.
"Yes, sir," she replied dutifully….while wondering if she were in one of those time loops like the Colonel and Teal'c were in for three months.
====o0o==== End Part 11 ====o0o====
.
Part 12: Special Ops
.
"Colonel O'Neill?" Captain Heidall asked for his attention.
"Yes, Captain?" he responded.
"We are very close, sir. The caves are just past that small rock outcropping," and the Captain was pointing at some rocks approximately half a klick ahead of them.
Nodding, Jack scanned the personnel trekking behind them. The group was walking in singles and pairs and no one was lagging behind. Everyone looked serious and determined. Even Daniel.
They had been calling over their radios for the past hour and had not received any response from Carter. The returning silence weighed heavily on their minds.
Ten minutes later, they were rounding the Captain's rock outcropping and they stopped short at the scene before them.
It was a scene of devastation.
The explosions had apparently caused several landslides that had laid waste to wide swaths of the steep hillside.
O'Neill heard the Captain take a sharp breath in surprise and Jack turned to focus his look on the young soldier. The young man's face was aghast in horror.
"Sir…," the Captain attempted.
"It's all right, son," Jack held his voice steady, "can you tell us approximately where the caves were?"
Taking in a slow unsteady breath, the Captain looked sick. "Uh…yes, sir…," but his tone spoke volumes. The young soldier had just lost hope that they were going to find Carter alive.
The next few minutes were difficult for the Colonel and the Captain as the rest of the group joined them and each took on a similar look of despair, dejection and anger.
"Over here, sir. The cave entrance was right around here," Heidall was pointing at a large pile of rocks.
O'Neill debated trying the radio again. There was almost no chance of a response and the continued answering silence was destroying any moral that they had left.
==========================
"Carter?" crackled scratchily in the cave.
"Carter? This is Sierra Golf One-Niner, to Sierra Golf One-Two. Respond, please."
Sam couldn't take it in.
She must be delirious from the fever and pain.
"Major Carter, this is Captain Heidall, please respond."
Sam turned her head and scanned the equipment scattered next to her on the floor of the cave. Where was her radio? But she knew that she was imagining the sounds anyway.
"Sam, can you hear us?" that sounded like Daniel….
She hadn't seen Daniel in…ages in this special space-time continuum that she'd entered.
It was good to hear their voices, however…even if it was just a fever-induced delusion.
She wondered where her radio was anyway. If she could find it, she could try calling…calling who? There should be no one left out there…. except maybe wounded and really pissed-off Jaffa and Go'a'uld. Yep, the radio was definitely a bad idea. No need to let them have a shot at her while she got in her last few breaths.
And with that, she deliberately refocused on ignoring the pain and she drifted back into her reverie of the past few days.
==========================
They'd infiltrated the planet with cloaked Tokra cargo ships. Once on the planet, they split into teams and melted into the forest. They had detailed topographic maps, detailed building layouts and schematics and timetables for the guards and sentries. All information supplied by months of Tokra surveillance and undercover work.
Sam was leading a 4-man team that consisted of herself, Captain Heidall, Lieutenant Bedford and Lieutenant Ponce. Among their several mission objectives, their last and most important was the main power plant and control center for the complex. They would get to make the 'biggest bang.'
They scanned for the expected Jaffa patrols. Her team was hidden just inside the treeline and behind a small rise. A ridgeline and a steep rocky hillside rose behind them and the edges of the complex were before them.
She sighed internally… she'd been correct. They did want her to blow something up. Well, at least it wasn't a sun… She shook her head and put her mind back on the task at hand.
She glanced over at Lt Bedford and saw that the soldier was signaling at her… Oh, shit! Two Jaffa were behind them in the trees… and advancing on their position. So much for advance intelligence… gathered over months and months… all out the window in minutes. Argh… Probably a couple of Jaffa that had to go and take a 'whiz', she cursed mentally. And, now they were going to walk back right over her team's position.
Growling under her breath, she signaled to Captain Heidall and Lieutenant Ponce to hold their positions. Signaling to Lieutenant Bedford, she dropped her pack and indicated that he do the same. Next, she waved him after her and they silently moved around the advancing Jaffa.
Once she and the Lieutenant were behind the Jaffa, they took them out with quick zat blasts. As soon as the Jaffa hit the ground, the two soldiers dropped low and held still as voices approached from the facility clearing below. The four soldiers waited, frozen and silent as the voices passed by undisturbed.
Glancing up and around for any more Jaffa following these unconscious two, Carter saw Captain Heidall signaling in the distance. She signaled back that the two Jaffa were down. The Captain let her know that the scheduled Jaffa patrol had passed their position on schedule. The next would pass in 12.5 minutes.
Sudden movement at her side and Lieutenant Bedford's Jaffa had revived and thrown the young soldier backwards. The enraged Jaffa was on top of her before the Lieutenant's body had hit the tree behind him. With the weight of the large Jaffa crushing her into the ground and his fists pummeling her…she knew that she didn't stand a chance in a brute force contest while pinned under him. Trying to ignore and deflect the almost continuous blows, she shot him point blank with her zat.
The pain ripped through the both of them and she lay stunned and semi-conscious under his dead weight. For the Jaffa, that blast had been fatal. It was his second. Only her first. So she lived and he died.
Unable to move yet, she dimly felt the oppressive weight removed from her and breathing became a bit easier. Her eyes focused and Captain Heidall's face came into view in front of her.
"Major?" he was whispering and asking for her attention.
"Yes, Captain?" she replied fuzzily.
"We need to take care of that wound, ma'am," he returned in a low voice.
"How's Bedford?" she asked.
"Woozy, he hit that tree pretty hard," he replied while unpacking his first aid kit.
"Who's wounded?" she tried another question.
"You, Major…. your leg…?" and he gestured with a grimace and she looked down to see the hilt of a Jaffa knife protruding from her right thigh.
"So… that's wh…," she muttered with a furrowed brow and then turned her attention away from the knife and pushed herself into a sitting position. "First, finish with these Jaffa. I'm afraid that we're going to have to get rid of the evidence… so to speak, Captain…," sighing, she motioned for him to step aside and she gave the still unconscious Jaffa two more zat blasts and his body disappeared. Turning to the dead Jaffa next to her, she pulled herself a few feet away and then gave the Jaffa one more zat blast… and that body disappeared as well. She looked down at the ground where the two Jaffa had lain. No evidence remained, other than flattened, scuffed weeds and dirt.
The Captain watched her respectfully and then stepped in with the medkit, "Major, we really need to deal with that knife wound…"
She looked up at him and nodded and then looked down at the knife hilt. Steeling herself, she reached down and yanked the knife out in one quick motion. Although he'd known that they were going to have to take the knife out, he'd thought that he was the one who was going to have to do it… and he had been dreading it.
"Captain…? I think a little gauze and some pressure might help slow the bleeding a little," she had dropped the knife in the dirt and had fallen back on her elbows with a grimace on her face. He looked at her and then realized that she was bleeding while he was standing there doing nothing. Scrambling forward, he pressed his hand over the wound and she jerked at the pain, but did not cry out.
"Sorry, ma'am," he apologized and she did not respond. Trying to root through the medkit with one hand, he felt his other hand getting slick with blood. Suddenly, hands pulled the medkit away from him and he looked up to see Lt. Bedford sorting through the kit and pulling out bandages and other needed materials.
Quickly the two men dressed the wound. She refused all of the stronger pain medications and settled for a couple of Tylenol.
Sam checked her watch. They still had plenty of time for what they needed to do. They should still be able to complete their portion of the mission. Picking up their gear and other materials, they retook their former positions with Lt. Ponce. The Lieutenant quietly informed them that the patrols had passed on schedule. The next one was due in 4 minutes.
Once that patrol passed, they crouched low and scurried up against the outside of the closest building. Hugging the buildings, they made their way inside one of the factories. Setting C4 as they went, they worked their way from building to building along the fringes of the complex. Although Carter had never worked with the Captain or the two Lieutenants before, the four of them worked extremely well together. Leap-frogging forward in mutually defensive positions. Sending and receiving the silent signals. Watching each others' backs.
After 45 minutes of stealth and high tension movements, they egressed back to the tree line. Their next objective was further around the complex and they would have to make their way through the forest before assessing the situation and moving forward.
They climbed a small ridge and were halfway down when they heard noises above them. Seven Jaffa were coming down the ridge. Whipping around, the four soldiers quickly snapped off zat blasts that silently took down 5 of the 7 surprised Jaffa. One of the last two standing snapped out of his surprise and sent a staff blast at Captain Heidall. But it didn't hit its mark… because Sam had launched herself at Heidall and knocked him out of the way. Lieutenants Bedford and Ponce were quickly zatting both standing Jaffa while she and the Captain were landing on the ground.
Silence descended on the scene.
The exchange of fire had only lasted a few seconds.
"Captain?" Sam hissed in Heidall's ear.
"Yes, Major?" he replied while pulling his face out of the dirt.
"You allright?" she whispered again.
"Yes, I think so, ma'am," he responded as he disregarded the bruises and scrapes that were making themselves painfully known.
"Good, we need to get rid of this latest 'evidence'," and she said the word with distaste, "before they wake up."
"Yes…," and he turned to look at her… "Major…?" he kept it to a strangled cry. Her left shoulder was scorched and bleeding from the staff blast.
"I've had worse, Captain," she tried to grin at him, but it came out as a grimace. "Now, you need to take care of those Jaffa before we have any repeat performances of what we had earlier," she ordered him firmly.
"Yes, ma'am," and he tore himself up and away from her side. Stepping over he found that the two Lieutenants were already taking care of the job and he helped finish the grisly duty. Within minutes all seven Jaffa and their weapons were gone.
Looking back to where he'd left Carter, she was standing up… albeit while leaning against a tree for support.
"Ponce, go up the ridge and make sure that there are no more 'unscheduled' Jaffa where those came from…Bedford scoot down the ridge and keep an eye out," she ordered quietly and the two Lieutenants quickly moved off obediently.
"Captain Heidall, You are going to have to take over from here. I'll have to give you directions over the radio once you get inside the power plant," she ordered.
"Major, we are not going to leave you behind," he objected immediately.
"Unfortunately, son, you're going to have to," she apologized, "and I'm sorry, I know that no one wants to be the one who has to leave someone behind. It's the hardest thing that we ever have to face in this line of work. But, there's no choice here. I can't go in with you, I'll just slow you down… and I would be the reason that you'd get caught."
He refused to look at her as he sucked angry lungfulls of air.
"Major, Captain!" Lt. Bedford hissed as he was scrambling up the ridge at them and signaling that 6 Jaffa were coming up…. probably to check out that one staff blast. The two officers helped Sam up the small ridge where they were joined by Lt. Ponce as they slid a little ways down the other side.
Carter signaled them to all stop and take cover. They couldn't afford, or win, a running firefight with armed Jaffa. They needed to rely on surprise. Settling into positions just below the small rise, they took out the first four Jaffa quickly with zat blasts just as they came over. Unfortunately, the last two were shielded by their comrades. One of the Jaffa leapt on Lt. Ponce and the second bowled into both Heidall and Bedford and they went down in a tangle of arms and legs.
Turning to the Jaffa that was pummeling Lt. Ponce, and unable to get a clear shot of the Jaffa, Sam muttered, "Sorry about this Lt," as she zatted the two men. Blue electricity shot through their bodies as they jerked and spasmed and then lay still.
Jumping forward, Carter quickly dragged Ponce's stunned body out from under the twitching Jaffa. When the Lieutenant was clear of his assailant, Carter quickly zatted the Jaffa a second time and the twitching stopped.
Stepping back and turning to check on the progress of Heidall and Bedford, a large weight slammed her to the ground as the other Jaffa landed heavily on her. And then she was driven further into the ground as Captain Heidall landed on top of the Jaffa. Pinned on the bottom, she couldn't move and spots swam before her eyes as her lungs were prevented from expanding.
Something slammed into the two men on top of her and the weights on her tumbled off. Carter rolled to her side and gasped in lungfulls of air.
Looking up, she could see Captain Heidall and Lt. Ponce struggling with the remaining Jaffa. Struggling to her feet, she realized that she couldn't simply zat the struggling melee of arms and legs this time – Lt. Ponce had already been hit once. A second would kill him.
She glanced around and saw Lt. Bedford struggling to his feet off to her left. She caught his eye and signaled for him to take up a position on the other side of the contest before them. Using hand signals, she informed Bedford that Ponce had already been hit with a zat blast. They would just have to wait and watch until their men were clear.
Carter and Bedford watched in silence. Unwilling to say anything that might distract their comrades and give the Jaffa an advantage.
The Jaffa was large. And strong. And very skilled in hand-to-hand close-quarters combat. Both Heidall and Ponce were taking a beating and the Jaffa appeared to only be occupied, not wounded or tiring.
Carter holstered her zat and pulled out her combat knife. Signaling to Bedford, she moved slowly, watching for an opportunity. The men were shifting, scrambling, twisting… and… there… she leaped forward and shoved the knife into his stomach…. right where she figured his symbiote pouch would be.
And the Jaffa's body jerked in pain and shock. His eyes locked with hers. With one arm he slung Heidall into Ponce and the two stumbled to the side…but, unfortunately, in front of Lt. Bedford's line of fire.
With a roar of outrage, the mortally wounded Jaffa lunged at her and the two of them tumbled down the steep side of the hill…rolling and skidding uncontrollably for more than 80 yards before a large tree finally arrested their descent.
It was all over in seconds. The entire skirmish had only lasted a few minutes.
The Captain and the two Lieutenants peered down through the dust at the two motionless bodies below them. Heidall turned to the two Lieutenants, "Get rid of this evidence, and then meet me down there," and he turned and started sliding down to assess the damage below. Behind him, the two junior officers zatted the Jaffa into oblivion.
Heidall slowed as he reached the two bodies. The Major was facing away from him, partially wrapped around the tree trunk. The Jaffa was a feet away, lying motionless and tangled in some brush. Quickly zatting the Jaffa three times, he turned back to his motionless CO.
Carefully stepping over to her, he winced when he saw the horribly unnatural bend in her right leg. Definitely broken. "Major?" he asked tentatively, not truly expecting a response. Reaching over, he felt her neck for a pulse and found it to be strong, although rapid.
"Whharr…rraaa…?" she let out a low moan and started to move.
"Hold on there, Major, hold still," he gently held her right shoulder and grimaced at the thought of the wounded left shoulder which was currently mashed into the dirt. She stilled and struggled to focus her eyes.
"Captain?"
"Yes, Ma'am?" he replied as he could hear the two lieutenants coming down to join them.
"What the hell happened?" she asked and he could hear the exasperation in her voice.
"You took a tumble down the hill with one of the Jaffa, ma'am," he winced as he felt her shuddering from the pain.
"Ahh… that explains… this tree…here… and… my leg… I presume...?" she tried to keep it light.
"Yes, ma'am," he replied sympathetically.
She blinked and he could tell that she was having trouble staying conscious, "How much time before we are supposed to set the charges in the power plant?"
He checked his watch. "5 hours 23 minutes."
She nodded and blinked a few more times before continuing. "Captain, those caves that we saw a little while back, do you think that you and the Lieutenants could get me there?"
He didn't answer right away. He knew what was going to have to happen. They were going to have to leave her behind. And he really had no choice now. She couldn't walk at all now. He glanced at the other two in his team and assessed the three of them. Just scrapes, bruises, and maybe a slight concussion. And he looked back at her. Her face was scratched and bloody and the way that she was blinking and squinting, he had a suspicion that she had a concussion of her own. A staff blast wound in the left shoulder. A broken leg with a knife wound in it. And, who knows what other injuries that he couldn't see?
He looked at her and saw that she was watching him carefully. Truth be told, he knew that she'd rather just have them zat her into oblivion like the Jaffa that they'd just dealt with. Better that than be left here with the injuries that she had…. she'd be helpless if any more Jaffa came around. But she also knew that they would need her directions for placement of the charges in the power plant. She was the one with the expertise in Go'a'uld engineering, not them.
He looked down and hung his head and clamped his eyes shut for a few seconds. He looked back at his two other fairly able-bodied comrades and saw the bleakness in their eyes. The three of them knew that they'd failed. She'd been in command… but she'd also been their responsibility. Their job had been to get her in and out of that power facility. And they had failed.
And now they were going to have to leave her behind.
Anger welled up inside him and he glared at the ground.
"Captain?" she asked gently.
"Yes, ma'am, we can get you to the caves," he replied without looking her in the eyes. He couldn't face it, not just yet. Maybe not ever.
They'd quickly splinted her leg and dressed the staff blast wound on her shoulder. Heidall got her to take some pain killers, although she refused the morphine because she couldn't afford the unconscious oblivion that it would send her to. Then they'd carried her back over the ridge and down to the steep, rocky hillside where they'd discovered some small caves earlier.
After they lay her down inside the small cave, she drifted into a feverish sleep. The three men tended to her wounds as best they could and prepared for their final foray into the complex. The two lieutenants switched off at sentry duty.
No one came to investigate them, however, and Heidall knew that under normal circumstances, they would have been found fairly quickly. Today, however, was different. The Tauri and the Tokra were orchestrating a large-scale diversion on the local Jaffa airbase. Although not the main target of this mission, the attacks on the airbase were planned to draw support and attention away from this complex. And, Heidall reflected… it must have worked. That and the fact that the Jaffa that they'd run across were in unscheduled locations… so maybe the Jaffa higher-ups had yet to put the pieces together… they might not even know that their soldiers were missing yet. This just might give these Jaffa a taste of what the previous week had been like for the Tauri…
===============
"Major? Major Carter?" Heidall was trying to wake her.
"ggtthhh….aaarrrrraaa….," he received an unintelligible moan for a reply. The three men were going to have to leave in just around a half hour to get in position for the final infiltration. Sam was running a fever, sweating and shaking. Heidall thought it was a bit soon for the infections to have set in from the knife or staff blast wounds, but, then he knew that she'd been injured on a recent previous mission and he couldn't be sure what her body was reacting to now.
And now, Heidall needed to get her conscious and clear-headed before the three men left.
"Major?" he tried again and smoothed a cool wet cloth across her forehead. And, finally her eyes opened and he watched her fight to bring her vision into focus.
"Captain?" she said it so weakly that he held his breath.
[How could they ask her to do any more? Why couldn't they just let her die in peace? A couple of quick zat blasts and she'd be out of pain. Instead of lying here in agony and then getting blown up when they took the complex out], he thought bitterly.
"Major, good to see you're back with us," he tried smiling at her encouragingly, but he could see that she wasn't buying it…. and then she coughed and her body jerked and writhed in pain.
Over the next 20 minutes the Captain and Lt. Ponce tended to their injured CO. They got her to drink a little soup in which they had mixed some protein powder. The grimace on her face told them that it probably tasted worse than it sounded, but she forced it down.
They went over, again, the logistics and plan for their next infiltration and then Heidall gave her a couple more Tylenol… although he knew it wasn't doing much of anything for the pain that she was dealing with.
And, then he gave her a stimulant. She'd ordered him to do it, and he'd balked… even though he knew that they didn't have a choice. She was never going to stay conscious otherwise. So, he'd given her the injection… it was some clear substance that they'd all been advised provided the clear-headedness that she would need in this situation. They'd also always been cautioned against using the stimulants unless absolutely necessary. The stimulants, like most drugs, were habit forming… and they increased heart rate and overall metabolism… In effect, he was hastening her death as he squeezed the injection into her.
"Captain…?" she was looking at him and he could see the drug taking effect as her eyes seemed to clear in front of him.
"Yes ma'am?" he replied miserably.
"You're doing what you have to, you need to remember that," she was looking him straight in the eyes and he swallowed with difficulty. He wanted nothing more than to crawl off and be sick in some dark corner of the cave. And, he could see the understanding in her eyes.
"Captain, I want you to remember, that I hold you in the highest regard for the strength of what you've accomplished over the past few days," she gave him a gentle smile.
"Ma-..," he started to mumble out an inadequate response, but she interrupted him.
"Captain, you have to get into that power plant and set those charges…. Then you have to get those two Lieutenants out of there. They are your responsibility. I need you to finish this for me… I know that I'm asking a lot, but I know that you can pull this off," and she paused to take a few breaths.
"We'll come back for you," he couldn't stop himself from saying it.
"No…. no, you can't do that. You won't have time to get back here… you need to get your men through that gate," she gave him a knowing smile. "Sometimes command sucks, Captain… I'm sorry."
He didn't reply immediately and just listened to her labored breathing while he looked at the rocky floor of the cave. "Major, if I can come back… after we get through the gate… after… I will," he said it vehemently.
Looking over at her, he saw her gently shaking her head, "Not much point in that, Captain. Don't torment yourself. Get your men back… and, then…," and she got a funny grin on her face, "You could do something for me when you get back…?"
"What?" he asked, dreading the request that he'd have to fulfill for an officer that he respected… and had to leave behind…to die.
"You may not like it much… but, I'd get a kick out of it…," she shrugged at the lack of logic. "I haven't seen the other members of SG-1 in what seems like ages… although I think it's only been a week or two or so… I've kind of lost track of time…so… if you're willing… I'd appreciate it if you'd just… gave them a hug… from me," and she watched for his reaction.
"Hug Colonel O'Neill?" the Captain squeaked and she chuckled softly at him and he saw her eyes twinkling. He wasn't sure if she actually wanted him to hug the guys of SG-1, or if she was just trying to get a little humor going in what had become a Dead Man Walking atmosphere. "Ma'am… I'm sure that Doctor Jackson would be OK with it, while Colonel O'Neill would probably yell at me or deck me, and… as for Teal'c… I don't think that he'd let me get close enough," he relaxed a little as he played along with her.
"Well, that's OK, Captain, it was just a thought," and she smiled at him and he was glad to see some of the pain wasn't showing as much on her face. "You could just threaten them with it… that would probably be more fun anyway," she wiggled her eyebrows.
"Yes, ma'am, I'll figure something out. Maybe I'll enlist the two Lieutenants….?" he offered.
"Good idea, Captain," she replied, still smiling.
"Thanks, Major," he acknowledged her efforts for him.
"No problem, Captain," she answered without reservations, "Now, I think you three had best be off. I'm clear-headed enough and I'll be listening. Just let me know when you get to the central power unit and I'll talk you through the crystals and connections."
"Yes, ma'am," he replied and then stood up with his pack in his hands. "Major…?" and he floundered while she looked at him quizzically. Finally, he just snapped to military attention and snapped off a razor-sharp salute. She gave him a grin and a weak salute in return from her prone position on the rocky cave floor.
Nodding, he turned and collected the other two officers as they headed off to take care of their last objective.
===================
Three and a half hours later and they'd worked their way inside the power control building and into the main control center. The three officers were overwhelmed at the size of the cavernous complex and the endless racks of crystals and wires.
Once at their objective, they established radio communications with Sam. The entire mission was supposed to be one of complete radio silence; however, they had the biggest objective… and one of the last ones… so they were forced to take the chance that their radio communications would not be discovered in time to stop them. The other teams would each have a member scanning the team frequencies and it wouldn't be long before all of the teams would know that their team had run into problems.
When they contacted her that they were in position, she responded immediately. She sounded very lucid, although they could tell that she was having trouble breathing. Her instructions were halting and interspersed with pauses and dead air from the radio… and they knew that she was either coughing or simply struggling to get enough air to continue talking.
She asked them questions and they described what they saw under her directions. They set the C4 where she told them and when they were finished they had less than 20 minutes to get to the gate and get out before the explosives… and hopefully, this entire complex, were going to detonate. The Major's selected positions for their explosives were calculated to use the power plant itself to increase the explosive blast and destruction.
As they ran out of the facility, they shot anyone in their path.
The time for stealth was long since past.
Heidall let himself think briefly of the officer that they were leaving behind… but then he had to push those thoughts out of his mind as he helped the two Lieutenants fight their way to the gate.
As they reached the gate, they could see that it was open and connected. The shimmering blue pool waiting sedately and in ignorance of the violence that was only moments away. Staff blasts followed them and shattered the stone around them into explosions of shrapnel. As the three of them dodged and dove and fired, he could see other SGC soldiers diving and staggering through the gate. All of the teams were egressing simultaneously under a hail of fire from angry Jaffa.
As his team, sans one member, approached the gate, he glanced behind him and could see no other SGC personnel. The three of them appeared to be the last to get here. But, that was how it was planned. Their final objective had been the last planned infiltration of the overall mission.
Running slightly behind the two junior officers, he followed them up the stone steps. He paused sporadically and snapped off rounds with his P90 at the Jaffa behind them. Not taking enough time to aim at any of them… just hoping to slow them down… a little… enough… just enough to get them through the gate.
And, then they were through the gate and slamming onto the steel metal ramp in the SGC gateroom. "CLOSE THE IRIS, CLOSE THE IRIS NOW," Heidall shouted and then he slumped forward… the iris shut and the gateroom was preternaturally quiet for a few long seconds… and then a few thumps hit the iris… and then the iris groaned and flexed outwards a little… and then relaxed back into its normal position as the wormhole disconnected behind it.
Heidall slumped forward… in exhaustion… in victory… and in misery…. he didn't even know that he was crying. But he let himself think of her now. Lying back there in that cave. Beaten and broken and bloody. But carrying on strong to the end. Talking them through that last part. Making it all possible for them. He let himself feel sorry for her… and for himself for having to leave her behind.
.
====o0o==== End Part 12 ====o0o====
.
"Yes, sir," she replied dutifully….while wondering if she were in one of those time loops like the Colonel and Teal'c were in for three months.
====o0o==== End Part 11 ====o0o====
.
Part 12: Special Ops
.
"Colonel O'Neill?" Captain Heidall asked for his attention.
"Yes, Captain?" he responded.
"We are very close, sir. The caves are just past that small rock outcropping," and the Captain was pointing at some rocks approximately half a klick ahead of them.
Nodding, Jack scanned the personnel trekking behind them. The group was walking in singles and pairs and no one was lagging behind. Everyone looked serious and determined. Even Daniel.
They had been calling over their radios for the past hour and had not received any response from Carter. The returning silence weighed heavily on their minds.
Ten minutes later, they were rounding the Captain's rock outcropping and they stopped short at the scene before them.
It was a scene of devastation.
The explosions had apparently caused several landslides that had laid waste to wide swaths of the steep hillside.
O'Neill heard the Captain take a sharp breath in surprise and Jack turned to focus his look on the young soldier. The young man's face was aghast in horror.
"Sir…," the Captain attempted.
"It's all right, son," Jack held his voice steady, "can you tell us approximately where the caves were?"
Taking in a slow unsteady breath, the Captain looked sick. "Uh…yes, sir…," but his tone spoke volumes. The young soldier had just lost hope that they were going to find Carter alive.
The next few minutes were difficult for the Colonel and the Captain as the rest of the group joined them and each took on a similar look of despair, dejection and anger.
"Over here, sir. The cave entrance was right around here," Heidall was pointing at a large pile of rocks.
O'Neill debated trying the radio again. There was almost no chance of a response and the continued answering silence was destroying any moral that they had left.
==========================
"Carter?" crackled scratchily in the cave.
"Carter? This is Sierra Golf One-Niner, to Sierra Golf One-Two. Respond, please."
Sam couldn't take it in.
She must be delirious from the fever and pain.
"Major Carter, this is Captain Heidall, please respond."
Sam turned her head and scanned the equipment scattered next to her on the floor of the cave. Where was her radio? But she knew that she was imagining the sounds anyway.
"Sam, can you hear us?" that sounded like Daniel….
She hadn't seen Daniel in…ages in this special space-time continuum that she'd entered.
It was good to hear their voices, however…even if it was just a fever-induced delusion.
She wondered where her radio was anyway. If she could find it, she could try calling…calling who? There should be no one left out there…. except maybe wounded and really pissed-off Jaffa and Go'a'uld. Yep, the radio was definitely a bad idea. No need to let them have a shot at her while she got in her last few breaths.
And with that, she deliberately refocused on ignoring the pain and she drifted back into her reverie of the past few days.
==========================
They'd infiltrated the planet with cloaked Tokra cargo ships. Once on the planet, they split into teams and melted into the forest. They had detailed topographic maps, detailed building layouts and schematics and timetables for the guards and sentries. All information supplied by months of Tokra surveillance and undercover work.
Sam was leading a 4-man team that consisted of herself, Captain Heidall, Lieutenant Bedford and Lieutenant Ponce. Among their several mission objectives, their last and most important was the main power plant and control center for the complex. They would get to make the 'biggest bang.'
They scanned for the expected Jaffa patrols. Her team was hidden just inside the treeline and behind a small rise. A ridgeline and a steep rocky hillside rose behind them and the edges of the complex were before them.
She sighed internally… she'd been correct. They did want her to blow something up. Well, at least it wasn't a sun… She shook her head and put her mind back on the task at hand.
She glanced over at Lt Bedford and saw that the soldier was signaling at her… Oh, shit! Two Jaffa were behind them in the trees… and advancing on their position. So much for advance intelligence… gathered over months and months… all out the window in minutes. Argh… Probably a couple of Jaffa that had to go and take a 'whiz', she cursed mentally. And, now they were going to walk back right over her team's position.
Growling under her breath, she signaled to Captain Heidall and Lieutenant Ponce to hold their positions. Signaling to Lieutenant Bedford, she dropped her pack and indicated that he do the same. Next, she waved him after her and they silently moved around the advancing Jaffa.
Once she and the Lieutenant were behind the Jaffa, they took them out with quick zat blasts. As soon as the Jaffa hit the ground, the two soldiers dropped low and held still as voices approached from the facility clearing below. The four soldiers waited, frozen and silent as the voices passed by undisturbed.
Glancing up and around for any more Jaffa following these unconscious two, Carter saw Captain Heidall signaling in the distance. She signaled back that the two Jaffa were down. The Captain let her know that the scheduled Jaffa patrol had passed their position on schedule. The next would pass in 12.5 minutes.
Sudden movement at her side and Lieutenant Bedford's Jaffa had revived and thrown the young soldier backwards. The enraged Jaffa was on top of her before the Lieutenant's body had hit the tree behind him. With the weight of the large Jaffa crushing her into the ground and his fists pummeling her…she knew that she didn't stand a chance in a brute force contest while pinned under him. Trying to ignore and deflect the almost continuous blows, she shot him point blank with her zat.
The pain ripped through the both of them and she lay stunned and semi-conscious under his dead weight. For the Jaffa, that blast had been fatal. It was his second. Only her first. So she lived and he died.
Unable to move yet, she dimly felt the oppressive weight removed from her and breathing became a bit easier. Her eyes focused and Captain Heidall's face came into view in front of her.
"Major?" he was whispering and asking for her attention.
"Yes, Captain?" she replied fuzzily.
"We need to take care of that wound, ma'am," he returned in a low voice.
"How's Bedford?" she asked.
"Woozy, he hit that tree pretty hard," he replied while unpacking his first aid kit.
"Who's wounded?" she tried another question.
"You, Major…. your leg…?" and he gestured with a grimace and she looked down to see the hilt of a Jaffa knife protruding from her right thigh.
"So… that's wh…," she muttered with a furrowed brow and then turned her attention away from the knife and pushed herself into a sitting position. "First, finish with these Jaffa. I'm afraid that we're going to have to get rid of the evidence… so to speak, Captain…," sighing, she motioned for him to step aside and she gave the still unconscious Jaffa two more zat blasts and his body disappeared. Turning to the dead Jaffa next to her, she pulled herself a few feet away and then gave the Jaffa one more zat blast… and that body disappeared as well. She looked down at the ground where the two Jaffa had lain. No evidence remained, other than flattened, scuffed weeds and dirt.
The Captain watched her respectfully and then stepped in with the medkit, "Major, we really need to deal with that knife wound…"
She looked up at him and nodded and then looked down at the knife hilt. Steeling herself, she reached down and yanked the knife out in one quick motion. Although he'd known that they were going to have to take the knife out, he'd thought that he was the one who was going to have to do it… and he had been dreading it.
"Captain…? I think a little gauze and some pressure might help slow the bleeding a little," she had dropped the knife in the dirt and had fallen back on her elbows with a grimace on her face. He looked at her and then realized that she was bleeding while he was standing there doing nothing. Scrambling forward, he pressed his hand over the wound and she jerked at the pain, but did not cry out.
"Sorry, ma'am," he apologized and she did not respond. Trying to root through the medkit with one hand, he felt his other hand getting slick with blood. Suddenly, hands pulled the medkit away from him and he looked up to see Lt. Bedford sorting through the kit and pulling out bandages and other needed materials.
Quickly the two men dressed the wound. She refused all of the stronger pain medications and settled for a couple of Tylenol.
Sam checked her watch. They still had plenty of time for what they needed to do. They should still be able to complete their portion of the mission. Picking up their gear and other materials, they retook their former positions with Lt. Ponce. The Lieutenant quietly informed them that the patrols had passed on schedule. The next one was due in 4 minutes.
Once that patrol passed, they crouched low and scurried up against the outside of the closest building. Hugging the buildings, they made their way inside one of the factories. Setting C4 as they went, they worked their way from building to building along the fringes of the complex. Although Carter had never worked with the Captain or the two Lieutenants before, the four of them worked extremely well together. Leap-frogging forward in mutually defensive positions. Sending and receiving the silent signals. Watching each others' backs.
After 45 minutes of stealth and high tension movements, they egressed back to the tree line. Their next objective was further around the complex and they would have to make their way through the forest before assessing the situation and moving forward.
They climbed a small ridge and were halfway down when they heard noises above them. Seven Jaffa were coming down the ridge. Whipping around, the four soldiers quickly snapped off zat blasts that silently took down 5 of the 7 surprised Jaffa. One of the last two standing snapped out of his surprise and sent a staff blast at Captain Heidall. But it didn't hit its mark… because Sam had launched herself at Heidall and knocked him out of the way. Lieutenants Bedford and Ponce were quickly zatting both standing Jaffa while she and the Captain were landing on the ground.
Silence descended on the scene.
The exchange of fire had only lasted a few seconds.
"Captain?" Sam hissed in Heidall's ear.
"Yes, Major?" he replied while pulling his face out of the dirt.
"You allright?" she whispered again.
"Yes, I think so, ma'am," he responded as he disregarded the bruises and scrapes that were making themselves painfully known.
"Good, we need to get rid of this latest 'evidence'," and she said the word with distaste, "before they wake up."
"Yes…," and he turned to look at her… "Major…?" he kept it to a strangled cry. Her left shoulder was scorched and bleeding from the staff blast.
"I've had worse, Captain," she tried to grin at him, but it came out as a grimace. "Now, you need to take care of those Jaffa before we have any repeat performances of what we had earlier," she ordered him firmly.
"Yes, ma'am," and he tore himself up and away from her side. Stepping over he found that the two Lieutenants were already taking care of the job and he helped finish the grisly duty. Within minutes all seven Jaffa and their weapons were gone.
Looking back to where he'd left Carter, she was standing up… albeit while leaning against a tree for support.
"Ponce, go up the ridge and make sure that there are no more 'unscheduled' Jaffa where those came from…Bedford scoot down the ridge and keep an eye out," she ordered quietly and the two Lieutenants quickly moved off obediently.
"Captain Heidall, You are going to have to take over from here. I'll have to give you directions over the radio once you get inside the power plant," she ordered.
"Major, we are not going to leave you behind," he objected immediately.
"Unfortunately, son, you're going to have to," she apologized, "and I'm sorry, I know that no one wants to be the one who has to leave someone behind. It's the hardest thing that we ever have to face in this line of work. But, there's no choice here. I can't go in with you, I'll just slow you down… and I would be the reason that you'd get caught."
He refused to look at her as he sucked angry lungfulls of air.
"Major, Captain!" Lt. Bedford hissed as he was scrambling up the ridge at them and signaling that 6 Jaffa were coming up…. probably to check out that one staff blast. The two officers helped Sam up the small ridge where they were joined by Lt. Ponce as they slid a little ways down the other side.
Carter signaled them to all stop and take cover. They couldn't afford, or win, a running firefight with armed Jaffa. They needed to rely on surprise. Settling into positions just below the small rise, they took out the first four Jaffa quickly with zat blasts just as they came over. Unfortunately, the last two were shielded by their comrades. One of the Jaffa leapt on Lt. Ponce and the second bowled into both Heidall and Bedford and they went down in a tangle of arms and legs.
Turning to the Jaffa that was pummeling Lt. Ponce, and unable to get a clear shot of the Jaffa, Sam muttered, "Sorry about this Lt," as she zatted the two men. Blue electricity shot through their bodies as they jerked and spasmed and then lay still.
Jumping forward, Carter quickly dragged Ponce's stunned body out from under the twitching Jaffa. When the Lieutenant was clear of his assailant, Carter quickly zatted the Jaffa a second time and the twitching stopped.
Stepping back and turning to check on the progress of Heidall and Bedford, a large weight slammed her to the ground as the other Jaffa landed heavily on her. And then she was driven further into the ground as Captain Heidall landed on top of the Jaffa. Pinned on the bottom, she couldn't move and spots swam before her eyes as her lungs were prevented from expanding.
Something slammed into the two men on top of her and the weights on her tumbled off. Carter rolled to her side and gasped in lungfulls of air.
Looking up, she could see Captain Heidall and Lt. Ponce struggling with the remaining Jaffa. Struggling to her feet, she realized that she couldn't simply zat the struggling melee of arms and legs this time – Lt. Ponce had already been hit once. A second would kill him.
She glanced around and saw Lt. Bedford struggling to his feet off to her left. She caught his eye and signaled for him to take up a position on the other side of the contest before them. Using hand signals, she informed Bedford that Ponce had already been hit with a zat blast. They would just have to wait and watch until their men were clear.
Carter and Bedford watched in silence. Unwilling to say anything that might distract their comrades and give the Jaffa an advantage.
The Jaffa was large. And strong. And very skilled in hand-to-hand close-quarters combat. Both Heidall and Ponce were taking a beating and the Jaffa appeared to only be occupied, not wounded or tiring.
Carter holstered her zat and pulled out her combat knife. Signaling to Bedford, she moved slowly, watching for an opportunity. The men were shifting, scrambling, twisting… and… there… she leaped forward and shoved the knife into his stomach…. right where she figured his symbiote pouch would be.
And the Jaffa's body jerked in pain and shock. His eyes locked with hers. With one arm he slung Heidall into Ponce and the two stumbled to the side…but, unfortunately, in front of Lt. Bedford's line of fire.
With a roar of outrage, the mortally wounded Jaffa lunged at her and the two of them tumbled down the steep side of the hill…rolling and skidding uncontrollably for more than 80 yards before a large tree finally arrested their descent.
It was all over in seconds. The entire skirmish had only lasted a few minutes.
The Captain and the two Lieutenants peered down through the dust at the two motionless bodies below them. Heidall turned to the two Lieutenants, "Get rid of this evidence, and then meet me down there," and he turned and started sliding down to assess the damage below. Behind him, the two junior officers zatted the Jaffa into oblivion.
Heidall slowed as he reached the two bodies. The Major was facing away from him, partially wrapped around the tree trunk. The Jaffa was a feet away, lying motionless and tangled in some brush. Quickly zatting the Jaffa three times, he turned back to his motionless CO.
Carefully stepping over to her, he winced when he saw the horribly unnatural bend in her right leg. Definitely broken. "Major?" he asked tentatively, not truly expecting a response. Reaching over, he felt her neck for a pulse and found it to be strong, although rapid.
"Whharr…rraaa…?" she let out a low moan and started to move.
"Hold on there, Major, hold still," he gently held her right shoulder and grimaced at the thought of the wounded left shoulder which was currently mashed into the dirt. She stilled and struggled to focus her eyes.
"Captain?"
"Yes, Ma'am?" he replied as he could hear the two lieutenants coming down to join them.
"What the hell happened?" she asked and he could hear the exasperation in her voice.
"You took a tumble down the hill with one of the Jaffa, ma'am," he winced as he felt her shuddering from the pain.
"Ahh… that explains… this tree…here… and… my leg… I presume...?" she tried to keep it light.
"Yes, ma'am," he replied sympathetically.
She blinked and he could tell that she was having trouble staying conscious, "How much time before we are supposed to set the charges in the power plant?"
He checked his watch. "5 hours 23 minutes."
She nodded and blinked a few more times before continuing. "Captain, those caves that we saw a little while back, do you think that you and the Lieutenants could get me there?"
He didn't answer right away. He knew what was going to have to happen. They were going to have to leave her behind. And he really had no choice now. She couldn't walk at all now. He glanced at the other two in his team and assessed the three of them. Just scrapes, bruises, and maybe a slight concussion. And he looked back at her. Her face was scratched and bloody and the way that she was blinking and squinting, he had a suspicion that she had a concussion of her own. A staff blast wound in the left shoulder. A broken leg with a knife wound in it. And, who knows what other injuries that he couldn't see?
He looked at her and saw that she was watching him carefully. Truth be told, he knew that she'd rather just have them zat her into oblivion like the Jaffa that they'd just dealt with. Better that than be left here with the injuries that she had…. she'd be helpless if any more Jaffa came around. But she also knew that they would need her directions for placement of the charges in the power plant. She was the one with the expertise in Go'a'uld engineering, not them.
He looked down and hung his head and clamped his eyes shut for a few seconds. He looked back at his two other fairly able-bodied comrades and saw the bleakness in their eyes. The three of them knew that they'd failed. She'd been in command… but she'd also been their responsibility. Their job had been to get her in and out of that power facility. And they had failed.
And now they were going to have to leave her behind.
Anger welled up inside him and he glared at the ground.
"Captain?" she asked gently.
"Yes, ma'am, we can get you to the caves," he replied without looking her in the eyes. He couldn't face it, not just yet. Maybe not ever.
They'd quickly splinted her leg and dressed the staff blast wound on her shoulder. Heidall got her to take some pain killers, although she refused the morphine because she couldn't afford the unconscious oblivion that it would send her to. Then they'd carried her back over the ridge and down to the steep, rocky hillside where they'd discovered some small caves earlier.
After they lay her down inside the small cave, she drifted into a feverish sleep. The three men tended to her wounds as best they could and prepared for their final foray into the complex. The two lieutenants switched off at sentry duty.
No one came to investigate them, however, and Heidall knew that under normal circumstances, they would have been found fairly quickly. Today, however, was different. The Tauri and the Tokra were orchestrating a large-scale diversion on the local Jaffa airbase. Although not the main target of this mission, the attacks on the airbase were planned to draw support and attention away from this complex. And, Heidall reflected… it must have worked. That and the fact that the Jaffa that they'd run across were in unscheduled locations… so maybe the Jaffa higher-ups had yet to put the pieces together… they might not even know that their soldiers were missing yet. This just might give these Jaffa a taste of what the previous week had been like for the Tauri…
===============
"Major? Major Carter?" Heidall was trying to wake her.
"ggtthhh….aaarrrrraaa….," he received an unintelligible moan for a reply. The three men were going to have to leave in just around a half hour to get in position for the final infiltration. Sam was running a fever, sweating and shaking. Heidall thought it was a bit soon for the infections to have set in from the knife or staff blast wounds, but, then he knew that she'd been injured on a recent previous mission and he couldn't be sure what her body was reacting to now.
And now, Heidall needed to get her conscious and clear-headed before the three men left.
"Major?" he tried again and smoothed a cool wet cloth across her forehead. And, finally her eyes opened and he watched her fight to bring her vision into focus.
"Captain?" she said it so weakly that he held his breath.
[How could they ask her to do any more? Why couldn't they just let her die in peace? A couple of quick zat blasts and she'd be out of pain. Instead of lying here in agony and then getting blown up when they took the complex out], he thought bitterly.
"Major, good to see you're back with us," he tried smiling at her encouragingly, but he could see that she wasn't buying it…. and then she coughed and her body jerked and writhed in pain.
Over the next 20 minutes the Captain and Lt. Ponce tended to their injured CO. They got her to drink a little soup in which they had mixed some protein powder. The grimace on her face told them that it probably tasted worse than it sounded, but she forced it down.
They went over, again, the logistics and plan for their next infiltration and then Heidall gave her a couple more Tylenol… although he knew it wasn't doing much of anything for the pain that she was dealing with.
And, then he gave her a stimulant. She'd ordered him to do it, and he'd balked… even though he knew that they didn't have a choice. She was never going to stay conscious otherwise. So, he'd given her the injection… it was some clear substance that they'd all been advised provided the clear-headedness that she would need in this situation. They'd also always been cautioned against using the stimulants unless absolutely necessary. The stimulants, like most drugs, were habit forming… and they increased heart rate and overall metabolism… In effect, he was hastening her death as he squeezed the injection into her.
"Captain…?" she was looking at him and he could see the drug taking effect as her eyes seemed to clear in front of him.
"Yes ma'am?" he replied miserably.
"You're doing what you have to, you need to remember that," she was looking him straight in the eyes and he swallowed with difficulty. He wanted nothing more than to crawl off and be sick in some dark corner of the cave. And, he could see the understanding in her eyes.
"Captain, I want you to remember, that I hold you in the highest regard for the strength of what you've accomplished over the past few days," she gave him a gentle smile.
"Ma-..," he started to mumble out an inadequate response, but she interrupted him.
"Captain, you have to get into that power plant and set those charges…. Then you have to get those two Lieutenants out of there. They are your responsibility. I need you to finish this for me… I know that I'm asking a lot, but I know that you can pull this off," and she paused to take a few breaths.
"We'll come back for you," he couldn't stop himself from saying it.
"No…. no, you can't do that. You won't have time to get back here… you need to get your men through that gate," she gave him a knowing smile. "Sometimes command sucks, Captain… I'm sorry."
He didn't reply immediately and just listened to her labored breathing while he looked at the rocky floor of the cave. "Major, if I can come back… after we get through the gate… after… I will," he said it vehemently.
Looking over at her, he saw her gently shaking her head, "Not much point in that, Captain. Don't torment yourself. Get your men back… and, then…," and she got a funny grin on her face, "You could do something for me when you get back…?"
"What?" he asked, dreading the request that he'd have to fulfill for an officer that he respected… and had to leave behind…to die.
"You may not like it much… but, I'd get a kick out of it…," she shrugged at the lack of logic. "I haven't seen the other members of SG-1 in what seems like ages… although I think it's only been a week or two or so… I've kind of lost track of time…so… if you're willing… I'd appreciate it if you'd just… gave them a hug… from me," and she watched for his reaction.
"Hug Colonel O'Neill?" the Captain squeaked and she chuckled softly at him and he saw her eyes twinkling. He wasn't sure if she actually wanted him to hug the guys of SG-1, or if she was just trying to get a little humor going in what had become a Dead Man Walking atmosphere. "Ma'am… I'm sure that Doctor Jackson would be OK with it, while Colonel O'Neill would probably yell at me or deck me, and… as for Teal'c… I don't think that he'd let me get close enough," he relaxed a little as he played along with her.
"Well, that's OK, Captain, it was just a thought," and she smiled at him and he was glad to see some of the pain wasn't showing as much on her face. "You could just threaten them with it… that would probably be more fun anyway," she wiggled her eyebrows.
"Yes, ma'am, I'll figure something out. Maybe I'll enlist the two Lieutenants….?" he offered.
"Good idea, Captain," she replied, still smiling.
"Thanks, Major," he acknowledged her efforts for him.
"No problem, Captain," she answered without reservations, "Now, I think you three had best be off. I'm clear-headed enough and I'll be listening. Just let me know when you get to the central power unit and I'll talk you through the crystals and connections."
"Yes, ma'am," he replied and then stood up with his pack in his hands. "Major…?" and he floundered while she looked at him quizzically. Finally, he just snapped to military attention and snapped off a razor-sharp salute. She gave him a grin and a weak salute in return from her prone position on the rocky cave floor.
Nodding, he turned and collected the other two officers as they headed off to take care of their last objective.
===================
Three and a half hours later and they'd worked their way inside the power control building and into the main control center. The three officers were overwhelmed at the size of the cavernous complex and the endless racks of crystals and wires.
Once at their objective, they established radio communications with Sam. The entire mission was supposed to be one of complete radio silence; however, they had the biggest objective… and one of the last ones… so they were forced to take the chance that their radio communications would not be discovered in time to stop them. The other teams would each have a member scanning the team frequencies and it wouldn't be long before all of the teams would know that their team had run into problems.
When they contacted her that they were in position, she responded immediately. She sounded very lucid, although they could tell that she was having trouble breathing. Her instructions were halting and interspersed with pauses and dead air from the radio… and they knew that she was either coughing or simply struggling to get enough air to continue talking.
She asked them questions and they described what they saw under her directions. They set the C4 where she told them and when they were finished they had less than 20 minutes to get to the gate and get out before the explosives… and hopefully, this entire complex, were going to detonate. The Major's selected positions for their explosives were calculated to use the power plant itself to increase the explosive blast and destruction.
As they ran out of the facility, they shot anyone in their path.
The time for stealth was long since past.
Heidall let himself think briefly of the officer that they were leaving behind… but then he had to push those thoughts out of his mind as he helped the two Lieutenants fight their way to the gate.
As they reached the gate, they could see that it was open and connected. The shimmering blue pool waiting sedately and in ignorance of the violence that was only moments away. Staff blasts followed them and shattered the stone around them into explosions of shrapnel. As the three of them dodged and dove and fired, he could see other SGC soldiers diving and staggering through the gate. All of the teams were egressing simultaneously under a hail of fire from angry Jaffa.
As his team, sans one member, approached the gate, he glanced behind him and could see no other SGC personnel. The three of them appeared to be the last to get here. But, that was how it was planned. Their final objective had been the last planned infiltration of the overall mission.
Running slightly behind the two junior officers, he followed them up the stone steps. He paused sporadically and snapped off rounds with his P90 at the Jaffa behind them. Not taking enough time to aim at any of them… just hoping to slow them down… a little… enough… just enough to get them through the gate.
And, then they were through the gate and slamming onto the steel metal ramp in the SGC gateroom. "CLOSE THE IRIS, CLOSE THE IRIS NOW," Heidall shouted and then he slumped forward… the iris shut and the gateroom was preternaturally quiet for a few long seconds… and then a few thumps hit the iris… and then the iris groaned and flexed outwards a little… and then relaxed back into its normal position as the wormhole disconnected behind it.
Heidall slumped forward… in exhaustion… in victory… and in misery…. he didn't even know that he was crying. But he let himself think of her now. Lying back there in that cave. Beaten and broken and bloody. But carrying on strong to the end. Talking them through that last part. Making it all possible for them. He let himself feel sorry for her… and for himself for having to leave her behind.
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====o0o==== End Part 12 ====o0o====
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