Chapter 9: A New Perspective

Jonas heard his own shout echo around him and was sure that it would draw the attention of anyone within an earshot of a couple kilometers.

Standing in front of him was a young girl, that had answered his greeting to the darkness. Even in the dark, the child was in clear, just as though it was daylight.

She had long brown curls that fell to her shoulders and bright blue to violet eyes. She couldn't be any more than ten years of age, Jonas figured. Yet, she had a certain aura about her that made Jonas think twice before determining her true age.

"Uh, hello there, I'm Jonas." Jonas replied introducing himself.

He wasn't afraid of this child even though she had appeared out of nowhere. To him, the girl seemed so innocent that you couldn't help but think of her as less then a threat.

The child gazed blankly at Jonas through her blue eyes, and he shifted his weight so it was evenly distributed on either side of him incase he had to take off in a hurry.

Jonas regarded the child curiously, wondering what exactly it was that she was up to, and if it would prove to be a problem for himself or SG-1. Thoughts of the girl proving to be dangerous, diminished as she broke into a childish smile.

Jonas returned the girl's smile with one of his own and kept his gaze fixed on her.

"What're you doing here all alone?" Jonas asked gently.

"I'm not alone." Was the child's reply. Her voice sounded like warm summer rain, trapped in a child's body. It was gentle and musical.

"It sure looks like you're alone."

"But, I'm not." Replied the young girl defiantly.

"Okay, if you're not alone, where's everyone else?"

"You're here, aren't you?"

"Well, yes, but I don't count."

The child's eyes twinkled in amusement at Jonas's answer and she laughed to advertise her point.

"Seeing as you're a person, an adult, you have to count as everyone else, because there isn't anyone else that would count as everyone else."

Jonas was puzzled at the reply he'd received, but shook it off and tried to explain further, what he'd meant at first.

"No, you don't understand. How did you get this far, in the dark, without the aide of anyone?"

"It's not dark." The child said with a smile.

"It looks dark to me." Jonas replied but, before he could back up his answer his surroundings were flooded with light.

"But, it's not."

Sure enough, there was no sign of darkness anywhere, and the chill that had been constantly present in the air since SG-1's arrival had vanished and was replaced instead, by a more temperate climate. The heat from the sun, warmed Jonas's chilled skin and it was only then that he got a better look around him.

The trees were still there, they hadn't gone anywhere the greenish color of their branches contrasted with the purple of the sky above. A fresh scent drifted in the air and smelled strangely of lilac, mingled with something else that Jonas had never smelled before, and it was mildly pleasant.

Jonas looked down in front of him, and the child stood there smiling in amusement.

"You look as though you've never seen any of this before." She laughed.

"Well, I uh...I haven't. I don't think." Jonas replied.

"You must've, you were here a little while ago."

"No, I wasn't."

The girl placed her hands on her hips and glared at him in confusion.

"You were!" She exclaimed and trotted off, motioning for him to follow her.

Jonas did as he was motioned to, and followed after her, looking about in puzzlement and wonder as he passed over the lush green ground behind the young girl.

OOO

"Carter, have you seen Jonas around lately?" Jack questioned Sam, who was once again seated in front of the DHD, prodding at some of the internal circuitry.
"No, not since earlier, I think he went that way." Sam pointed to the direction she had last seen Jonas heading.

"I'm going after him, he's overdue for dinner. That is definitely unusual." Jack stated and took off in the direction Carter had pointed.

"Hey, Teal'c can you come over here for a minute?" Sam called to the Jaffa.

Teal'c came towards her.

"What is it you require me for, Major Carter?" Teal'c wondered.

"I need some help here. I can't see in the back of this thing. Could you bring the flashlight down closer?"

Teal'c obeyed and held the flashlight over Carter's shoulder as she looked into the back of the DHD.

"Thanks, just hold it there, I'll see if I can tweak something in here that'll give us an answer as to why the gate is being so difficult."

"You are welcome Major Carter." Teal'c responded.

Sam reached into the back and her hand brushed past something cold. Upon closer inspection, she realized that a buildup of ice was caught inside.

"Here we are. Looks as though it's frozen." She said.

"That is a possibility, considering the temperature in this region." Replied Teal'c.

"I know. Maybe, if I can break through this stuff, it'll allow the gate to make a complete dial-up sequence. But, that still won't explain the last time we actually did dial through and it doesn't explain why the gate expelled us upon entry." She hit the build-up with the palm of her hand to try and break it away. Sure enough, the ice began to crumble with each contact she made.

OOO

"Jonas!" O'Neill called into the dark, receiving nothing, but silence as a reply.

"I hate silence. When I get back to the SGC, I am so not going to wish for more time to myself. Every chance I get I'm going to be in the public, where silence isn't an issue. Unless you're in a library that is...Yeah right! A library? Way too quiet for my liking, who needs them anyway?" Jack spoke to himself as he continued searching.

"Jonas!" He called again. Again, silence greeted him.

"Well, hello to you as well." He mused into the darkness. He expected to be greeted back but, received nothing.

"Jonas! Where are you?" O'Neill continued to call.

OOO

"Jonas!"

Jonas heard his name being called out and stopped.

Ahead of him the child stopped as well. "What're you doing Jonas? Come on!" She said.

"Hold on, I'll be there in a minute, I think I heard someone calling to me." He told her.

"Jonas, no one's calling to you. Now, follow me."

"Jonas!" Came the call again, it was Colonel O'Neill.

"No, there is someone asking for me, I'm just going to go back and let him know where I am."

"No! Come with me, I have something to show you." The girl yelled at him.

"Just a minute, I'll be right with you." Jonas replied, taken aback by the response he'd gotten from her.

The child's face clouded over and it was clear she was angered but, she didn't look as though she was going to stop him.

"Fine, I'll wait here for you." The child pouted, and seated herself in the grass, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'll be back..." Jonas started, but realized he didn't even know the girl's name, yet she knew his.

"Hurry, back." The child replied, clearly not understanding his attempt to get her to tell him her name. He didn't want to continue thinking of her as the nameless child he met in the dark, that just didn't appeal to him.

Jonas turned on his heel and hurried off in the direction Colonel O'Neill was calling from. Only when he got out of the sight of the child, did he realize that it had all gotten dark once again, and the cold wind was brushing against him. He slowed down to avoid an ungraceful spill and continued towards O'Neill's voice.