Jack

Our footsteps echoed the crunching of the twigs and branches littering any semblance of a path as we continued down the forest walkway. The looming trees were casting shadows that crept across us and it gave me an unsettling feeling as we ventured further into the woods. There was an animal wailing off in the distance and my head turned in the direction.

"Colonel O'Neill?" Teal'c asked and I looked back at him.

"Hm?"

"Is everything alright?" He raised a brow and I nodded as we continued.

"I am just tired, didn't sleep well." I shrugged it off. There was a clearing and a small village of seemingly unoccupied homes cropped up. The leaf littered walk naturally led out into a dirt road and we continued into the empty village. Rotted thatched roofs and treated timber buildings all were dark and abandoned. Signs in front of doors were hanging on with rusty hinges depicting different pictures of various trades and I watched as Daniel went up to one and inspected it further. I poked my head inside what looked like a tavern and found it caked in grime with leaves tumbled inside. There were cups still on tables dried out with an amber film on them.

"This is..." Sam started and I finished her thought.

"Unsettling."

"Indeed." Teal'c nodded and Daniel rejoined us.

"These are all shops, the uh, butcher is over there. Tavern obviously here, there's an inn around the corner. The language had a similar structure to most Germanic beginnings."

"Thanks Daniel, that doesn't really help if there is no one here though does it?" I looked up at the sky and noticed the faint orange red tinge of a sunset. "Well, there was once a community here, not going to call it thriving but, it was working. We'll set up camp here and figure out in the morning if it's a worthwhile endeavor to stay." They agreed and we spread out to find a location suitable for the four of us to set up shop.

Daniel

The village was structured with a central focal point, this seemed to be a communal courtyard of sorts with shops lined along the four connecting walking streets around it. The signs all had pictures that would depict which guild system they must have belonged to. The buildings and textiles had me estimating their society at about Earth's equivalent to the 12th to 14th century. However, the amount of grime caked on every surface made it seem like it had been abandoned for the past decade at least.

I came across a weavers shop and took a step inside. Looms were set in place with decaying natural fibers that had snapped and were limply hanging from their half finished yet intricate designs. The evening sun streaming through the slotted windows highlighted the dust particles floating around me and I let out a sneeze. I grabbed a handkerchief from my pocket blotting my nose, and took out the small pill container I kept in my breast pocket next to the new sample note of affection from Eleanor, and took an antihistamine tablet out. From the corner of my eye I thought I saw a movement by the loom and I snapped my head in the direction, spilling the contents of the container onto the ground.

"Dammit," I mumbled, reaching down to collect the now dirty pills and scoop them back into the bottle. I grimaced, placing one in my mouth to swallow. It was that or having sneezing fits in this allergen riddled nightmare. Once on my feet I stumbled back clutching a hand carved railing behind me. A woman was sitting on a stool with her back turned to me reaching up for the corroded fibers. One hand was paused over the materials and the other was waving back and forth in her lap. Her hair was plaited close to her head and wrapped in a neutral toned series of layers keeping her face clear for work. The same tonal fabrics were used in her tunic, undershirt and floor length skirts as well. Common for most of the working class in the majority of civilizations, but still plain compared with the amount of intricacy in her work and the braiding of her hair.

"Excuse me, sorry I didn't see you there." I spoke up and there was no response. It was then I noticed the sun seemed to go directly through her, and I walked over carefully but making a point to be extra loud as to not potentially scare away whoever this was. There was no response. Her one hand twitched in an unnatural movement and I walked around to her front to see her face was fixated on something in front of her, something that wasn't there. The sun shined on her as if she were a projection of sorts, but looking around the room I couldn't find anywhere that would have provided such illusions. After further examination I wrote down all my findings I thought worthy of my time and went back to find everyone to compare notes. With the woman still at her loom.

Teal'c

On the end of the narrow pathway there was a large weathered barn with a wooden shingled roof. The thin tapered shakes were covered with patches of moss and mildew. As I stepped inside, the breezy autumnal temperature from the outside was immediately sheltered. It seemed the best option to reside through the evening, space to stretch, a comfortable temperature, and enough height from the ceiling to stoke a small fire if needed. As I went to find Colonel O'Neill I passed by a window pane of uneven textured glass that took my attention. A warm glow flickered in the window and I paused in question of what would be causing this reflection. I looked inside the storefront and there was nothing there, just empty shelves lined with dust and mold filled jars. Back at the window though the flickering shadows of a fiery flame glinted back from the glass. I turned and saw nothing behind me that would be causing this reflection, and although that made me pause in question a startled scream a few streets down seemed more pretenant.

Jack

The chill on my neck left a trail of bumps down my spine and I shivered. It had to be the weather, much like back Earth side. The weather was cool in the evenings here and leaves around us were shedding into their autumn display.

"Just find a safe place for the night," I muttered to myself hearing the wind knock against a creaking sign a few doors down. There was what appeared to be a jail house and I popped my head in looking around. If this weather and abandoned town didn't make me uncomfortable, the idea of sleeping in this building would. There were four cells, three of which were shut and one had a pair of keys rusted into the door lock. Hay littered the ground up until the desk at the entrance where the dirt flooring matched that of the outside walking paths. I focused my attention back to the outside and continued walking when I saw a figure turn around a corner wearing burgundy robes.

"Hey!" I shouted after the figure and sped up only to see the apparition was gone. I looked around briefly and saw the same figure back at the original starting place, turning around the corner of the building and dissipating into thin air. The bald man, about 5 and a half feet, shuffled his feet as he walked and then silence. My hand came up to my eyes as I rubbed them and watched again, this time I rounded the corner with him and smacked into a solid body letting out a reflexive shriek.

"Sir?" Sam asked, startled with a hint of amusement in her tone.

"I... you just saw that right?" My eyes darted from her to the corner of the building and she followed but nothing was there. It was like the figure had been scared away, or interrupted somehow.

"You look as if you've seen a ghost." She chuckled.

"I may as well have." I mumbled reaching up to scratch my head. "I mean I didn't, I don't believe in all that, I might now, with, well whatever it was. There was a man. You didn't see him?"

"I haven't seen anyone sir. I did though, happen across a water fountain with cables sticking out of it that looked shredded. According to Daniel this is a civilization far predating anything close to that, so that in itself was odd." She folded her arms over her chest as Teal'c came running back up to us.

"I heard a perilous cry, is everyone here safe?" His voice was a concerned monotone.

"Carter startled me," I rolled my eyes. "It was far from a cry."

Daniel rounded the corner and Sam went back to him to discuss the mechanical fountain she came across. Teal'c pointed out the path to a large barn that he found for us to take shelter and we all followed just as dusk had turned to dark. I created a small fire for warmth and light as well as a comforting crackling white noise. We tucked into our MRE's and power bars as Daniel spoke about his odd apparition and how he felt it was a projection of sorts. Teal'c mentioned a flickering light in the window and I felt the bumps go down my back once more.

"What if," Daniel started as he swallowed a bite of his power bar down. "This is a living museum. I found multiple plaques that, from what I gathered, were historical descriptors of what would have been going on in those locations. A larder for example, doesn't need a plaque saying why a larder is important, just a sign saying they are a larder."

"Like an interactive Colonial Williamsburg?" Sam asked and he nodded excitedly.

"I believe these, erm what did you call them Jack? Ghosts?" He looked in my direction as I scoffed and leaned back against my pack on the ground next to the fire. "These specters are projections. Much like how we have actors displaying work being done to teach visitors, these projections could be visual tools."

"Why is it abandoned?" I asked, cocking my head to the side. "This place hasn't been touched for years."

"I too am cautious of the lack of visitors in this, museum." Teal'c agreed, eating a spoonful of soup. "If this is a learning opportunity for the local population here, why has it continued to go on untampered?"

"Why just abandon a broken display? Clearly there is a form of advanced technology we don't possess. We don't have hologram people in our reenactment towns. Yet, whoever made it just left it? I'm not buying it." I slid down against my pack again using it as a pillow and left Sam and Daniel to argue on that while I attempted any form of rest before the morning.