Chapter 13
Sam's eyes watched him carefully through half-closed lids. He wasn't even aware of her watching him, his face buried behind stacks of paper on which he was scribbling something furiously. Fortunately, they didn't have to explain too many things when they arrived. Hammond had already known the basics and, for now, it seemed he was satisfied with that. She had been arrested upon arrival, nothing that really surprised her, but was set free mere hours later.
She was still wondering what had gotten her out. Maybe the fact that the X-303, the Enterprise – she still wondered who had named her that, had detected a ship of unknown origin two days distant from Earth had been one of the factors. After all, despite her prolonged absence from the SGC, they still seemed to consider her a brilliant scientist. But, currently, the thing that occupied her mind the most was the fact that she still hadn't seen Emily. Jack seemed confident about his sister's abilities to watch over her, but Sam didn't feel comfortable. Maybe if she could call Jack's sister, talk to Emily…
Something tapped on her knee and she looked up to see Jack poking her with his pen, a pad lying in front of her.
"What I'm thinking? Nothing. Just stuff."
He didn't look convinced but started drawing again. The silence that filled the room was so severe that she nearly jumped when the phone on the wall started to ring. Maybe her father had returned from informing the Tok'ra council of the latest events.
"Carter."
"Ma'am, there's someone at the main exit who wants to see you. General Hammond wants you and Colonel O'Neill to meet him there."
"Tell him we're on our way."
Jack watched her curiously when she hung up the phone and she told him what the airman had just said to her. Somehow, he didn't look surprised.
It felt strange to walk the SGC corridors and to stand in an elevator again. Out of the blue, Jack started to hum a tune and it took her some time to notice he was humming 'Twinkle, twinkle little star'. She had sung the song when Emily was a baby and couldn't sleep. A grin crept across his face when he noticed her strange look but he didn't stop humming, not even when they changed elevators on NORAD level.
Soon they were out of the mountain and, for the first time in years, Sam took a deep breath of Earth air before scanning the area. The figure that was standing at the entrance knocked the breath she'd been so keen on out of her lungs again.
"Mommy!"
"Emily?"
The girl started running and Hammond told the guards to stand down as Emily ran towards her mother and soon was engulfed in her arms.
"Sweetheart! Are you okay?"Sam's fingers checked her daughter of their own accord, as if to assure herself that Emily was truly whole and healthy. She had trusted Jack to keep her safe, but she still had to make sure that Emily was really with her again.
"I'm fine, Mom. Really."
Extricating herself from her mother's embrace, Emily turned towards Jack and threw herself in his arms. He quickly lifted her up and she whispered something into his ear that made him chuckle lightly. It was the first time Sam had seen the two of them together since their departure last year and, if it was possible, they looked even closer. A thousand memories started to pop up in her brain at once.
Jack sitting behind her, suddenly smiling and telling her that Emily also thought she was thinking too much. Jack crouched in the grass before the black block, telling her that her daughter had said he was the only one who could do this. Emily sitting at the table, looking sad and depressed, but suddenly lighting up as if laughing at a joke. Could it be that there was a connection between these events?
"Colonel, Major, care to explain?"
They'd now reached General Hammond and the man who had been with Emily. Although Sam had never seen him before, she had a pretty good guess who he was. The sparkling brown eyes and the face that was so similar to Jack's were a dead giveaway.
"Sir, this is my daughter Emily. It's a long story."
"I bet it is, Major, and I can't wait to hear it. Inside." He glanced pointedly at the tall man who had arrived with Emily. "Although I'm not sure how far inside."
Jack set Sam's daughter on the ground and began scribbling on the pad that he carried with him since he had lost his ability to speak English. He handed it to the General, who read over it quickly.
"What do you mean, he knows?"
"Paul knows that I'm not from around here." Emily said with a glance at the guard, the ease with which she had picked up Jack's words reminding Sam of her former thoughts. The old man's lips twisted to a grin and, even if there had been any doubt about his identity, Sam would have been sure by now.
"Alright, people. Mr. O'Neill, welcome to Stargate Command."General Hammond turned to the guard, "Issue these two visitor's passes, airman, and get them signed in. I think, given the circumstances, we'll go with access to all levels as long as they remain accompanied. Colonel, Major, if you would join me in the briefing room in 15."
"So, you're Sam Carter. My son told me a lot about you."
"He did?"
"Yes, mainly that you were dead."
Paul nearly had to laugh at the sight of her face. Although he had never known what his son did for sure, he was pretty certain that there was more to it than just deep space radar telemetry. His son had never been much of a scientist. Not that he hadn't been smart enough; he certainly was. He'd just always been more of a practical guy, hardly able to sit still for more than two seconds… much to the dismay of his mother. When he had joined the forces, Paul had been sure that Jack would be a good soldier at least in matters regarding the job. He hadn't been too sure about the following orders in command structure part and he would be forever surprised that Jack had ever made it to the rank of a colonel.
"Well, I was. In a way."
"No need to explain, Major. I'm just happy that you're back. It explains a lot."
The change in Jack's attitude hadn't gone unnoticed by his father and Paul had wondered a lot what had caused it.
"Call me Sam. I'm not used to Major anymore."
"Only if you call me Paul. So, what is this Stargate Command?"
She explained to him the basics of this facility and, at first, Paul had felt the urge to laugh out loud. Of course, he'd known that there were aliens out there ever since the attack two years prior. It wasn't the existence of aliens that he thought was laughable but the fact that someone would attempt to pass through a wormhole. The only thing that kept him from laughing was the serious expression on Sam's face.
"Can I see this… Stargate?"
"Sure. I guess we can leave those two alone."
She nodded towards Jack and Emily, who were both crouched over a stack of papers. Part of them Paul recognized as the things Emily had drawn during the drive; the larger sheets he didn't know. It looked suspiciously like schematics and it didn't go unnoticed that, although Jack spoke a really weird language for some reason he had yet to be told, Emily understood him perfectly well. From the face Sam made, Emily was probably the only one who did.
"Jack, Emily, I'll go with Paul; show him around a bit."
When they were out of the room and in the corridor, he noticed Sam's downcast expression.
"Don't worry. Jack has a knack about children and they love him. When he took Charlie to the playground, all kids were soon hanging off him."
Sam looked up at him quizzically for a moment before realization dawned on her face.
"Oh, no, it's not that. I was just... thinking about something."
They had by now reached a room with huge windows and Paul looked down on a metal ring in the center of another room. He guessed he was looking at the Stargate and, even though it looked impressive, he wondered how one could create a wormhole with it. All theories he knew stated that to create a wormhole big enough to allow a human to travel through you'd have to have gigantic metal condensers, but none of the theories used a wormhole to travel distances in space. They were just thought to be a method for time travel.
"I assume this is the Stargate."
"It is. Come on."
Sam led him down some steps into another room, crammed with technical equipment.
"When's the next team due, Sergeant?"
"SG-19 should come in any minute now, Ma'am."
"Great, wait until you see that."
Paul and Sam sat down, Paul's eyes inspecting the equipment in the room quickly. Suddenly, the ring started to spin and the little gizmos attached to it jumped to life. A bubbling blue vortex shot out of the metal and left nothing but a shimmering blue event horizon behind, through which four people soon emerged."That's impossible. The energy that would be needed to create something like this... a wormhole through the galaxy... How does it send matter through to the other device? There is another one, right? There has to be. Must be some kind of receiver that saves the energy structure of the object sent through and that allows its reconstruction on the other side. Otherwise..."
Caught up in his own world of musings and theory spinning, Paul missed Sam's eyes going wide in surprise as she watched him, facts suddenly fitting together.
"Holy Hannah! You're P.J. O'Neill. I never assumed... My brother gave me your book for my seventh birthday. I wanted to be an astronaut and he thought I'd like it. It's such an honor to finally meet you. Your book got me interested in astrophysics. I would never have chosen this path if it hadn't been for you."
She was still rambling on and Paul chuckled lightly. Few people remembered him these days. He had never been an Einstein, had never done much in the fields of research. He had simply written some books to allow his college students easier access to this rather theoretical field of science. Obviously, it worked also for a seven year old and he wondered why his students still failed his tests.
"Jack, your father is P.J. O'Neill!"
He looked at her with his 'And… So?' face and Paul chuckled behind her.
"I bet he knew that."
There was a blush creeping up her face but she refused to allow the embarrassment to wash over her. Of course he would've known that. She was just so excited to finally meet the man who was responsible for her craving to study astrophysics. She had never made the connection between the two O'Neills but, now that she had, she wondered how she could have missed it.
A tugging on her leg brought her back to reality and she looked down on her daughter.
"We're ready. Jack said you'll help us from here on."
"You're ready with what? The thing you two have been drawing?"
"Aetiem."
"He says yes."
"I knew that, honey. He already spoke this language a long time ago."
Sam sighed and watched Jack sadly, the word reminding her once again what was happening with him. Ruffling her daughter's hair, she bowed over the drawings.
"What is this? Looks like schematics of some kind."
Paul joined her and there were soon four heads leaning over the stacks of paper.
"They are schematics. Looks like Jack has done the one half and Emily the other, but I've no idea what they're for."
Jack scribbled something on his pad and pushed it to Sam, who studied it quickly.
"Defeating the Replicators? You mean it's a weapon?"
Instead of answering, he simply looked at Emily who nodded slightly.
"He wants to know whether you can build this in two days."
"I don't know. I mean… I think I can, but I need to look it through."
The PA system disturbed her musings and ordered her to the briefing room. Grabbing the schematics, she started off, Jack in tow. Of course, Emily wasn't far behind him; she hadn't been since they'd met on the surface. Paul followed behind, looking somewhat lost.
Daniel, Hailey, Teal'c, General Hammond, and her father already waited for her to arrive. Her Dad had obviously just returned from the Tok'ra and was probably the reason for this meeting.
"Ah, Major. Good, you brought Colonel O'Neill." Hammond greeted her entry. He looked pointedly at their two other guests and Sam shrugged slightly.
"At the moment, Emily is the only one who properly understands Colonel O'Neill, Sir. No offense, Daniel, but your Ancient seems a bit rusty. I think it would be good to have her here and Mr. O'Neill can help me with some of these," she ruffled the papers in her hand.
Hammond nodded slowly and they all sat down at the table.
"Okay, what have you found out? Jacob?"
"The Tok'ra are certain that the Goa'uld who attacked us on the planet with the repository were Anubis and Cronus. As for the destruction on the planet, the Goa'uld had nothing to do with it. A ship of unknown origin, from what I heard I'd guess Replicators, attacked the fleets of Anubis and Cronus and destroyed them. None of them has been seen ever since; neither have we heard from our agents on board their ships. "
"You mean Cronus and Anubis are dead? How do you know?"
"The Tok'ra had a ship in this system."
Jacob avoided looking in Sam's direction and she dearly wished he would. She had made him promise not to tell anyone of the planet's position.
"When Teal'c and I went to the Tok'ra base to inform them of the threat, they attached a tracking device to the ship. I'm sorry, Sam."
Anger sparked in Sam's eyes but Jacob's gaze conveniently missed her again and wandered over to Emily. It occurred to her that he might by now have figured out who the girl was.
"Doctor Jackson, Captain Hailey?" Hammond's voice cut in, eager to find out more about what they were dealing with.
"Well, we now understand this repository better. It was built at the end of the Ancients' time here. The text states that only friends can use it. Obviously there must have been some downloads of other repositories by mistake, or even purpose, to win a war. To avoid this, they built this failsafe at the rim of the galaxy and took the Stargate away. Only those who knew of it would find it. It was pure luck that Sam's people found it."
"If only 'friends', as you call them, can access the information, why could Colonel O'Neill do it?"
"I think I can answer this question, Sir." Hailey cut in, just as Daniel was about to start again.
"I believe the device recognizes some special element in his body. I'm not sure whether it's in his blood or DNA, but I'm pretty certain it has to be something similar to that. Doctor Jackson's theory that humans are descendants of the Ancients could be right. Maybe there are people still carrying certain genetic sequences derived from them."
Hammond nodded and turned to face Sam.
"Major?" His tone was all business. He certainly hadn't been friendly toward her but she could understand his frustration.
Sam spread the papers she carried on the briefing room table.
"Jack drew these." She kept the information that, in fact, half of the drawings had been made by her daughter to herself.
"They're schematics for a weapon he believes will destroy the Replicators."
Captain Hailey and Jacob craned their necks as they studied the sheets.
"What do you think about this?"
"I can't say for sure but, from what I've seen in the drawings so far, the weapon seems to emit some kind of EM field which…"
"Will it work, Major?" Hammond interrupted curtly.
Sam paused. "I think so, sir. To say for sure, I'd need full access to the base resources and Captain Hailey's help."
"Okay, do it. Dismissed." With that, Hammond left the room.
"Looks like he's pretty angry."
Daniel pointed at the General's stiffly held, departing, back. Sam heard Jack murmur something and Emily started to giggle.
"What did he say?"
"He said, 'Very clever, Danny.'"
Sam smiled at her daughter and at Daniel's pouting. Glancing fondly at the people in the room, she noticed her father's gaze still resting on Emily and her anger at him started to wash away. It wasn't his fault that the Tok'ra had placed the tracking device on his ship. He had been betrayed as well. Looking down on her daughter, she gently urged her to stand up and walk around the table with her.
"Emily, I want you to meet your grandpa, my dad."
"I know this. Jack created it the last time he... was like this. It's an extremely powerful generator designed to boost the energy to the gate."
Paul nodded as his eyes followed the two women that were buzzing around the lab, gathering bits and pieces of seemingly each technology available. By now, the pile of metal and wire was quite astounding. It was nearly done. Most of the weapon was ready, except for the energy source and some screws here and there. The rest of SG-1 and the Carters had left to find some cake, or at least that was what Emily had told him, and he had stayed behind with the two scientists to rig together this thing that his son and a six-year-old girl had come up with.
He still had no idea what exactly had happened to Jack, but the look on Sam's face when she thought no one was watching her told him more than he wanted to know. It was bad. She always pulled herself together quickly but Paul had no problem seeing through this facade. Certainly Jack seemed fully aware of how this was affecting her. Like father, like son, he supposed. He could see why Jack might have feelings for her.
He glanced at the device again and then back at Sam.
He still remembered when he'd heard her name for the first time like it was yesterday. It had been on the day of Mary's funeral, nearly two years after he had buried his grandson.
The ringing of the doorbell shook him out of his stupor. He had no idea how much time had passed. He'd put on the black suit and, just as he finished the last buttons of his shirt, his eyes had fallen to their wedding picture on the dresser. Mary had looked so beautiful that day, the smile gracing her face glowing more than any light the photographer might have had. He had reached out for the picture and taken it back to the bed where he had sat down, stroking her lovely face until the bell startled him.
Paul opened the door to find his son standing outside, snow piling up on his uniform hat. He was surprised that Jack wore his uniform, but more surprised, and definitely not ready, for the look on his face. When he had said goodbye to his son the last time, it had been after Charlie's funeral. They had gotten into a fight over something or another, neither of them willing to back down. He knew for sure that he hadn't called Jack after Mary's death; although he had found himself reaching out for the phone more than once, his damn pride had always held him back. Must have been Joy who had told him, Paul thought, as he watched his son.
"Dad."
"Jack."
For some time, they simply stood there facing one another, the snow outside blowing into the house and piling up around Jack's feet. Suddenly, Jack took a step forward and, before Paul knew what had happened, he was being hugged by his son and returning the hug willingly. None of their petty differences were important now.
"I'm sorry, Dad. I should have been here. I'm so sorry."
Jack's voice was muffled, but Paul perfectly understood, holding his son as if he was still five years old and had had a bad dream. A sob broke the silence and Paul realized that he had started to cry. For the first time since her death, he allowed himself to feel the pain.
His son had stood next to him while they had lowered her coffin and had stayed with him after the funeral. When the last mourners left his home, Jack helped him clean up the mess. Joy had needed to return home but had left him tons of food to reheat as if he was a kid that needed looking after. The men settled down in the living room, beer in hands, watching a hockey game that neither of them really saw.
"Sara called."
"She did?"
"Yeah, your mom and her, they called each other every two months or so. Sara said you'd gone back to the Air Force."
"Yeah."
So, Jack wasn't in the mood for small talk, but when was he ever? Paul couldn't help but notice the change in his son. After Charlie's death, Jack had been a dead man walking. He wouldn't have been surprised to get a call, telling him his son was dead. It was a very Jack-like thing to do. Deal with his own mess, shut everyone out. The man now sitting in the chair, sipping his beer was nothing like that. He looked not happy exactly, but content.
"Whatcha doing at the Air Force these days?"
"Deep Space Radar Telemetry."
"You?" His obvious amazement must have rung through clearly because Jack stopped pretending to watch the game and actually turned to face him.
"Yes, Dad, me."
"Hey, it's okay. Just surprises me, is all."
Jack's head turned, fixing on the TV again. For some moments there was a silence and, surprisingly enough, Jack started to offer something.
"It's classified, mostly." There was a long pause as Jack drew on the bottle. "After… well, after, I wasn't myself anymore. The job helped me get over it. My team… my friends helped me get over it."
Paul marveled that anyone could get under Jack's skin enough to actually do some good. "Must be a pretty special team."
Jack nodded.
"Tell me 'bout them."
"Well, there's Daniel. Doctor Daniel Jackson. He's an archaeologist, speaks more languages than the Air Force has planes, bad allergies, a real geek."
For a moment, Jack seemed to zone out, as if focusing on something in the past, a smile tugging at his lips.
"Daniel always gets himself in trouble. I swear he could manage to get himself hurt in a padded room. Honestly. Then there's... Murray, on the other hand. Career soldier and I don't think I've ever seen a more capable one. He's not from around here and is one of the most solemn people I've ever met. One of the most silent, too. Daniel's making up for that of course."
Jack actually chuckled and fell silent again, still smiling. It was a rare occasion to hear such a speech from Jack and Paul didn't think there would be more. He just started to say something, but was then cut short as Jack's voice emerged again.
"Well, there's also Carter. Sam Carter. Captain Carter. PhD in astrophysics. I'm sure you two would get on just fine, talking endlessly about all this space stuff."
His hand waved absently in the air, but Paul's eyes were drawn to his son's. They were suddenly lit by something he hadn't seen for a very long time; in fact, something he had missed since about two years after Jack's marriage. When he'd met Sara, Jack had looked just like that but, somewhere along the way, the fire had died. Those two had still been great together, and would probably have tried to make it work if it hadn't been for Charlie, but the spark was gone before their son's death.
"Carter's very smart, one of the smartest people I know, including you and Mom."
The brown eyes suddenly closed and Paul realized what Jack had said. He'd spoken of his mother in the present tense, something Paul himself did quite regularly. It would take time to get used to the fact that she wasn't around any longer.
"I'm glad you've got good friends, Jack. There are only three things important in life: Love, family, and friends."
It was a mantra he had repeated over and over again while his kids grew up and despite how unfitting it might have seemed to Jack, he just felt the need to reiterate, maybe more for himself than for Jack. Surprisingly, Jack just nodded, now a sad smile on his face.
"Guess we both forgot, huh?"
Paul nodded as an answer and they turned to watch the hockey match again.
After Mary's death, they had been closer than ever before. He'd soon found out that Sam Carter was in fact a woman, a thing that had him worried for some time, and under Jack's command. This didn't help the fact that Jack lit up every time he mentioned her, which was quite often. He'd met Daniel and Murray before, when they had been up at the cabin, but never Sam Carter. Then, one day, he had opened the door and found his son outside, sitting on the steps, head in hands.
Of course, Jack had done it again, had tried to shut him out, but this time Paul had been persistent, had called him and talked to him despite the fact that Jack never called back or talked much when Paul did get him on the phone. It had changed about a year ago, when Paul picked up the phone to hear his son's voice. He had been worried sick when he hadn't found out one single thing about his son's whereabouts for over four months and Jack had called him to say he was okay and he really had been.
By now, Paul was pretty sure he knew what had caused this change.
"I think that's it. It should work now."
Sam held her breath when she pushed what she figured was the "on"button and the generator lit up.
"Come in, Major."
She stepped into the office a bit hesitantly. Since her arrival on Earth three days prior she hadn't talked to General Hammond in private and she was honestly a bit nervous about this.
"You wanted to see me, Sir?"
He looked up from a stack of papers he had been reading and waved one hand in the air.
"Close the door and take a seat."
His voice sounded brusque, but his eyes were warmer than she expected when she sat down in one of the chairs in front of the General's desk.
"The weapon is ready?"
"It is, Sir. The Replicator ship is currently still out of range, but we're positive the weapon will be in perfect working order."
"That's good news, Major."
Sam felt General Hammond's eyes bore into her and she shuffled a bit nervously on her seat. The silence in the room lay heavy on her and she had problems holding the stare of the blue eyes.
"Sir, I… permission to speak freely, Sir."
"Granted."
"I want to thank you, Sir. I have no idea how you managed to get me free, but…"
"That wasn't me."
Surprised, Sam looked up. She had automatically assumed it had been him. Jack wasn't in any condition to ask for favors right now, so she had just figured it had to be Hammond.
"You might have to talk to your father about that. I don't know which favors he called in. I just know I got a call from my superior, telling me to set you free. He said you were a valuable asset in our fight to defeat the Replicators."
"Oh."
Her Dad had done that? She had thought he had left right away to inform the Tok'ra council. Hammond was still studying her and she felt even more uncomfortable than before. Sam had never liked it when her dad meddled with her career and, although she knew perfectly well she had to thank him for this time, it still left a stale taste.
"I didn't call you here to talk about that, Sam."
At the use of her given name, Sam's head shot up from where she had looked at her fisted hands. The blue eyes seemed to have softened a bit when her eyes met his.
"I wanted to talk to you about Emily."
She swallowed hard against the lump in her throat. They hadn't told anyone on Earth about Emily's special abilities and, as far as SG-1 and she were concerned, Emily had arrived on Earth by ship. A friend of Sam's had brought her to Jack's. Why would the General talk to her about Emily so suddenly?
"I need to ask you this: do you plan on staying here?"
For a moment, she was perplexed. Where was this going? She hadn't thought about what would come after tomorrow. If she had, she would've had to deal with some very unpleasant thoughts and she wasn't ready to cross that bridge just yet.
"I… I don't know, Sir."
"Despite what you all might think, I'm not as out of it as I might appear. I've seen Emily talk to Colonel O'Neill without saying a word. I don't even want to know how she got here in the first place. Do you know how many people are reporting an UFO in one night? There wasn't one single report about any unusual sightings in Colorado Springs on that evening that you claim she arrived. I'm sure you could give me the odds on a UFO landing in the middle of Colorado Springs without anyone noticing."
"Sir, we didn't…"
"I wasn't finished yet, Major. All I'm saying here is that I know why you kept her away from Earth. I probably would have done the same had I been in your position. I just wanted to let you know that, after this is over, you might want to think about the future your daughter has on Earth. If you wanted to say goodbye to your father before he returns to the Tok'ra, I would make sure that you get a private goodbye in the Gateroom. Understood?"
Stiffly, Sam nodded. She understood. The General had just told her, he'd give her a way to get off the planet and take her daughter with her.
"Understood. Thank you, Sir."
"Dismissed."
Rising somewhat shakily, she saluted the General before turning around and heading to the door. Her hand was reaching for the knob when she heard his voice again, warmer this time.
"It's good to have you back, Major."
"It's good to be back, Sir. Thank you," she told him again before leaving the room.
Jack watched her through half-closed lids, her daughter snuggled up in his arms. Emily had fallen asleep some time ago and Sam believed Jack had followed suit. They were both curled on the bed of Sam's VIP quarters while Sam sat at the desk, head in hands, probably trying to figure out how the weapon would work.
They had just one more day before the bugs would come knocking at their door and she had refused to leave the lab. Until Jacob and Hailey had thrown Sam and his dad out, that is. Jack was confident that they would have the weapon working in time. How could they not? He understood now why the Replicators were coming. He had known about the Asgards' little reproduction problem for some time now, but the knowledge of their enhanced breeding program was new to him. It seemed as if they'd finally succeeded and what they'd been looking for was, at the moment, drooling on his shirt. The Replicators had the ability to enter a brain and get whatever information they wanted. They would know that the Asgard had found what they were looking for and they would know that Emily had the power to destroy them, even if no one else in this galaxy did.
Which was why the bugs had burned the repository planet to a crisp. They had wanted to make sure that no one would download the knowledge and gain the same knowledge that Emily already possessed. They weren't aware that the bond between Emily and Jack had heightened the abilities of both of them but the bugs knew a threat when they saw one.
Sam sighed softly and brought him out of his thoughts. Her eyes were watching him over the table and he couldn't help but grin slightly.
"You're awake."
He opened his eyes, smiling again, unable to respond in any other way. It was getting harder and harder to write something in English and he knew it wouldn't be long now.
"I need to talk to you." Her eyes quickly fell on Emily and she motioned for the far corner of the room. "Alone."
Extricating himself from Emily, he laid her gently down on the bed and she rolled up in a tiny ball immediately. Walking over to Sam, he wondered how he was supposed to talk to her.
"The Replicators will be here soon. I... What will happen afterwards?"
Her blue eyes were watching him, trying to see into his soul, and the only answer he was able to give was shrugging.
"I don't want to lose you, Jack."
Her voice was strangled as tears welled up in her eyes and he pulled her into his arms quickly. From the moment he had stuck his head inside the repository, he had known that he was bound to die, at least now that the Asgard weren't around to save him.
"What about Emily? This bond between you two, will it affect her?"
Jack hadn't thought about this until now and he glanced at Emily worriedly. She had already once passed out when they tried to save Sam. What would happen if he died? He wanted to tell Sam that everything would be okay, that they'd be all right, but he couldn't. There were still so many things he wanted to say to her.
"Non heos trisot. Ego quama tu."
She didn't understand the words, and he kissed her gently to show her. It wasn't long before he felt her pulling him closer and he complied eagerly. Finally, she broke away from him. She watched him for a brief moment with darkened eyes before whispering, "Your quarters."
When they were about to leave, Sam's eyes fell on Emily and he followed the gaze, writing quick words on his pad.
"You'll know when she wakes up?"
He nodded in confirmation and they vanished to his quarters, both knowing that their first night together might as well be their last and neither willing to let go so soon.
A knock on the door brought him out of his trance and he looked up to see Daniel Jackson entering.
"Hey, Teal'c. Am I disturbing you?"
Teal'c's eyes passed quickly over the candles that lit the room.
"You are not."
Though he had been looking forward to his Kel'no'reem, he could see that something was bothering his young friend. Daniel Jackson was pacing the room, fiddling with various objects and nearly setting himself on fire when his sleeves made close contact with one of the candles' flames. Teal'c did not disturb his friend; he merely allowed him to take his time while he himself put his body into a light state of meditation. Finally, he felt Daniel Jackson pass him and sit down on the ground in front of him.
Although he did not speak a word, Teal'c knew what had brought his friend here. His jaw was tightly set, his shoulders just slightly slumped, a sign of the exhaustion and helplessness that was only too familiar to Teal'c. Worry clouded the blue eyes and Daniel Jackson let out a frustrated sigh as his eyes found Teal'c's.
"This sucks."
"Indeed."
Teal'c need not ask what 'sucked'. It was not easy for them, sitting and waiting for the enemy to come; such a wait was invariably difficult. They both knew that the loss they faced, that of a friend, was inevitable and, although he had lost many friends in battle, this one was different. Teal'c knew that it should make things easier to know that his friend would die sacrificing himself for a good cause, but it did nothing to console him.
He could not imagine how much harder it must be for Daniel Jackson, who was not a warrior. Over the years, Teal'c had seen his friend overcome many obstacles he had thought the younger man could not manage. Perhaps this would be one such situation.
"I wish there was something more we could do."
"We will offer O'Neill our assistance."
Daniel Jackson held his gaze for a second and seemed like he was about to answer, but then merely nodded.
"That we will, Teal'c."
He looked, lost, at the candles in the room and seemed for the first time to really see them.
"You were meditating. I'm sorry, Teal'c. I didn't want to disturb you."
"You did not, Daniel Jackson. Would you like to join me?"
Instead of answering, his friend simply crossed his legs and closed his eyes. Satisfied, Teal'c followed the example. The night before battle, no one wanted to be alone. Especially if it was a fight that you could not win.
The ringing of a phone in the middle of the night was never a good sign and Joy sat bolt upright in bed at the sound, mentally ticking off people who could be calling right now. Reaching over for her phone, she noticed a shadow at the door. Mike had been woken as well, looking worriedly at her when her fingers closed around the speaker.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Joy."
She knew the voice and relief flooded through her. She hadn't heard from him since she had left the girl at his doorstep and she had been worried out of her mind.
"Dad?"
"Yes."
"Thank God! I was so worried when you didn't call."
There was a silence on the other end and she felt an iron hand reaching for her throat, when she heard a soft sob.
"Dad? What's wrong? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Joy. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have called."
Her father's voice carried an eerie resemblance to its tone when he had told her that her mother had died and Joy tried to suppress the wave of fear and worry, if not for herself, then for Mike whose eyes she felt keenly.
"It's okay. Just tell me what it is."
"It's Jack."
Closing her eyes against the tears that started to rise, she swallowed heavily. Next to her, she felt the bed dipping as Mike sat down.
"How is he?"
"I don't know, Joy; I just don't know. No one here tells me anything, but I don't think… I doubt he'll…"
More sobs reached her and she was out of the bed in no time.
"Are you in the Springs? I'm coming over. I'll take the next plane."
She was already dragging her duffel bag out when her father spoke up again.
"This isn't fair. A man shouldn't see his children die. This isn't fair."
"I'm on my way, Dad. Just try to hang on, okay?"
He was silent for a while in which she stuffed some clothes into the bag, the phone squished between head and shoulder. Shortly after that, she found herself saying goodbye to Mike. He would stay with the kids while she flew to Colorado Springs.
This was the call she had tried to prepare herself for nearly all her life and she guessed all that preparation hadn't really made it any easier. She hardly knew anything about the drive to the airport, wasn't sure how she had gotten there in the first place. The first time she really thought about the situation with a clear head was when the plane took off.
She had no idea where to go once she was in Colorado. All she knew was that her brother was stationed there but she didn't know where or whether she would be allowed in. From what she knew, Jack had always worked in areas that demanded a high security clearance. Crap. What if they didn't let her in? But then, they had let her father in, hadn't they? Inwardly she cursed at Jack for doing this to her but was silenced suddenly as, somehow, the anger drained from her, leaving only a soothing presence and the knowledge that it was going to be alright.
Smiling softly, Emily cracked one eye open and saw little but darkness. Reaching out to touch Jack's mind gently, she felt him stir, his attention immediately on her.
"I'm okay. Go back to sleep."
She could feel he was hesitant, but in the end he gave in. Even so, she knew that a part of him was still with her and that he'd react if she called for him. The Ancient's knowledge had now completely taken over and she felt the first signs of Jack's body giving in. It couldn't cope with the change and it wouldn't be long before his body shut down. Emily knew that as well as Jack did and her heart ached at the thought. She had never known her father but, if she had had the choice, she would have chosen him.
During their time on Eden, Jack had meant the world to her and after that he had always made her smile when she was down. The connection had been faint but enough to cheer her up. He probably hadn't even realized he was doing it; she had and she loved him for it. She had never had many friends, but Jack had been a friend.
Also, he loved her mother. One didn't need her abilities to see that; it was obvious. As obvious as her mother's love for him. Even so, this was also what worried her. She knew how this was going to end and she had always hoped Jack would be there to help her mother through this.
"So you made your choice?"
Emily smiled weakly at the disembodied voice that she knew fairly well by now. Fortunately, she had been able to keep this little secret from Jack. This was one thing he needn't know about. "I never had one."
A hand descended on Emily's shoulder and she felt sleep starting to tug at her again.
"You always have a choice, little one. If you immediately know the candlelight is fire, the meal was cooked a long time ago."
Snuggling deeper into her blankets, Emily started to doze off again, a soft hand caressing her until she was fast asleep.
She awoke in the middle of the night to a warm presence wrapped all around her. Sighing softly, she pressed herself against the body spooned behind her. Why hadn't they done this earlier? It felt good… and it felt right. When she closed her eyes, she was nearly able to believe that it would be like this forever. But her conscious mind knew it wouldn't last. She would lose him in days, hours even. Just mere hours and she still had no idea what the effects of his death on her daughter would be.
This connection between the two scared her. The effects it could have on Emily scared her even more. She reflected again, for the thousandth time, on what Jack had told her, back then, just before he had stuck his head into the Ancient repository. He had told her that Emily had said he was the only one able to do it.
Sam always wanted to ask her daughter what this meant, why she had said these things to him in the first place, but somehow she always forgot when she was close to her daughter. Feeling Jack stir behind her, she turned slightly so she could see his face.
A grin spread over it when his eyes fell on her and he played softly with her long hair.
"Dormata."
She looked at him questioningly, but he just shrugged, drawing her closer and burying his face in her neck. A fleeting glance at the clock told her it was time to get up, but neither of them was ready to go out and face what the day would bring.
Daniel skidded to a halt, nearly bringing Sam to the ground in the process. They had completed the weapon yesterday. The greatest scientific minds the SGC had been able to bring together had brooded, and argued, over the way the weapon was supposed to work, finally concluding that the weapon could only send a short-range pulse. They couldn't use the weapon until the Replicators were closer and, even then, they would only be able to halt the few that were approaching Earth. Once again, their situation had seemed hopeless.
That was before Jack blew into the lab and took the two energy sources, handing one to Sam and one to Daniel. Halfway through the process, Daniel had realized that Jack was muttering orders under his breath and Daniel's eyes had searched for Emily. For what may have been the first time since her arrival, she wasn't tagging along behind Jack. Fortunately, he had been able to understand some of Jack's words, enough to figure out that Jack wanted them to hook the energy sources up to the generators that powered the Stargate.
Jack had grabbed the weapon and disappeared through the door, a protesting Jennifer Hailey hot on his heels. Daniel had made a quick call to Hammond and explained the situation. Hammond had given him a go and, without taking a breath, told him that the Enterprise, who was following the Replicator vessel, had just entered the solar system. Somehow, Jack had already known.
They'd hooked up the energy sources and ran back to the control room where they were standing now. Emily sat in one of the chairs, her eyes watching Jack as his fingers flew over the various keyboards. On cue, the inner ring of the Stargate started to spin, one chevron locking in after the other, but no signs appeared on the screen.
"Captain, report."
General Hammond's voice cut through the sound of the Gate opening and Jack's feet as he ran out of the room, the weapon in hands.
"The eighth chevron is locked, Sir. I don't know which address he dialed, but the energy output is much higher than it should be given the last recording of the connection to the Asgard home world."
"He dialed all Gates."
Emily's voice was quiet, hardly breaking through Jen Hailey's report, but still the room fell silent.
"What do you mean, he dialed all Gates?" Daniel wasn't sure whether the General, Jen Hailey, or Sam had spoken first, the question was in such unison.
"The weapon will only work on short ranges. He dialed all Gates to increase the damage to the Replicators."
Emily looked so sober, her normally sparkling blue eyes misty and gray. Daniel could feel worry radiating from Sam as she crouched next to her daughter, enfolding the girl in her arms while her eyes remained on the single figure in the Gate room.
Jack's eyes lifted to the control room and sought Sam out for a moment before they continued towards the General. A short nod was all it needed and a shiny blue wall surrounded Jack, extending quickly in all directions. The shock wave was gone in a matter of seconds and the Gate shut down. With the depression of just one small button, the threat was gone. Even so, the victory tasted bitter to Daniel. This long overdue victory had cost them all dearly.
He heard a sergeant behind him confirming the destruction of the Replicator ship. As the room around them erupted into cheers, Daniel's eyes stayed fixed on Jack, as were Sam's, he noticed absently. His friend turned around in the gate room, his eyes once again lifting to them, this time a question visible. Daniel felt himself nodding at Jack's inquiry and his friend smiled weakly. They had won.
The smile faded as Jack started to sway on his feet and Daniel hurried down, but was beaten to it by Teal'c. When they entered, Jack had already collapsed in a heap on the concrete. For a split second, Daniel wondered where Sam was but his attention snapped back to the man on the floor before the thought could fully form. They had known that this was bound to happen, ever since Jack had stuck his head into the machine. Still, Daniel had found himself hoping against hope that, maybe, somehow Jack would pull through again. Only it didn't look like that this time.
Jack's pulse was weak and erratic when the medics wheeled him away to the infirmary, Teal'c and Daniel following closely even though they knew they would have to wait outside.
"Daniel, how is he?"
He spun around at the sound of Sam's voice. He hadn't realized she was crouched on the ground in front of the infirmary.
"I don't know, Sam."
She closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath, then nodded. When her eyes opened again, there was nothing but determination in them.
"Daniel, do we know for sure that the Asgard won't be able to come?"
Although he immediately understood her intentions, Daniel found himself unwilling to answer and crush her hope. He chose his words carefully.
"We haven't heard from the Asgard since the whole problem with the Replicators began. It is most likely…"
"I didn't ask whether it's likely, Daniel. Those energy sources… before I left, I heard Jen say they were still working. We could try to contact the Asgard."
"We should indeed explore all options available."
Daniel shot a look at Teal'c and then nodded at Sam in defeat. He hated to see her getting her hopes up… all of their hopes up… only to have them crushed again but, really, she had a point. It was at least worth a try and definitely better than doing nothing.
"I'll help you, Sam."
"No. I need you and Teal'c to stay. Call me when anything changes. Emily's in there as well. She collapsed the second Jack did."
Suddenly Daniel understood why Sam hadn't been with them in the Gateroom. He understood the determination in her face. This wasn't solely about losing Jack any more; this was also about losing her daughter. With a last glance towards the closed door, Sam turned around and ran off, leaving a speechless Daniel behind.
The world, the galaxy, heck, the universe, had just been saved but, to Daniel, it felt like his whole world just came crashing down on him. His hand slammed into the concrete of the wall, but the pain hardly registered as he wished with all he had for the two people in the infirmary to live, sending a silent prayer to whoever was willing to listen.
"Engage! Damn it!"
Her fist hit the delicate controls and she noticed one of the technicians wince, not that she was overly worried about it. The wormhole didn't engage, no matter how hard she tried. This was at least the 30th time they tried and, again, the result was the same.
"Ma'am?"
"What!" Sam snapped back at Jennifer Hailey, who was now tugging her lightly by the arm, the phone still in hand. Her misdirected anger and frustration immediately drained away at the sight of the phone, the sympathetic expression in Jen's eyes only adding to her worry.
"It's Daniel. He says you should go up to the infirmary immediately."
Fear shot through Sam as she hurried out of the control room, screaming to Hailey, on her way out, to keep trying to dial the Asgard. Her feet carried her through the SGC as if she had never left. Without a single wrong turn, she finally reached the infirmary, panting and desperate to fill her lungs with air. Her eyes didn't need long to find the two people closest to her heart on their beds, bodies shaken by identical convulsions.
"What happened?"
"It started a few minutes ago. The doctor said that it's most likely Jack's brain starting to shut down, but he can't explain what's happening to Emily."
"It's a mental connection. Jack and Emily, they've been connected for some time. What's affecting him is affecting her."
She could see understanding dawning on the faces of her family and friends. Her dad paled; Paul looked gravely at the floor. There was nothing they, she, could do but watch them die. Behind her, Teal'c's hand settled on her shoulder as a new wave of tremors shook the bodies on the beds.
Suddenly Emily stopped convulsing, her body becoming totally stiff. The erratic heartbeat slowed down and became steady. Unconsciously, Sam stepped closer to the bed where suddenly everything seemed to have gone still. It was a stark contrast to the next bed where nurses and doctors were working busily. Everyone was still looking at Emily in relief and amazement when, suddenly, Jack stopped convulsing as well. Only his heartbeat didn't return to normal. The frantically beeping tone of the machine turned to a single, long never-changing sound. Behind her, Sam could feel Daniel and Teal'c stepping closer to her, though she didn't know if it was to support her or to keep her from doing something crazy. Right now, she didn't care. Her eyes darting between her daughter and Jack. Someone had finally shut the noise of the machine off and left was only the beeping echo of Emily's heartbeat.
Sam's eyes had just turned to Jack for a split second when a white light began to radiate from Emily's bed, shortly followed by an equally pulsing light on Jack's bed. Soon the whole room was filled with a blinding light. There was nothing they could do but close their eyes. Something like a breeze brushed over her cheek and she heard a faint voice whisper.
'Then the traveler in the dark thanks you for your tiny spark.'
Then, Sam knew nothing. Her world turned from brilliant white to black as she fainted, and was, fortunately, caught by Teal'c as she collapsed.
He reeled his line in and cast it out again. Next to him, he felt the movement being repeated and a small splash was heard as the line touched the surface of the still water.
"Jack, Cathy, hurry up. The others will be here soon."
Jack sighed loudly and was rewarded with a grin by the teenager on the chair next to him. He could hear his wife's voice growing louder, a sure sign that she was walking in their direction.
"Tell me again why it is so important that they're coming," he asked his wife who had reached them now and was leaning on the back of his chair. Adjusting his head so that he could see her face, he saw the gleaming sparkle in her eyes as she rolled them.
"Because it's your birthday, Jack O'Neill. Now get going."
"She's right, Dad. I haven't seen Uncle Teal'c in ages."
Jack's head quickly spun around to face his daughter, already packing up her pole, mouthing the word 'traitor' before he started to reel the line in again, constantly muttering about how unfair the world was.
"Stop going all grumpy on me, Jack. I know you're looking forward to seeing them all again just as much as I am."
"Hey, we saw Joy yesterday." He protested loudly when his wife started to walk away again.
"Aunt Joy lives down the street, Dad."
"Okay, that's it. You'll never visit your dear Uncle Danny again. Turning into a traitor on me. You've got to get that from him."
Cathy simply laughed and got up to put her gear away while Jack took his time, still grumbling good-naturedly. A huge shadow suddenly fell over the lake and a hissing sound filled the air, soon replaced by a mechanical noise he knew only too well.
"Oh, here we go." he said to no one in particular as the rings left, revealing Daniel and two kids, who launched themselves onto him as soon as they spotted him, nearly dropping all three of them into the pond.
He finally managed to free himself of the kids and set them on Sam's and Cathy's trails. The rings deposited another wave of visitors on the ground, this time Shmela and Teal'c, who smiled just a bit when his eyes fell on Jack.
Soon the cabin was crowded with people as more and more visitors arrived. Sam's brother and his wife and kids were the last to arrive and Jack soon found that his cabin wasn't nearly big enough to hold his large extended family. Times like these he wondered why they hadn't moved off world after the defeat of the Replicators 15 years ago. It had been so quiet on Homer and it would've been the perfect spot for a nice cabin, down by the lake they swam in so often.
Then again, he knew why they had stayed on Earth. It was why they seldom visited Shmela, the same reason why Sam's eyes turned just a shade darker whenever her eyes settled on her old friend. Emily.
After the defeat of the Replicators, the few left over Goa'uld weren't hard to take out. Hammond had wanted to retire and had talked the Joint Chiefs into offering Jack command of the SGC. Sam had pushed him into it. Daniel and Shmela had moved to Kasmuu, Teal'c back to Chulak. Jacob had stayed on Earth and had found himself a nice little house in the Springs. He said he'd never go back to the Tok'ra, their betrayal had hit him hard. Fortunately for both of them, Tekal agreed with him. All in all, life had been everything Jack had ever dreamed of and yet not.
They had moved to Minnesota two years ago when Jack had handed in his resignation. Sam had worked as a scientist at the SGC up to then; she still did when she was needed, but the now-Lieutenant Colonel Hailey made sure that those occasions were as few as possible.
His eyes traveled over the assembled crowd and, despite the fact that he loved his family dearly, he felt the need to get out. To escape the noise for a few minutes at least, he stepped out onto the patio and walked over to the deck where he sat down, his feet nearly touching the water. The hurt in Sam's eyes when she looked at Shmela was just too much, was too close to his own pain. He couldn't help the groan that escaped him when he heard the familiar steps behind him.
"How's life on Kasmuu?"
"It's good. Cralen's still president, but he refuses to be reelected next year. He's sorry he couldn't come."
"It's okay."
Daniel sat down next to him and, despite the fact that Jack kept his eyes firmly on the water, he knew that Daniel's smile was fading.
Silence fell and, for a while, neither of them said a word to shatter it, but Jack knew what was about to come. It was the question Daniel had asked every time they met each other and Jack grew weary of answering it.
"What happened, Jack? Back then. I mean, I know Emily ascended, I saw that, we all saw it, but you never told me what happened."
Jack sighed deeply and, finally, looked at his friend. How could he explain something like this? He would always feel guilty for what had happened, even though Sam constantly tried to assure him it wasn't his fault.
"Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time there were these people, just like you and me, only smarter." Jack paused, "Okay, maybe just smarter than me. At any rate, they were really nice folks and all but, after some time, they figured out how to live without the restraints of a human body. God knows why they would want to, no beer, no sex, but anyhow. They decided to keep to themselves."
Next to him, he felt Daniel nod impatiently. Daniel knew probably more about the Ancients than Jack did and nothing Jack had said so far was new to Daniel. If the thing he was about to say next wouldn't hurt so damn much, Jack would've grinned. This would knock the air out of his old friend.
"Until they found a little girl, whose genes had been tampered with by many people, none of them human. Those genes allowed the girl to make contact with the mind of a weary old soldier. Through the soldier, she came into contact with the knowledge those folks left behind."
He winced only slightly, remembering his role in the game only too clearly.
"Despite the fact that the soldier wanted her to live and tried to save her, she knew that she could never return to her life, that she had grown more than her human body allowed. Those folks I've told ya about, they knew as well. They helped her finding a new path and everyone lived their 'happily ever after'."
"Sort of." Daniel said quietly.
"Yeah."
Jack smiled somberly at Daniel before pulling himself up to his feet. He patted the still sitting Daniel on the shoulder and walked back to his house, expecting to hear Daniel's hurried steps behind him. But Daniel didn't follow.
He was thankful that Daniel allowed him to gather himself before he had to face his family inside. Leaning at one wall of the cabin, he buried his face in hands and sank down to the ground. Telling Daniel had made him relive everything again. Had made him lose another child. The pain still echoed though – Charlie… Em…
"You okay?"
Too caught up in his thoughts, he hadn't even noticed Sam's approach. She was kneeling next to him, her blue eyes thoughtful.
"I'm okay. Just thinking."
"You told him."
It wasn't a question and he didn't answer. She nodded quickly and framed his face with her hands.
"It was her decision to save your life. Her decision that I should have you, at least, though she couldn't stay."
There was honesty and love in his wife's eyes, but also so much sadness. He pulled her into his arms. Wetness trickled down his neck and he realized she was crying.
When Sam had told him she wanted to have another baby, Jack had been reluctant. How many more children was he supposed to lose, his heart cried. Still, in the end he had given in and Catherine Grace O'Neill had been nothing but a salve for his wounds from the day she'd been born.
The quiver of Sam's shoulders calmed and he pulled them up to their feet, brushing away her tears.
"Wanna go back inside?"
Sam nodded and wrapped her arm around his waist as they turned to leave. A warm breeze blew over them and Jack could've sworn he heard a girl singing 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.' When his eyes turned to face Sam again, he saw a small smile creeping over her lips. She had heard it as well.
A/N: Thank you if you stayed with me this long. I hope you won't lynch me now that we reached the end. I really appreciate all your support and input. Thank you!