Through Space and Time

Chapter 2

Sam surfaced to consciousness slowly becoming aware of someone hovering very close. She kept the illusion of unconsciousness in order to assess her options. It was an unknown situation with unknown hostiles and an unknown location. She had no idea how long she was out but in that time she had been transported from her ship to another. In those few seconds she had to assess her surroundings she was certain the redheaded woman hovering over her in the blue jumpsuit was in fact human but there was someone or something there that was not in fact of the human variety. A thread of fear trickled into her mind but she quickly steamed it off. There was no time to be afraid.

She gathered the strength she had left and forced her mind to focus. After being brained by what ever her temple collided with on the Apollo made it difficult. Finally prepared she knew she had mere seconds to react. Opening her eyes she threw her elbow as fast and as hard as she could at the woman standing over her making contact squarely with the woman's lower jaw. The force of the impact caused the woman's feet to leave the ground. Success! The woman was now unconscious. Sam allowed herself a small triumphant smile.

Someone screamed, "Dr. Beverly…"

Sam spotted her P90 on a table to her right. She grabbed it as she rolled from the table landing cat like on the deck immediately dropping into a defensive stance. She was now a loose hostile on an enemy ship alone. The odds were not in her favor but she was armed. Suddenly a thought or, maybe it was a feeling, struck her. She made sure her back was to the wall with an unobstructed view of the main doors as she swung her weapon toward the only other being in the room, presumably sickbay.

"Who are you?"

The man remained silent staring down the barrel of the P90 now in Colonel Samantha Carter's hands. She glared at him then hissed, "Which God are you posing as?"

"I am no God. I have no power nor do I have followers. I am simply a man."

"NO! You're lying. I can sense the naquada in your blood. I know you are a snake head", she said harshly seeming to channel Jack O'Neill by abandoning all political correctness.

"I am Odan, negotiator for the Federation."

"Shut up! Just shut up! I know you have a symbiote!"

"How…"

"I can sense it. Now start talking or I'm going start blow things up?" she said as she pulled the charging handle of the P90 threateningly audibly placing a round in the chamber.

A look of dawning comprehension crossed Odan's face. "Samantha Carter of the Tauri?" he asked. Sam stared in disbelief startled that this stranger could know her name.

At that moment the doors to sickbay slide open. Another woman in blue accompanied by an older man in a red uniform walked in. Sam glanced to them using her peripheral vision still keeping Odan in full view, "Stop right there."

Assessing what was before him the older man quickly tapped the insignia on his chest. It gave a mechanical cheep she vaguely recognized and he spoke, "Worf to sick bay."

With those four words Sam pointed her weapon threateningly at the main doors to the new arrivals, "I'm a bit edgy and I will not hesitate to blow your head off if you force my hand, Sir." Now she was channeling an out spoken version of Teal'c.

"Councilor, Troi?" The man said questioningly to the woman next to him.

"I sense a determination to stay focused as well as desperation. She will not hesitate to follow through with her threat, Captain." Sam shifted her line of sight slightly then pulled the trigger. Next to the man's hand a tricorder exploded and jumped from its position landing on the deck.

Glaring at the woman, the presumable resident psychologist, Sam was getting pissed, "Do NOT shrink me, Councilor. I need the two of you to just stand there quietly. Any sudden movement and I will put a bullet in someone's brain. Keep in mind I don't miss what I'm aiming for. Now my friend, Odan, and I have a conversation to finish."

Again the sickbay doors opened and someone, or upon closer inspection an alien, in a yellow uniform rushed in only to be stopped by the Captain, "hold on a moment, Mr. Worf."

Worf seeing the blonde woman holding the ambassador at gun point dictated immediate action from him, "but, Sir. We can not allow this to persist."

Sam stole a glance at the alien humanoid asking his captain for permission to take her out. She was reminded of two things simultaneously, Teal'c and Daniel Jackson.

Worf made another step forward, "Wait, Mr. Worf."

Seeing the step and still thinking of her lost comrades she spoke softly and deliberately, "today is a good day to die, big man…a very good day." She spoke the words Daniel once quoted so long ago.

Worf heard the words from the woman. He straightened as he said, "as said by a true warrior with a desire to die an honorable and brave death." In that moment Sam realized that that was Worf's way of showing his respect to a kindred spirit, a fellow warrior.

Sam gave a very slight nod and said, "thank you." She lowered her weapon slightly as to not provoke her new friend in Worf but did turned her attention back to Odan who was standing dumbstruck before her, "talk now!" She demanded.

He hesitated before he spoke, "You are a legend among my people Samantha Carter. You are a warrior of the Tauri, host of Jolinar, daughter of Jacob Carter who was the host of Selmak. I will tell you what you would like to know."

Trying not to show her surprise she said, "Continue."

"I am not Go'uald, Samantha, nor am I Tok'ra. I am in fact an off shoot of both."

"That hardly sounds possible. Explain," She said still training her formidable weapon on her prey.

"Keep in mind it has been over 300 years since your disappearance. In that time the remaining Go'uald and the dwindling numbers of Tok'ra no longer wanted to continue the fight. It was thanks to the children of the Tauri that a cease fire was eventually called."

"What about your race?"

"I am a trill. The Go'uald and the Tok'ra have become reluctant allies with the exception of the topmost system lords. The Jaffa were set free. Put simply together we are the trill."

It was Sam's turn to be struck dumb, "you are telling me the Go'uald, Tok'ra, and the Jaffa came together to create the trill."

"That would be correct. And with the defeat of Anubis some of the Kull Soldiers were successfully used as hosts."

"Really, how was that possible?" She asked as curiosity got the better of her.

"A Kull is in essence a blank slate with damaged DNA. A mature symbiote can at times correct that damage."

"Interesting, now what about the symbiote incubation in the Jaffa."

"They were given the means to independently produce there own tritonin. Over the centuries the process has become more refined and the need has been greatly diminished and great strides have been put forward to create a viable immune system. However, there are still some family lines unable to take tritonin."

"Huh…um, does your planet have a gate?"

"Yes it does."

"Now that, I must say, is a relief. What about Earth?"

"It hasn't it been in use for a very long time. There was a great deal of internal strife and you Stargate Command was abandoned two centuries ago."

Sam gave defeated sigh, "abandoned for two hundred years. Well it does take a lot to take one of those things out. I had to blow up a sun to disengage one once."

At their feet the doctor moaned. Sam looked down to see the doctor sitting up, "help her up, Odan. I'm satisfied for now."

Sam winced as she looked at the doctor who was now standing in front of her rubbing her chin, "sorry about that doctor. You took me by surprised."

"You pack a mean punch. I gave the strongest sedative I had."

Sam gave a sheepish smile saying, "if you can forgive that action and hold off on my court martial I could use your help. I was tossed around on my ship a bit. My self assessment tells me I most certainly have a concussion, a bruised rib or two, a separated shoulder, and a banged up knee."

Sam leaned against the table for support breathing heavily she was on the verge of collapse. She flipped the safety on simultaneously bringing the P90 to the ready position. She turned her head to the small group at the sick bay doors, "Mr. Worf. I presume you are the security officer."

"Yes I am."

"Will you take charge of my weapon please?" The security officer gave a quick nod then moved forward. She past the weapon to him without a fight or protest. Before he moved away she gave him a friendly smile, "you know you remind me of a friend of mine. He was warrior who gave up his life in his homeworld to fight by my side in a galactic battle."

"Admirable."

"Indeed", she said smiling thinking of Teal'c.

"You remind me of a friend as well."

"I hope I will do that memory justice."

"I believe you will."

He stepped away allowing the doctor access, "Dr. Crusher."

Seeing Sam wince Worf offered his arm for support. She thanked him with her eyes as she slowly and painfully pulled herself onto the exam table then slowly laying back. With tricorder in hand Dr. Crusher began taking readings of her patient, "you're right about that concussion. Frankly, I'm surprised you are still conscious and functioning."

The tricorder gave a conspicuous beep making the doctor frown, "this is odd."

"You found the protein marker and the heavy metal in my blood?"

"Protein marker? Heavy metal?"

Sam spoke groggily dimly aware of the edges of her vision growing dark. She let her eyes slide closed as she spoke with slightly slurred words, "It's kinda complicated but I was host to a symbiote for a brief time. Once Jolinar died I was left with a very specific protein marker as well as naquada in my blood. Because of my altered blood chemistry most sedative and antibiotics have to be adjusted or increase to have any effect on me."

"That's good to know. I want to be able to help you", Dr. Crusher said and with those words Sam slipped away finally letting her body succumb. To trust or not to trust it was a mute issue now as Sam lay unconscious in the hands of strangers.