Title: Though a Candle Burns…

Chapter: 2 of ?

Email: What if Daniel had managed to get Jack to ascend in Abyss?

Category: Angst/Romance

Rating: Teen

Pairing: S/J

Season: 6

Spoilers: Meridian and Abyss are the obvious ones, but anything up to the end of season 6 is fair game.

Content Warnings: Apparent character death (Jack in Abyss), nothing bad.

Archive: My Site: Yes

SamandJack: Yes

Anywhere else: Yes

Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own any of the characters herein, not even the delectable colonel. Dammit.

Author's Note: As before. In desperate need of feedback to check the fic is going in the right direction. Thanks to everyone who has already sent feedback, it means a lot. ;-)

When they re-materialised, they were in General Hammond's office. The General was sitting with Jacob Carter.

The two men were smiling; sitting back in their chairs and talking quietly about something.

"Hey!" Jack exclaimed, looking hurt, "They look happy!"

"Wait." Oma said calmly.

"Offworld activation!" Sergeant Harriman's voice came over the PA.

Hammond and Jacob stood simultaneously and rushed from the room.

"They don't know yet?" Jack asked, looking at Oma.

She shook her head.

"Ah. Makes me feel better." He said.

Jack looked down at himself. "Why am I still wearing the stuff the Tok'ra put me in?"

"You have yet to release your previous life." Daniel informed him.

"And you have, I take it?" Jack asked, eyeing up Daniel's all-white outfit.

"Yes, I did when I ascended."

"Because you were given a choice." Jack said acerbically.

"Shall we move on?" Oma asked, her voice beginning to show irritation at their bickering.

They disappeared and reappeared in the control room, standing just behind General Hammond and Jacob Carter.

"What is it, sergeant?" Hammond asked.

"It's an audio transmission, sir. From the Tok'ra."

"Patch it through."

"General Hammond," the deep voice came through the speakers, "is Selmak with you?"

"He is."

"Are SG-1 present also?"

"No. They can be summoned if necessary." Hammond replied, intrigued.

"It is probably better that they are not present to hear this." The Tok'ra said.

Jacob and Hammond exchanged looks. Jacob shrugged.

"What is it you have to tell us?" Hammond asked.

There was a lengthy hesitation on the other end of the radio.

"Hello?" General Hammond asked.

"I am here." The Tok'ra replied. "I am afraid I have bad news concerning Colonel O'Neill." The Tok'ra paused again. "He is dead."

Walter swivelled in his chair to stare open-mouthed at General Hammond.

"How?"

"Our contact tells us that Baal tortured and murdered Colonel O'Neill many times, reviving him in his sarcophagus. We do not know why he failed to revive the Colonel the last time. I am sorry."

General Hammond had turned ashen. He said nothing.

Jacob leaned toward the mic. "This is Jacob. Could you tell me how you know of Colonel O'Neill's death?"

"We received information from one of our spies in the system lord Baal's ranks. Colonel O'Neill died approximately two weeks ago."

Hammond seemed to have recovered his voice. "Are you sure?"

"There can be no doubt, General Hammond. I am sorry."

"Thank you. SGC out."

After the Stargate shut down the control room was silent. Everyone was staring at the General.

"General Hammond, sir, should I…?" Harriman's voice trailed off, he didn't know what to say.

General Hammond continued to stare into the middle distance.

"George…" Jacob said softly.

General Hammond seemed to straighten up slightly. "Yes." He looked up at the people staring at him in the control room. "Back to work, people." He ordered, not unkindly.

"Would you like me to call SG-1 to your office, sir?" Harriman asked.

"SG-1…" Hammond said softly, as though he were just remembering his flagship team.

"Sam…" Jacob whispered, so quietly that only General Hammond and the unseen watchers heard.

Out of the corner of his eye Jack caught Daniel sending him a very pointed look, which he, equally as pointedly, ignored.

"Yes," General Hammond was saying, "tell SG-1 to be in my office as soon as possible."

"Yessir."

"Thank you, sergeant." Hammond said, sounding suddenly much older than usual.

The two Generals left the control room.

Jack and Daniel looked at Oma. "What now?" Jack asked.

"Follow them." Came the simple answer.

Jack and Daniel did as they were told and followed the two older men back to the General's office.

Neither Hammond nor Jacob spoke until both were seated and the door was shut.

"You okay, George?" Jacob asked.

"As a matter of a fact, I don't think I am." Hammond replied.

Jacob nodded. Both Generals looked older and more exhausted than Jack had ever seen them.

At a sound from the briefing room, Jacob looked up.

SG-1 were milling around the room, waiting to be called into the General's office.

"What are you going to tell them?" Jacob asked.

"The truth."

Jacob nodded.

General Hammond rose and opened the door. "SG-1, if you'd like to step into my office."

He turned and headed back to his chair.

Sg1filed into the room, Teal'c's bulk making the office seem smaller.

Jacob moved around the desk so that he was flanking General Hammond.

Jonas' face was totally devoid of its usual smile.

Teal'c was looming possessively behind Sam.

Sam's eyes flicked between Hammond and Jacob suspiciously.

They knew something was wrong.

"Have you heard anything about Colonel O'Neill, sir?" Sam asked General Hammond.

"Have a seat, SG-1." Hammond said.

They sat.

"We have just received word from the Tok'ra," Hammond began, "one of their spies in Baal's fortress has discovered what has happened to Colonel O'Neill." Hammond paused, "There is no easy way to tell you this-"

"He's dead." Sam said.

It was Jacob who answered the expectant looks from her teammates. "The Tok'ra who contacted the SGC said that Baal killed him."

"We were right." Jonas said.

Sam nodded. "He did go to Baal's stronghold."

"Indeed."

Sam looked up at her father. "Did you know?"

"Sam?"

"When you came here. Did you already know he was dead?"

Jack was shocked at the anger he saw in her eyes. Her face was carefully under control, but her eyes blazed at her father.

"No. Sammie, why wouldn't I tell you?"

"You're a Tok'ra." She said coldly.

Jacob looked stunned.

"He is also your father, Major, and Jack's friend." Hammond reminded her sternly.

Teal'c laid a massive hand on Sam's shoulder.

She shook it off and stood. "So he's dead. I have some experiments I should be working on. General, permission to leave?"

General Hammond just stared at her for a moment then blinked and said, "Granted, Major."

Sam saluted the General, spun on her heel and marched out of the office and out of sight.

"What the hell?" Hammond asked.

"Maybe I should go talk to her." Jacob said.

"I would not do that if I were you, JacobCarter." Teal'c said.

"Teal'c?" Jacob questioned.

"I believe it would be best to allow MajorCarter some time alone before you next speak with her."

Jacob nodded.

"Are you okay, Teal'c?" General Hammond asked.

"Indeed I am not." The Jaffa replied. "I believe I will go to my quarters now, GeneralHammond."

"Go ahead." Hammond said kindly.

"I think I'll do that too, General, if it's okay?" Jonas said. The young man hadn't smiled since he entered the office and it was spooking Jack out.

"Of course."

Both members of SG-1 stood and exited the office in silence.

Jacob blew out a breath. "Do you think they'll be okay?" He asked.

Jack expected General Hammond to reply in the affirmative, but the older man said, "I'm not sure, Jacob. Sam and Teal'c just lost Doctor Jackson; I don't know how they'll cope with losing Jack too."

Jacob walked back around the desk and sat in one of the seats recently vacated by SG-1.

"I'll talk to Sam later." He said.

Hammond gave a mirthless laugh. "What are you going to say?"

"Wish I knew, George."

Jack, Daniel and Oma materialised in Sam's lab, where the Major was angrily throwing items into a briefcase.

Jack walked over to her workbench where a part of a large alien machine was lying, obviously broken.

"She broke her doohickey." He said quietly.

"Stupid." Sam suddenly snarled. "So stupid." She slammed the laptop closed and dumped it on the workbench, next to the broken part, which she picked up.

She slumped onto her chair, turning the part over in her hands. Suddenly, tears began to stream down her face. "Stupid." She said again, quietly this time. "I am so stupid."

Jack looked at Daniel helplessly, but the archaeologist just waved a hand in Sam's direction, indicating that Jack should keep his attention on her.

She sat up straight suddenly and wiped her face. "Get a grip, Carter." She ordered herself. "He was your CO for crying out loud." She stopped suddenly, as though hearing what she'd just said. "Oh god. I have to get out of here." She stood and grabbed her briefcase.

As she passed the wastebasket she tossed the part into it. Then she flicked the lights out and locked the door, leaving Jack, Daniel and Oma in the dark.

"God," Daniel said softly.

"She'll be okay," Jack said, looking at the door Sam had just exited through.

"How do you know?" Oma asked.

"She's Carter," Jack said, as though that were reason enough for anything.

"So?" Daniel challenged. "Jack, you can't just keep assuming she'll survive everything. She's human too."

"I know that, Daniel, thank you." Jack snapped. "She'll be okay." He said again.

Daniel just stared at him and shook his head.

"Shall we see how your other friends are faring?" Oma asked.

Jack nodded mutely, still staring at the door.

Teal'c couldn't kel no reem. He had tried, but his mind was restless.

He wanted to know what had happened to his friend. How he had died. It was logical to assume that he had been tortured by Baal, but O'Neill did not succumb easily to torture.

He sat on his bunk with his hands resting lightly on his knees for many hours, contemplating his friend's fate.

Jack, Daniel and Oma appeared just before there was a knock at the door.

"Why wasn't he kel no reeming?" Daniel asked.

Jack looked confused. "What?"

"The candles are lit, but he wasn't kel no reeming." Daniel explained.

"How should I know?" Jack asked irritably, "Maybe he finished or something."

Daniel shot him an incredulous look.

Jonas entered the room.

"Sorry to bother you, Teal'c, but I couldn't sleep."

"Nor could I achieve kel no reem, JonasQuinn." Teal'c informed his friend.

"I was thinking about going to General Hammond in the morning. We never did find out what really happened to the Colonel." Jonas said, taking a seat on the floor.

"I concur." Teal'c said.

The two men were silent for a moment.

Then, "Do you think we should go see Major Carter?"

Teal'c looked at his new teammate. "We should, but not yet. Perhaps after we have seen GeneralHammond."

Jonas nodded. "I guess you're right." He said.

"You do not agree?"

"Its just… why are we treating her like she's got the plague?"

"Got the plague?" Teal'c repeated.

"Sorry." Jonas said, "Why are we avoiding her?"

"We are not. We are simply giving her space to come to terms with the death of O'Neill." Teal'c said.

"Don't you think we could do that better together?" Jonas pressed. "We are her friends."

"There are some things even friends cannot help with, JonasQuinn. MajorCarter will require 'space' to come to terms with O'Neill's demise. She is likely to prefer to do this alone at first."

"It just hit her so hard. I mean, to lose the Colonel so close to losing Doctor Jackson…" He trailed off at Teal'c's intense look. "But that's not all, is it?"

Teal'c shook his head.

Jonas seemed to digest this. "I thought there was something-"

"There was not." Teal'c corrected, cutting the young man off. "But perhaps there should have been."