DISCLAIMER: All characters and property of Stargate SG-1 belong to MGM/UA, World Gekko Corp. and Double Secret Productions. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment and no money was made from it. Also, no copyright or trademark infringement was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any other characters, the storyline and the actual story are the property of the author.
The Gate's defences came on line almost immediately. About as much time as it took the three travellers to gain their composure, walk forward twenty feet or so and stop. Then all Hell broke loose. Short bursts of random firepower, the like of which they'd never encountered before, first encircling the Gate and then aimed directly at the DHD. The aim was simple. Stop the incoming travellers from returning through the Gate before it closed.
The team had little time to react. They'd had no warning from the probe that this awaited them.
"The rocks, then hit the deck!" O'Neill shouted as he pushed Daniel ahead of him and ran, Carter close to his elbow in pursuit, her sharp intake of breath as she ran, ringing in his ear.
They raced for the large boulders lying well beyond the Gate and its DHD, and diving for cover they waited, panting and shocked. Within seconds the firing stopped. They raised their heads to look. Their recon truck lay, a crumpled wreck, on its side, its contents strewn in front of the Gate.
"Damn it!" muttered Sam Carter, as she gulped for air. The experimental equipment she'd brought on the trip was nowhere to be seen. She felt strangely winded and a little sick but in reality had little time for the discomfort she was feeling.
Within seconds the new terror started.
Laser beams cutting back and forth, searching out their prey, cutting through rock and moving closer to them. They couldn't see the physical source although it seemed to be coming from the gate, and they couldn't risk returning fire and end up destroying the DHD or the Gate's mechanism. With reluctance, the three crawled further away. Every five minutes the beams swept further out, forcing the team to move away again..and again. Soon the Gate was a speck in the distance and so were the three travellers. Away from the Gate and away from their only route home.
Only one question lay frozen on each pair of lips.
"Where's Teal'c?"
Samantha Carter raised her fingers and brushed away the droplets of moisture that had steadily formed under her hairline as she walked. She periodically glanced at Colonel Jack O'Neill as he moved forward through the rocks some distance ahead of her. The heat had become almost unbearable during the last hour, and the pack on her back had felt more than its usual burden but she knew they had to move forward. They had to find shelter before the darkness descended. They had to keep moving and avoid being prey for any hungry predators who spied an easy meal. That's if there were predators.
So far they'd seen nothing. So far they'd seen no one. Yet the Gate had been armed, and at one point she'd felt a presence so close she'd voiced it to the others. One sceptical look from her Commanding Officer since the terrain around them appeared to be deserted for miles and one of..... she couldn't make out Daniel's feelings. He heard what she said, seemed to understand her fears but he didn't respond, other than to shoot her a sympathetic look. She'd shrugged mentally and filed their responses under "that woman's intuition again".
Pushed away from the Gate by the laser shots, with the night sky on the horizon, they had had no option other than to seek out shelter, but the planet surface afforded little to choose from. The barren orange terrain stretched for miles in every direction, broken occasionally by tiny wooded areas, the sparse trees reaching fingers towards the skies as if in supplication for some nourishment. The desolation and emptiness were oppressive and humbling, providing a mixed feeling of awe and desperation.
Daniel Jackson ambled along behind O'Neill, his boots shuffling occasionally. Even his sunglasses weren't able to keep the glare off his eyes totally.
"Okay people. We aim for that cluster of trees before we break for the night and consider our options." O'Neill raised his one hand for them to stop and pointed with the other. "Of course, if any of you more hardy souls feel like going further I'm not going to stop...." His voice trailed, as Daniel put his hand up in protest and sat down heavily on the floor for a second.
Sam followed the Colonel's finger and, shielding her eyes with her one hand, she could just make out a small dark cluster of trees in the distance, some two miles from their position. She nodded her ascent and then dropped the pack from her back momentarily, letting it fall gently to the hard surface. As she straightened her back and stretched her arms far above her head she felt a sharp stab of pain. She winced inwardly. She'd felt it before, when they'd reached the Stargate on this side. She hadn't bothered mentioning it. It didn't seem anything more than a muscle spasm in her side. She'd pushed it aside and forgotten it, especially since Teal'c had been right behind them and then hadn't turned up this side of the gate, and they were all more than worried. Her Commanding Officer had slightly more on his plate than her twinge or two, like the Stargate becoming a hostile place to be close to and them having to move away as quickly as they could. She decided to try to ignore it. If she could.
"You okay, Carter?"
O'Neill's concerned voice wafted across towards her.
She nodded and forced a smile. "Just a twinge," she said. "I think I wrenched my side when we fell behind the rocks," she added convincingly. She wasn't lying, just not admitting anything. It was too early for her to admit she was even slightly worried.
"Sure that's all?" O'Neill pushed further as he watched his officer straighten up in obvious discomfort. She nodded her head adamantly, but silently, trying to squash any concerns he might think to have.
She caught Daniel's eye and knew from his quizzical look that he suspected more, but she looked away. Unusually she felt unable to meet his eyes and engage in more conversation than was necessary. She didn't want to admit to anything. She pulled her pack onto her back and straightened up. The pain subsided slightly, though the nausea remained. She looked over at the trees in the distance wistfully.
Daniel stared at her for a single moment and then moved forward.
"Jack, I think something's wrong with Sam," Daniel whispered in a low voice, as he caught up to his friend.
"Could be," Jack's eyes stayed firmly fixed on the trees in the distance, not glancing once at Daniel.
"You're not worried?" Daniel persisted, surprised.
"Oh, she'll let me know if it's going to cause us any trouble. When she's worried, then I'll be," Jack replied, his voice as low as he could make it, still staring ahead of him.
Daniel was surprised at the lack of concern. His reply gave no more information other than to confirm his own suspicions, but Daniel knew that if Jack knew more he wasn't going to say. Not yet. Not unless it became necessary. They both knew her too well to question her further just yet. She was strong. Strong enough to either get through whatever it was alone or finally ask for their help. Jack knew more than he did how stubborn she could be. She was an officer after all. She had a right to privacy and to respect...for the moment. While it didn't endanger the team she was entitled to at least that.
"Sure, whatever you think," Daniel said, giving up for the moment, but keeping a wary eye on Sam.
Jack nodded, smiling, and turned to pat him on the shoulder. "Then we agree on that," he said, and turned back to concentrate on the walk ahead of them.
Daniel knew he'd have to cope with his worries alone. Jack was taking responsibility for getting them out of danger for the night. He was focused. Daniel understood that, he just couldn't be like it himself. Too many questions unanswered and too many worries. Damn it, he need to talk to someone and both his friends had their barriers up.
Jack turned to continue his walk, glancing briefly at Carter before he regained his pace. She was still walking, ignoring their pause in pace, her head bowed down. Jack gritted his teeth and moved his pack into a more comfortable position. He was worried about Carter but he knew she'd let him know if there was something he should know about. He'd thought things were bad when Teal'c failed to come through the Stargate. The Stargate being a sudden no-go area was one thing, but Jack had a gut feeling that if things were bad right now, real bad, they weren't looking to get much better.
Teal'c stayed calm yet his insides were screaming that he needed to help them. They were in trouble, real trouble and he felt helpless.
Dr Janet Fraiser shook her head and sighed. "You came that close to losing it, Teal'c," she said, making a small pinch with her fingers to emphasise her statement. "If you'd been able to pass through the planetary gate, I doubt the Goa'uld inside you would have survived, and my scans of the parasite tell me you'd have felt more than just the pain, you'd have died." The simple end to her sentence merely added weight to what Teal'c had already guessed.
"What the Hell happened in there?" she asked as she signed off the entry on his chart.
Teal'c turned to look at her, his face impassive.
"I am unable to say." He replied. "If I had known what the gate led to, Doctor. If I had known what awaited them. I would have given my life to prevent them from passing through," he said quietly, taking her eyes and holding them intensely.
General Hammond walked into the room on the tail end of the conversation. "And you'd have died, Teal'c. No one could have guessed the gate would do to you what it did. The others passed through it with no problem. No one could have foreseen what happened. The probe sent back no such warning. The planet looked hospitable, not dangerous. The gate looked stable. Teal'c, this is no time for regret, it's time to think. I'm relying on you to give us some answers."
General Hammond eased himself back into his chair and eyed the Jaffa with some degree of sympathy. He knew he was just aching to go after his team, to help them. Damn it, so was he. The situation was impossible. This gate, this planet was different. Different from anything they'd ever encountered before. He didn't know what to do. His hope lay with Teal'c and his knowledge of the Goa'uld, of the possible technology which could have prevented a Jaffa from exiting the Gate at the other end. Yet, seemingly Teal'c wasn't going anywhere near it. Not yet any way.
The clearing was cooler, though it was obvious from the paucity of branches, that the trees themselves would afford little shelter from the full glare of the sun during the day. The night sky though had darkened faster than Carter could have imagined it would. She glanced at O'Neill and admired his leadership, his focus. He'd known they'd need shelter and he'd walked until he found it. But underneath the cool calm exterior she knew he would be desperate. Desperate to get back to the gate and find Teal'c. Desperate to find his friend and desperate to get them back through the gate and home.
He stood, a silent, thoughtful figure gazing out across the planet surface. A heavy shroud had descended across the horizon and within minutes the entire landscape was plunged into a thick silky blackness, impenetrable and cold.
As she broke off pieces of another dead branch and added it to the pile forming the mound on the ground in front of her, she felt the stab of pain again. This time her head seemed to be on the verge of bursting and her insides wrenched with the spasm. She caught her breath and dropped the wood to the floor.
"Damn...." She whispered as she stooped to the ground to push the dropped wood together into a pile. She knew things were getting worse. She'd have to tell the others soon. This was something she couldn't control and it frightened her. She felt a desperate ache wash over her. It came from nowhere and surprised her. It filled her with an unfamiliar dread. She couldn't be getting sick, not on this world, not when they couldn't get back. Putting her knee to the floor eased the pain and she settled into a kneeling position for comfort. She swiftly wiped her hand across her forehead, pressing it as she did so to ease the feeling in her head. The speed of the movement was meant to mask its intention, conceal it from the others briefly so that she could gather her thoughts and explain to them how she felt. She needn't have worried.
"Captain. Take a break. That's an order." O'Neill's voice barked the order across the clearing and she nodded silently as she leaned backwards and closed her eyes momentarily. Nothing passed the Colonel, nothing.
"Sam, come on. Come on, Sam...." Misty images, dark halos around them. Hands which were encouraging, and supported her. Sam couldn't feel much. She could see even less. She seemed to be floating and yet she knew that she wasn't. She could hear the voices, she knew their owners. A warmth of recognition jogged at her, nudging her into consciousness, nudging her back. The pain shot through her again and she gasped, throwing her eyes open ...staring into the faces of her two friends, concern etched across their features. She struggled to sit up, pushing them away. She desperately needed to be away from this place. She needed to get back to the Stargate. She needed to escape...she needed to live. To live. The thought had hit her, unbidden. Where had that one come from? She was confused, disorientated somehow. The pain took one last stab at her and then subsided, its crescendo complete, its spasm ebbing. Sam let out a deep breath and leaned back against O'Neill who had reached across to lift her into a sitting position.
"What was that?" she asked weakly but angrily as she closed her eyes and let the throbbing pass over her.
"We kind of hoped you'd tell us," Daniel suggested, dropping to his haunches beside them both and reaching to brush her hair off her forehead where it had matted into a single strand with the sweat and the exertion which pain brings.
"I dunno. Oh boy, I just closed my eyes, that's all," she replied as she pushed herself upwards and massaged her temples ruefully.
"You got any warning of this?" Jack said as he eyed Sam with interest.
She shook her head.
"Back at Command? Nothing?" he persisted.
"No. Only when I came through the Gate. Here on the other side. Just some nausea and then pain. No warning. Just pain. But it wasn't this bad." Sam watched O'Neill as he stroked his chin and then rose to his feet again.
"Okay kids. What have we got? Teal'c vanishes in the wormhole. Carter here has got sick ever since we came through the damn Gate, plus the Gate itself seems to have taken an instant dislike to us since we arrived. We've lost our equipment and we've seen no signs of civilisation. Questions from anyone? Answers maybe?" O'Neill looked from one to the other.
"There could be a connection between Teal'c's disappearance and Sam's sickness," Daniel suggested, as he too rose to his feet. The darkness was all encompassing, their faces lit only by the gentle flames of the small fire they'd managed to light.
"Be my guest.." offered O'Neill as he broke a twig and absently slung it into the fire, the burst of energy from the fire illuminating his face for a single moment as it was consumed.
"Teal'c is a Jaffa, Sam isn't," Daniel continued.
"Pardon me? Isn't that a difference?" O'Neill retorted. "Not quite what I had in mind," he continued.
"Yes, but to find the connection we have to eliminate the differences first," Daniel explained patiently and quietly.
"Sure, whatever. Go right ahead," agreed O'Neill reluctantly.
"While Teal'c is Jaffa and Sam isn't, they do have one thing in common."
O'Neill raised an eyebrow in query. "And what might that be?"
"They both played host to a Goa'uld. Teal'c right now and Sam a few months ago," Daniel offered. "Given that Sam no longer is a host, her connection with the Goa'uld is less obvious, more diluted somehow, but Teal'c's isn't." Daniel caught Sam's eye and saw her nodding.
"Sir, perhaps Teal'c's Goa'uld couldn't get past the Gate somehow." Sam continued for Daniel as she raised herself to her feet reluctantly. "My connection with Jolinar is weaker so the Gate let me pass but wouldn't let me go altogether unaffected. We know there is a connection still there. Remember when we tried to find Thor's power? A part of the Goa'uld is still somewhere inside me." She wasn't sure that the explanation was the one she wanted to hear but at least it was an explanation.
"Yes, but it doesn't make sense that you're getting worse this far from the gate if it's the gate that caused it," interrupted Daniel.
Sam shrugged.
"So, let me get this straight," O'Neill postured. "Teal'c was the lucky one and we think he's either still in the wormhole - which, well forgive me for getting down here, would be pretty unlucky - or maybe, well gee, let's get real optimistic now, if he's real lucky, back at Command." O'Neill looked from one to the other "How am I doing so far?" he said.
Daniel nodded his accord.
O'Neill raised his eyebrows and then continued. "But now we come to the good news. Hey, Carter's the unlucky one because she came through the wormhole but it punished her by making her sick and God knows what else. Daniel my boy, you've got to stop being so helpful," he finished lightly. "People, what happened about solutions? We need to get back past the Gate's defences and through it."
Daniel took off his glasses and cleaned the lenses, not wanting to meet either Jack or Sam's eyes. Sam looked down.
"In fact, do you think the damn Gate will let any of us near it at all? It sure seems to have taken it into its head that we're its enemies. If we fire on it, we could destroy it. If we go near it, it fires on us." O'Neill paused.
"Well, the gate defences may be triggered by incoming travel and not by outgoing. We'd have to try to get near it to see. Trouble is whoever tries it probably won't survive." Daniel offered.
"Gee Daniel, thanks. Just what I wanted to hear." O'Neill stopped, seeing both their bowed heads. He bit his lip. His frustration and fear were getting a good outlet here. He'd pushed too far.
"Sorry. Don't know where that one came from," he muttered.
"Everyone's kind of riled, sir. But you can't blame Daniel just because he doesn't have the answers" Sam volunteered quietly.
"Sure, sure. I know that. Don't shoot the messenger or something like that, isn't it?" O'Neill said as he raised his hand to stop the protests. "Sure doesn't make it any easier to swallow though, does it Captain?" he added and gazed out into the darkness.
Dark eyes watched the trio with interest and desire. Eyes that hungered for their passion, their sheer humanity. Most of all, their compassion for one another. Starved of ready victims to torment, the eyes watched eagerly...and waited for the chance to strike at last.