Summary: SG-1 finds a planet where things happen in strange ways. This is the Daniel-version, per request of not-so-Wee Hamish, who really wants Daniel to be let out of his room. It is also an exercise in adding a character to an already established story
Rating: PG-per usual
Spoilers-None. Teeny, tiny references to Brief Candle, Torment of Tantalus, Fire & Water, The Nox, The Gamekeeper, The Tok'ra, Fair Game, Demons, Red Sky.
Disclaimer-I don't own Stargate SG-1. They belong to MGM and a whole bunch of other people. And there is one heck of a waiting line to claim them, should they ever get released. I do own Arion, Jevon, and Ravon and their ilk-sort of. Thank you's to Ryan, Jim, and Andy for their inspiration. Eeyore belongs to A.A. Milne.
Child's Play
(The B-side)
It was a fifty-fifty shot each time each time they stepped through the Stargate. Either the gate was right in the middle of the most advanced civilization on a planet, or it was right in the middle of nowhere. P8Z-791 appeared to be one of the "good" ones in that respect-the gate was within sight of a village. What technological level its inhabitants possessed to remained to be seen. Still, the weather was decent, not cold, not hot. It felt like a typical early autumn day back on Earth. The sky was a classic blue, dotted with a few clouds. A beach stretched in front of them, reminding Jack of (what the heck was that planet's designation? Never could keep those numbers straight) Nem's planet-minus the volcanoes. Behind the Gate, grass and sand blended, shaded into grass, then thickened into a sort of woods as it curved around the edge of the village. Here and there were clumps of bamboo, and the occasional cactus. All in all, a textbook-perfect setting The place looked modest enough. A few huts, some farms, a couple of other buildings whose function he could only guess at for now. Most of the buildings-if you could call them that-looked downright primitive in construction. Doesn't look like too advanced a place. There was a building that might be a barracks of some sort. All in all, a relatively simple place. Not much of a threat in his book. Daniel had already unloaded his video camera, and begun taping. Carter and Teal'c moved to either side of Jack, each doing their own assessment of the place. "Looks pretty simple," said Carter, echoing his thoughts. "Appearances are sometimes deceptive," Teal'c observed. "Thank you, Teal'c. You always get to the heart of the matter." Jack adjusted his sunglasses, then his hat. He sneaked a look at Teal'c, trying to gauge if the Jaffa was serious, or just pulling his leg again. "Let's go, kids." His initial analysis was confirmed. The huts were pretty basic, probably one-room affairs with walls made of logs placed vertically next to each other, mud wadded between them. The windows and doorways-like the roof-were covered in cloth. "Not your typical log cabin," Jack said. "Poteaux enterre," Daniel responded absently. At Jack's puzzled look, he added, "It's an early French construction method. A quicker way to build, as long as you don't have a frostline to heave the walls out of place." Once they walked past a couple of those, they found themselves standing in what seemed to be a town center. There was a mill about fifty yards away. Donkey-operated, according to the random bray. A couple of rather scruffy-looking militia types were hanging around the barracks, seemingly oblivious to anything. Their armament consisted of spiked clubs. Not too threatening, although those clubs could give a guy one hell of a headache. And that seemed to be the town.
O'Neill glanced at Carter, who shrugged. Except for the militia, the place seemed deserted. But they could hear the ring of axes in the woods, an occasional ping of a pickaxe on stone, and the faint creak of the millstone turning. Beyond the mill, there were a few fields, each with a villager working in the middle of it. "That's odd," Daniel said. "What?" "The buildings are French construction," Daniel said, his voice thoughtful, "But bamboo doesn't grow in France..." "We're not in France," Jack said impatiently. Daniel gave him an I-know-that look. "Bamboo doesn't lend itself to that sort of construction," he said, "Maybe if we ask one of those farmers?" Carter suggested. "As opposed to the army guys?" Jack asked. Carter opened her mouth, then closed it. Sometimes the colonel's comments didn't need a response. She glanced toward Daniel, who shrugged and continued videotaping. "Okay," said Jack, "We'll ask the farmers." They started toward the nearest of the fields. The air shifted. That was about the most apt way to describe what happened. The buildings in the village seemed to shimmer, then settle. And change.