be so happy in those places, so in love, but that here there was just no way it could ever happen. He was her superior officer and it was against the regulations.
"I don't know." the youngster told her going back to their earlier conversation.
"What do you mean you don't know." Jack O'Neill asked her.
"Exactly what I said. My mother never told me who my father is just that he is someone who she loves very much. She told me doesn't regret the fact I was conceived, just that it could never be, no matter how painful that is. I figure there must be a reason."
"Obviously." the General stated before heading for the door. "I'll see you in four hours, hopefully by then someone will have some idea of how to help you and your world."
"Looks like it's gonna be one of those days" Daniel stated joining Jack at the table.
Suddenly the young woman collapsed onto the floor.
"We've got to get her to the infirmary stat." the Doctor told them checking her pulse. "Someone call for a crash team."
"I have a better idea." Jack O'Neill told her going over to the young woman and taking her into his arms, noticing blood seeping from a wound her leg nobody had known was there."
"Ah hell." he shouted, the others joining him on a desperate run to the infirmary.