Despite the bustle across the silo under Cheyenne Mountain that housed the base for Stargate Command, the Gate room itself was either the busiest room in the place or the most desolate and it veered from being one to the other in a matter of moments as either guards came rushing in to meet a potential threat or the troops cleared out after a mission.

"Unscheduled offworld activation!" came the announcement as the Stargate spun to life, breaking the silence of the room below the Control Room. The room almost seemed to hold its breath as it waited to be filled with people. Hammond hovered in the control room, trying hard not to watch the windows that looked down on the Stargate as if not watching it would make time pass faster.

At Walter's announcement, everyone held their breath for a moment and released it when he added that it was SG-1's IDC being broadcast. The iris covering the Stargate spun open and the wormhole established. Jack stepped through so quickly that he must have been waiting just at the edge of the event horizon for the green all clear signal to step through.

Dr. Frasier and one of her male nurses met him at the base of the ramp and he felt as well as heard the wormhole disengage behind him. He held out the samples to her. "Here are your samples," he said as he handed it to her.

"Did you get the boy's?" she asked as she took it and glanced down.

"Yeah," Jack said, "it's in there." Janet nodded and turned to the nurse, handing the vial-shaped container over to him and telling him to take it to the lab.

Nothing in her stance or tone gave anything away. "How's he doing?" Jack finally asked, the unspoken question hovering between them even before he asked.

Janet's heart went out to him. She knew as well as anyone just how close the Colonel had come to the younger man. They were practically inseparable. Which was odd to anyone who didn't know them and only saw their differences. But she knew better. "I'm afraid his condition is unchanged, sir," she informed him, hiding behind a barrier of formality to keep anything else from leaking through.

Jack nodded and brushed past her. She knew exactly where he'd be going and watched him leave, giving him space before following along.

Back at the Palace, Sam was unpacking some of her equipment but the process was going too slow for her liking. She caught herself often distracted, glancing back over her shoulder at the light that drew her attention. Knowing she would need to better understand it, she turned and lifted her gaze, heading back to stand closer again so it could wash over her.

Teal'c looked at an imagery device similar to a Tau'ri camera that was provided by the boy Loran. The boy in the image was far younger than the one who stood before him now. "So approximately how long ago was this image recorded?" he inquired of the boy.

Loran gave a slight smile. "That's my home!" he provided cheerfully, though his expression slipped away as he looked again at the image. "Before we came here."

"So your parents brought you here from another world?" Teal'c asked.

"Yeah," the boy said wistfully as he reached for the image display. "They were explorers. Kind of like you I guess. So they came here then-" he cut off and changed the subject abruptly. "What was it that you were looking for?" he asked as he motioned back behind him to indicate the earlier search.

Teal'c itched to continue the search. Specifically, his attention kept being drawn back to the room with the light. He felt the answer must be there. All he had to do was look for it. "If you cannot give us an explanation to our friend's illness we must continue to search for clues as to what may have caused it," he mentioned.

"Well none of your friends are in here," Loran pointed out as he motioned to his makeshift living space. "Hey! I have to show you something!" he said excitedly as he bounded over to a case and opened it, pulling something out. He reminded Teal'c of a child, bouncing from one topic to another with rapid ease. "This was a present from my father on my birthday."

He lifted a matte gold gun and pointed it at Teal'c.

Teal'c yanked out his Zat gun and pointed it back.

Realizing his mistake, the kid pulled it back to his chest. "No, it's- it's not real," he assured him. He just wanted to show that he had a weapon as well, even if his own did not work. He could play soldier with the others!

As Teal'c lowered his Zat, Loran held his toy phaser pistol out to him and Teal'c took it in hand and inspected it. "Children of the Tau'ri also seem to enjoy colorful weapons that have no function."

"It's fun!" Loran assured him with a smile. The smile widened as Teal'c pulled the trigger toward him and the toy activated, lighting up with colors and emitting a sound.

"I see," Teal'c said thoughtfully. "On my home world of Chulak we do not celebrate the anniversary of one's birth."

This shocked Loran. His birthday had always been an important event to his parents. He couldn't imagine it being different. "No presents?" he asked with dismay.

"It is a day like any other."

This made Loran sad and he shook his head. "Well how do you know how old you are?" he asked, slightly confused.

Teal'c stated a simple, "I am one hundred and one years of age."

Loran looked shocked as he stared at the large Jaffa. "You don't look that old," he assured him.

"So I have been told." Teal'c was still not used to the differences in the aging process between his friends and himself. It was something he tried not to think about too frequently. One day he would long outlive all his friends. He had already outlived Daniel Jackson, though somehow the man could never seem to make his death stick.

"So when do you turn a hundred and two?" Loran asked excitedly, nearly bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Teal'c looked thoughtful, doing a quick mental calculation. "In forty seven days."

He looked down at the toy in his hand thoughtfully before holding it back toward Loran who brushed it away.

"Keep it," Loran assured him with a wide smile. "It's a birthday present."

"I cannot."

"In forty seven days you'll be gone, right?" he asked as Teal'c tilted his head, not quite understanding. "I won't be able to give you a present then. You keep it."

As Teal'c pressed the trigger of the toy again, it lit up and the Jaffa couldn't help himself. He smiled.

In the other room, Samantha Carter continued to stare into the depths of the light show, unaware of the passing of time.