"Have you met another Carter?" Barbara was leaning her arms on the back of a spinning chair in Daniel's laboratory. He was on baby-sitting duty. And no, it was not only because he was speaking the language.
"Do you mean like an alternate-reality another Carter?" Daniel was pouring over the translations that Barbara had done previously, comparing them to his notes and just trying to understand the information recorded. As Barbara started talking, he put the notes aside to look at his young charge. She had stayed in their world for almost a week, and while they had supplied her with hygiene products and clothes, the bags under her eyes were getting more prominent.
"We haven't had an encounter with an alternate Carter," he answered after the young woman had confirmed the meaning.
"You should probably know that she won't be able to survive for long in your reality. I don't remember the theoretical explanation, but it was because you had your Carter. Something about electrons that cannot occupy the same plane?"
"I see. Thank you, Barbara," a hum was the only acknowledgment he got from her. She was sitting hunched on the chair, forehead on her arms. "Say, on your Earth, you have never been to the US, right?" the question had earned him another grunt and a small shift, so that he could see one of her eyes. "What do you say we do small trip? When will you get such an opportunity? A baseball game, or maybe some of the local museums. We might even take Teal'c with us, God knows he hasn't been outside enough."
"Has he even been outside the base? I remember seeing him wearing those horrid floral shirts with a bucket hat, to cover the…" Barbara pointed in a circular motion at her forehead. "And! Do you want to know what name he used? It was Murray!"
Daniel laughed together with Barbara at Teal'c chosen name, silently resolving to talk with O'Neill and General Hammond.
"Sir, we have received codes of SG-3," a technician sitting at one of the computers confirmed and as he got the order, he opened the iris letting through SG teams three and seven and Teal'c.
"Medic to the Gate room," was heard over the intercom and soon a gurney with medical personal was in the Gate room and Teal'c was quickly taken away.
"Sir, we managed to find only Teal'c, as you saw yourself, he doesn't look good," started Colonel Makepeace.
"And the rest of SG-1?" continued General Hammond. The SG-3 CO shook his head.
Barbara has seen the full exchange and started slowly typing on her handheld device. She was lucky that General Hammond had allowed her almost free roaming of the base especially after small campaigning done by Dr. Jackson soon after her arrival.
It will take Teal'c some time to regain his health and consciousness. In the meanwhile, she could only try and calm down General Hammond. Not that the situation SG-1 has found themselves could be described as okay-ish. They were after all Hathor's captives. And there was a risk of one of them becoming a Goa'uld carrier. What was the planet from which Colonel Makepeace brought the confirmation of SG-1 location?
"Welcome back to the land of the living, Colonel. I'm Major General Trofsky, this is Doctor Raully," a voice above him introduced himself as Colonel O'Neill tried to focus his vision. And why was he so cold?
"Maybe we can try to answer some of the questions that are probably weighing heavily on your mind," added the doctor.
"First of all, I regret to inform you that everyone on your team…Dr Daniel Jackson, Captain Samantha Carter, and a Jaffa named Teal'c, are all deceased," continued Major General Trofsky ignoring the Colonel's fast changing emotions.
"As a matter of fact, I imagine everyone you ever knew is probably gone now," tacked in Doctor Raully.
"You see, Colonel, the year is now… 2077," dropped the final bomb Mj. General Trofsky.
General Hammond was sitting in front of the device that Barbara was using for her translations. She managed to trigger a function where the device read out whatever she typed.
"I remember there was an episode where SG-1 woke up from cryogenic sleep, all except for Teal'c. I don't know what planet they are held hostage, but I do know that it is most likely the lady Goa'uld who tried to take control of all the men on base. She was trying to implant one of the team with a baby Goa'uld. They also tried to escape but didn't manage," the mechanical voice read out. As the device finished speaking Barbara took it and after several minutes the voice started once more.
"I know that they survive, I think you even went there yourself… Anyway, one of the teams will get a confirmation where SG-1 are held. But it will take some time. Teal'c will take some time as well to wake up. Several weeks. I wish I could provide you with more info," Barbara pursed her lips as the device finished speaking for second time. She really wished she could provide more information to the General. Both to save SG-1 and to calm down the good General.
"Barbara, I thank you for the information you could provide," General hid his mouth behind his hands, as he rested his head on them. The young woman nodded and left the conference room.
Time. All she could do was wait.
Waking up, as previously attempted from this reality still didn't work.
Her phone. She could check if it still had some battery. It should have but who knew?
And maybe she could type everything she could remember about the ongoing scenario for Teal'c? He will wake up and he would worry about the rest of the team. She should check on him. Even though he won't wake up any soon, she could just read him something. And if he woke up, he won't be alone.
And maybe some sleep. Or a cup of coffee. Both sounded fantastic.
Carter was sitting on the bed, touching a small device implanted in her temple. Just few minutes before she was told that she is in 2077 and all her team was dead. And already the major general was requesting information. They had provided a Tok'ra device to help with memories. And the implantation was stinging.
"There, how does that feel Captain?" doctor Raully was standing at her computer console, adjusting some of the controls to the freshly implanted device.
"Okay. Ah, it hurts a little. Listen, is this really necessary?" Carter stopped rubbing her temple and focused on the Doctor.
"Well, it's important that we know who would have the technology to do this."
"Why?"
"Because, Captain Carter, anyone with that technology would be a very powerfully ally against Apophis," Raully stepped from the console, a tablet in her hands as she walked towards Captain.
"Apophis?" exclaimed Carter as her eyebrows rose. The knuckles of her hands turned white. "Isn't he dead?"
The doctor didn't reply immediately. "Well, of course he is. We're merely trying to stimulate the region of your memory that involves doing battle with the Goa'uld. It might help us in our current battles."
"Okay, well, we did fight the Goa'uld a lot.
"Tell me how you defeated Apophis."
As Carter started remembering a projector popped out of side of her bed. On screen was playing a moment when O'Neill was dropping a couple of grenades on the shield generators.
Fun times.
They had managed to get to the ships using the address that Daniel had seen in alternate reality where he saw the Earth invasion. At the end they found themselves on a ship that was on the orbit of the planet they had dialed. They had traveled with the ship to the Earth, and they had managed to destroy the ship by destroying the ship's shield generators and forcing the companion ship to collide. Just before evacuating the ship, they had destroyed the generators and made an escape using the death gliders.
"Very impressive, Captain. The end of Apophis," acknowledged Raully, pressing some buttons on her tablet.
"Well, the beginning of the end, yes. His forces were so weakened that another Goa'uld eventually got him," nodded Carter.
"Who do you think could help us fight with the Goa'uld?"
"Do you know if SGC had managed to send Barbara to her reality or had she stayed? She had information that could help us," on screen started playing the moment Barbara had arrived to the SGC.
The body hits the ramp rattling the metal structure and continues down the slope. She is too much at ease even though she has all the weapons trained on her. The girl is not fazed by the Teal'c-style interrogation. She has managed to slot herself with too much ease.
Sitting at one of the corners in Daniel's lab the girl is hunched over a keyboard furiously typing at it with several papers lying in front of her. Daniel himself is sitting at another table, looking over the pictures of a stone transcript that SG-6 had recently brought. A rap on the open door and O'Neill walks into the lab, in his hands two cups of coffee. He is immediately followed by Teal'c who holds another 2 cups. Carter enters after him hands full with coffee and a tray of cookies.
"What? Am I missing something?" asks Daniel as he accepts a cup of coffee from Jack. Carter sets a tray on the table corner where there are no documents.
"Not at all," Jack waved his free hand and then noisily taking the first sip.
"We just didn't see you on one of your coffee raids to the mess, so we brought everything here," Carter continued. "And considering you are slotted today for the baby-sitting Barbara mostly likely didn't move as well from her position."
Teal'c sets one of the coffee cups next to the plate, then walks with the second towards the typing reality-traveler. He tried first to attract her attention by clearing his throat but that didn't work. He then gently taps her shoulder. What followed next was worth being filmed for the "epic fail compilation". The girl was so badly startled that she managed to jump up from the chair. The chair with the clatter moved and Barbara fell on to the floor facing the SG-1.
"Hey, kid. We brought coffee and cookies," waved her O'Neill when she managed to standup. She gently smiled at Teal'c as he gave her cup of coffee and raised her cup as if toasting the present before taking the first sip.