This is a repost, as I want to make sure one particular fact is clear. This story is SLIGHTLY AU. Nothing to do with the characters, but the Stargate myth is slightly altered. In this fic, you have to imagine that instead of being found in Giza in whatever year, the Stargate was confiscated by US forces from the Nazis at the end of WWII. It sounds random, but read on and it will make a bit of sense (hopefully). I came up with this idea when I saw an ep involving the Russian stargate programme. From memory, the Russians found the DHD in East Germany at the end of the war. If this isn't true, please just assume that.

Title: Past legacy

Author: Albi

Disclaimer: None of it's mine – I am a merciless borrower of the characters belonging to Gekko and MGM.

Spoilers: Not really, certainly nothing past season 7 (as I haven't even SEEN those episodes, being as I live at the end of the Earth)

Summary: An unexpected arrival at SGC forces SG1 to undertake one of their most daring missions to ensure the very existence of their programme.

Rating: Ummm PG-13? I don't know US ratings.

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Thanks go to Karibou, who has encouraged me and helped me format this fic into a readable form. It's my first fic and I never would have got it off the ground had it not been for her.

Note: There are a few instances where I've rewritten Stargate history (just slightly), please bear with me as otherwise my story doesn't make any sense!

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Chapter 1

Control room, SGC

General Hammond waited anxiously, eyes fixed on the stargate with its iris closed. The wormhole had been activated off-world, and yet the only team currently on a mission – SG1 – was not due back until the next day.

"Still no signal Sergeant?"

"No sir," replied the officer, "if it's SG1 then they are obviously having difficulties."

Hammond paced the length of the window without taking his eyes off the stargate. Every time the iris was closed in this way he wished he could throw regulation out the window and just open it to let his team through; he wished there wasn't the chance of hostile access to Earth. SG1 were on a world that did not appear to be under Goa'uld influence, but you could never be sure.

"Sir. Receiving signal… it's SG1!" exclaimed the sergeant.

"Thank God – open the iris!" replied the general. "Medical team report to the gateroom!" he announced into the loudspeaker system.

At that moment Daniel Jackson appeared through the wormhole which abruptly closed behind him. Shocked, he turned and looked into the empty space left inside the great ring.

"Dr. Jackson," the general barked through the loud speaker, "where are the others?"

"I- I don't know what happened sir," Jackson stuttered, "they were right behind me. What's more, I have the only transmitter – we were kept as prisoners and had most of our belongings taken from us. We were lucky to recover this one! There didn't seem to be anyone chasing us… I guess there was some sort of gate malfunction. His eyes implored the General. If the gate activates again you have to keep the iris open – it will be them."

General Hammond looked into the eyes of his ancient civilisations expert and saw fear taking over from reason. Not being from the military, Dr. Jackson tended to let his emotions take over the safety concerns of the base – Hammond wished he could do the same. Of course he should leave the iris closed and he hoped the Colonel would not attempt to cross the event horizon knowing this. At least Major Carter should have enough sense to dissuade her superior if this was not the case.

"Negative, Dr. Jackson," he replied. "However I am authorising SG3 to leave as soon as possible to retrieve SG1. They won't try to return without a transmitter – both the Colonel and the Major, as well as Teal'c, are fully aware of this of SGC protocol with regards to off-world activations. Major Carter will be able to restrain the Colonel from taking any rash action."

"But General – Sam is injured!" Panic was rising in Daniel's voice.

Almost every mission led to a situation of extreme danger for SG1, but this didn't make those situations any easier to handle for the team members. Hammond looked at Daniel and tried to transmit a sense of calm in his voice that betrayed his hidden fears for Major Carter.

"Dr. Jackson, it will only take ten minutes for SG3 to be ready to go – they were scheduled for a mission at 1300 in any case. We will bring Sam back and promptly get her to the infirmary."

At that moment, the stargate came to life. Daniel, and the medical personnel who had insisted on verifying his well-being during his conversation with the General, jumped in surprise before precipitating off the ramp as quickly as possible.

"Unauthorised off-world gate activation!" The Sergeant's voice boomed over the loudspeaker system as the alert siren sounded. "No signal being received!"

"General!"screamed Daniel, "It's them! You have to leave the iris open and let them through!"

General Hammond stood motionless overlooking the spinning inner wheel of the gate, torn between his desire to give Colonel O'Neill a chance and his more reasonable voice urging him to close the iris. Surely O'Neill wouldn't attempt to enter the wormhole without first transmitting a signal… But then, perhaps they assumed the close proximity between Daniel's arrival and theirs would convince SGC that this activation was not hostile.

"Dr. Jackson, was there a Goa'uld presence on this planet?" the General asked through the loudspeaker.

"No General!"came the fast reply. "It was a considerably undeveloped civilisation – they thought we were evil spirits and the warriors of the tribe took us captive to be offered as sacrifices to a God no-one in living memory has seen. It appeared as if the Goa'uld had not been present for generations. If any of them do come through, their weapons are vastly inferior to ours and they would NOT be a threat!"

General Hammond considered this quickly. A breach of protocol would probably be held against him at a later date, but it appeared as if the benefit outweighed the risk. He instructed the sergeant to leave the iris open.

"Ok you have it Dr. Jackson, but please stand at the back of the room, lest anyone other than the rest of SGI come through that gate!"

Daniel and the various medics assembled in the gateroom retreated against the far wall as a good twenty soldiers placed themselves at the ready to defend the SGC from attack. What actually came through the gate was something no one had expected.

A short, slight, woman with dark eyes and hair, wearing some kind of ill-fitting army uniform, stumbled onto the gate ramp, her arms clamped over her head in a protective gest. Not one of the soldiers moved, although surprise and incomprehension was clearly discernible in their expressions.

As the gate deactivated and silence returned to the room the woman disengaged her arms enough so that she could take in her surroundings. This slight movement caused the soldiers to flinch, ready to fire at the first sign of danger.

"Ne tirez pas!" she cried out, arms stretched out in defence. "Je ne suis pas armée! Je suis venue vous demander de l'aide – il y a un grand danger qui menace ma planète!"

Daniel blinked in surprise – this was the first person from another planet they had encountered who spoke French.

"General!" he exclaimed quickly. "She's speaking French – she said not to shoot and that she's not armed. She is here to ask our help; apparently her planet is threatened in some way."

General Hammond was just as surprised as Daniel sounded – this woman had evidently not come from the planet SG1 were currently stranded on.

"Lieutenant Marks,"he instructed one of the soldiers in the gateroom, "escort this woman to the containment cells. Go with them, Dr. Jackson – I want you to find out what she is doing here."

"What about the rest of my team General?" asked Daniel, still visibly shocked by the unexpected visitor.

"SG3 is currently waiting outside the gateroom and will leave immediately. All men stand down," he instructed to the soldiers and then, turning to the Sergeant sitting next to him, "prepare for SG3's departure."

Unknown planet, at the stargate

Jack O'Neill was stunned to find himself and Major Carter – severely injured and semi-conscious in his arms – not back on Earth. Instead they were standing on the other side of the stargate, still on the same planet. He swung around to face Teal'c with an exasperated expression on his face. The Jaffa had stopped short of stepping through the now inactive ring.

"What the hell was that?" He exclaimed, trying not to disturb the soldier in his arms. "Teal'c? Why did the gate deactivate?"

"I am not sure O'Neill," his friend mused, "it appears as if it disengaged of its own accord after Daniel Jackson departed."

"Ya think!" The desperate Colonel spat out. "Dial home again! We need to get Carter to the infirmary as soon as possible!"

At that point Carter's eyes fluttered as she momentarily regained consciousness. She tried to speak, but with difficulty. O'Neill hurriedly carried her to the side of the gate and lay her on the ground to try and make her more comfortable.

"Don't worry Carter,"he reassured her, "we'll have you home in no time. The Doc'll fix you up and before you know it, you'll be ruining your holidays by doing God knows what in that lab of yours."

"Sir… we can't…"she struggled to get the words out.

"Shhh. Relax Sam – I'm the one giving orders right?"He looked at her with amusement; trust Carter of all people to try and boss him around at a time like this. "We most certainly CAN get back, that's what this funny big ring-like thing does – it gets us home!"

Teal'c had by this time approached the DHD but stopped short of dialling home.

"Major Carter is correct, O'Neill. Daniel Jackson had the only transmitter; were we to enter the stargate, we would be killed upon impact of your iris."

"Aw can it Teal'c," O'Neill replied impatiently, "Daniel's only just got there, they'll know it's us!"

Even as he said those words, O'Neill realised that Teal'c was right. Although Daniel would surely try to persuade the General Hammond to open the iris, protocol would probably win out and the iris would remain closed as a security measure.

"Shit." He cursed to himself before turning to Teal'c. "You're right – we'll have to wait until they come for us. It should only take a couple of minutes. Help me with Carter."

Carter had yet again lost consciousness and O'Neill propped her up against him on the ground as best as he could to make her more comfortable. She had received a heavy blow to the head when they were captured by the local population and had yet to regain consciousness for more than a matter of seconds. O'Neill looked at her with worry in his eyes, and affectionately ran his fingers along the soft skin of her face; years of experience had told him that head injuries were NEVER to be taken lightly. He only hoped that General Hammond would ensure the rapid envoy of another team to rescue them. Looking briefly at Teal'c, he saw the Jaffa held the same hope in his heart. He leant down, stopping with his lips centimetres away from Carter's ear.

"It's okay Sam, he whispered, "we've been through much worse than this, and we always come out on top."

Carter stirred slightly at the sound of these words but remained unconscious. O'Neill sighed and leant back against the rock supporting him. Teal'c joined him sitting on the ground as they waited.

Containment cell #4, SGC

The French woman sat on the bed in the bare cell with her knees hugged to her chest. Her eyes darted back and forth along the room and she pressed herself against the wall in fear. Daniel sat stiffly on an uncomfortable metal chair, just looking at her. It seemed obvious that she was not a security risk, and yet it was imperative that he gain her trust – otherwise the adrenaline that was surely pumping through her system would cause her to lash out.

"Do you speak English? Parlez-vous anglais?"he spoke softly and slowly, so as not to alarm her.

The woman flinched visibly at the sound but nodded her head slightly in the affirmative, her eyes still wide with fear.

"A little bit," she replied in a wavering voice and pronounced accent, "I am at more easy with français."

"Okay, I'll speak to you in French for the time being – je vous parlerai en français pour l'instant."

Relief washed over the woman's face briefly before he muscles tightened again in general anxiety. Daniel looked at her carefully and began questioning her in French.

"Can you tell me about yourself and where you're from?" He asked, trying to give her an encouraging smile.

"My name is Élodie," the woman replied cautiously, "Élodie Chabrol. I am a professor at an educational institution known as l'Université de Brest, in a country called France on my home planet – la Terre."

She stopped speaking as she saw Daniel's jaw drop in disbelief. She hugged her knees tighter still and closed her mouth, afraid of having said something to anger her captor. Until this point, Daniel's attention had been split between assessing the woman – Élodie – sitting in front of him, and listening for the sound of SG3's return with the rest of his team. These last words, however, fully grabbed his attention. He sat forward, tense on the edge of the chair.

"You mean, France as in the country that has Paris for its capital?"Daniel stuttered in his amazement. "France that shares borders with Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain?"

"And Andorra," the woman replied meekly, "you know it? You have been to my world? Then surely you know that in France we are nation that values peace, we do not want another Great War – unlike some others."

Daniel looked carefully at the woman, who now appeared hopeful that he may in fact know 'her planet'. Questions raced through his mind – could she have dialled Earth from Earth; did France have a stargate? He realised the impossibility of the first and the unlikelihood of the second before the answer came to him.

"Madame Chabrol,"he asked, choosing his words carefully, "could you tell me the exact date, in your terms, that you stepped through the stargate – that ring you came through?"

Élodie appeared confused by his question but answered promptly.

"July 16, 1937"

Élodie stared at the door closing behind Daniel Jackson as he raced out the door. Panic again rose within her and she felt nauseous with fear. She had said something wrong – again – but she didn't know how a simple date could cause such a reaction.

Corridor, SGC

Daniel exhaled slowly and looked to the ceiling as he digested the information he had just gathered. The guard stationed outside the containment cells looked at him quizzically but said nothing. Daniel tried to think back to modern history classes from his first-year in college – before he was permitted to specialise in subjects that addressed ancient history only. France in the 1930s… he couldn't remember much about the time or place apart from the fact that there was a political left-wing alliance government formed in order to combat 'fascism' and maintain peace – two rather contradictory aims. He didn't even know if this government was in power in 1937. He rubbed his temples to try and leech out any more information from his overtaxed brain. It occurred to him that the circumstances of this woman's arrival were more bizarre than he had first thought: Brest was in Brittany, on the far west coast of France – nowhere near where the stargate had been found – and confiscated from the Nazis – by allied forces in 1945. Furthermore, how did this French professor make the stargate work, and why wasn't the SGC aware of this previous activation? But most of all: what possible threat was there in 1937 in France that would push someone to come through the stargate in search of help?

As these and more questions careened around Daniel's mind, with each though more perplexing than the last, the warning sirens sounded accompanied by the Sergeant's voice over the loudspeaker.

"Off-world activation of the stargate!"

Daniel jolted out of his pensive state and rushed to the gateroom.

Briefing room, SGC

O'Neill paced the length of the briefing room with impatience. He most certainly did not see the point in holding a debriefing immediately when Carter was so severely injured in the infirmary. He couldn't fathom what the hell Daniel thought was so important that they had to ignore the fact that one of them was severely injured. He belonged by her side – not here waiting for Daniel and General Hammond to join him and Teal'c. What was there to say that couldn't wait a while? It's not like he ever listened to what anyone else said in this room anyway; and Teal'c could always give their version of events for both of them. He kicked the chair at the head of the table in frustration just as General Hammond entered the room, followed by Daniel.

"Colonel!" O'Neill jumped at the sound of his superior's voice, "I appreciate your impatience to be elsewhere but Dr. Fraser assures me that Major Carter's condition is stable for the moment. She will alert us to any change in that status."

"Of course sir," he murmured, slumping into the nearest chair with a sense of resignation, "but there really is nothing to tell: we came, we saw, we were captured, we escaped and – voilà! – here we are, albeit with a gate malfunction in the mix." O'Neill settled sulkily into his chair, resembling a two-year-old who had been deprived of a treat.

Daniel sat opposite O'Neill and cleared his throat.

"Actually Jack,"he began, "there was no gate malfunction. It's ironic that you used the word 'voilà' because…"

O'Neill shifted uncomfortably in his seat while Daniel explained the situation regarding the French woman. It wasn't that he couldn't understand what Daniel was trying to say, more that he didn't care – he wanted to know how Carter was. Glancing briefly at Teal'c, he saw with a sigh that the Jaffa appeared to be directing all his attention to the archaeologist. Resigned to his fate, O'Neill redirected his attention to Daniel.

"Let me get this straight,"he interrupted, leaning forward towards Daniel, "we're having this briefing because some French woman from 70 years ago came through the stargate asking for our help? And this couldn't wait a couple of hours?" He sat up suddenly with a gleam of triumph. "You left the iris open thinking it would be us didn't you! Ha! Told you so Teal'c."

"You may have been right O'Neill," the Jaffa kept his voice calm, "however the risk outweighed the benefit."

O'Neill sighed and sank back into his chair, remembering again why he would prefer to be in the infirmary (not a common occurrence) than listening to some fairytale about a French woman. He couldn't even enjoy being right for once not knowing whether she was going to be okay.

"Jack," continued an exasperated Daniel, "the point isn't really that this woman got through, but more that she came through the stargate from WESTERN France BEFORE the Second World War! This is amazing – we never even fathomed that it may have been found in Brittany."

For possibly the first time (and almost definitely the last time) in the history of SG1, it was O'Neill's face that lit up in comprehension in the face of facts that baffled Daniel.

"Asterix," he whispered

Daniel had trouble dealing with the shock, this was definitely not turning out to be an ordinary day. Perhaps O'Neill was yet again channelling some of his subconscious knowledge of the Ancients. He glanced at General Hammond, who appeared just as baffled.

"O'Neill," Teal'c spoke for everyone present in the room, "what is this 'Asterix?'"

"Oh, um… Asterix was a comic book that I read as a kid," he continued despite the sound of annoyed disbelief that came out of Daniel's mouth, "basically it told stories of battles between Julius Caesar and the last remaining Celtic tribe in Brittany, of which a warrior named Asterix was a member."He paused briefly as he saw comprehension wash over Daniel's face. "I don't know much about the actual history it was based on, but this tribe had what was called a Druid – something between a doctor, a priest, a wizard and an intellectual – who had great powers handed down to him from ancient Gods. Right Daniel?"

"Of course! Why didn't I think of this before!" Daniel removed and replaced his glasses on his face numerous times with excitement. "The goddess Dana of Ireland was meant to be the mother of all Gods, much like Hathor – this is another ancient civilisation that worshipped the Goa'uld. In Brittany they particularly worshipped Belenos, God of Light – that could have been the Goa'uld Ra!"

O'Neill rose from the table with a sense of purpose before precipitating towards the door.

"Great, now that I've solved your puzzle for you, I think I'll be off." He was gone before anyone could digest the burst of sarcasm that had exploded out of his mouth.

Exterior perimeter, Cheyenne Mountain base

An elderly woman approached the military checkpoint in her hire car. She had never seen the exterior of the base before but knew that well beneath its surface lay the stargate. The people she needed to talk to were SG1. She had waited decades for this moment, her entire life given purpose by what she was about to do. As she slowed to a stop she could see the amused curiosity of the young soldier approaching her. She had never really considered how she was going to get into the base, all she knew was that whatever she did, she was going to get in and talk to General Hammond, as well as one Élodie Chabrol.

Briefing room, SGC

"General sir, there's an elderly woman at the surface demanding to meet with you, SG1, and someone called Élodie Chabrol –" The soldier stopped short when he heard the combined gasps from General Hammond and Dr. Jackson.

"How could?… What?… General I need to speak with this woman!"Daniel's hand reached towards the glasses on his face in yet another fit of excitement.

"I believe one must be cautious with such a person," Teal'c directed his attention to General Hammond, "perhaps we should escort her to the containment cells and ascertain her true motives – and how she knows of our existence here – before assenting to such an impertinent demand."

Daniel, however, did not remain in the briefing room long enough to hear Teal'c's words of caution. Like O'Neill had done so just recently, he was gone from the room before anyone could stop him. General Hammond sighed in exasperation – SG1 seemed to be less and less concerned with protocol every day.

"It appears as if this debriefing is over, Teal'c," he rose from the table, "please follow Dr. Jackson; I imagine he is en route to the surface. Dismissed."

Ground floor, Cheyenne Mountain base

Daniel exited the lift and stopped short. Sitting patiently next to the guard's desk was a frail woman of roughly 90 years with a shock of white hair not all that different to that of Albert Einstein. The woman's reaction to seeing Daniel caused him to freeze totally; she moved swiftly towards him, smiling joyously and proceeded to embrace him in an all-giving hug.

"Is it really you? C'est vraiment vous?"Daniel gasped the words out with difficulty. "Élodie?"

"I speak much better English now,"she giggled, "however I had forgotten the strength of your accent when you spoke French!"

Slightly indignant, Daniel stepped back in amusement.

"Accent! I'll have you know that I am one of the galaxy's great linguists!"

"How I have missed you," Élodie hugged Daniel again, both ignoring his comment and this time using the informal tense, indicating a certain familiarity with the archaeologist

"You missed me!" Daniel's expression advanced from indignation to disbelief, "I imagine you've got quite a tale to tell us."

Waving away the guard on duty, Daniel motioned for the elder Élodie to enter the lift. All the way down he couldn't help but notice his guest stealing glances at him from the corner of her eye. Daniel began to speculate as to the true nature of his relationship with both Élodie Chabrols.

Infirmary, SGC

O'Neill sat in the chair next to the still-unconscious Carter, torn between concern for her and the knowledge that he should probably be elsewhere. Janet's words still floated in his head plaguing him, fuelling his nightmare: "The results of the scan show a great deal of trauma", she had said gently. "I have every confidence in Sam's fighting spirit, but we need to be prepared for the worst Jack. In cases like this there is the possibility of brain damage."

Brain damage. The words flew around his head causing a feeling of panic to rise within his chest. Brain damage was one of the things Carter feared above all – her intellect was paramount to her identity. Physical disability or disfigurement would not change the Carter he knew, but her character was what made her so special: smart, funny, beautiful, …, beautiful.

"You know she never gave up hope with you either, all those times you were in trouble." Janet's voice filtered slowly through to O'Neill. He looked up to see her concerned eyes trained on him. "I don't know how you two cope seeing each other in such dangerous circumstances every other day. It obviously takes such a toll on both you when something goes wrong. "

O'Neill nodded in agreement with the good Doctor. Every time they stepped through the stargate he prayed that nothing untoward would happen to her. That's why he tried to always stay close on missions; that was why he could not imagine her ever serving on a different SG team. If she was going to be captured or hurt, he was either going to stop it or suffer the same fate. As he looked at her now he felt a wave of guilt threaten to destroy his resolve. Her usually radiant face was pale and withdrawn; her hair was flattened against her head with a large bandage extending around her head.

"Oh God Sam I'm so sorry," he whispered, eyes closed with anguish.

He reached out to touch her hand, hoping for any change in her state which could indicate that she acknowledged his presence. Alas, the machines kept beeping with maddening regularity and Carter didn't stir.

"She will recover Colonel."

Jack spun around to face the door and rose, trembling with anger at what he saw. An elderly woman – a stranger no less, with a foreign accent – was standing at the doorway.

"Who the hell are you?" He hissed ferociously forcing the woman out the door.

As soon as he reached the corridor he stopped in sheer disbelief. First Daniel forces him to sit in on a completely irrelevant briefing, and now he allows some stranger to burst in on the infirmary!

"Daniel!"O'Neill was now positively shaking with rage, trying to contain his voice so as not to disturb the patient inside. "What the hell is the meaning of this? Is THIS the French woman that came through the stargate? I told you before and I'll say it again: this story of time travel can WAIT!"

Daniel took the tirade directed at him patiently. He knew his friend was suffering, as he had been himself ten minutes earlier. What Élodie had told him, however, allowed his hopes to rise.

"Jack," he began, "this isn't the French woman who came through the gate. Well… it is in a way, but not exactly."

"What on Earth is that supposed to mean?"Jack blustered, throwing his arms up in despair, "just because I made the connection with Celtic religion back there in the briefing room doesn't mean that I've suddenly become able to follow your 'unique' logic!" He turned to Teal'c. "Do you have any idea about what the hell this is about?"

O'Neill needed to know exactly what was going on as quickly as possible so that he could get back to Carter.

"Indeed Daniel Jackson speaks the truth, O'Neill," the Jaffa's voice brought some calm to the storm in the corridor. "This woman is Élodie Chabrol, aged 92, from Brittany in France; the woman who came through the gate is that same person, however aged 29. As such the woman before you is in a position to tell you of Major Carter's well-being as she has witnessed the events to come in the near future."

"Well then… ah… are you sure?" O'Neill was suddenly suspicious, not willing to be duped into a false sense of hope.

"We're just running the DNA analysis now sir," Janet appeared seemingly out of nowhere from behind O'Neill, causing him to startle, "however the knowledge she has displayed seems to indicate that she is telling the truth."

"She's right Jack,"the sparkle had reappeared in Daniel's eye, "and according to her Sam has to recover because we need her to ensure the very existence of the stargate programme!"

O'Neill leant against the wall for support, willing himself to believe his friends' words; the information regarding the future of the SGC certainly intrigued the soldier in him. He stole a glance into the infirmary to look at Carter – still motionless on the bed – and silently prayed that this French woman was who she said she was.

Briefing room, SGC

His friends may have persuaded O'Neill that Carter was going to recover, but that didn't mean he was happy to be sitting in a chair in the briefing room instead of in the infirmary. At least this time he saw a clear interest in paying attention to the meeting; he wanted to know every detail about their "two" French guests and their purpose. He swivelled absent-mindedly in his chair and looked to General Hammond, who appeared to be just as impatient as he was.

Footsteps sounded along the corridor and Teal'c appeared, accompanying the elderly Élodie Chabrol. She looked apprehensive in the face of the military men seated at the long table. She knew that she had, in a sense, already done what she was about to do – but it was still difficult to imagine a way to persuade two of the most wilful men she'd ever met in her life that the mission she was recommending was in fact not only a good idea but also necessary. Most of all, she dreaded having to face herself. She remembered entering the same room all those years ago, being faced with the reality that she had not escaped to another planet, but rather into the future. She vividly remembered her fear and incomprehension; it almost paralysed her as she had sat in the briefing room.

O'Neill switched his attention from the increasingly anxious-looking elderly woman to the doorway where Daniel appeared, a petrified looking woman clamped fast to his right arm. He muttered something to her in French, which caused O'Neill to momentarily raise his eyebrows in surprise; he should have figured that Daniel spoke French as well as roughly 10 different alien languages.

"Dr. Jackson," General Hammond cleared his throat, "I take it we're about to learn what is going on here?"

"Uh yes General."Daniel turned towards the bald Texan, never letting go of the young woman's hand clasped to his. "I think it would be best if we allow the elderly Élodie Chabrol to enlighten us – I have only been able to piece certain aspects together at this point."

"Right then,"Hammond turned towards the elderly woman, "I'm eager to hear what this is all about, Madame Chabrol."

The elderly woman nodded and looked across to her younger self, trying to convey a reassuring smile.

"Daniel,"she began, "perhaps you should translate for m… for the woman next to you, so that I… I mean 'she' can properly understand the situation at hand."Turning to Hammond and O'Neill, she began slowly.

"When I was a child, my father discovered the great ring that you called the stargate, as well as its control-device which I think you call the DHD, in a gully in my native region of France – Brittany. He was a scholar of Celtic civilisation and understood the stargate to be a monument spoken of by the druids that was supposed to transport a true believer to see the Gods. Of course he didn't for a second imagine that this could be close to the truth – usually such legends have more metaphoric meaning in reality. Unfortunately my father was killed during the Great War, but I dedicated myself to discovering the secrets of the stargate. I studied Celtic civilisation as well as physical sciences at university in France, and then gained a special research grant from the newly formed Ministry of Education in 1936; the government hoped to be able to make the device work to help the current – I mean then-current – situation in France. "

With these words, the younger Élodie could no longer remain silent in her seat. Clinging still to Daniel her eyes had grown wide with amazement at the story she was hearing. In her heavily accented English she spoke out against her older self.

"But how is it that you know these things? You must be an imposer – if you really know who I am then you must know that you… you… threat my future by stopping action!"

The elderly Élodie held her hand out and touched that of her younger self.

"Chérie," she spoke softly in French, "when you crossed the great puddle before you that day the portal did not work as a gateway to another planet, but as a time machine – you have come forward many years and are now in America, for this is where the stargate now resides. I know how frightened and confused you are; because I am you and you are me."

With those words the older Élodie pulled her sleeve up on her left arm to reveal a still deep scar that extended from her shoulder halfway down to her elbow.

"Remember when you were 15 and you fell while crossing the railway tracks? You were so scared later at the doctor's that Father stayed with you for 48 hours straight. I remember."

The younger Élodie looked to Daniel for confirmation, who nodded his head slowly.

"I believe she's right, Élodie," he spoke in French, then English for the benefit of those present. "It is true that the stargate should transport you to other planets, however on certain occasions there are complications that result on it acting as a time machine. This has happened to us once before so we know it is possible to return to your time. We can fix this."

General Hammond cleared his throat to regain Daniel's attention. The latter searched the younger Élodie Chabrol's eyes for reassurance that she was okay before turning away.

"If everything is ok, Dr. Jackson, I think we should continue." He motioned at the elderly woman to continue.

"Actually General Hammond," Madame Chabrol replied, "I think it would be best if my younger self spoke at this point."She glanced sideways at Daniel, a smile in her eyes, "Daniel once told me that it would be best if I said only enough to make you listen to myself – any more and we may unwittingly change the course of history."

Daniel looked surprised at this statement but said nothing. Reflecting upon these words he recognised the wisdom of what she said.

"In any case," the woman continued, "Major Carter will soon regain consciousness; perhaps the Colonel would like to be at her side when this occurs. My younger self perhaps needs the time to digest what she has just learned."

Her eyes held an interesting sparkle as she said those words, looking pointedly at O'Neill. The Colonel managed to stop his mouth from dropping open at the tone of this comment – his mind raced as he considered the implications of what she said. It appeared as if this woman knew him better than he had immediately thought; she certainly knew of his affection – however inappropriate – for Carter. Looking towards General Hammond he exchanged a quick glance with this superior, who gave him a quick nod of approval. O'Neill left the briefing room just as he heard Hammond postpone the meeting until Carter would be able to participate.

Infirmary, SGC

O'Neill couldn't take his eyes off Carter – ten minutes and she still hadn't woken up. He didn't want to lose hope, but "soon" was fast becoming "later" without any change.

"I know you are starting to doubt the accuracy of my prediction, Colonel." The elder Élodie stood in the doorway. "In truth she will awaken in a matter of minutes. I wanted to be able to talk to you beforehand, as although I am wary of altering the course of history, I believe that telling you what I am about to now will only change your future – not our past."

O'Neill looked at the woman warily but said nothing; she took this as a sign of encouragement and sat down next to him.

"What you feel for this woman cannot be ignored. Many years ago I was forced to give up someone I love, it was an impossible love. Yours is difficult, yes, but not impossible. Please remember this."

O'Neill gawked at the woman sitting next to him in surprise. He mechanically opened and shut his mouth repeatedly but no sound came out. Élodie appeared to stifle a giggle at this typical reaction and patted him lightly on the arm before slipping out of the room – just as Carter's eyes showed signs of opening.

Briefing room, SGC – the next day

"Major Carter," Teal'c's calm eyes were directed to his colleague, "I hope that you are feeling better after your ordeal on our last mission."

Carter shifted her gaze from O'Neill to look at the Jaffa.

"Thank you Teal'c," warmth emanated from her eyes, "I'm feeling fine – just anxious to listen to what Élodie has to say, Colonel O'Neill has already brought me up to speed about yesterday's meetings."

The three of them were yet again seated in the comfortable chairs around the briefing room table, O'Neill and Carter next to each other facing the door with Teal'c opposite them, waiting for the arrival of Daniel, the General and their two foreign guests. Carter shifted her eyes back to her superior officer, as seemed to occur frequently. Upon waking yesterday he had been there – looking much the worst for wear, an anxious expression on his face. She knew that had he been in the same predicament, she wouldn't have left his side either. Considering this she mused, not for the first time, that things could have been remarkably different had he not been her commanding officer. She smiled slightly at the thought of a life outside of work with O'Neill. He saw her smile and winked at her, pulling her out from within her thoughts just as Daniel, General Hammond and the younger French woman entered. The two Air Force officers stood in a salute as the General entered and swiftly re-seated themselves.

"At ease Colonel, Major."He sat at the head of the table. "This promises to be a most interesting meeting I'd say. The elderly Madame Chabrol was taken ill this morning and will not be joining us; however as she herself said that we should hear this tale from her younger self, we shall proceed."

Élodie looked to Carter and gave a questioning look to Daniel, in search of reassurance. He was about to speak when Carter herself jumped in, speaking gently.

"Ne vous inquietez pas, don't worry," she said in perfect French. "I am part of this team and wish only to help you in any way we can. "

O'Neill raised his eyebrows in surprise, who would have known that his favourite team member spoke French!

"Major Carter,"Teal'c spoke for everyone in the room, "I was not aware that you were versed in this woman's native tongue."

Carter grinned, pleased to be able to display knowledge in a field other than science.

"I'm an army brat Teal'c, my father was stationed in France for a while when I was younger and I learned the language pretty well."She chanced a quick glance at O'Neill to gauge his reaction and nearly burst out laughing upon seeing the look of astonishment on his face.

Daniel nodded at Sam in thanks, glad to see that she had so ably put Élodie at ease. The latter was now starting to relax, two of those around her spoke French well and the new woman seemed to really want to help. She took a deep breath and began her tale, Daniel translating for O'Neill, Teal'c and General Hammond.

"As I… well I guess it was me… well as the 'other' me said yesterday, I have been working with what I think you call the "stargate" for over a year now. I understand from what Daniel said that it took your government many years to comprehend how it functions, but unlike you we were lucky enough to have information passed down from the druids, as well as the accompanying alien device that controls the great ring. The stargate was kept as part of a secret research station in my home town of Brest, and we were preparing for its evacuation upon a commercial vessel to the United States in face of the danger that presents itself currently…"she paused, "I mean 'then.'"

O'Neill couldn't stop himself from interrupting at this point.

"I'm sorry, danger?"He looked quizzically from Élodie to Daniel. "As I understand it, 1937 is a good couple of years before-"

"Yes I know Jack,"Daniel cut him off before he could mention the war, a fact that could well alarm Élodie, "I'm a bit puzzled as well on this front – modern history is not my forte – but there must be some sense of perceived danger or else she wouldn't have tried to go to another planet through the stargate. I'm sure we'll find out soon enough if you stop interrupting."

Carter jumped in at this point, seeing the look of increasing scepticism on O'Neill's face.

"Actually,"she directed her attention to both Daniel and O'Neill, "there was indeed a great sense of danger in the time Élodie came from. A year before, a left-wing coalition known as the Popular Front had won the national elections on the premise that they were going to fight fascism and maintain peace." She grinned slightly as she saw the surprised look of awe reappear on O'Neill's face. "I realize that these two platforms sound rather contradictory, which is an important reason why the period was so unstable. If I'm remembering right, the Prime Minister has either just been forced to resign or soon will in the summer of 1937; at this point in France there was a dangerous polarization internal politics. The country was on the brink of civil war, not only because of internal threats, but also because of the danger presented from Hitler, as well as Franco's forces in the Spanish Civil War."

O'Neill was speechless. He knew Carter was bright – definitely brilliant – but he had no idea that she was a veritable expert on 20th Century European history as well.

"Jeez Carter,"he blustered, "if you turn out to have any other talents we're going to have to start paying you way more!"

"Just because I specialized in science and astrophysics doesn't mean I'm not a well-rounded person,"she retorted, her cheeks going red with embarrassment. "I actually started college with pretty much no idea of what I wanted to do and so took classes in a bit of everything – including French history."

Élodie was looking confused by the exchanges taking place; her eyes darted uncertainly towards Daniel. Again it was Carter who reassured her.

"Ils ont juste un peu de mal à comprendre. They're just having trouble understanding,"Carter again displayed her competency in speaking French, "the time you come from is not much studied in our history classes unless you specialize at college – which I did. Please continue, although I know of the general conditions in France in your time, I'm still puzzled – what can we do to help?"

Relief again washed over Élodie's face and she prepared herself to continue. Carter held her hand up to silence both Colonel O'Neill and General Hammond. Attention was again directed towards Élodie and her translator.

"As I said, in light of the danger posed by the fascists not only from Hitler and Franco, but from Great Britain's unwillingness to commit to help us, we have organized for the stargate to be transported to America. The only problem is that we must have had a spy in our midst; I was working on the gate late at night when I was overcome by several men dressed in black who spoke Spanish. They drugged me somehow and I woke up, I don't know how much later, in a storage facility dressed in this strange uniform."She glanced down at her ill-fitting army fatigues. "I think I was in south-west France as the radio was a mix of French and Basque."

"That's an ancient dialect spoken in North West Spain and south west France,"Daniel interjected for the benefit of the others.

He nodded to Élodie that she may continue.

"They took me with them because they wanted me to instruct them how to use the stargate – they thought it was a powerful weapon. I activated the gate while they were distracted, entering the only coordinates we found, and ended up here."She took a sip of water before continuing. "I went through the stargate in search of help from some aliens, but now direct my plea to you: please come back with me and help retrieve the stargate from its Spanish revolutionary captors!"

No-one spoke for what seemed like an eternity to Élodie. Even Daniel would not meet her eye; he seemed to be in deep reflection within himself. She looked to O'Neill and Carter, who looked just as lost in thought, although their eyes were fixed on each other. Finally General Hammond himself took charge of the situation.

"Dr. Jackson,"he began, "I don't understand. If we discovered the stargate, without DHD, in Germany, then how is it that in 1937 it was in Spain?"

O'Neill slapped his hand onto the table with approval.

"My question exactly! I bet even you don't know that, Carter!"His eyes glinted playfully

"Well…" began Daniel, "the Spanish insurgents received a lot of military aid from Italy and Germany… it's possible that they exchanged the stargate with Hitler for more aid…"

He stopped as the elderly Madame Chabrol appeared at the door, accompanied by a marine.

"Actually Daniel," her voice wavered slightly, reflecting her weakened state, "Franco's forces intended to use what they thought was a weapon against the French. The general had no intention of letting Hitler even know of its existence. You no doubt know that Spain remained neutral during the Second World War; if you do nothing the stargate will remain hidden in Spain, with no way for the allied forces to discover its existence for many years to come."

Carter sat up in her chair, realization evident in her expression.

"You're saying we have to make sure Hitler's forces find the gate so that we can then find it at the end of the war?"She gasped in horror. "Please tell me we don't have to make sure the French lose against the Germans at the beginning of the war!"

Carter thought she was going to be sick. She knew all to well the consequences of the "bizarre war" that occurred between France and Germany before the occupation and the Vichy regime. The thousands of French Jews exported to concentration camps, the lives lost in the London bombings – made possible by German occupation of France. Never in her life had she imagined that part of the responsibility for these horrific events would be with SG1.

"I cannot tell you what to do, Samantha," Madame Chabrol's face was dark with grief as she too remembered the conditions of the Second World War. "However what is important is that you ensure the gate's capture by Hitler's forces. I will try to explain as much to my younger self."

O'Neill reached over and clasped Carter's hand. He looked into her eyes calmly, seeing the distress in her expression.

"Carter,"he began, "we don't know that Hitler won't just overrun the French army. All we have to do is put the gate somewhere near the border where they'll find it. Hell – we can take it into Germany ourselves; then it will be up to the German and French armies to fight it out."A part of him was surprised to see his other hand reach towards Carter squeeze her arm in reassurance. "We won't be able to prevent the war – you know that – but we'll sure as hell do our best not to make it worse."

Carter couldn't take her eyes off O'Neill's. Silent thoughts of comfort were transmitted between them. The spell was only broken by the sound of General Hammond clearing his throat.

"Major,"he spoke forcefully, but without reproach – he just wanted to get her attention. "Do you think you can safely get SG1 to 1937 and back?"

Carter tore her eyes away from O'Neill's with difficulty.

"Yes sir,"she was glad to have a task at hand to keep her mind busy, "I'll start the simulations immediately."

The General and members of SG1 suddenly turned in unison at the sound of two soft 'thumps'. Both Élodie Chabrols had collapsed to the floor and were now in seizures. As Daniel, the marine in the doorway and Teal'c rushed over to try and stabilise them while General Hammond's hand leapt to the phone, requesting medical assistance. A startled Carter directed her attention towards O'Neill and Hammond.

"I think I'd better start immediately."She rose from the table as she spoke, her hand slipping from its contact with O'Neill. "I don't think the two of them can co-exist for long in the same timeframe."

"Absolutely major," General Hammond and O'Neill also rose to their feet. "You have a go for this mission, providing you both come up with a plan. Major: I need a plan for your safe return. And Colonel: I need to know how you plan to move the stargate into a position where it will be found."

"Yes sir!"O'Neill and Carter strode purposefully out of the room just as the medics arrived to care for the Élodies.

To be continued…