Thank you so much for all those great reviews. I'm overwhelmed by the response this story has provoked. I think there's only one or two chapters left now and of course the ever long awaited fluff as promised will be there.
Well, here's the next chapter, and as promised, you didn't have to wait too long for it. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and that maybe you'll forgive me for killing Jack.
Censure.
By LetitiaRichards
Previously:-
As one, determined to find their missing friends, the two teams moved up the ramp and vanished into the open event horizon.
Chapter 12
Stepping out of the wormhole the teams were greeted by the deserted landscape.
"Okay, let's spread out and see what we can find. SG-10, you take the left flank, we'll take the right."
Major Rosenburg, leader of SG-10, responded with a crisp 'Yes sir' and beckoned his men to follow him, while the Marines of SG-3 moved out to search the rest of the buildings on their right.
OoOoOoOoO
Sam blinked against the brightness and gasped with surprise when she could see Thor standing beside a console some yards ahead of her. She hurried over to him, quickly followed by Daniel.
Teal'c took his time as he strolled over to a stasis pod and looked down on the inert form of his friend, O'Neill.
"Thor! What's going on? We just..."
"O'Neill is here Major Carter," Teal'c called to her, halting her questions to the little grey alien.
She turned and hurried over to the pod and gasped, laying her hands on the clear cover.
"You took him?" she said. It wasn't so much a question as a statement. "Is he...? Is he alive?" she asked, desperate to know if Thor had managed to revive him.
"He is Major Carter, though he is still far from healed as yet. There was much damage."
Tears leaked from Sam's eyes and she batted them away angrily; frustrated with herself for being weak. She was a soldier for crying out loud! Yet the fact that Thor had managed to bring the man she loved back to life again was a miracle in itself, and one she would be for ever in his debt for.
"Damage?" Daniel asked, worried that perhaps Thor wouldn't be able to put all of it to rights again. Jack would just hate to be mentally or physically disabled; he was always so active, always on the go. The man could never sit still for long.
Thor looked up from the console after moving a few of the polished stones around and nodding with satisfaction, and turned his attention the Daniel's question.
"The implant for behavioural correction was never meant for one such as yourselves, humans. It worked on O'Neill only because he carries a specific gene which allows him to activate Ancient technology. As I believe I have mentioned before that O'Neill's genetic make up is slightly different to yourself for instance. We believe he will provide the missing link in our own evolution."
"Like what happened with that Ancient download?"
"You are correct Dr. Jackson.
"But even O'Neill's brain is not capable of carrying Ancient technology to its full capacity."
"Is that why he died?" Sam wanted to know.
"Not exactly. The machine was at fault Major Carter," Thor replied with exaggerated patience and a blink of his over large eyes.
"But it was the right one?"
"Yes!"
Sam hadn't taken her eyes off Jack, the whole time she was talking to Thor. He looked so peaceful, though she could see that the black smudges were still in evidence beneath his eyes where his 'illness' had drained him of energy. His features were still pinched and thin, drawn in by his lack of appetite. She was barely able to take in the fact that Jack was here and that he was alive again. She couldn't wait for the healing process to be over so that she could talk to him again.
"On an Ancient being, the implanted device would merely send a slight shock to the brain of the miscreant for any show of wrongdoing or anger, thus hoping to correct their errant behaviour. There was no need of prisons as you would understand them. Their method was not to punish by isolation, but rather to re-educate them in their attitude towards others while still mixing with the population. Their crime rate, as you call it, was almost non-existent," Thor explained.
"What about re-offenders?" Daniel asked, his curiosity about the Ancient race getting the better of him.
"If the device failed to correct their behaviour after several attempts, they eventually died from an overload, delivered by the device. Each subsequent use of the technology was more powerful than the last."
"Is that what happened to Jack?" Daniel couldn't resist asking.
"I do not believe so Daniel Jackson," Teal'c stated, having listened quietly while keeping an eye on Major Carter since they'd arrived.
"Teal'c is correct. O'Neill physiology wasn't made to cope with ancient technology Dr. Jackson, as I explained before."
"So why didn't the machine work on him to remove it?"
Thor patiently blinked at the human and launched into his second attempt to make them understand.
"When an Ancient being, has corrected their behaviour it was removed using that 'machine' as you called it, but because of O'Neill being a mere human, and that fact that it was damaged, it proved too powerful for his mind and it overloaded his brain circuitry, rendering him lifeless. However I am attempting to correct this now."
The Asgard moved another couple of stones around on the console, and inside the pod, a bright beam of light ran over Jack's head and back again.
"It appears that the process has been completed, though he will remain unconscious for some time yet. It is better that he completely rests for several of your hours."
"But he is okay? Isn't he?" Sam asked, hoping that Thor would confirm her hopes.
"That is something we will not know for sure until he wakes, Major Carter, but everything indicates that he will be fully functional again."
Sam closed her eyes and thanked God for the little grey men that had taken to Jack because he was their hope for the future and as a friend too, and had now preserved his life.
"Sam are you okay?" Daniel asked, seeing her close her eyes and her head hang down.
She nodded, looking up at him, and smiled back, happier now than at any point over the past few days.
"I'm fine Daniel, but perhaps you or Teal'c should return to the SGC and let General Hammond know what's going on."
"Indeed. I will accompany Daniel Jackson also."
Daniel swung his head round to see a knowing smile playing on Teal'c's lips.
"Oh...ah...yeah. Okay. Can you do that Thor?" Daniel asked just as he and Teal'c disappeared in a bright light, leaving Sam alone with Jack and the Asgard Supreme Commander.
"Wow. That never gets old!" she smirked, purposely echoing Jack's sentiment.
OoOoOoOoO
The teams stood morosely around the MALP, while the Colonel addressed General Hammond through the attached video link.
"And you're absolutely certain there's no trace of them?" Hammond asked, wondering where the hell SG-1 had gotten to, and fearing the worst. Knowing SG-1's luck, he could just imagine them being ringed aboard a Goa'uld ship and whisked off to some far away planet, never to be heard of again.
"Absolutely sir. We found where they were, but they're no longer here sir. There's no sign of any Goa'uld activity either sir. Plenty of SG-1 footprints, but no Jaffa. There was just one thing though, em...General Hammond, we did find a little blood sir, but not a lot. Should we take a sample for analysis General?"
Hammond started at the revelation, wondering just whose blood it could be, though he would put the odds on it being Jack's as he was the incapacitated member of the team.
"That would seem to be most prudent Colonel. Okay people, SG-10 can return to base now and once you have the sample, come straight back!" Hammond sighed with bitter disappointment. What the Sam Hill had happened to SG-1?
"Yes sir! SG-3 out!"
The communications ceased and after SG-10 stepped through, looking miserable at failing to find SG-1, the gate shut down.
General Hammond dismissed them to the infirmary and returned to his office, his shoulders sagging with the heavy burden of losing the best damn team in the mountain. He hated to lose them and recalled each of them with fondness; something he wasn't supposed to have for one particular team, but god help him he had become attached to them over the years.
Teal'c, the Jaffa warrior had been more loyal to the SGC than a lot of his own officers and his stoical presence helped steady the shaky foundations of any doubts during missions. Daniel Jackson was a gift from the gods with his knowledge and understanding of the enemy, and the team's moral conscience. Sam Carter...well it stood to reason he was going to miss her. She was his Goddaughter after all and had watched her grow through childhood into a beautiful woman as well as a ruthless soldier as far as the enemy were concerned. She was brilliant at her job and knew the workings of the gate inside out. And last but by no means least, there was Jack O'Neill; general pain in the butt. But, one he could scarce think of being without. He had been unfailingly loyal if not frustrating. A great tactician; and a superb leader. There would be several people of this command who would ascribe their success to his training. He would be sorely missed, as would his dry sense of humour.
He reached the top of the stairs and was about to enter his office when he was blinded by a brilliant light. He blinked several times when he saw Teal'c and Daniel Jackson standing there with huge grins on their faces; well, Dr. Jackson's face was alight with one.
"Teal'c? Dr. Jackson? You're okay? Where are Major Carter and Colonel O'Neill?" Hammond asked still unsure if he was dreaming or not.
"They're fine General Hammond, at least Jack will be once Thor has finished with him," Daniel rambled.
"Thor? Thor has them? What happened? You sent the Iris code then nothing. I sent SG-3 and 10 out there looking for you all," he puffed, breathlessly. He felt as if he'd had all the wind knocked out of his sails.
"It's a long story General, but I think you should recall those teams sir. They won't find anyone. Jack and Sam are on board Thor's ship in orbit around Earth," Daniel said with another grin.
Hammond pulled himself together and called for Sergeant Davis, ordering him to dial up the planet and recall SG-3. All of SG-1 was safe. Davis gaped at the civilian and the warrior and grinned back in relief.
"Yes sir!" he snapped off enthusiastically with a smart salute, glad to see that SG-1 had yet again overcome their latest battle for survival.
General Hammond settled down to hear the story that Daniel and Teal'c had to tell.
"So," he began, "start at the beginning Dr. Jackson. What happened when you arrived on PZ4 295...?"
TBC