MEMOIRS OF
MAJOR GENERAL JACK O'NEILL
(Re-activated)
2. Foe
Chapter Two
By Arrietty
2008
La Haia must have known that something was up; my body one minute was taught as a violin string and then the next relaxed. "It's okay, they're friends." I said quietly in her ear.
"Hey, Daniel!" I called out from where we crouched.
He spun around with weapon aimed straight at where we were.
"Show yourself," he called out caution evident in his voice.
"O'Neill." It was my turn to spin around on the spot.
"Teal'c. Buddy." I smiled and walked towards my friend.
It wasn't until I reached him, I realised that La Haia was still clinging to my arm as if her life depended on it.
Teal'c stopped in his tracks, all vestige of colour left his face as it turned a charcoal grey. "Colonel Carter," his voice soft and full of hope. 'They didn't know.'
"Jack. Is that you?" I could hear Daniel stumbling through the undergrowth behind me. I waited for the accusing tone as soon as he would notice La Haia at my side. It took longer than I thought it would.
"Jack, it's great to see you." He bounded around me, his hand on my shoulder he pulled me into a hug, taking La Haia with me as she still clung to me.
His grin dropped as he looked at La Haia beside me. "Sam! Is that really you?" His grin replaced with a smile, he pulled her into a hug. It didn't take a rocket scientist to realise when Daniel knew that something was wrong. His smile faded and he stepped back to look at La Haia.
His eyes slid across to me. "This isn't. . . " The question fell from his lips as he looked at me in horror.
"No, Daniel. It isn't the replicator."
I saw his shoulders visibly relax with my answer. "So," he questioned me again with a look.
My eyes flicked from Teal'c to Daniel. I found myself hesitant to answer.
"Teal'c, Daniel, meet La Haia." I smiled and slipped my arm around her shoulders and hugged her to me. I wasn't sure if it was to give her or give me reassurance.
"But . . ." Daniel started to question my words.
"Wait, Daniel. Yes, I know she looks like Carter, there is a reason." I watched his face drop. "And the reason is a good one." I smiled. "Because she is Carter." I grinned in triumph. I'd confused Daniel; it was good to see. "She just doesn't remember that's all," I added and waited for the penny to drop. It didn't take long, I'm pretty sure both Teal'c and Daniel realised at the same time.
"Wow, Jack. How long? When did this happen? Where did you find her? But she is dead. Wha . . . "
"Hold on there, Daniel. I'll fill you in later. We need to find somewhere comfortable, preferably off this planet." I looked around me, just in case something comfortable had appeared from nowhere and surprised me. But nothing had and we were left with looking at the dismal wet undergrowth of the dank forest.
Teal'c found his voice. "It is good to see you again, Colonel Carter." He gave his small bow and La Haia returned his bow with one of her own.
"Jack, we can't leave this planet yet."
I groaned. "Dare I ask why, Daniel?"
"Because, Jack, we need to find the UAV that crashed not far from here."
"You mean you sent a UAV in this lot," I said referring to the thick fog that swirled around us emphasising my point by waving my free arm through the moisture laden air. "No wonder it crashed." I totally ignored the fact that the UAV's crashed ninety-nine percent of the time.
"Okay, impromptu debriefing, over here." I waved my hand over in the direction that La Haia and I had camped for the last eighteen hours.
Once settled, I gestured for Daniel to go first. He didn't agree with me, but then what's new?
"No, Jack. You can't turn up and surprise us with Sam who has been dead for nearly four years and not tell us where you found her." He glared at me, but softened his expression before smiling at La Haia. I could see that La Haia was warming to these two, even though she hadn't spoken to them yet. She 'had' let go of my hand.
"Okay, Daniel you win, but it will be the Readers Digest Condensed Version. I found La Haia a few months ago on the planet where we got the horses, you know Neeron's planet."
I watched as Daniel did the math. "You mean to say that you've known that Sam was alive all this time and you didn't let us know . . . or even bring her back?" His outrage increased in strength as his voice got louder.
La Haia gripped my hand.
I ignored his outburst and continued telling our story. "La Haia doesn't remember anything from her past, so I decided to wait until she remembered a bit before bringing her back."
By now Daniel was standing up. "You decided . . . he did a three sixty on one spot and fired his words back at me, "What gives you the right to decide what is right or wrong for Sam?"
I stood up and faced Daniel. La Haia stood with me cowering behind my back in fear at the shouting.
"Daniel. If Hammond had wanted Carter to return to the SGC, he would have given you orders for me to return her."
He frowned, "What do you mean? Hammond knew?"
I nodded, "Yes, he's known for a long time. I gave him a sealed letter when I delivered the horses. If he chose not to inform everyone at the SGC that was his decision, not mine."
"Oh."
I'd have to say this for Daniel; even though he was quick to accuse me of wrong doing he was just as quick to admit if he was wrong.
"I'm sorry Jack. I . . . Oh, actually, Hammond did give us something for you."
A cold dark lump formed in my gut.
He unclipped his back pack and pulled out a large parcel, wrapped up in cloth. "Here it is. I have no idea what is in it."
I turned to La Haia, "Hey a parcel from home." My lips smiled, but my heart didn't.
I pulled her down to sit beside me as I slit the webbing that bound the heavy package. Inside was a sleeping bag, two complete changes of BDU's plus a pair of new boots and some other things that looked suspiciously like women's underwear. The boots definitely weren't my size, nor were the BDU's.
Inside the jacket was a crumpled sealed envelope. This I knew was for me and it was the item that filled me with dread.
"Look, La Haia, some clothes for you. You don't have to use mine now."
Her voice was quiet and full of amazement, "For me?"
I handed the whole parcel minus the letter to her. "You put these on; we'll go off for a bit, you'll be quite safe we won't look."
I stood up and left her sitting clutching the parcel of clothes in her arms.
We didn't move far, I didn't want to leave her vulnerable to anything that was on this planet that we were unaware of yet.
I didn't want to open the envelope, but I knew I had to, so I ripped it open and yanked out the sheet of paper hidden within.
Dear Jack
In reply to your letter, I am delighted with the news. Please give my regards to the person you mentioned. There have been a few problems higher up and I have chosen to keep your letter quiet for now.
I have informed Jacob Carter of your situation and Janet Fraiser is also aware of this change. Other than these two people and myself, no one else knows.
Inside this parcel are some spare clothes, I am sure you will be able to put to good use. I recommend that you keep away from the SGC for quite some time. I will review the situation next time you rendezvous. Inside the downed UAV is something that is important, it needs to be retrieved, but please do not return it to the SGC until I contact you. I hope Teal'c and Dr. Jackson will be of some help to you on your ventures. I don't expect to see them until the next meet which will . . .
The letter went on to explain the next rendezvous meeting and what planet with co-ordinates.
I was shocked. Things had to be bad back at the SGC and higher up for Hammond to write a letter like this. Part of me wanted to return there immediately to help sort out the problem, but the letter specifically said for me not to return. I just hoped that nothing like what had happened in the alternate universes had happened on my planet.
I handed the letter over to Daniel to read. I noticed he didn't seem shocked as he was reading. When finished, he handed it to Teal'c.
"I'm not surprised, General Hammond seemed to be having trouble with someone higher up in the hierarchy, but I don't know who it is."
La Haia took that moment to appear. It was a shock; it was just as if Sam was standing there. Her BDU's all Colonel Carter, right down to her shiny new boots.
She smiled cautiously, her eyes darting from Teal'c to Daniel then finally resting on me. She was seeking approval. I gave it to her.
"La Haia. Wow you look great. I bet the boots are way more comfortable than those slipper things you wore." I walked towards her and took hold of her shoulders before spinning her around to look at her new clothes. "You know," I said facing her again. "General Hammond sent you those. Just for you."
She smiled shyly, obviously pleased with my response.
We moved back to our impromptu camp and sat down and discussed our plans. It was apparent that we needed to retrieve the downed UAV, salvage whatever was in the piece of equipment and then what? We didn't really know what we wanted to do after that. Three months was quite a time to fill. It was fine when there was just me or even when it was just La Haia and me, but with Teal'c and Daniel too. We would stick out a lot more. But we'd have to worry about that later, after we'd got the UAV.
We decided to move out mid morning. It was still cold and there was no sign of the mist dispersing. I had the feeling that this was a constant on this planet.
Daniel pulled out a doohickey from his pack, pointing it into the dense fog. I recognised it as what Carter had used to locate downed UAV's.
"We go this way, Jack."
I turned to Teal'c. "T, you take point, then Daniel and La Haia and I'll watch your sixes. In theory this should be the order, but knowing La Haia, she'll most probably hang back with me, she seemed still rather nervous of these two, especially Teal'c.
The going was rough. The forest wasn't the dry ground devoid of vegetation like we often see in the wilderness, but full of strange big leafy plants that wrapped themselves around trunks of strange shaped trees. It was more of a jungle than the forests we were used to.
Daniel seemed to be in his element; slashing through vines with a long knife. Apparently the years as a university graduate on out-of-the-way digs stood him in good stead after all. The thick mist still permeated the atmosphere of the jungle, bringing with it the cold that ate into your bones.
Usually the rainforests on Earth came with the unbearable heat, but here it was just plain cold.
"Hey, Daniel," I called from beside La Haia. "How much further?"
He stopped, rechecked his doohickey and yelled over his shoulder, "Another couple of hours I think. It depends."
"Depends on what?"
"How long it takes to get through this jungle."
I rolled my eyes and took a deep calming breath. We'll make camp near the UAV."
We continued on our scramble though the plants. 'Why on earth did Hammond choose this planet?' I wondered to myself. As if reading my mind, Teal'c gave me the answer.
"It is most unfortunate that this was the next scheduled planet when General Hammond had to send the UAV.
"Yeah, Teal'c, why did Hammond send the UAV?"
"I believe the answer is in the correspondence General Hammond sent you."
Yes, of course. Originally the planet was just a rendezvous, no exploring involved. Unfortunately, he needed to get whatever it is, out of the SGC and quickly. I really wanted to know what was going on, but I couldn't do it from here. Frustrated just wasn't a strong enough word.
It took the rest of the day to reach the crashed UAV. One of the wings had broken off and was hanging from a vine in the trees. The rest of it had dug into the ground. What was really strange was the vines had already begun to grow over the machine. If we hadn't had the little locator, we'd never have spotted it hidden amongst the foliage.
It didn't take long to find the small cylinder fixed to the fuselage. I unscrewed the top and inside was a very old fashioned looking microfilm. It had been many years since I'd seen one of those. There was no way I could see what was on it out here, so I rolled it back up safely and put it into one of the my many hidden pockets.
"We'll make camp here for the night."
They all nodded in agreement.
"Teal'c you take first watch, then me and Daniel next."
No one made any comments to the fact that I hadn't included La Haia in this duty. Although Daniel did look at me sideways as La Haia settled herself down beside me on one of the waterproof ground sheets. I decided to ignore the questioning looks from both Daniel and Teal'c.
I was awakened by screaming. "No don't, please don't." Teal'c was crouched down beside us. "Get away from me," La Haia cried out.
"Back off, Teal'c," I warned. He stood and backed away.
"La Haia." Her face was filled with terror as she watched Teal'c move away. Daniel hovered nearby, but wisely kept his distance. "La Haia," I spoke softly as I knelt in front of her. I tried to get her attention, but it didn't seem to be working.
She looked down at the ground then back up at me. "Sir?" Music to my ears as Carter spoke and then dashed when she spoke again, "Don't leave me behind."
"I won't Carter, I won't."
Carter clutched my arms. "Please don't leave me," her voice soft and desperate. A sob escaped her throat and she fell against me. I leaned up against a tree and held her as she cried into my chest. Slowly, the sobs subsided and she drifted off into a troubled sleep. Soon after, I followed.
Everything smelled sweet, like jasmine on a hot summers evening. La Haia or was it Carter, I couldn't quite tell, stood two feet from me, completely clothed in white. Her hair shone in the bright sunlight; the fog had disappeared. I couldn't believe I'd slept for so long.
I stood up and walked over to Carter. She smiled, "Come, Jack." It was then I noticed I too was wearing a long white robe. The short grass was soft on my bare feet. Flowers bloomed in the bushes and high in the trees. "Come," she repeated. I followed Carter as she walked towards a large bush. It was covered with a type of fruit; similar in shape to a pear, but tasted like mango. She laughed, my heart soared.
Holding hands, we ventured further into a huge garden, trees laden with fruit of all kinds. Nestled in amongst the trees was a large still lake. Carter immediately started to wade into the water, but I found myself hesitating. I felt the tug on my hand as she pulled on it and I stepped into the water. It felt like silk to my feet, soothing tired and sore muscles.
With Sam's hand clutched in mine we stood knee deep in the tranquil lake. It was like we'd arrived. No more searching, no more heart ache and no more pain.
"Hey!"
I swivelled around to see where the voice came from. A man stood with ragged clothes hanging on his malnourished gaunt frame.
"You can't stay here."
The odour that came from his unwashed body was offensive and almost overpowering.
"Who are you?"
"It is no matter who I am; I'm one of the lost. But you must go back. Go back to yourselves before it is too late."
"Why go back?" I asked. "This is paradise."
"Is it?" he asked. "Take a closer look. Then you'll see what you'll see."
We both stared around us, but all we saw were trees blossoming with flowers and heavy with fruit.
"Jack?"
"What, Carter." Wary now by the tone of her voice.
"Trees can't blossom and bear fruit at the same time."
I began to see what she meant, it didn't seem quite real. I moved my foot; it had sunk into the silt at the bottom. I looked down and to my horror all I saw was a murky stagnant pool of thick slime. The tranquil lake had gone. I spun around in the sludge and looked back up at the trees; they were laden with fruit, but not the fruit we'd seen earlier, but with putrid bulbs of rotting mess. The only thing that was green was the thick vines that wound their way around the dead trees.
"What is this place?" I asked the man.
Pulling on Sam's hand, I helped her out of the thick sludge, the smell was strong.
He answered in a quiet matter of fact voice, "The place of nightmares." I watched horrified as tears rolled down his dirty cheeks. "Go back and fight before it is too late." He turned and walked into the rotting jungle.
The soft grass had gone, leaving sticks and stones along the path, leaving our feet bruised and battered as we sped back towards our campsite. We had forgotten Teal'c and Daniel, there had been no sign of them when we had awakened. Our lovely white robes were now grey and ragged as the man's clothes we'd just met. It had all been an illusion.
When we arrived, Teal'c was frantically pulling vines from around a mound on the ground.
"Daniel Jackson!" His voice cracked with the emotion as he yanked back a large vine.
"Teal'c!" I called out, but he didn't hear me.
He spun around and ran over to a larger mound under a huge tree. "O'Neill, you must awaken."
Carter and I looked at each other in horror before starting towards the large mound. Teal'c pulled out a large knife and began to hack at the tough vines that wound around the mound. Immediately, I convulsed in pain, along with Carter we fell to the ground.
A scream came from Daniel's direction.
The convulsing had stopped and Carter and I painfully stood and watched Teal'c run over to the other mound.
He knelt beside the mound and spoke urgently to it. "Daniel Jackson are you awake?"
"Yes, Teal'c; whatever you're doing, stop."
"The vine is . . ."
I didn't hear what Teal'c was saying as we were now bent over the larger mound. Carter had pulled back part of a vine; the sight was horrific. We were staring at our bodies, still where we had settled down to sleep before. The vines had grown around us as slept; burrowing into our clothing and flesh. It was devouring us from within. I wanted to puke.
"I don't want to return," said Carter
"Ya think!" I looked at her again. Her eyes mirrored the truth I knew. We had to re-enter our bodies if we were to survive. It was going to be excruciatingly painful and it might not work, but living here in this decaying jungle just did not come into the equation.
"We have to wake up," I said to her.
She nodded and asked, "How?"
"I don't know."
Teal'c found the answer, even though he didn't quite understand what he was doing. He turned from Daniel. "I am sorry, Daniel Jackson."
He knelt down beside our bodies and started to cut into a vine that lead straight into my abdomen. I saw myself scream in pain seconds before I opened my eyes from where I lay to see sweat beading on Teal'c's forehead.
"Don't stop, T," I gasped for breath. "This is the only way."
I could hear Carter screaming beside me, calling out my name. I found it nerve-racking that I couldn't go to her, and then awareness sunk in as I listened to her words. "Tzak! Please help me, Tzak." Not sir or Jack anymore.
Teal'c slashed another vine from my legs, screams echoed around the trees, from all three of us. The vines passed on the pain to our bodies. My vision began to darken as the throbbing increased. Carter had already passed out, I could feel her weight heavy on me, then movement as Teal'c pulled her away from me. Unbearable pain – far beyond what I'd felt before – then a flash of light – a sigh – then blackness.
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