Story title: Alter Ego
Plot Summary: The exploration of an abandoned civilization with evidence of hybrid goa'uld technology serves as Sam and Jack's last mission on the same SG team. A dangerous building collapse thankfully doesn't leave anyone injured, but some of the members of SG1 start acting strangely in the following days. S/J of course!
Rating: Still don't know what the ratings are… nothing explicit… maybe a bit of language/violence…
Disclaimer: Yet again, I am shamelessly borrowing characters that were thought up by other people – geniuses that they are. I hope they don't mind.
A/N: Hello and welcome to one and all. This is a sequel to 'Solid blood of the spirits', although it is going to work as a standalone story as well. Only one thing, it's AU since Sam and Jack are together (read Solid blood to see how it came about). Please read on and hopefully enjoy!
Chapter I - Holiday
Colonel Samantha Carter waited anxiously in the control room as the digital clock on the computer ticked away soundlessly. He was late. However, this wasn't really anything to worry about; Colonel Jack O'Neill had yet to actually return through the stargate on time. There was no need for concern… yet.
It was the nagging voice in the back of her head that added the last word. It had been odd enough to see him leave on a mission without her… but this had been made infinitely worse by the 'horror scenarios' that her quick mind had insisted on creating.
She had pleaded with General Hammond, two weeks earlier, for him to allow her to join the mission with the Asgard. Exploring the genetic importance of Fodor – the Asgard ancestor – would have been fascinating. She'd had to admit, however, that medical science wasn't her specific field of expertise. Moreover, she had been completely swamped in the lab recently with various naquada research projects that had been spurred by the discovery of the Ancient cache in Australia. Despite these rationalizations, Sam knew where she'd wanted to be these past few weeks.
Ever since their last mission – where they ended up facing Baal in Australia of all places – she and Jack had become inseparable. Their altered assignments, borne of that mission, finally allowed them to be for one another that which both had longed for. Saying goodbye to the man she loved – even if he was only going to be gone a short while – had proved extremely distressing. She had of course adopted a professional manner at the base; but to those who knew her, it was obvious that her mood had been dampened.
As the date of his return had drawn closer, Sam had felt a mix of excitement and fear well up within her. Each moment brought his return closer – in theory. The fear resulted from the realization that, if something had gone wrong on that mission, the scheduled time of arrival would be when she found out.
Just as her mind ran through the endless 'horror scenarios' she'd thought up for the nth time, Sam heard the two words she had been longing to hear:
"Off-world activation!"
She watched avidly as the wormhole engaged and a familiar loping gait propelled Colonel Jack O'Neill down the gateramp; a grin fixed on his face, his eyes locked with hers through the glass.
There was another reason Sam had been so eagerly awaiting the return of Jack and his team. SG11 had made a discovery that would require both her's and Jonas' expertise… it was only logical that Jack accompany them with Teal'c – it was going to be like the old days.
Jack swaggered off the end of the gate ramp and stopped, his eyes still directed to the control room where Sam stood, General Hammond flanking her.
"Finally!" he said emphatically. "Before I go anywhere near another mission, I demand a holiday."
Jonas snorted at this comment. "Jack, you've just had the better part of 6 months in Australia using your unique affinity with Ancient devices to basically act as a doorman between – and I have this on good authority – spending most of your time fishing in the tidal estuary behind the beach at Minnamurra." He rolled his eyes melodramatically. "In what way was that not a holiday?"
Jack didn't answer. Before leaving the room to bravely face a possible barrage of needles in the infirmary, he winked up towards Sam. She understood his silent answer to Jonas' question – a holiday just wasn't a holiday if they couldn't be together.
Sam had been shoved away from the infirmary so many times that she'd given up – Jack would have to find her when he was done. For the moment, however, this left her sitting at the bench in her lab, staring at the screensaver on her computer. It was lucky Jack burst through the door when he did – otherwise she may have passed out through the dizzying effects of the spiraling dots.
Sam only saw the expression on Jack's face briefly before he pounced on her, trapping her in his arms, immersing her in the welcome feel of his body, of his scent. The ferocity of the kiss that followed and the ecstatic, mischievous look on his face told Sam in an instant that their time apart had been difficult for him too. When Jack finally – somewhat reluctantly – pulled away, Sam couldn't help but giggle.
"What?" He protested, pretending to be hurt by her reaction.
"I'm sorry," she hiccoughed in between giggles, "it's just that you looked like you were about to explode with joy when you walked through the door!"
Jack chuckled along with Sam while brushing both his hands through her hair and burying his face in her neck. "What's there not to be joyful about?" He breathed, "I'm here, you're here, and Hammond just told me we're going on holidays… together!"
"Holidays!" Sam pulled back, puzzled. "We're not going holiday – we're going off-world!" She looked at her watch, "The briefing's in ten minutes!"
"With you, Sam," Jack closed the distance between them again, "even a Goa'uld prison cell qualifies as a holiday in my mind." Before Sam could respond, Jack declared the matter closed by again capturing her lips with his.
"Let's just hope it doesn't come to that." Sam said impishly before standing, grabbing Jack by the hand, and moving toward the door to go to the said briefing.
The members of SG1 found themselves in the familiar surrounds of the briefing room. Sam was standing in front of the projector screen while everyone else listened – or, in Jack's case, pretended to listen – to her presentation.
"This site is unlike any other we've encountered before." She was saying. "While the architecture looks to be goa'uld – we'll need your help there guys," she nodded towards Jonas and Teal'c, "there is also evidence of a civilization we would normally associate with planets left to develop without any goa'uld influence.
"Such as?" Jonas asked, intrigued by the obvious mix of technology.
"Well, for starters there are elements of an electricity network," Sam clicked to the next image, pointing at the relevant sections, "which would indicate that the people of this planet have learned to operate without the benefit of naquada or crystals. But at the same time, the documents found seem to be in some hybrid goa'uld language."
"Colonel O'Neill, is this presentation boring to you?" General Hammond's voice cut through the room like a dagger, abruptly brining Jack out of his reverie.
"No, no, noooooooo." Jack tested various inflections and facial expressions as he issued the denial. "I'm just eager to move out, sir – even though I technically only got in a couple of hours ago."
"As am I, General Hammond." Teal'c contributed for the first time to the meeting. "The architecture indeed indicates a goa'uld basis for this abandoned civilization. It is most intriguing."
"Right, well, do you have anything else to add, Colonel Carter?" He looked to Sam respectfully.
"Not really sir," Sam shrugged. "I think we've covered the essentials."
"Alright, you have a go." With his customary shuffling of papers, General Hammond rose to his feet.
"Actually General," Sam interjected hastily, "I wanted to request that we include Captain Hindmarsh on this mission."
Jonas' ears pricked up instantly. "She's arrived?"
"Yes, nearly a week ago now." Sam smiled at the now near jubilant Kelownan. "The naquada retrieval mission finished up and as per our agreement with the Australian Government, she's transferred here as a liaison."
Jonas was preparing to speak again but Sam held her hand up, indicating that it could wait until another time. Instead, she turned her head back to look at the General, who seemed to be hesitating.
"If anything sir," Sam pressed on, "this is by definition a routine mission. Scientific and archeological phenomena to examine in our search for technology and information with which to defeat the Goa'uld." She held her breath, waiting for the response.
"Colonel?" General Hammond turned toward Jack, eager to hear his opinion.
"Yeah, sure." Jack shrugged after a short contemplation. "She was very impressive in Australia – this way we can make a final assessment before you assign her to an SG team, sir."
General Hammond nodded with approval as he again made an attempt to end the meeting. "Departure at 0800." His voice clipped. "Dismissed!"
For the first time in many weeks, Sam woke up the next morning with an unmistakable buzz of excitement coursing through her body. After waiting somewhat impatiently, she was going to finally have the opportunity to properly examine the ruins found by SG11. It occurred to her as she lay in bed, her eyes still closed, that something else was contributing to her excitement. A pleasantly dexterous hand was feathering the bare skin of her arm and torso with tender care. As the soft touch of this hand's fingers reached her ribcage, she couldn't contain a small gasp, opening her eyes to see Jack's head, propped up against the pillow next to her, studying her as if he needed to remember every physical feature of her body for an exam.
"G'mornin' sleepyhead." He smiled at her, continuing to caress her soft skin, feeling her shiver under his touch.
"Hmmm." Sam murmured lazily in response. "How long have you been watching me sleep?"
"Let's just say I could probably draw a brilliant likeness of you," he paused to kiss her passionately, "And I'm a horrible artist."
Sam merely made an amused sound in response to this comment, and sat up slowly, her eyes blurrily looking to the clock next to the bed. It read almost 6.30am – they were going to be late unless they started moving.
"We're due on base in just over an hour," she said, her voice becoming rushed as she was suddenly infused with energy, throwing the bedcovers aside as she got to her feet.
Jack, for his part didn't move. He merely stretched his long limbs over the warm mattress where Sam had been laying and kept studying her face with the same loving intensity as before. "What's the rush?" His voice perfectly reflected his relaxed position. "It's no more than a ten minute drive from here."
"I know," Sam's voice filtered in from the ensuite bathroom as she got into the shower. Jack heard the sound of running water before her voice again echoed into the bedroom. "But it's Stacey's first off-world mission and I'd like to have a final briefing with her before we go."
Jack hauled himself out of the bed slowly, feeling his aged bones creaking as he did so. He shuffled into the bathroom and sat on the edge of the bathtub while Sam was still in the shower. "Why were you so intent on her coming along on this mission?" He asked conversationally. "I mean, I know she's a good soldier, but it's hardly imperative is it?"
Sam sighed as she washed the conditioner out of her hair, knowing that since the time of their adventure in Australia, she and Jack had both been ignoring a certain hint of reality. Feeling the last silky remains of the perfumed substance leaving her now soft hair, she turned the shower off and stepped out, reaching for a towel and wrapping it around herself. Jack was sitting patiently on the side of the tub, and she sat down next to him.
"Well, according to our agreement with the Australian government, Captain Hindmarsh is to be placed on an SG team." Sam paused for a second to see if Jack had realized where she was going. He was merely nodding, though, obviously not getting the gist. "Jack," she placed her still damp and warm hand over his. "I can't stay in SG1. The arrangement we've had recently was working well. I mean, I was in charge while you were in Australia, and then the Asgard mission really didn't require my presence – and I had so much labwork to do…" she trailed off, seeing his head dip slightly as the neurons connected.
"You want her as your replacement." Jack said quietly. "That's why you want her on this mission – to assess her suitability."
Sam didn't say anything, but instead leant over, lifting Jack's chin slightly with her hand and kissing him softly on the lips. "You know we can't be together if we're on the same team," she whispered into his ear. "As it is, we're flirting with an extremely fine line of definition – we may both have the same rank but you're still technically 2IC of the base. If it weren't for General Hammond's efforts, we'd be in the same situation as before."
"Yeah I know." Jack said, with a curt nod, straightening himself and getting up. "I guess we'd better get into the base and on this mission then." He shooed Sam out of the bathroom before turning around and getting into the shower himself.
Jack, Teal'c and Jonas waited impatiently in the gateroom as their scheduled departure time came and went. Jack looked at his watch again and adjusted his sunglasses – not that they were at all necessary while still in Cheyenne Mountain.
"It is unlike Colonel Carter to be delayed for departure." Teal'c noted unemotionally.
"Ah, you don't know Earth women like I do, T." Jack grinned slightly as he spoke. "This is why I've never agreed to more than one female member on an SG team at a time – they suddenly start running late for things."
"That wouldn't be a sexist remark, would it Colonel?" A familiar drawling accent caused Jack to jump and turn around in embarrassment. Standing behind him, her hands on her hips, with a particularly dangerous expression on her face, was Captain Stacey Hindmarsh. Behind her again, was Sam, who was beaming with amusement, and eyebrow raised, Teal'c style, as she waited for what was sure to be a flustered response from Jack.
"Captain Hindmarsh!" Jack exclaimed, choosing for the moment to forget the last 30 seconds. "Good to have you with us – Carter and Jonas tell me it's going to be an exhilarating mission." He winked at her quickly. "By that, I mean we'll spend most of our time doing nothing while they make 'ooh' and 'aah' noises at strangely shaped things."
Stacey smiled back at her new CO and saluted crisply. "It's an honour to be able to serve with you sir." She said genuinely. "I'm really excited to be stepping through the gate after hearing so much about it."
"Well good!" Jack nodded slightly before casting his eye up to the control room above them. "Let's get this show on the road then!"
While the stargate activated he and the others moved back, in anticipation of the opening wormhole. He found himself standing next to Carter and elbowed her playfully to get her attention. "That's the second time that my first meeting with a female colleague has involved allusions to sexism on my part." He nodded towards Stacey as he spoke. "It's gotta be a sign. She's going to do just fine."
Sam simply rolled her eyes and looked at the man she loved. "Yes sir." She said patiently, before moving towards the now open wormhole and stepping through.
A/N: Ok, I realize that I haven't got the proper plot yet, but I promise it's coming in the next chapter. As I said before, this is a sequel to 'Solid blood of the spirits'. I tried to explain most of the relevant back story in this chap but it might be an idea to look at the original anyway, if you have the time!
Most of all however, please send me your reviews! They're what I live for!