FOR MY FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS, WHO'VE READ THIS FAR:
I'd like to thank you but most of all, I'd like to keep you. So, for those that have been anticipating the sequel and all its mischief, I give you this small preview into the first chapter of "Endless Night." No Adrienne in this part, as of yet. The second chapter will be entirely what she sees in the future and what forces her to escape, becoming a renagade through time and prey to her own self-fulfilling prophecy. Find out what happens when she tries to go back to Daniel and ends up thousands of years earlier... and what happens to her child after its born in an era without disposable diapers.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In case any of you noticed, there's a small discrepancy in Level 28. During the first chapters, Adrienne admits to having grown up with Daniel already dead. However, in "The Mistress," she admits to having an affair with him and him leading a full life with Janet. This is NOT an error. You'll see why she says it in "Endless Night." You have to keep the time-travelling aspect in focus and I hope the non-sensical plot of Level 28 becomes a bit more refined in the sequel. I sure do. --Grace.
-
Previously on Stargate SG-1… Sometime around the 7th season, Jack and Sam's genetically engineered daughter (or rather Jack's semi-clone) from the future, Adrienne, comes through the Stargate in search of asylum with the incentive to change the future for the better.
However, when her plans turn into a mind-boggling web of deceit, death follows her every step, and not even SG-1 itself learns her true goals. Dr. Frasier is kidnapped, for what purpose is still unknown. Major Carter has died at Colonel O'Neill's hand, only to return from Ascension with new abilities. Daniel and Adrienne have resumed an affair they had begun 20 years in the future, leaving Adrienne unknowingly pregnant.
The Goa'uld threat continues to hound the SGC and a once-Ascended Dionysus (former husband and mate to the Goa'uld formerly within Adrienne) wrecks havoc in Level 28 which results in a flood and causes the Iris to fly off piece by piece, hitting him straight in the chest and killing him right in front of Adrienne, Daniel, Janet, and Aileia (a pregnant woman, revealed to be the high priestess in a secret society meant to bear the reincarnation of Dionysus), who becomes romantically involved with Teal'c after she had to kill her own husband.
The Gate is put out of commission and Sam and Jack are put on court martial for their "illicit relationship." Senator Kinsey is replaced with a hollow clone (thanks to Jack and Adrienne's not-so-clever plan), imprinted with parts of Jack's mind to keep everyone in check.
Colonel O'Neill retires… again. And he and Sam enjoy the romance they'd begun that night in her lab, which led to Sam's "enhanced" pregnancy. Sam's future self comes back through the Stargate and reclaims the daughter she lost, returning her to a supposedly better future.
-
AND NOW…
Sam and Jack's genetically engineered daughter has returned to the
future but her attempts to influence fate have failed. A wedding is
replaced by a funeral and Sam is left mourning, pregnant, and
defenseless to a new evil on the rise.
"Endless Night"
---- By AriadneInLove ----
Adrienne had entered their lives so swiftly, shrouded in mystery and an air of inhumanity, that when she left, Daniel came to wonder if she was ever truly there.
In the months after her departure, he couldn't stand before the Gate without thinking of her. Every morning when Sam greeted him, he thought that smile could not exist without her. It hadn't been the same before her, and even though he knew Sam smiled because of Jack, he figured Adrienne had brought them together. She was the source of their happiness, and of his own sorrow.
And when he walked by the still slightly flooded corridors of the SGC, he couldn't help but remember all the trouble she brought them, all the games she played… but still he smiled. It wasn't so much he missed having her all to himself. He missed her presence like he missed an old friend and the times they'd had.
Jack and Sam seemed to be getting on well enough. They figured she still lived within Sam. After all, in a few months, they'd have something better than Adrienne. They'd have an original, natural version of the daughter they'd loved. But he knew they'd never see the baby as that. It wasn't Adrienne either, and it was no substitute. She would be a product of them and their love, and not the mad ramblings of politics gone horribly awry.
Jack would soon enjoy his retirement, if only the SGC would be free of him once and for all. They refused to let him, or at least his knowledge, go to waste. They had promised he'd no longer be needed after a week. But a week turned into a month… and a month turned into two. Christmas passed and while Jack and Sam continued their relationship without reservation, it was getting harder to imagine a life free of this worry, this responsibility… the inevitable chance that the moment either of them steps through the Gate, it'd be their last.
And then reality found them.
-
Cheyenne Mountain Complex, January 2005
"How long are you two going to keep this up?" Daniel exclaimed as he made a sliding stop at the sight of Sam and Jack "necking," as Teal'c had affectionately called it, on Sam's lab.
Sam turned a bit red but Jack just buried his shame in her shoulder and said in muffled groans, "We've 8 years of unexpressed sexual tension to catch up on, Daniel. Just be glad we're not in your office."
He made a dismissing gesture and said, "Please don't say 'sexual' again. I already have to wash my eyes out with acid. Doing my ears might seep into my brain and then you're all screwed."
Sam laughed and moved away from under Jack to read the papers he was delivering. Before he could hand them to her, he shot her a look of warning. She didn't understand and quickly opened up the folder. As soon as she skimmed down to the results, the papers fell from her hand onto the table. Her denial pained her to hold them.
"It's a boy?"
Daniel nodded.
Jack slid the papers towards him and began to search for a mistake, any mistake. "How could it be a boy? Adrienne was…"
"Oh yeah, definitely a girl," Daniel chipped in, remembering moments atop lakes. Jack squinted hatred in his direction and Sam just went back to the papers.
"So what does this mean?" Jack asked.
"It's possible. After all, this baby was conceived naturally. It's not a clone, it's not… It's not Adrienne."
"Oh damn. Now we're gonna have to thing up a name," Jack moaned.
"But it's not like we were going to call it Adrienne anyway, Jack. We knew it wasn't going to be her."
Daniel rolled his eyes and left them to their petty squabble, not that they noticed he had left.
"How about naming it John?" Jack suggested.
"You want to name it after you?"
"Good point. What about Malcolm?"
"Where'd you get that one?"
"He was an old buddy of mine in the Gulf."
"Oh God, how'd he die?"
"Land mine. No wait… he was dishonorably discharged for getting caught bribing an officer... or was it prostitution? You know what? We have plenty of time to think of something."
She sighed and hid her face in her hands. He could tell something was wrong. He feared she had doubts, feared losing her. But he hid it under sarcasm and a gun.
"Sam, we'll be fine. So what if it's not a girl. I think that's better. Definitely less confusing."
"No, it's my dad. We have to tell him."
"He's gonna castrate me, isn't he?" Jack groaned.
Sam laughed and kissed him quickly on the lips and headed for the door. "Probably, and he just walked through the Gate."
Jack ran after her. Her new abilities were scaring him a bit. He had asked her if she had some sort of precognition. She laughed and said he should stop watching sci-fi, and then she threatened to make him sit through Star Wars. He dropped the subject of her abilities right then and there.
"Hey, Dad," Sam said, hugging Jacob.
Jack stood nervously beside her, shifting his weight from heel to toe, heel to toe. It was annoying Daniel, who had already been waiting when they arrived. He elbowed Jack to stop.
Jacob's greeting snapped Jack out of his dooming thoughts and he gulped. "How are ya, Jake?" he asked, shaking the Tok'ra's hand.
"Better than last you saw me. I believe I was rescuing you and my half-dressed daughter from a planet where she ended up after you killed her and sent her to Ascension."
Jack gulped again, but Jacob seemed to laugh and move on to greet Daniel. Sam smiled at him but his heart still beat incessantly. Again he felt like a kid getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Only the cookie jar was 5'9, blonde, and had legs that wouldn't stop.
"How about we get something to eat, Dad?" Sam broke the tension in Jack's heartstrings.
He watched as father and daughter walked to the bulkhead exit, waiting for him to join them. He ran to catch up and before he knew it, he found himself admiring some green Jell-O and how the table looked through a gelatinous mass.
Sam sat beside him talking with Jacob about something… he wasn't paying any attention at all. He was more focused on how Jacob was going to rip him apart piece by piece.
Then he heard Sam say something like, "Dad…" and "We have something to tell you."
He snapped up to attention as her hand slipped into his and he abandoned his Jell-O sadly. "What's up?" Jacob asked, already seeing the answer in the look of terror in Jack's eyes. It was strange to see a black-ops colonel tremble.
Sam took in a deep breath and said, "Dad, for a little while now, especially after Adrienne left, we've been…"
"Making plans," Jack interrupted.
Jacob looked at him viciously. "Wedding plans," Sam concluded, exhaling roughly after saying it.
Jacob's expression softened. "Uh, Sam, you hadn't mentioned… marriage."
"I know. I wanted to tell you in person. I know you never approved of Pete or anyone else I've dated so I was really worried--"
But Jacob had leaned back in his chair and had a pensive expression on. "Actually I knew about you two. But I didn't… I thought you were going to end up with Daniel."
Jack raised both eyebrows and looked at Sam. She looked back and shrugged. "No, Dad, Daniel and I are just friends."
"No I mean that's what Adrienne said. She said you loved Daniel."
Sam leaned forward and looked at her father crossly. "What were her exact words?"
"'One day, she'll realize she lived for Daniel.' Yeah I was surprised too."
Jack excused himself and just left, got up and stormed out. Sam saw him go and felt her heart drop. "Go after him," Jacob said lightly but Sam just shook her head and leaned back on the chair.
"I love him, Dad. I love Jack."
"I know, honey. I just wish…"
"I'm pregnant," she said absentmindedly, forgetting any fore-planned speech. She didn't look up to see her father's reaction. Her mind was in another place. But she got up and went to look for Jack nonetheless, leaving Jacob to wonder if his words had been for the best.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
"Don't say that, Daniel," Janet had finished saying sweetly when Jack stormed in.
"You son of a bitch," he said through gritted teeth.
Daniel furrowed his brow and looked at him questioningly. But Jack's fist was already in swing, coming in full contact with Daniel's jaw and knocking him back onto his desk. Janet stood up and backed away quickly, yelling, "Colonel! What are you doing?"
"I trusted you," Jack growled as Sam came running in after him, pulling him back, but Jack had no intention of hitting him again.
"Jack, Adrienne didn't mean what you think!" Sam yelled, gripping Jack's arm for dear life.
Daniel opened his eyes wide. "Oh Jack, I swear. I only slept with her once. It was a mistake and it never happened again."
Jack's jaw dropped; his heart ran full of pure adrenaline. He was ready to swing again when Sam said defensively, "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Adrienne!" he yelled. "Isn't that why you're punching me out of nowhere?"
Jack's heart stopped body slamming against his rib cages and he sighed. Sam loosened the grip on his arm but raised an eyebrow angrily at Daniel. "You did what?"
"She left and then there was… just no point in telling you. Wait, what do you think I did?" he asked as Janet helped him up, squinting at Jack in reproach.
"He thought you meant me," Sam said, sighing greatly. "Another one of Adrienne's little prophecies. She told my dad that--"
"What were her exact words, Sam? You know she loves to play with words."
"'One day, she'll realize she lived for Daniel,'" Jack said gruffly.
"Well that doesn't mean what you think, Jack. No offense Sam but I've got enough trouble on my mind," Daniel said and gave a small look over at Janet, rubbing his face.
Jack's anger started to fade but realization dawned on him. "You slept with Adrienne?"
"Don't say that so doubtfully, Jack," Daniel said at Jack's tone.
Jack narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Be glad you're still in one piece, Daniel."
He sighed. "God, what ever happened to having a desk job? There's been more drama around here after she left than when we were fighting big scary legions of aliens with megalomania issues!"
Jack shook his head dismissively and began to walk out of Daniel's office with a hand to his pained head. Sam gave Daniel an apologetic look and went after him. Daniel looked at Janet who looked away. It'd be a while before she could look him straight in the eye. He'd never know why.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
To be continued in PART THIRTY:
--What other fallout predictions can be expected?
--How long before we see Adrienne again? Before SG-1 does?
--How much time do Sam & Jack have?
--What of Teal'c and Aileia? And Dionysus' rebirth?
--What threats linger just through the Gate?
--And finally… what future awaits a man who makes his own destiny?
-------------------------------------------------------------------
READ? REVIEW!
-
Or catch us on MySpace at:
groups dot myspace dot com slash sg1freaks
---- or ----
www dot myspace dot com slash ariadneinlove