THREE: THE AASCHEN

(Set during the episode 2010)

The plan was set in motion. Doctor Janet Fraiser would travel to Chulak to give Teal'c the co-ordinates he would need. Teal'c and his apprentice would return to earth, input the co-ordinates, and the Gate would be activated. From a more secure location, Doctor Daniel Jackson would enter an SG-1 IDC, and retired Colonel Jack O'Neill would jerry-rig a flying fox and hopefully get to the gate with the note in hand. Not exactly a fool-proof plan, but a plan nonetheless.

For Samantha Carter, she could not have been more disappointed at the way things had turned out. Her own husband had been part of the Aaschen conspiracy to eliminate part of the earth's population. She was unable to have children because of her husband's agreement with the Aaschen that the population of earth needed to be reduced. And now her husband, Ambassador Joe Faxon, had forbidden her to be part of the group that attempted to fix things for all mankind.

Calculating the exact moment of a solar flare had been simple enough using the Aaschen computer, but Sam had a feeling that something was going to go wrong. It seemed to be part of the SG-1 luck, that even the best-laid plans seemed destined to have holes in them.

Which was why she'd calculated another flares that could be used, though this one was calculated with the sun the Chulak orbited. Except, if she knew herself well enough, there was no way she wouldn't be part of the SG-1 plot to get the note through the Stargate. Which left only one other person that Sam could trust.

"Janet, please, you have to trust me," Sam implored quietly. There was no more than an hour before Janet was scheduled to travel through to Chulak. "If we fail-"

"Sam-"

"No! Janet, if we fail, you'll be the only person who can fix this. Chulak's sun won't flare enough to cause a significant time-jump, which is why we have to go from here. But…it could be enough that it'd be worth a shot. It's the safest place for you to be," Sam explained. "The only problem is, you can't just send a note through. You'll need to go in person."

Sam held Janet's wrist with a firm but gentle grip, two items pushing into Janet's palm. A piece of paper with a time and co-ordinates, and a radio.

"You won't have a GDO to use, but you'll be able to contact the SGC using the radio."

"Sam, even if this works, they'll never believe that I am who I say I am," Janet replied, her voice shaky. This was the most insane plan her friend had ever come up with.

Sam hesitated, her mind trying to think of anything that had happened before they'd met the Aaschen that would only mean something to herself and Janet. Something that she wouldn't have dared tell anyone else except her best friend.

"Do you remember that weekend we took Cass to the lake?" Sam asked. "After that whole Urgo fiasco."

"I remember," Janet replied.

"Remember the brownie fight we had in the kitchen, and we swore we'd never tell anyone about it for fear of losing our reputation as the calm and collected individuals everyone thought we were," Sam asked.

Janet chuckled in remembrance and nodded.

"To this day, I've still never told anyone that story. Chances are, the same will still be true even if we manage to alter the timeline. That should prove, at least to me, that you are who you say you are," Sam said.

Janet nodded, breathing in deeply. This was a seriously bad idea. Then again, the thought of SG-1 failing, and being killed was an even worse idea. She didn't want to live in a world without Sam and Daniel. Even if they weren't as close as they once had been, there was no denying that life wouldn't be the same without them. And since Cassie's death five years earlier, Janet Fraiser had very little tying her to this timeline.

"I'll be stuck there, Sam," Janet said, voicing one of the more terrifying concerns she had.

"But you'll be in a position to change everything if we fail. You'll be able to convince them to stop using the vaccine. You'll be able to fix things if the note doesn't go through. You can't tell me it's not worth the risk," Sam implored.

Janet sighed before nodding. Sam had a point. She couldn't allow earth to crumble into chaos just because she would be stuck in the past. She had a chance to help billions of people. Her oath as a doctor wouldn't allow her to stand by idly and watch what was left of the earth wither away under the Aaschen control.

Sam quickly swept her friend into a crushing hug, the two women clinging to one another.

"We'll make this work Janet," Sam assured her. "We'll fix everything."

And with that, Sam was gone.

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Janet knew without a doubt that the solar flare had done it's job. If it hadn't worked, Janet would merely have ended up on a different planet, but as she stepped out from the gate, and back onto Chulak, she knew that the first half of Sam's plan had worked. Now for the second.

She jogged to the DHD, dialling the co-ordinates for earth, the radio in her clammy hand. The gate kawooshed to life, and Janet moved closer, clicking the radio to life.

"This is Lieutenant Colonel Janet Fraiser attempting contact with Stargate Command. Can anybody read me?" she asked.

The following silence was enough to make Janet's heart pound even faster. She closed her eyes, silently whispering a prayer to whatever higher powers were out there that she hadn't been sent back to a period before the SGC had been in operation.

"This is General O'Neill of Stargate Command," came a very familiar voice through the radio. Janet very nearly wept at the sound, unable to believe that Sam's plan at contact had worked. "And I'm afraid that we're having some trouble believing that you are who you say you are."

"We figured that would be the case sir," Janet said. "And if Sam's around, I'm hoping she can verify things."

"This is Colonel Carter," Sam's voice said, a note of hesitance apparent even over the crackly frequency.

"Sam. I know this is probably impossible for you to believe, but I am Janet Fraiser. And I know how weird this is going to sound, but…I'm from the future," Janet explained, feeling ever so slightly silly even as she said it.

"The future," Sam repeated, sounding sceptical.

"October 4th, 2010 to be exact," Janet replied. "With any luck, SG-1 was able to send through a note warning you against going to P4C-970. And if that worked, then you guys aren't allied with the Aaschen."

There was silence, and Janet could feel the pulse in her throat beating wildly.

"Sam, I can prove that I am Janet Fraiser. I can tell you something only you and I would know," Janet pleaded.

"I'm listening," Sam said.

"That weekend at the lake, with Cassie. After you and the rest of SG-1 had Urgo in your minds. We made chocolate brownies…we ended up flinging most of the mixture at each other, rather than actually baking anything edible," Janet said.

There was more silence, and Janet was waiting with baited breath.

"Doctor Fraiser, we've opened the iris," O'Neill's voice informed her. "Just to give you fair warning, there will be a security team in the Gate Room."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, sir," Janet replied.

She clicked her radio off and stepped through the Stargate.

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"You got the note," Janet surmised as O'Neill, Carter, Jackson and Teal'c stepped into the gate room.

"We got the note," Sam assured her.

"So you never even met the Aaschen," Janet said.

"No, we met them," O'Neill jumped in. "We just worked out that they were the ones you guys warned us against."

Janet smiled, a sigh or relief escaping her lips. Her timeline no longer existed. Everything that they had gone through since they'd met the Aaschen no longer mattered, or even existed, and SG-1 was safe and sound in front of her.

"Now…if you'll follow Carter and Daniel here, I'm sure they've both got a billion or so questions they want answered," O'Neill said. "And after a few complete physicals, purely for payback purposes, I assure you, I've got a job offer for you."