Chapter 31 – Stranded
Major Alexandra Croft awoke to find herself extremely cold. Keeping her eyes closed because of a headache, she thought about telling Hoffman to turn the heat up in the SGB. Thinking better, she put her hands up to her head and healed her headache, opening her eyes to total darkness.
What the hell she asked herself. Where are we?
Sitting up, she looked around, astonished to find herself in a sort of cave; a cave made entirely of ice. Before her loomed a Spacegate…and the DOC, unfortunately, was nowhere to be found. Blinking a few times to try to make her eyes adjust to the gloom, she cautiously got up, only to slip back down to the ground again in a dizzy state.
Staying seated on the ground this time, Alexandra began to wonder where she was. All of a sudden, however, a wounded groan came from a few feet away from her. Not wanting to fall again, Alex crawled over in the direction of the groan, lighting a flashlight in the process. Pointing the beam of light forward, it fell on another body—one that was badly injured.
"Oh, God," she heard the body say, and the Major knew for certain then that it was Daniel.
"Daniel!" she cried softly. "You're a mess!"
"Thanks," he managed to get out, gasping from pain.
Inching closer to him, she placed a hand on his arm and concentrated. "Oh my God, Daniel! Your leg is broken in two places, and you're bleeding internally—two ribs are cracked, as well—you've a punctured lung… If you'll just allow me to heal you…"
"No!" Daniel tried to sit up, but the pain was too much. Crying out, he fell back to the ground and lied there until he could speak again, gasping for breath. "I will not allow that. You need your strength. If I die, you're much more capable of getting yourself out of here than if I was on my own. Could you try to splint it or something?"
"Yes, I could. But it would be a lot easier if I just healed you; then that way I—"
"Alex, look at me," Daniel said forcibly, interrupting the Major's explanation. She looked down and their eyes locked. "I won't allow you to heal me. Not now. You know how to do many more things for getting back home than I could ever learn now. If you fall asleep, I'd have to worry about you not being able to communicate with me. At least this way, I'm conscious and can talk to you over our comms so you don't have to worry about going away from me."
Clearly not liking the idea but seeing the common sense of it, Alex gave in to his explanation and got out the supplies to make a splint from her bag.
"It's a good thing Colonel O'Brien had Dude put so much stuff in here," she said as she prepared her supplies. "I can't find the DOC—it's not by the Spacegate. I'll need to find it before we can dial home."
"Do you know how much supplies we have?" he asked, needing something to get his mind off of the pain he was experiencing.
"Yes. Each of us has at least enough rations to last three days, but we can stretch that out if we need to. We also have enough drinking water as we can possibly consume here," she said while indicating the cave, her breath forming puffy clouds around her head.
"Ice," Daniel remarked, his teeth chattering from the cold.
"Yes," she said, then scooted over to where his broken leg was laying. "All right, this is going to hurt."
"I know, I know…just get it over with!"
"Okay." Looking down at the new device in front of her, she placed the two flat metal rods on either side of Daniel's leg.
"Is this your first broken bone?" she asked, wanting to keep his mind off of what she was doing.
"Yes," he gasped out as she lifted his broken leg and placed a special material under it with the splint. "Not unless you count a fractured skull…"
"How'd you get that?" she asked, curious now.
"I was breaking up a fight at the University I taught at. Some guys were fighting; it was getting bloody, and was starting to hurt innocent bystanders so I just dove into the middle of it. One of them, I found out after I regained consciousness, had a baseball bat and swung at the other kid and missed, hitting me. I was in the hospital for a few days while the new Newflesh patches healed it."
"Really? Those Newflesh patches are supposed to speed the healing process by more than half! I'm surprised they used one on you, they're so expensive… Okay, Daniel, this is gonna hurt."
"Just do it!" he ordered and she put the two ends of the material together. Right as they touched, they melded together and constricted, making the splint rigid and molded to the linguist's leg. Though this method of creating a splint worked very effectively, Daniel still cried out in pain.
"You wouldn't think cracked bone digging into sensitive nerves would hurt so much," he wheezed out, "but it does…it does."
"I think it's done, Daniel," Major Croft said.
"Good. Help me up."
"But, Daniel!" she protested. "You should stay here and rest. You need to heal!" Alex stood her ground this time, knowing what was best for him.
"Alex, my entire backside is freezing to the ground, and you said I was bleeding internally. That cannot be good anyway, so I think moving me is a lot better than me becoming one with the frozen ground."
Reluctantly, Alex relented again, and they eventually got him off the ground. Even though the splint was designed to hold up the leg, no matter how badly it was broken, Daniel still needed support from Alex as they hobbled around the cave, exploring and looking for a likely spot the DOC could be hidden.
"You know," Daniel said as they walked around, trying to get his mind off of the shooting pains he was getting every time he stepped down, "a new coat of paint, a fireplace, some curtains over there…and this place could look a lot like home."
Alex snorted, laughing at what he said.
"No! Really! Or you could just paint this entire thing gunmetal grey, make a compartment twenty feet above ground and put some transparent ice there and you have the SGB."
"Yeah, really," Alex said and they continued on their exploration.
Half an hour passed by, and both Alex and Daniel had found at least one likely spot the Dial-Out Computer could be hidden in the ice.
"You're going to stay here, now," Alex said after they had explored most of the cave. "You're under doctor's orders now, and I say that you should rest." Daniel didn't look happy, sitting on one of the blankets they had for sleeping. But he did as he was told, since he was the one who was supposed to cook. "I'm going over there to that ice block. I think I see something inside it, so I'm going to try to get to it."
The linguist nodded. "And if it isn't there, we can melt the chopped ice for water."
"Exactly," the Major said. "Call me when you're ready."
"Of course," he said, and she reluctantly left Daniel, trying to find the one thing that would allow them to get out of this frozen prison and Daniel to a doctor.
"What is the status of the repairs?" Dagón asked as he walked around the compound, his arm still in a sling.
"We're moving as fast as we can, sir," Rogers responded, his mechanic's hard hat dented and his skin dirty. "It's going to take a while, even if we work as fast as humanly possible. We have at least another 12 hours before it can be even remotely close to up and running, and then we need to run some tests to see if it actually can run."
"And cannot we use the other two Spacegates we have in our possession?"
"That's just not gonna happen, dude," Rick said grimly as he walked into the room, putting a hand on the alien's shoulder. "I've talked to the Generals on the other two ships. They cannot spare any GC teams to go look for them. All of them are either off-world or busy doing something tan importante that they couldn't spare any of them, even to help the best team we have. It seems like we'll have to totally wait for the repairs to be done."
"I see," the alien said, disappointed at the news. "I shall go see how Colonel O'Brien is doing."
"Radical," the Captain replied. "Tell me what's up with him. I gotta go run some more diagnostics on the Spacegate."
"Indeed, I shall," Dagón replied and left for the medical bay.
John awoke to find himself looking into the calm but frowning face of Dagón staring down at him.
"Dagón," the Colonel stated weakly, his eyes blinking to adjust to the bright light above him, his mind seeming to swim in fog, as he couldn't think straight.
"DanielMatthewson and Major Croft did not follow us through the Spacegate," the alien said, making John's worst nightmares come alive as his mind struggled to process the news.
"They didn't?" he managed to get out before his voice cracked and he needed to cough. "How? Why?"
"That we do not know. After we exited the Spacegate, there was a huge power overload and the Spacegate was damaged. Lieutenant Rogers has been working on it around the clock with other mechanics. The breakers are melted together and the power Orb needs repairs. They started yesterday."
"Do we know where Alex and Daniel are?" John's mind was thinking better now, but things were still a little fuzzy.
"We do not," the alien said grimly. "We solely know that they aren't here."
"Shit," the Colonel said under his breath. "Daniel's still new to all of this!"
"He has been with us for two months, O'Brien, and has gone through many incidents. He'll be fine; he also has Major Croft with him, we think. They appear to be a formidable team and could survive for a long period of time. They are also resourceful, as well, and so would have the necessary skills to get along."
"I guess you're right. How long have I been out? How long have you been waiting here?"
"You have been unconscious for nigh twenty-four hours, O'Brien. You fell and hit your head quite hard. The repairs must be close to being done currently."
"So I've noticed." John suddenly sat bolt upright. "I gotta go see the General. Dagón, come on; help me up."
"Are you sure that is wise?"
"I don't care if it is, or isn't! I just thought of something that we need to tell him of!"
The alien nodded. "As you wish," he said and unhooked the Colonel from his heart monitor and IV drip while helping him up. They then made their way down to the General's office, John worrying about Daniel and Alexandra.
"Soup's on," Daniel said into his comm as the food before him over a Bunsen burner-like flame boiled and smelled good.
"Great, I'll be there shortly," he heard Alex say from the other end before the transmission went dead. Fishing around cautiously in his pack, he found two Transsteel ceramic mugs to pour the soup in.
Alex arrived a minute later and Daniel handed her one of the cups.
"I didn't know you could cook," she said, looking at the soup in the cup. "This smells delicious."
"Yes, well…you know me. I love thawing and warming up pre-cooked, ready-made soup. It's to die for, you know…along with my watery ice-melted hot chocolate."
Alex smiled over the rim of her cup, amused by his sarcastic way of coping with pain. "I think we picked the right spot to find the DOC. I think I've found it, though I'm not down far enough. After we finish here, I'll need to go back."
"I'll go with you," he said. "I'm bored out of my wits here, Alex. I need something to do. I mean, how strenuous is chipping away ice with a knife? I could just sit there and chop away."
Taking another sip of the soup, Alex nodded. "All right. Though I don't like the idea, I could use some help."
"Great," the linguist said and they concentrated on drinking their rapidly-cooling dinner.
"How do you think the DOC got this far away from the Spacegate?" Daniel asked as he chopped ice from the biggest block he'd ever seen.
"Well, I've been thinking about that, as well as forming theories about where John and Dagón are. I think, for the DOC, that there must've been a rain or something like that a long time ago, and it gradually pushed the DOC from the Spacegate. I think that this planet originally wasn't an ice planet, but actually had a warmer climate. It could've pushed it over here and then froze later, leaving it incased in ice."
"And about where John and Dagón are?"
"Well, they could either be on a totally different planet, or they could be on the Karma. When I gained consciousness, I looked around; and even though it was dark, I didn't see any other foot prints, so they cannot be here. I just hope they're home."
"Yeah," Daniel said, his voice a wheeze escaping his body before he began coughing. "I can't see John in a situation like this."
"Actually, he'd handle himself pretty well, or so I hear from Dagón. He'll just complain the entire time, but he'll pull through it."
"Really," he said. "How much farther do we have to dig?"
"Not sure. Another foot or so before the top of the DOC would be exposed. Another four feet after that to get the entire thing exposed."
"Well, that's not going to happen right now," Daniel said.
"Why not?" Alex asked, a yawn escaping her lips.
"Because, Major, we've been up for a very long time. The DOC will still be there in the morning. Let's get some sleep."
"All right," the Major said and they went back to where their supplies were, getting the thermal blankets and other warm things to settle down with for the night.
"Colonel!" Hoffman exclaimed, the surprise showing in his voice. "What are you doing out of bed?"
"I needed to talk to you, sir," John said, trying with all his strength not to collapse on Dagón. "May I sit down?"
"By all means! Please, Colonel!"
"Thank you, sir." Dagón dumped John into the chair. "Sir, we need to send a probe back to the planet."
"I know we do. Lieutenant Rogers has informed me that they are done with the repairs. If you can get to the Dialing Room, we can watch them finish the rest of the preliminary tests."
"Dagón?" the Colonel asked.
"I am here, O'Brien. I shall assist you if you wish."
"Thanks, Dagón," John said and was helped to the Dialing Room, followed closely by Hoffman.
"Sir, it's all yours, dude!" Dude said as the three entered the Dialing Room. "It's totally working again."
"Good. Dial back to PV3-401 and get a probe ready."
"Yes, dude," the Captain said and the General's orders were carried out.
"Alpha-Six encoded," Dude said as the sixth symbol was dialed into the Spacegate. "And Alpha-Seven…will not engage. It says that there is no known 'Gate, sir."
The Colonel swore again. "That means that the 'Gate was destroyed on the other end."
"Then I guess the probe cannot be sent." Joseph looked at his men. "I'm sorry."
"But, sir!"
"I'm sorry, Colonel, but we don't even know if they're still alive or not. Your mission is scrubbed."
Hoffman's heart was heavy as he gave the order to not look harder for his missing team members. He did not want to give up hope, but he didn't even know if it would be worth looking for them, as they had no where to bury them if they did.
There was a grim moment of silence as they all thought of both Daniel and Alex.
"Sir?" Dude asked, a hopeful look on his face. "I was going through the databases while the totally radical dude here," he gestured towards the Colonel, "was trapped on the wall. I stumbled upon a place in the Guardia database that said that if a Stargate, as well as a Spacegate, gets an extra amount of power, whether it be from an extra power source or a blast from a weapon, the connection between the two 'Gates is disconnected. But…that connection cannot just disappear. The energy it has from the actual connection needs to be let out somewhere, and so I believe it is possible that it jumped to another 'Gate somewhere."
"Is that possible?" The Colonel sounded hopeful, as well.
"It's necessary," the Captain said, walking over to a clear map in the middle of the room—the one that depicted where all the known Spacegates were. The other three walked over to it, as well.
It was a square of Transsteel with huge white-frosted circles on it, one inside the other, depicting longitude and latitude lines for the entire universe around Tierra. There were also lines shooting out in even intervals from the center of the circles—the place that was supposed to be Tierra, and the three ships above it. There were also little dots all around the rings, symbolizing where a planet was—the ones that lit up were the ones that GC-1 knew had Spacegates on them.
"Sir," Rick said, while pointing to the planet that showed where PV3-401 was, an unlit circle now that the 'Gate wouldn't function, "if they're not here, and we know they're not here—" he pointed at the middle of the entire map, indicating Tierra, "—they must be somewhere between these two planets."
"It is indeed possible," Dagón said, his voice showing a little happiness. "As Chief Vizier for Hades, I once overheard him say such a thing when this happened to one of his battalions. They were being fired at and half of them weren't seen again. He speculated that this happened, though he never bothered to search for them."
The General nodded. "So they're alive somewhere?"
"Possibly, General," the Colonel chimed in. "But they could be badly injured. I mean, with the force that I flew out of the Spacegate, I don't even remember hitting the ramp, not even what happened while I was in the Spacegate's connection for that matter. They could be badly injured. We should try to find them. We could send probes out to these different planets and look. Since they're probably hurt, we wouldn't have to look far from the Spacegate."
"I agree. O'Brien does have a point," Dagón said, an eyebrow raised. "And we could look at the data we collected from each planet to determine the ones that aren't able to sustain life. If they indeed went to those planets, then they'd be dead and there's no point in looking for them."
The General nodded. "You have a go. I want a list of planets that are habitable as soon as possible. We can start with the probes as soon as you get them done."
"Thank you, General," the Colonel said, and he and Dagón went to the computer room to begin their work, Dagón supporting John all the way.