They reported for duty in separate cars of course, but were there at the same time. Usually this was their day off. But something big was going on. They rode the elevator down in silence. Each of them clearing their minds and getting into 'work mode'. The doors opened and they were ready to go. They had agreed on some ground rules if this was going to work. Number one; no displays of affection, besides a hug, at work. Number two; Work is work, home is home. They went directly to the debriefing room where Teal'c, Daniel, and SG3 were waiting.
One of the members of SG 3 spoke up. "Sir, we have a problem at the new off world base."
"They haven't reported in for hours. They have missed the last three communications." Another spoke up.
"Did you send a MALP?"
"No sir, we weren't sure what the best course of action would be."
Jack thought for a minute, "Let's send a MALP through first and then SG 1 and 3 will go through. I will also round up SG 6 to be ready. They are on duty today."
"Yes sir"
"Let's move out. Prepare to leave in one hour. "Any questions?"
No objections came, "Dismissed"
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O'Neill headed towards his office and SG 1 headed off to the locker rooms.
"Sam, what do you think happened?" Daniel asked.
"I don't know Daniel. No one was supposed to know about the base. Unless the Tokra have a traitor in their midst."
"Or us" Daniel replied.
She nodded. They packed up the gear and headed for the gate room.
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"I want to see team leaders over here for a minute." O'Neill said motioning to the leaders of SG1, 3, and 6.
"I want you to report in when you get there and again in one hour. I want to know what's going on before I let you stay too long."
"Yes sir" they said in unison
"Alright, send the MALP through."
The scene out side the gate was deserted. Even when the camera was rotated, nothing looked out of the ordinary. No sign of a battle or any hostiles.
"I've got a bad feeling about this. Move out, but be careful and stay sharp."
The teams proceeded through the gate, SG 1 being the last ones through.
"Good Luck" O'Neill said raising a hand to them.
"We will be careful." Daniel said. Carter and Teal'c nodded. With that they stepped through the gate.
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As SG 1 passed through the gate the wormhole disengaged. They quickly moved away from the gate to find some cover just in case. There was no sign of anyone except the SG teams.
Carter was the highest ranking officer on this mission, so she gave the orders.
"Teams one and three will explore the base site; six will hold the gate." She waited until everyone had heard the orders and asked for questions. When there were none, she said "Alright, let's move out. Contact in one hour."
They walked cautiously to the base site; it was deserted. There was no sign of life anywhere.
"Be careful, we don't want any surprises."
She signaled SG 3 to move in and then SG 1. Teal'c, then Carter, then Daniel.
Once inside the main structure, they noticed that everything looked as though everyone had been interrupted. Books laid open computers still on, food half eaten.
"Either they left in a big hurry, or someone got to them." A member of SG 3 spoke up.
"Yes, but there do not appear to be any signs of a struggle." Teal'c said scanning the room.
"You're right Teal'c" Carter said examining the room carefully. She punched some keys on the computer keyboard. The screen saver disengaged and revealed a half written report.
"It's going to be time to report to SGC soon. We need to try to figure out what went on here before that." Carter said as she swept the room with her eyes and her P90.
"Colonel Carter, there does not appear to be any sign of attack here." Teal'c said.
"I don't see any either Teal'c"
Just then, the room was filled with light, and SG 1 and SG 3 were gone.
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"Sir, they've disappeared." Major Ellis reported. "When they didn't report in, we went to investigate and they were gone without a trace."
Looking into the monitor for the MALP, O'Neill raised his eyebrows.
"Is there any possibility that they wandered off, got lost?" O'Neill asked, almost comical, but concerned.
"I don't think so sir."
O'Neill scratched his head. "Great. I want you to search again. Look for any signs of struggle or attack. Maybe they accidentally triggered something." O'Neill said.
"Yes sir."
"And be careful" O'Neill added.
"Yes sir"
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"Whoa" Carter said
"Yeah" Daniel said
They were in a large room with SG 3 and the members of the supply base. The room was lit by lights on the sides of the room. It appeared to be a cargo hold. There is something very familiar about this room, Carter thought. Just then, a hologram of a small gray alien appeared.
"Asguard" Teal'c said
"Greetings" The Asguard hologram spoke.
"Ah, hello" Daniel said
"I am sure you are all wondering why you are here."
"Yes, actually" Carter said
"The planet was under surveillance by the Goa'uld. We simply removed you to keep you safe." The Asguard said.
"Isn't that breaking some treaty somewhere?" Daniel asked.
"The planet you were on falls into our protected worlds. We protect the world itself and its inhabitants." The Asguard said.
"Oh" Daniel said.
"We need to warn the others then." Carter said
"There is no need."
There was the tell tale bright flash of Asguard transportation device. Suddenly all of the SG teams were together.
"Ah, can you send us home?" Daniel asked.
"Yes, we will contact you when the threat has been dealt with."
"Er, thanks." Carter said.
"One more thing, we didn't find any evidence of civilization on this planet. Where did the inhabitants go?"
"We temporarily removed them and relocated them to a planet that had inhabitants of a similar technical age. They are a nomadic race."
"Okay" Daniel said "That makes sense, I guess."
"This world had been threatened by the Goa'uld many times. They had figured out a way to defeat our protection devices. It became difficult to protect. Since our war with the replicators has drawn so much of our fleet away, the Goa'uld began attacking some of our planets."
"Anyone we know?" Daniel asked.
"No, lesser Goa'uld hungry for power and domination at any cost."
"Ah" Daniel said.
"We will contact you when the threat has been dealt with. I will return you to your base."
"Thank you" Carter said.
The Asguard nodded, and with a flash of light, they were gone.
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O'Neill was pacing in his office when he heard his name over the intercom.
"General O'Neill, please report to the gate room"
He hurried out the door to get to the gate room.
He arrived to see SG 1 and the rest of the teams, plus the occupants of the base. They all looked disoriented.
"General"
"Colonel"
"The Asguard sir"
"Yeah?"
"They gave us a lift home."
"I was about to send somebody after you guys."
"We will debrief you." She said smiling
"Okay" O'Neill said shrugging his shoulders.
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The debriefing was over and SG 1 had been dismissed. Carter was changing into her street clothes and thinking about the days events. The general had decided to pull the base for now, until more information on this threat could be collected. He had also spoken with the Asguard about taking his people with out notifying him of where they were.
She shut her locker and heard a noise behind her. She turned to face O'Neill.
"General"
"Carter"
"I was just heading home for the day sir."
"At ease Colonel."
She smiled. "I think that we need to talk about today."
"Okay, call me when you get home. I should be finished here by then." O'Neill said smiling.
"Okay"
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"Hello?"
"Sir"
"I am just leaving the base."
"Do you want to come over?"
"Sure"
"Okay"
"Be there soon"
The door bell rang and Sam got up from the couch to answer it. It was Jack of course, and he had flowers.
"Thanks" Sam said taking the flowers to the kitchen for water.
Jack plopped down on the couch and changed the channel on the TV.
"What if I was watching that?' Sam asked
He looked up at her smiling face, "Sorry"
The doorbell rang. She looked over at the door. "I wonder who that could be, I never get this much company."
She opened the door to Pete. "Pete" she said
Jack snapped to attention as soon as she said the name. He put down the remote.
"Hello Sam" he said quietly
"Pete, I thought you had left town already."
"I am, right now. I am on my way out. I wanted to give you some of your things back."
"Come in" she said as she guided Pete into the dining room.
"Only for a minute." Pete said, handing Sam a manila envelope.
Sam nodded.
"Sam, I know that he is here." Pete said.
She didn't lie to him. She nodded.
He put his hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor. "Thank you for the time we had together and for letting me into your world."
She nodded. "I'm sor…" she began. He put his hand to her lips and shook his head.
"Don't. You deserve to be happy even if it can't be me who makes you happy."
"Pete, you made me happy."
"But it wasn't enough Sam. We obviously weren't meant to be."
She didn't speak; tears began to roll down her cheeks. "I…" she started to say something but stopped.
Pete reached out and squeezed her hand. "Good bye Sam. Good luck."
"You too"
He turned and walked out the door. She fell into a heap on the couch face down in the cushions. Her body shuddered with sobs. She sat up and began punching the couch. Jack peered around the corner and was immediately at her side.
"Sam, are you okay?"
"No" she said, face wet with angry tears. "Why the hell didn't he just leave? He wants me to feel this way, damn him." She said punching the couch.
"Come here" he pulled her into his arms and held her tightly. She rested her head on his chest and silently sobbed. It was killing him to see her like this.
"Shh, shh, Sam its okay." He said rocking her gently. He stroked her hair and held her for what seemed hours. Her breathing had become slow and rhythmic. She had cried herself to sleep. She was exhausted. He turned on the TV and watched hockey while she slept.
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