Or would he simply become lost in here, just as she was?
Resolute however, he turned back to the gently rippling surface.
There was never any doubt in his mind about where he was going next.
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Ch 65: TOGETHER
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An hour and a half passed while Daniel, Teal'c, Dragon and Jennifer watched the quiet shimmering tableau. Three of them eventually found places to sit and watch quietly, while Teal'c maintained his solid stance a few feet away from the biopods. Thor stood quietly and uncomplainingly behind his console, only moving his hands occasionally as he worked the display of readouts on the panel before him.
And then the forms of both Jack and Sam returned to a normal-looking opaque solidity. Moments later, the forms of both Anteaus and Lya also lost their translucence and the two Nox resumed solid form.
Anteaus wavered slightly and Lya steadied him as the Tauri watched their friends carefully. Neither Jack nor Sam was moving. Daniel stepped over next to Sam while Teal'c stepped over next to Jack. Both prone officers appeared to be simply asleep.
Daniel looked questioningly at Lya and Anteaus. Lya gave the archeologist a wan, apologetic smile, "General O'Neill has joined Colonel Carter. Their connection is strong."
"Unfortunately, we lost our ability to communicate with him," Anteaus added.
"So, Jack's with Sam?" Daniel asked for confirmation and the two Nox nodded.
"Of that we are certain. He searched for only a short time before sensing her. After he joined her, we were unable to reach him, although we tried for some time. We could feel his presence, just as we can feel hers, but something is preventing us from communicating with them," Anteaus explained.
"It is possible that they do not want to return," Lya proposed softly and the four humans displayed various shades of incredulity and curiosity while turning to scrutinize the two quiet forms on the biopods.
"Why would they not want to return?" Teal'c asked with his carefully measured tones and a slight tilt of his head.
"The realm where their minds currently reside allows a level of sharing and discovery that normal corporeal humanoids do not experience," Lya answered with an apologetic smile.
"Kind of like Sam and Orlin did?" Daniel asked as his eyes scanned the motionless faces of his two prone friends.
"Yes, in some ways the experience would be similar to that which Samantha experienced with the Ancient Orlin," Anteaus confirmed.
"How long can they stay like this?" Dr. Rider asked a concrete and critical question.
Instead of answering directly, Anteaus replied with, "The longer that their minds reside apart from their physical bodies, the weaker their links between the two realms will become. Eventually, they will not be able to return to this realm, and their corporeal bodies will cease to function."
And that silenced the room quite effectively.
Thor calmly spoke into the silence, "I have been monitoring their vital signs continuously, and my calculations project that General O'Neill will lose his link with this space-time in approximately 98 of your Earth-based hours, while Colonel Carter will lose her link in approximately 43 Earth-hours."
And now the silence was deafening. The two Nox watched compassionately as the four humans struggled to assimilate the new data.
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Bone-rumbling vibrations…
Jouncing, jarring motions…
Ground, trees and sky whipped by.
Up! They shot up and then dove down the other side of the muddy mogul. Sam slewed the bike around the hairpin curve and then gunned the engine at the next small hill.
Mud rooster-tailed behind the bike as the tires churned for traction.
Her legs and feet expertly balanced or extended where necessary.
He was riding double with her and had his arms wrapped around her waist and his feet clamped to the foot-pins.
They bounced and flew and skidded around the track.
Mud flew, they slid, but then she pulled it back under control.
She took the next set of hillocks even faster and they flew completely over the center hill to land on the downslope side of the far hummock.
Jack just held on, completely enjoying the ride, the adrenaline rush, and being with her.
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And then it changed.
Weird three-dimensional objects floated and streamed around him. Strange shapes that morphed and merged and split apart, only to contort into something entirely different.
And then he saw symbols…some were familiar… standard letters and numbers… some he recognized as Greek letters… and then he realized that these were formulas and equations…
Jack watched the mathematics shift, float and mutate… a three-dimensional blackboard… and he knew that he was watching her mind work through those sciences that she adept at.
He concentrated on feeling her. That familiar warmth was there, but something was different. He relaxed and compared what he was feeling now with what he remembered from their many sessions with the 'Gate connection.
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She felt a gentle buzzing in her mind…
…a background fizzing…
Her heart ached for what she had lost and she reached for something on which to focus her mind, something that would keep her from falling back into that oppressive abyss of loneliness and despair.
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They were flying the X-302 around Io and Europa…two of Jupiter's moons. Swooping in long, graceful curves over the sulfurous volcanoes of Io and then contrasting that with the cracked, icy surface of Europa.
The wonderful freedom of flying lifted her soul, but she could still feel that background electrical fizzing that she identified so deeply with... him.
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And suddenly Jack was back in the clearing around the Stargate on P8X-539. Sam was sitting on the stone steps watching him silently. He looked around and saw no evidence of Daniel, Teal'c, Dr. Rider or Lt. Hailey. Their makeshift shelter covered the DHD and the rest of the clearing was quiet, and just as it had been for their four and a half month stay on the planet.
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TBC
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Author's Note: Many thanks to everyone who has reviewed! :)
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