Chapter one
Jack was a happy man. The promise of a mission had been music to his ears. Now the said mission was taking place, he was excited and a little apprehensive. Any person that went offworld without being was going to get their self killed. He enjoyed playing the dumb one on the team. Not that he'd let his team know, but the nocturnal people on PX29 K85 intrigued him. He wondered idly why the people there did all their business by night. They lived their lives in darkness.
It seemed that during the day, they slept, safely hidden from the light in underground bunkers that had only barely shown up on the heat seeking equipment the MALP carried. His two favorite scientists had thrown ideas around, but none of them really seemed to be the answer. They knew from the MALP that the sunlight was safe- it didn't contain dangerous amounts of radiation. It actually had less UV than Earth sunlight.
Daniel had ventured the idea that it was some type of religious thing, but again, there was no evidence to support his theory. Teal'c had admitted that he had heard stories about worlds were the inhabitants lived in darkness, but he'd never visited one himself. He had told the team that the worlds were not banned to the false gods. They stayed away from the worlds because of something that was there. Teal'c didn't know what it was and secretly, he had no real desire to find out. To coin an Earth phrase that he'd heard Jack use, he wished to 'let sleeping dogs lie.'
SG1 were shipping out to the planet in roughly three hours, giving the team enough time to prepare their gear and grab something to eat before stepping on to that strange new world. They had another addition to their packs today, at Jack's insistence. The lanterns would run for days at a time on a single power cell. He didn't want his team trapped offworld without a reliable source of light. It had happened to teams in the past, and he was damned if it was going to happen to him.
A swift glance at his watch showed him that he had to be at the briefing room in just over ten minutes. He knew that from where he was on the base, he could make it in five minutes, but he turned and made his way there. Hammond was already there, but the rest of SG1 was absent.
"Morning sir." Jack said as he grabbed himself a cup of strong black coffee. He settled into his normal position and studied the thick white cup in his hand.
"Colonel." Hammond greeted his second in command. Jack had turned up five minutes early, as normal for him. He set- and kept high standards.
He was about to say more when the remaining members of SG1 entered the briefing room. With all the members present, Hammond started the briefing by passing identical light blue folders around the table. They contained all the gathered information about the planet, including the meager information they'd managed to glean about the people who lived on the planet.
"Does anyone have anything to add?" the Mayor General asked.
Jack spoke before Sam could, saying "General, I think I speak for everyone when I say that we're all slightly concerned about why these people are, essentially, doing everything in reverse." He knew that he was. After watching the dead calm that prevailed on the planet during the daylight hours, he found himself wondering what would force a race of people to invert their lives.
Still, from the looks he received, none of his team shared his concerns. Teal'c looked a little worried, but it could be Jack seeing his own worries reflected there. He planned to speak to Teal'c on his own as soon as he got the chance.
The briefing was quickly over and after a quick, but thorough medical exam, they geared up and met each other in the gateroom. They were planning to stay offworld for a week, and had enough supplies for twice that. Not one of them had any idea as to the nightmare they'd be stepping into.
Jack was a happy man. The promise of a mission had been music to his ears. Now the said mission was taking place, he was excited and a little apprehensive. Any person that went offworld without being was going to get their self killed. He enjoyed playing the dumb one on the team. Not that he'd let his team know, but the nocturnal people on PX29 K85 intrigued him. He wondered idly why the people there did all their business by night. They lived their lives in darkness.
It seemed that during the day, they slept, safely hidden from the light in underground bunkers that had only barely shown up on the heat seeking equipment the MALP carried. His two favorite scientists had thrown ideas around, but none of them really seemed to be the answer. They knew from the MALP that the sunlight was safe- it didn't contain dangerous amounts of radiation. It actually had less UV than Earth sunlight.
Daniel had ventured the idea that it was some type of religious thing, but again, there was no evidence to support his theory. Teal'c had admitted that he had heard stories about worlds were the inhabitants lived in darkness, but he'd never visited one himself. He had told the team that the worlds were not banned to the false gods. They stayed away from the worlds because of something that was there. Teal'c didn't know what it was and secretly, he had no real desire to find out. To coin an Earth phrase that he'd heard Jack use, he wished to 'let sleeping dogs lie.'
SG1 were shipping out to the planet in roughly three hours, giving the team enough time to prepare their gear and grab something to eat before stepping on to that strange new world. They had another addition to their packs today, at Jack's insistence. The lanterns would run for days at a time on a single power cell. He didn't want his team trapped offworld without a reliable source of light. It had happened to teams in the past, and he was damned if it was going to happen to him.
A swift glance at his watch showed him that he had to be at the briefing room in just over ten minutes. He knew that from where he was on the base, he could make it in five minutes, but he turned and made his way there. Hammond was already there, but the rest of SG1 was absent.
"Morning sir." Jack said as he grabbed himself a cup of strong black coffee. He settled into his normal position and studied the thick white cup in his hand.
"Colonel." Hammond greeted his second in command. Jack had turned up five minutes early, as normal for him. He set- and kept high standards.
He was about to say more when the remaining members of SG1 entered the briefing room. With all the members present, Hammond started the briefing by passing identical light blue folders around the table. They contained all the gathered information about the planet, including the meager information they'd managed to glean about the people who lived on the planet.
"Does anyone have anything to add?" the Mayor General asked.
Jack spoke before Sam could, saying "General, I think I speak for everyone when I say that we're all slightly concerned about why these people are, essentially, doing everything in reverse." He knew that he was. After watching the dead calm that prevailed on the planet during the daylight hours, he found himself wondering what would force a race of people to invert their lives.
Still, from the looks he received, none of his team shared his concerns. Teal'c looked a little worried, but it could be Jack seeing his own worries reflected there. He planned to speak to Teal'c on his own as soon as he got the chance.
The briefing was quickly over and after a quick, but thorough medical exam, they geared up and met each other in the gateroom. They were planning to stay offworld for a week, and had enough supplies for twice that. Not one of them had any idea as to the nightmare they'd be stepping into.