Summery: A routine trip off-world has long-lasting effects for SG-1. Meanwhile, Jack has terrestrial trouble too, when his half-sister is recruited to the SGC and his worlds threaten to collide and all his secrets are in danger of being exposed.
Disclaimer: I do not own "Stargate SG-1" the series. I believe it is owned by MGM. No copyright infringement is intended. No disrespect is intended. I am merely intrigued by the possibilities.
A Matter of Degrees
by: Visions2share a.k.a. Vi
It was both smaller and bigger than she'd thought it would be. She'd seen a picture at the orientation lecture, but it hadn't done justice to the reality. She'd thought it would be bigger around. She'd imagined it like the tunnel for a subway - big enough to drive a school bus through. It wasn't. A VW bug might have made it through if the driver was careful, but a sedan wouldn't have made it.
Yet it was also much bigger than she'd imagined. It was such an advanced piece of technology shouldn't it be sleek and streamlined? It wasn't. It was big and clunky - almost clumsy in its design. Nothing fancy or indicative of the tremendous power she'd been told it had.
It was nothing like she'd expected - this marvel called a Stargate.
Daniel, as she'd been told to call him, had appointed himself her guide - a job she thought would fall to Jack. And Jack was right there on her other side, too, but he was as silent as Daniel was verbose. There if she needed him, but content to keep any excitement he felt on the inside. Then again, he was on his way to get married. He likely had more things on his mind than how they got there.
Teal'C was in front of them, waiting at the base of the ramp. Major Carter, dressed like the rest of her team, no attempt made at giving her extra insulation, was behind them. Her father guiding her on one side and the young girl, Cassie, who Susan had learned was Jack's goddaughter, cuddled close to her other side. Was she hanging on the major to share body heat or because she was as scared as Susan? Dr. Fraiser was hovering behind the trio, but appeared more worried about her patient than her daughter.
Daniel noticed her distraction and something of the concern she felt for the girl must have shown on her face.
"Don't worry about Cassie. She's done this before. She's just trying to help keep Sam warm."
"A child has done this before?" Susan was astounded - were they letting staff bring family members on joy rides regularly?
"Well," Jack drawled, "we had to get her to this planet somehow."
Susan just stared at him - was he saying that child had come from another world? Was some kind of alien? Susan's thoughts started to spiral.
"You aren't going to want to miss this," Daniel warned her, pulling her attention back to the big stone ring that was beginning to spin.
It was impressive, but Susan still thought it was awfully clunky. It did, after all, actually clunk. Then suddenly it roared and a column of water shot out to drown them. Susan tried to jump back, but Jack and Daniel had a firm grip on each of her arms and held her in place.
"The kawoosh is only dangerous if you touch it," Daniel said, like he was discussing the weather.
Suddenly, they were walking up the ramp after Teal'C. The big black man walked straight into the standing puddle, causing the surface to ripple gently. Then it was their turn. Susan's feet and legs stopped working, but Jack and Daniel just moved her along with them as if they didn't even notice they were practically carrying her.
There were millions, billions, of stars, yet it was still pitch black. She was on the fastest roller coaster ever, but there was no up and no down. No wind in her face. The firm grip Jack had on her arm was gone. She couldn't feel him anymore. She couldn't even feel her arm. She tried to turn her head to see if it was still there, if Jack was still there. She couldn't. Her body wouldn't respond to her commands. Did she even have a body anymore? And if she didn't have a body, how was she so very, very cold?
Susan stumbled, but the men's strong grips on each arm kept her upright. She had arms and legs. She could feel them, but she still couldn't see them. It wasn't that it was still so dark; it was that it was too bright. Like the flash on a camera, it was as disorientating as the darkness had been, but the flash didn't end like it should. Everything remained bright. And very, very hot.
…
"This heat must feel pretty good to you, huh, kiddo?"
"What heat? I'm even colder than I was in the gate room."
Janet found the heat of the two suns instantly oppressive and moved quickly to check on Sam. She pulled out two digital thermometers from her pocket and stuck one under Sam's tongue and the other in her ear.
"Daniel, what's the ambient temperature?"
It took a second or two for him to check before he responded, "One hundred two point three degrees."
"Are you sure?" the colonel asked, "Feels closer to one ten to me."
"That's what it says," Daniel waved the atmospheric sensor in emphasis.
The ear thermometer beeped, and Janet moved it into her shadow so she could see the screen. The second thermometer beeped, and she took that one too. The digital readouts were difficult to see with the glare of the suns, but she finally found an angle that made it possible.
"Your temperature's dropped since the gate room. You're down to eighty-five degrees."
Sam just shivered in response.
The colonel was standing close behind Daniel, peering over his shoulder at the atmospheric sensor in suspicion.
Janet replaced the hygiene cap on the ear thermometer with a fresh one and put it in the colonel's ear without bothering to warn him. He tried to turn his head to look at her, but she held him in place with a firm grip on his ear as if he were a misbehaving school boy.
"Hey!" he objected. Janet ignored him and Cassie and Daniel sniggered. The colonel, very maturely, stuck out his tongue.
"You know, Sam," Cassie spoke up to distract Sam from the cold, "I'm not sure I can be a real bridesmaid without getting to wear a ruffly dress. After you're better, we ought to have a party or a ... what are they called again? ... vow renewal? So Mom and I, and Uncle Jack's sister and nieces, can all get pretty matching dresses."
"A hundred and twelve," Janet announced, "I've never seen a body temperature so high. We'd better get on with things before either of you gets any worse."
"Okay, Daniel? What do we do?" the colonel asked.
"Sam needs to enter the maze. Alone. The rest of us will find a panel with a story. You'll read it to yourself - and keep reading until Sam finds her way to you. Then you should hug and kiss like at the end of a regular wedding. After that, the soul match should be complete and irreversible. You'll be bound together - forever."
Author's Note: Can't you just see Jack sticking out his tongue at Daniel and Cassie? Thanks for reading! ~ Vi