Monday, April 26
Reality L583
It was getting very late planetside. Teal'c and Carter had put up tents for them, and the prisoners inside the hut were preparing to bed down for the night. Hammond had sent another team to help them keep watch. They'd arrive in about twenty or thirty minutes.
Jack was busy, however, panning the camera over every available surface. "Back to the left a little, would you Jack?" asked Daniel in his ear.
Obediently, he followed the instructions, though he was fairly certain he'd already covered that spot more than once. Though it was quite dark, they had plenty of light for this because Carter's first act upon their arrival was the erection of several battery-powered light stands. She'd also handed a set in to the men inside the hut, together with their own camera that used Jack's backpack transmitter to send the images back to the MALP that was at the gate. They'd shut the gate down repeatedly, all throughout the day, but Daniel kept calling for it to be opened again.
"Chen, pan right, down about six inches," Daniel said. "This is . . . I thought . . . hand me that would you, sir?" Obviously he was talking to Hammond. Jack just kept his camera pointing steadily at the place he'd last been directed to. "Jack, stay right where you are, and don't just train the camera on the wall in front of you, watch the wall with your eyes as well. Chen, would you just touch that third symbol from the right very gently?"
"Are you sure, Daniel?" Chen asked.
"Yes. It won't hurt anything, it's more in the nature of a test."
Chen did as he was told and Jack watched the wall, wondering what he was looking for. When the symbol that was centered in his lens shifted, glittered briefly, then settled into another shape, he nearly dropped the camera, though. "What the hell is that?" he exclaimed.
"The reason I need to be there and not here," Daniel said. "Damn it! There's an interactive element to this, and I don't know what it is. Sir, I really need to go there."
"Daniel –" Jack started, but Hammond was already talking so he stopped.
"Dr. Jackson, it's not up for discussion."
Jack could almost see the irritable expression on Daniel's face. When he spoke, all traces of his undoubted annoyance were veiled, though. "Jack, stay where you are. In fact, if you have a tripod, you might want to set it up on this particular spot. Sir, can you get five or six other cameras sent out there? Would that work? Is the transmitter up to it?"
"Why do you need more cameras?" Hammond asked.
"There are several points that change externally when things happen internally, and I need to get an idea of just how they change."
"We'll send more cameras, and if the transmitter isn't up to it, then we'll send another one. Captain Carter, are you monitoring this?"
"Yes sir," she said. "This transmitter can handle up to four cameras. Past that and we will need another. Didn't you send two more cameras with SG-7 already?"
"I did," Hammond said.
"That won't be enough," Daniel interjected. "It's a good start, but . . ." He paused, and Jack knew what was coming. In a tone of desperation he exclaimed, "I need to be there!" From the complete lack of reaction inside the hut, Jack knew he'd switched his transmission to private mode. He switched his own over. Now only Jack, Hammond and Daniel could hear what they said. "Sir! I need to be able to –"
"It's not happening, Dr. Jackson," Hammond said. "Unless there is a more immediate danger to Dempsey and his men, we are not risking you. I'll send more cameras out with an additional transmitter in the morning. In the meantime, I think everyone needs to get some rest."
"Sir, I know you're concerned about my physical ability to deal with the strain of a mission like this, but I need to be on site."
"By seven tomorrow morning, there will be eight cameras on site, hooked to eight monitors, and you can flip from monitor to monitor," Hammond explained. Daniel made a protesting sound. "You'll be able to see opposite sides of the building at the same time, which you wouldn't be able to do if you were there."
"Sir, that's great, but –"
"I believe it's time for us to turn in at this end, colonel," Hammond said. "I'm getting the evil eye from Dr. Fraiser that suggests that I have been keeping her patient from his bed for far too long. There are no signs thus far of problems, I take it? Dempsey, Chen and Tyler don't appear to be in any danger?"
Jack shook his head. "No sir. Before you guys go, though, can you tell me, Daniel, just what it is you think is happening?"
"I'm not altogether sure, Jack. There's a couple of things that have occurred to me. I need to have a long talk with Sam, and from the steely look in Dr. Fraiser's eyes, I'm not going to get the opportunity to anytime soon. Would you tell her what you saw and then ask her to think about the ways naquadah could be caused to do that and possible purposes?"
"Sure, Daniel," Jack said. "Get some rest."
"This is stupid. It would probably take me half the time or less to solve this problem if I was there."
"Good night, Daniel," Jack said, feeling enormous sympathy for this Daniel's Jack. It seemed as if they had the same kind of problems. "Good night, general." He also felt for Hammond, who couldn't just disconnect.
Daniel muttered something that sort of sounded like good night and then they shut the wormhole down.
Jack looked around at his camp. Teal'c had a good fire going and would have some MREs ready to eat as soon as they were ready to sit down. Carter was rigging up a tripod. Jack activated his radio on one of the general frequencies. "Makepeace, you guys settled down for the night?"
"Yes, Colonel O'Neill," the marine said. "Has SG-7 gotten to you yet?"
"Just arriving now," Jack said. "Don't look like they had any problems. If you have a situation come up, get a call to us and then go back through the gate so they have some warning."
"Yes sir," Makepeace said. "I got it, O'Neill. Good night."
"Good night."
Jack let Travis set up his own perimeter, settling down with Teal'c and Carter to eat dinner. He passed on Daniel's words and she looked thoughtfully at the little hut. She didn't say anything, though, so he figured he'd let her stew it over as long as it took.
"Well, I'm heading to bed," Jack said when he'd finished his beef stew. "See you all bright and early in the morning."
He went and lay down on his bedroll in the tent Teal'c had set up for him. Under these same circumstances, his Daniel would be pulling the same stunts, begging to be allow to risk his life all the while claiming there wasn't any real risk. He wondered if that Hammond was going to shove him through a gate with a broken arm, or if he'd at least let his injury heal first.
He rolled over and tried to still his mind for sleep, hoping he wouldn't have any nightmares tonight. They were bad enough at home in his own bed. Here, in a tent, on another planet, where he expected any moment to have Daniel stick his head in the end of the canvas structure and tell him about the incredibly exciting and fascinating ruin he'd just spotted on the horizon . . . it would be almost unbearable.
Reality A001
Dinner with Daniel was steak cooked just the way each of them liked it. Samantha was surprised to find that the colonel remembered their preferences, it had been so long since they'd eaten together as a group. The four of them used to have dinner together fairly frequently.
She wondered as they ate salad and steak whether Kowalski felt left out . . . if he even noticed that they were doing things without him. How long had it been? When had things changed? Why hadn't she noticed? It was like the world had been falling apart all around her for the last year and she hadn't seen anything that extended past her toes. Things kept turning up that were different . . . and she'd never noticed the change.
One of the women she used to work with had left the SGC altogether, and that had slipped completely under her radar. Captain Abercromie was now Major Abercrombie, and headed the entire maintenance department. Worse of all, there were three soldiers she'd known since she started here who had died in the past four months and she'd simply assumed she was consistently missing them. Announcements had been made, services held, but she'd stopped reading that kind of e-mail, so she'd missed them.
How many of the others had become as disconnected as she had without realizing it? How addictive were these drugs, and how were they going to handle getting off them again? There were too many questions with no answers, and she was in danger of going as far in the direction of anxiety as she had towards apathy, which would prove no more beneficial.
Maybe Maybourne could find her something to help counteract the drugs. She couldn't stop taking them, after all. They were administered on a regular schedule, and she didn't dare break from schedules. It was frustrating, but if she deviated in any way from expected behavior, it might make Hammond suspicious. That was the last thing they needed, especially now, when Hammond had become convinced that she was on his side. At this point, if he decided she wasn't, she'd be labeled a traitor in his mind, and she already knew what Hammond did to traitors. It wasn't something she wanted to experience first hand.
"Samantha?" There was mild concern in Daniel's voice and she looked up, startled to find that both men were staring at her. She smiled ruefully, and Daniel's tension relaxed. "What planet were you on?" he asked.
"This one, just elsewhere."
"I just asked if you guys wanted to stay for a movie," Daniel said. "I've got Guys and Dolls, Arsenic and Old Lace and The Thirteenth Warrior."
The desire to spend more time with them was blazing irresistibly in Daniel's eyes. "I'm up for a movie," she said. "What about you, sir?"
"Sure," the colonel said. "Aresenic and Old Lace sounds good, unless you have a preference, Danny."
She glanced over at Daniel, who looked like he'd thought of something he didn't dare say. "I'm open," he said after a moment, smiling. The two of them sat down on the bed, which was the closest thing the room had to a sofa, and Samantha sat down on the floor in front of them, on a blanket Daniel insisted she fold up as a cushion. By the time the movie was over, Daniel was falling asleep. Samantha glanced up at the time and saw that, even though the lights hadn't been shut off yet, it was well past eleven.
She and the colonel left Daniel climbing into bed, and when they were in the elevator heading to the surface, he spoke her thoughts. "Hammond seems to be easing up on him a little. His own fridge, late lights out . . ." He shook his head. "What does it mean?"
"It means he wants him to adjust," Samantha said. "We'll have to do what we can to help him." The colonel's eyes widened ever so slightly and she glanced at the ceiling, trying to remind him that they were being monitored.
"You know I'd do everything in my power to help Daniel," he said.
"Yes sir," she said brightly. "So are we still on for dessert?"
His eyebrows went up. "I'm glad you reminded me." Fishing his keys out of his pocket, he handed them to her as they got off the elevator. "Wait for me in the truck." Baffled, she did as he asked. He showed up about fifteen minutes later and deposited a small ice chest in the truck bed before climbing in. Like on their previous outing, he drove around the countryside for awhile till he found a suitably isolated location. They got out and walked over to sit under a tree, and he produced dessert. Fresh, succulent strawberries with sweetened cream. It was luscious, and provided an odd background for their conversation.
She told him that they had allies, and that she had some things that she was working on. Before she could even explain that the allies wanted to remain anonymous, he said, "Don't tell me too many details. I don't want to be able to betray people if . . ." He shook his head and she gazed at him in concern. "If Hammond threatens Danny . . . or Daniel . . . or . . . if Hammond threatens him, I don't know what I'll do.
She snuggled closer against him. He'd pulled her close again as soon as they sat down. "I understand, sir," she said. "So . . . what did you think of the Jaffa Hammond's holding?"
"He tried to protect Daniel without even knowing him," he said. "I'm all for that. I've looked in on his son, and he barely looks as old as Daniel said he was."
She nodded. He was prepared to accept the Jaffa as an ally, she thought. That was a big step in the right direction, assuming that Teal'c wanted to be an ally to begin with. The night was a bit nippy, but reclining against Jack's chest with his arms around her waist warmed her. "Hammond has come to believe that I've grown practical with regard to Daniel."
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"I said some things today that implied that I was more interested in keeping Daniel working than in anything else. The general heard what he wanted to hear, so he liked what he heard."
"That's good, I suspect," the colonel said.
She nodded. "But it does mean I have to be very careful what I say when Hammond might hear me. Now that he thinks I'm on his side . . ."
O'Neill nodded his understanding. "How was the trip to the surface?"
"Curtailed by the weather, unfortunately," she said, remembering the glum look on Daniel's face as they'd gone back down into the mountain. "But I took a cue from you and managed to set it up so that we couldn't be monitored."
"So you were able to talk to him?" Jack asked. She nodded. "Is he okay? I mean, does he seem like himself?"
She drew sideways, trying to tell which man she was talking to. Was this the Colonel O'Neill who knew that the Daniel they'd had dinner with tonight was a prisoner from an alternate reality, or was this the one who believed that their Danny was inexplicably back from the dead and locked in a small room in the base?
O'Neill met her eyes and gave her an uneasy smile. "I mean, I know you don't really know if he's like himself. You met him the same day I did." His eyes went very distant and unreadable. "If not in quite the same way I did. But is he . . . does he seem to be coping with the horrors we're putting him through?" His voice broke on the word 'horrors' and she took his hand impulsively.
"He seems to be holding himself together, Jack," she said. "He did say . . . sir, you have to remember that if you have confrontations with Hammond in that room . . ." She shrugged. "When you and Hammond fight in there, Daniel has to witness it and Hammond has him ready to hand if he decides to make a point."
The colonel's face hardened. "Don't I know it," he said. "But . . . God, I wish this was over. I wish I could take it all back. How many men . . . Daniels . . . have I crippled in the course of this? From how many Jack O'Neills have I stolen their closest friends? I can't remember anymore." He shook his head. "What kind of man am I to do this?"
"Confused and ill," she said gently. "Try not to dwell on it. We'll fix what we can after we deal with Hammond."
"What can we fix?" he asked pathetically.
She pulled him into her arms and cradled him close. "Don't worry about it now, Jack. There's no point in spending a lot of energy on something we can't do anything about right now."
"I want Danny back," he said. "I want to turn the clock back six months and get help so I don't smash him into a wall and . . . and . . . kill . . . him." He was speaking and breathing raggedly, tears flowing down his face. "Samantha, did I kill any of the others? Are they dead? I can't . . . I don't think I could . . . if I killed another one . . ."
She squeezed him tightly and kept rocking him. "Hush," she said. "None of them were dead when they left us."
"But –"
"But nothing," she said persuasively. "We'll deal with that issue when the time comes. Right now there's not anything we can do about it."
"No, there's not," he said, his voice very quiet.
"We need to focus on things we can affect."
"There's damn all that I can do," he said savagely.
"I know," she said, reaching up to cup his cheek, trying to soothe the anger away. Both anger and self-hatred were dangerous right now. She had to head them off. "But you're doing everything you can, aren't you?"
His eyes met hers, terrifyingly naked of masks. "Let's see, frightening that poor man, alarming you, irritating Hammond . . . yeah, I do think I'm doing everything I possibly can to screw things up even more than they already are."
"Sir –"
"Jack," he corrected.
"Jack, Daniel knows what's going on now, and I'm okay."
"I notice you don't have any consoling words about Hammond," he said. He gave her an apologetic smile. "I'm being a barrel of laughs, aren't I?" Shifting, he pulled her into the circle of his arms. "We have quite a pickle on our hands, don't we Samantha Carter?"
"Oh yeah," she said, relaxing against him. "I'm only just realizing how big a mess it all is."
He was silent for a few moments, then he said, "I don't know how aware of it you are, but you're going to want to be careful what you say around Charlie."
"Kowalski?" she asked.
"Yes." He sighed. "I'm afraid he may not be . . . retrievable . . . when this is all over. He was never very . . . I used to have to rein him in a little on missions, you know."
Samantha nodded. There had been moments when Kowalski had strayed a little into the 'grab first, ask questions later if ever' way of doing things. He'd always fallen in line when the colonel spoke, though.
"He's been going out a lot without us, and . . . well, the people on those teams have all been very careful, very . . . circumspect . . . in the wording of their reports, but I got the straight truth from a couple of them, and it's not a pretty picture." She shivered. "Are you cold?" he asked
"Not on the outside," she replied. "I just keep feeling like things are falling apart." She bit her lip, realizing that she really shouldn't have said that to him.
He squeezed her and sighed. "And I'm no help to you in that department right now. I'm sorry."
She closed her eyes, trying to control the tears that were rising to the surface. "It's all right, sir."
He kissed her neck right behind her ear, sending goose pimples all over her body. "No, it's not," he said softly. "It's not remotely fair to you to make you bear this burden alone. I wish . . . but I can't promise that I'll be any better than I have been when we go back to the base tomorrow."
She turned her head. "Knowing that you're still in there is enough," she said. Their faces were very close together, his eyes on hers. He bent just slightly, and their lips touched gently. A few moments later he broke away, eyes wide. "I'm sorry," he whispered, and she stared at him her breath coming more quickly than she'd expected. "It's a cover, not . . . I'm sorry."
She caught his face in her hands. "It's all right," she said.
"No, I . . . it's wrong when I . . ."
She leaned up and kissed him for a long moment, then drew away. "It's all right, Jack."
He smiled and leaned close again. It must have been thirty minutes later when he next spoke. "Have we covered what needs to be covered?"
She took a deep breath and tried to pull business back into her mind. "Allies achieved, Daniel coping, not sure what else we can discuss."
"Nothing," he said. "Samantha, I'm sorry. I screwed up royally."
"You had help," she replied. "Please, try to focus on what we can do to fix it. Right now all you can do is maintain your temper and get the job done."
He nodded grimly. "And do whatever Hammond wants."
She sighed. "And do whatever Hammond wants," she agreed.
He kissed her once more, then helped her to her feet. "We have to be able to get up to go to work tomorrow morning. So, are we to the point of staying the night at someone's house?"
She looked up at him. This wasn't wise, this wasn't sensible, the man was insane. On the other hand, they did have a cover to uphold, and . . . she stopped trying to rationalize it. She stood up on tip toe and pressed a kiss to his lips. "My place," she said.