"Their torpedoes were incredible," Colonel Chekov said from his seat on the end of the ramp as Cam pressed a cup of water into his hand. "They destroyed the starboard sublight engines and breached the hangar bay in the process. We lost our communications array and half the 302s. Almost all power had to be rerouted to integrity fields just to keep the ship intact. Our thrusters couldn't overcome the gravity of the black hole. I thought we were finished."
"How did you get out?" Landry asked.
"We managed to initiate a short hyperspace window -"
"In the gravity well of a black hole with a ruptured hull?" Cam asked in disbelief.
With a shrug, the Russian said, "We didn't have much to lose, Colonel. Our options were to be slowly crushed by gravity or be torn apart during FTL travel. But we emerged worse than we'd gone in. We had no power, no thrusters, and our life support was failing. Luckily for us – if you can call it that – the hyperdrive window collapsed too close to a planet. It drew us in. We didn't have time to use the escape pods before we crashed."
Teal'c and Mitchell had to step out of the way ask Doctor Lam pushed by, kneeling in front of her patient. Giving her a nod of acknowledgment, Chekov went on, "It took almost a week to cut our way into the other hangar. Five of the F302s could fly, but it was six more days before we could get them out. I sent two toward the Gate on P3X-451 and two more toward Hebridan. The last one had no operable hyperspace generator. I have been using it for aerial surveys, hoping to help the teams on the ground find a Stargate. It worked."
"How far out is the crash site?" Landry asked.
"Thirty-two kilometers east of the Gate. It's heavily forested, but I believe the ATVs could get there. With some chainsaws, perhaps."
Landry's gaze shifted to his daughter. "I need as many medical personnel as humanly possible geared up and ready to go."
"Absolutely," she agreed. "Colonel, what should we expect?"
"Heavy casualties," he told her grimly. "More than a quarter of the crew was lost in the battle and the crash. Another twenty died from their injuries within the day."
"Is Colonel Carter alive?" Teal'c pressed.
Chekov's eyes flickered up to meet his and dropped again immediately before he answered, obviously reticent, "She survived the crash."
"But?" Cam asked.
"She was injured while attempting to reach the hangar bay – her leg was badly mangled. They were trying to avoid cutting her open due to the risk of infection, but I believe they had to. I'm sorry, I do not know for sure." To the doctor, he explained, "We lost supplies in the attack, but I'm not sure we were ever stocked for this. Not to treat half the crew. We ran out of antibiotics two days ago."
Teal'c's cool brown eyes landed on Walter Harriman. "Notify Daniel Jackson. We will leave as soon as possible." Without another word, the Jaffa headed for the doors.
"Call up SG-4 and SG-8," Landry ordered. "And SG-20. I'm sure they'd like to see their comrades again. We'll need to prep the medical gear for shipment."
"Let's get you to the infirmary, Colonel." Doctor Lam helped him to his feet and headed for the exit. Landry was on her heels.
"Uh… sir?" Mitchell asked.
The General stopped. "Colonel?"
"SG… 1, sir?" Jackson and Teal'c were civilians. Cam needed orders.
"Your team is going with or without you, Colonel," Landry told him. "If I were you, I'd gear up."
"Yes, sir."