Sorry I'm late with this chapter I was just finishing SGA and I also have a little problem since this story seems to be a lot shorter than I first thought so I'll have to figure that one out too. I still hope you'll like this.

Chapter 5

'You have any idea how cool it would be to fly like that?' Cameron asked, investing himself in the role of Neo.

The final scene of the movie didn't seem to excite anyone in the room as much as it excited Cameron. Everybody looked at him like he said something totally stupid.

'What? I like it.' Cameron explained when he saw nobody felt the same way.

'Well, I'm sure McKay could easily write a program for you if you wanted.' Sam said, keeping hope in her friend.

'Okay, let's just drop this.' Mitchell knew it wouldn't do much good to go on with the subject.

'No matter how many times I watch this movie, I still don't understand a single word of that scientific,' Jack paused trying to find the right word. 'Science stuff.'

He was sitting in his usual place on the couch with Sam next to him. Jack gave up concentrating on the movie halfway and started thinking of what Daniel told him. In one thing Jack was sure Daniel was right. He loved Sam. As hard as it was to admit, but he did. For the seven years they had been one team, he was sure he couldn't let his personal feelings influence his decisions. Now it probably wouldn't matter but what if it was too late already? Or if this Christmas holiday was his last chance to admit his feelings? Should he stake everything on one card?

Jack's train of thought was interrupted by Daniel.

'It's soon getting dark. I think we should get prepared. God knows what's waiting for us out there.'

'Well, go on.' Jack gave Daniel a green light. He wasn't sure if he still wanted to fight. Being a general saved him a lot of energy, since he didn't have to go on missions and that made him quite comfortable. He wasn't sure he was ready.

Slowly all of them got up and started to get themselves ready. Sam headed for her room to find clothes that were more suitable for fighting than the light dress she was wearing. After the movie when she mentioned Rodney McKay she remembered the time she had spent on Atlantis. She couldn't remember but good things about those months. Still when she had been alone her thoughts always ended up on Jack and how much she had missed him. So close to each other yet so far. She knew it would have only taken a couple of seconds to get back to him but still, she was in another galaxy. It was needless to think about times gone but she couldn't help herself. She was happier than ever to be back to Earth but a part of her was still on Atlantis.

'We're good to go, Sam. If you'd like to join us, we're waiting here.' She heard Jack's voice from the corridor leading to the front door.

'Just a moment, sir.' She answered and picked her P-90 up from her bed.

Once she joined the others Jack told them the plan.

'We go in two teams. Carter and Teal'c come with me; Mitchell, Vala and Teal'c will be team two. We keep in radio contact and if anyone finds anything, ask before acting. I hope we'll get this over with in maximum two hours so there will be time to sleep. Let's go.'

With that he opened the door and the six soldiers left the house. The weather was chilly outside the house and Jack noticed there was unusually thick fog around the clearing. He signaled to Cameron which way to go and he headed for the opposite direction.

'You have any idea how we are going to find those alien things?' Daniel asked Cameron when they couldn't see the other team anymore.

'No idea, Jackson. But I have a feeling that they are going to find us before we had the chance.'

'That's encouraging.'

They reached the tree line and Cameron signaled to move into the woods.

'I have a bad feeling about this.' Vala shared her thoughts.

'Hard to have any other.' Daniel relaxed her.

Cameron suddenly lifted his arm for the others to stay silent.

'What's wrong?' Vala asked after a minute of waiting but nothing happening around them.

'I heard something.' Cameron answered whispering.

They stayed silent again but couldn't hear anything suspicious. 'Let's go.'

oOo

Jack moved into the forest with Sam and Teal'c close behind him. They moved as silently as possible but the fog almost made it impossible to watch the ground in front of them so they accidently stepped on twigs that could give their position away.

'I think we should follow the tracks we've discovered before.' Sam suggested and waited for the others to answer.

'Might be a working plan.' Jack replied. 'If you know which direction those tracks are. Because I haven't a clue.'

'I remember the way.' Teal'c said and split from the rest of the group.

'Yeah, sure you do.' Jack answered feeling ashamed that he hadn't remembered that Teal'c usually knew those kinds of things.

'The fog is too thick. I barely see you in front of me.' Sam told Jack. She was the last in the line.

'Don't worry Carter, you won't get lost.' Jack assured her.

'I'm not talking about getting lost. Among these circumstances I'm having doubts that if one of those beasts show up we will be able to see it.'

'Gotta take the risk.' Jack answered being careful to not lose Teal'c.

They walked a couple more minutes and all they could hear was the sound of their steps and the light zephyr moving the leaves around them. They all felt the cold making its way through their clothes. If they had worn BDUs they would've kept out the cold better but it was no use grieving over it. They weren't prepared for something like that.

'We have arrived.' Teal'c stopped and turned to the others.

'So which way do we go now?' Sam asked.

Teal'c didn't answer for a minute; he was just studying the ground silently.

'What's up, T?'

'The tracks have disappeared, O'Neill.' Teal'c answered solemnly.

'Are you sure we're at the right place? It's easy to get lost in a forest like this.' Jack asked as he too scanned the area with no success.

'I am sure.'

'This is not good, guys.' Sam pointed out the obvious.

'What does it matter? We have the same chances. I don't think it would have made anything easier if we had found the tracks.' Jack told mostly to Teal'c, trying not to make him feel responsible.

'Maybe so. What direction should we go now?' Teal'c asked. Both Jack and Sam could tell he didn't hold himself responsible for anything.

Sam looked around but all she saw were trees and fog around her. 'Let's go that way.' She suddenly said.

'Why that?' Jack bantered.

'We could go the opposite way. I don't really mind.' She replied. Jack still didn't disappoint her in these situations. She was always ready for such questions.

'I'd prefer the other way.' Jack continued.

'Well, sir, it's up to you.'

'Let's go this way then.' O'Neill decided and led the way deeper and deeper into the forest.

oOo

'Jack, this is Daniel, do you read?'

Jack reached for his radio while watching his steps carefully. It's been about half an hour since they left the house but they didn't seem to find anything. 'Yeah, go on.'

'You found anything?' Jack heard Daniel's voice coming from the speaker.

'Nothing. First we thought we could follow the tracks left by whatever has taken the dead thing but we couldn't find them. Anything there?'

'Same here. We're hoping to find some footprint or something but in this fog I doubt we would be able to see them.' Daniel reported.

'Keep searching. O'Neill out.'

Jack released the radio and placed it on his P-90. The temperature descended a couple more degrees and it made it harder to concentrate. Sam could see her breath in front of her as she exhaled.

'Sir, it's getting really cold and if we…' Sam started but she was cut off.

'Sssh.' Jack lifted his upper arm.

They all froze and listened to the voices around them. First they didn't hear anything but then a couple of feet from them a twig's crunch broke the silence. They couldn't see anything in the direction the voice came from but Jack signaled them to form a line so Sam moved to his left and Teal'c to his right. Another twig broke this time behind them. They turned around as one, just in time to see the large body of the beast moving quickly between the trees towards them. Sam was the first who opened fire but Jack and Teal'c joined her only milliseconds after. The monster cried out as the bullets lodged into its flesh. For a moment it stopped but with another frightening cry it attacked again.

'Move!' Jack ordered, sent another five bullets into their attacker and started to run.

All of them knew they couldn't run forever so when they thought they had gotten far enough they turned eye to eye with the beast and fired again. It cried out for the third time and slowed down a little but didn't stop. Jack and Sam ran again but Teal'c stayed and fired relentlessly.

'Teal'c!' Jack called for his friend as loud as he could but Teal'c didn't stop firing.

The beast was closing up on him fast but he must have been thinking he was able to kill it before it reached him.

'Ah, for crying out loud!' Jack lowered his weapon and run back to Teal'c. He grabbed his arm and tried to pull Teal'c with him. 'Come on, we gotta go!'

Teal'c finally admitted he had no other choice and followed O'Neill. They ran as fast as they could, carefully avoiding every tree that was in their way. The cry of the beats started to fade as they got farther away. When they didn't hear anything behind them they stopped. They took deep breaths as they checked the area behind themselves.

'Looks like it's gone.' Sam stated.

'Indeed it does.' Teal'c confirmed.

'But why?' Sam asked out of curiosity.

'I don't know. But let's not wait until it changes its mind.' Jack suggested and started walking in the opposite direction they had come from.

'We should find the others.' Sam told Jack. 'Tell them what's happened.'

Jack reached for his radio and called for Cameron.

'I'm here. What's the situation?'

'We've been attacked. We were lucky enough to get away but I don't think this was it.' Jack informed the male colonel of the team.

'We didn't find anything so far but the cold is getting disturbing. What do we do?'

Jack considered the possibilities. 'Let's search a little more. If we don't have anything in thirty minutes we go back to the house and have a rest.'

'Understood. Mitchell, out.' After Cameron's final words the radio fell silent.

'Okay, campers. Let's show some skills.' Jack strengthened his grip on the P-90 and headed forward into the thick fog, covered by the freezing cold and creepy silence of the winter night.