Chapter 27 – In Pursuit

"Oh, for crying out loud!" came Jen's exasperated voice. "They're guys, aren't they? Their brains are in their balls most of the time, just like on every planet we've been to."

Sam's wry smile at Teal'c's face *almost* cracking into a readable expression only encouraged Hailey further.

"Look, don't tell me you've not put out that kind of message when you wanted something, Sam." she continued. "I've seen you manipulating Jack often enough this last year." She paused for a moment, reflecting. "OK, bad example maybe. He's not the pushover that Jeff is...... Used to be....." Her voice trailed away as emotion threatened to boil up inside her again.

After calming herself, Sam had shown Corporal Johanovic's letter to them both the day before, causing Jen to shout obscenities and generally rage before she suddenly broke down and wept in Sam's arms. Teal'c, on reading the news had simply abandoned any further plans he had concerning his fellow Jaffa and had vowed his unwavering support to the two women in their obvious task. After a due period of consolation and restraining Hailey in particular from acting illogically or unwisely (his terms), they had quietly discussed possible actions to release the men who had given everything to bring about their own freedom. It had been long past midnight before their thoughts had settled on any kind of plan.

So here they were together only hours later, sitting on logs around a cooking pot suspended over a small fire in the early morning chill air. Wisps of steam rose from each of their bowls of Chulakian fruit porridge that constituted the first daily routine of a Jaffa encampment. Their footprints in the morning dew on the grass marking their way to this spot would soon disappear in the heat of another day, and Sam was suddenly aware that her slow re-acclimatisation from the tropical heat of Andar to the more temperate summer on Chulak would no longer be a source of complaint for Jen or herself, certainly not after reading of Jack and Jeff's experiences back on Earth. She shivered involuntarily under her tunic, not so much from the temperature as from the anticipation of their next actions.

She looked at Jen. "Maybe *I* should be the one to distract the guards while you and Teal'c fire up the engines." she said softly.

Jen smiled wickedly. "No offence Sam, but I really think that, how shall I put this? The sight of little ol' lissom me emerging nymph-like from a cold stream in a wet tee-shirt is going to be more likely to keep 'em rooted to the spot than, say, the possibility of having one of the more chivalrous ones help an obviously pregnant lady stumble around......"

Sam opened her mouth and glared at Jen in astonishment, only to have the funny side become suddenly apparent with Teal'c's response of "Indeed.", his face never losing the diplomatic neutral expression he had so perfected.

Sam laughed out loud and made to get up in the clumsy way that her greater girth was forcing her to accept. "Very well, let's do it." she added in a cheerful voice, all uncertainties buried for the time being.

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Chulak was just a bright sphere in the rear-view monitor of the Al'kesh bomber when Jen appeared back on the bridge, wrapped in a large absorbent cloth and vigorously rubbing her wet hair with one corner of it. She was still shivering, and seeing her plight in the reflection of the window in front of him, Teal'c reached over and passed his finger over an illuminated area on the side instrument panel that would raise the cabin temperature.

It had been ridiculously easy for Sam and Teal'c to sneak into the Jaffa's prize capture as each and every one of the guards had stood transfixed at the sight of Jen splashing and squealing in the nearby stream. The scene that would linger in Sam's mind was her view from the side portal of the morning sun highlighting Jen's brazen walk out of the stream towards the guards, the steam rising from her semi-transparent tee-shirt when she stooped to pick up her dry clothes matched only by the suddenly- increased volumes of misty breath emanating from the gaggle of guards.

"Hi boys! Do you mind if I change in your engine room?" Jen had said in a sultry voice, not pausing as she sauntered past their open mouths without stopping, entering the ship through the open doorway. One man who fancied his chances and followed her had been met suddenly and unexpectedly by Teal'c's fist as he entered the craft, to be sent sprawling on the ground outside as the door slid shut.

"Everything OK, Teal'c?" asked Jen as she now stood in a draught of warm air entering the cabin from an overhead vent.

"Indeed it is not, JenHailey." replied Teal'c.

"What?....." Sam started to ask, only to be interrupted by Teal'c's explanation.

"I trained some of those guards myself." he said. "I am disappointed by their foolish response to an obvious diversionary tactic."

"Well, I'm not!" laughed Jen. "You can't fight the forces of nature, Teal'c! We'll be in charge of the Universe before you men realise it."

"That is also my concern." replied Teal'c, and Sam could not help adding her smile to Jen's triumphant grin.

But the levity of the moment soon passed as they concentrated on the task ahead. Four days of hyperspatial travel to Earth lay ahead of them, giving enough time to plan alternative courses of action. Sam took over the controls after Teal'c had demonstrated the similarities to a Tel'tak while he and Hailey surveyed the captured Goa'uld ship. Eventually, some two hours into hyperspace, they sat down beside her and offered her the biggest portion of the meagre rations found in the ship's small galley.

"Come on, guys!" she protested. "Share and share alike."

"JenHailey and I have discussed this, Samantha." said Teal'c. "We shall without hesitation obey your commands on this mission. But in the matter of caring for your child, we will not permit you to do anything less than provide adequate nourishment, nor anything more than the minimum physical effort required to return O'Neill and Grogan to us all. In this we are both determined and resolute."

"I'm just happy for the lizard population around the Jaffa camp." added Hailey.

Sam blushed, and silently accepted her plate. "So, what inventory do we have on board?" she asked between mouthfuls.

"There are twenty-four high-yield, non-fissionable blast bombs in the bay." replied Teal'c. "The forward and aft plasma cannon are in full working order and capable of sustained fire for around ten minutes each before recharging becomes necessary."

"The shield circuitry is a little different from the model that Jack and Teal'c captured a while back." added Jen. "Looks like it's been boosted a tad. I guess they must have beefed it up after we brought down a few on different planets. There's also four zats in the locker."

"So we can more or less go where we like on Earth, then." Sam surmised. "Is there a cloaking device?"

"None that I can see." replied Jen, scraping the last of the food from her plate.

They sat for a while in silence before Sam spoke again.

"We'll put on a show that Earth will never forget." she announced. "By bringing alien technology – sorry, Teal'c – into public view, the President won't have any reason to withhold the secrecy surrounding the Stargate program any longer. That might help to loosen the grip that the NID has over the SGC."

"I believe that would be a good plan." said Teal'c. "I shall be proud to be seen as myself to the population."

"What, no more cock-a-mamie hats?" Jen dug in, smiling and receiving a full- wattage glare in return.

"We'll go for Jeff first." Sam continued. "We know where he is and we can more or less go where we please in this ship. If we went for Jack first and they got to know about it, we'd never get to Jeff. At least Jack has a small chance of evading capture out in the open once everyone knows what we're doing."

"How will you persuade them to let him out of Leavenworth?" asked Jen.

"Simple." said Sam. "I'll get help from high places, and failing that I'll threaten to blow the place apart if they don't. A short demo with the cannon should convince them. Look, Jen. I hope you realise that when we're done, there'll be no place for any of us to live on Earth again. They'd be forever out to bring us under control or extract revenge. This is a fight we cannot lose under any circumstances."

"I know that." Jen replied. "I'm not objecting."

"Very well." Sam's mantle of command came easily to her, and she continued to guide their planning session for the next few hours, considering and re- considering the irrevocable steps they were about to take.

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"You assured me that our Air Force was more capable of taking out this intruder than any of the others!" President Schwarzenegger shouted at his aide. "So explain to me why, after their grand tour of world capitals, we can expect them on The White House lawns within a few minutes! And call off the goddamned fighters, too! They're just buzzing round inflicting collateral damage every time a missile gets deflected and hits the ground. I'm going out to meet them face-to-face."

"I wouldn't advise that, Mr. President." said the black-suited NID man at the side of the oval office.

"Shut up, asshole!" came the presidential retort. "It's your department that's got us into this situation from the outset. I *will* meet with the aliens when they arrive!"

"Yes, Mr. President." the man replied, hanging back as his commander-in- chief left the room, and then starting up another conversation in his headset. "Boss? We're losing control of the situation here." he said quietly into the microphone. Recommend commencement of Operation Terminator immediately. Yes, Sir. I'll do that."

The President stood in the centre of the gardens, surrounded by security men brandishing Uzi machine pistols and nine millimetre handguns. In the rear was a detachment of marines with heavier calibre weapons and shoulder- launched missiles. He stared ahead at the small view port in the Al'kesh as it hovered just three metres above ground. They could clearly make out the imposing, impassive face of a bald man wearing what looked from this distance like a golden Mercedes car emblem on his forehead. The side door slid open and to their surprise, an obviously pregnant blond woman dressed in an unusual style of tunic stepped out and walked round to stand close to the nose of the strange craft. Immediately behind her, a heavy cannon swivelled slightly but remained pointing away from them, a sign perhaps of non-hostile intent.

A sudden slight movement from the woman was met with a short burst of Uzi fire from one of the NID security men, and everyone ducked as bullets ricocheted in several directions.

"Cease firing!" yelled The President, getting up and walking forward towards the person he recognised from briefings with General Hammond. "Are you all right, Major Carter?"

"Yes, Sir." Sam replied calmly. "Please tell the others to stay back. What I have to say is for your ears only." She waited until he was the only person within earshot. In the distance a whole foray of guns were pointed at her but it mattered not.

"As you can see, the force shield around the ship is effective." She looked over towards the man who had fired at her. "You should know, Mr. President that the NID man in your office has just contacted his superior and called for the commencement of 'Operation Terminator'. We have been monitoring the NID comms net and can tell you that many of their people are on their way here, and not just to protect you from the threat that we might represent. I would advise you to place yourself in the hands of the Marines or Air Force personnel and evacuate as soon as we are done."

"Thank you, Major, I believe you." replied the CIC. "Now please tell me what you are doing here. I see that your global air display has saved me the trouble of breaking the news to the nation and the world at large about extra-terrestrial contacts."

"Yes, Sir. It's for the best, as you will see." Sam replied. "We felt that it would enable you and the legitimate forces of government to re-take control of the Stargate program. However, we are here for one reason and one reason only: to extract ex-lieutenant Jeff Grogan from Leavenworth prison where he has been imprisoned by the NID, and to collect my husband Colonel Jack O'Neill before the same agency organises a fatal accident for him. I would be most grateful for your assistance."

"Which I shall be pleased to give." the tall man stated. "What can I do?"

"Please ask for Lieutenant Grogan to be released from the prison and to be left alone outside the main gates. We will collect him from there in twenty minutes." stated Sam.

"Twenty minutes to Kansas? That's fast going. What about your husband?"

"Please make no public announcements about his situation, or that of Lieutenant Grogan. We stand a better chance of reaching him before the NID that way."

"Very well. And thank you, Major. You have served the forces of freedom in our country well by taking this action. I look forward to meeting you again soon."

"Thank you, Sir, but I doubt that will happen." Sam snapped a salute, which was promptly returned. Without further ado she turned and re-entered the Al'kesh and the crowd on the lawn watched in awe as it rose swiftly into the skies over Washington.

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The moment he stepped into the ship and the door closed behind him, Jen hugged the man she just knew she wouldn't be parted from any more. The immediate impression Grogan gave was of someone slowly recovering from ill- health, his dazed expression, skin pallor and thin frame contrasting strongly with the bronzed, fit woman who was now vowing never to let him get away again.

He managed to break away from her embrace long enough to hug Sam and then grasp Teal'c's forearm in the traditional Jaffa greeting before being enveloped again. When he was eventually released, he saw that they were speeding over the ground at medium altitude but were already slowing down as a city loomed ahead.

Sam identified the Denver police headquarters building and brought the ship to a hover some two hundred metres directly over it. Detective Pete Shanahan stood mouth agape as the noise and light from the transporter rings deposited his former girlfriend – his very pregnant former girlfriend – and the somewhat menacing alien she used to work with at the SGC into the wide expanse of the lobby. Looking round, she recognised him and walked over, coming to a halt a short distance away.

"Pete." she said simply as she looked steadily at him, with no show of emotion.

"Sam." he responded, still in shock at the manner of her arrival and noticing how she had changed since his time with her – deeply-tanned, somewhat harsher skin, the coarse clothing she wore and most of all, her impending motherhood. "What........"

"I don't have much time, Pete, and I need a favour right away."

"What sort of favour?" he added, still unable to take in the unreality of the situation. He was unnerved too by the penetrating stare that her companion was giving him. Could this be the father of her child?

"Some weeks ago you and other police forces would have received a call from the NID to be on the lookout for Colonel O'Neill. I know that they gave instructions for him to be picked up and harassed wherever he went, so don't try to deny it." she stated. "I need you to check police computers and to track down the towns and cities where he's been picked up and the dates."

On hearing O'Neill's name, Shanahan bridled and a stone expression set in. "I won't do anything to help that son of a bitch." he said firmly. "Why should I?"

"Because I'm asking you to, as a favour." said Sam. "Please."

"I won't help the bastard who took you away from me." Pete responded angrily. "I checked up on you two and the NID said you and he were breaking regulations for years. You used me. You can go to hell." He looked up at Teal'c, whose continuing stare was unnerving him, and then back at Sam. "What's O'Neill to you anyway? Another old boyfriend?"

"He's my husband." said Sam evenly, and for the first time the detective noticed with surprise the ring she was wearing. "Now I'm asking once more, will you please help me?"

"And I'm telling you once more to go to....." He didn't finish as Teal'c stepped forward, stopping only when Sam grabbed his arm.

Help came from an unusual quarter. An older detective watching the confrontation spoke up. "I'll do it for you. I'm Detective Sergeant Eddowes, Ma'am. My daughter worked as a civilian supporting Colonel O'Neill's unit a while back in The Air Force. Spoke well of him. Come with me."

"Sam!" called Pete as they started to walk away.

"Goodbye, Pete." Sam answered without turning round. She had expected to be more upset than this about meeting him again, but she had begun to have a bad feeling about Jack's plight and the need to hurry was now at the top of her agenda.

Minutes later, she and Teal'c returned to the lobby and were enveloped in the rings again, leaving empty space and a set of stunned officials. Her ex- boyfriend returned the stony glare of his older colleague who had just come back from helping them.

"What are you looking at?" Shanahan said angrily.

"Nothing much." came the gruff reply.

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