She knew all the "what ifs." That was the blessing and the curse if ubiquitous intellect; she could tell you just how your Hail Mary plan would fail and how soon and painfully you would die. She never told them though. She wouldn't be the one to crush their naive innocence. Was it better not to see the end coming? She wasn't sure. Was she ever that innocent? Yes, she remembers and she waits for the end. She was…

Every conduit in sight was sparking, crystals pulsed and exploded behind her turning her blonde hair every color the rainbow and singing her pale skin. "Colonel we can do this! I just need a few minutes to think. If I can harness enough power I might be able to tie the transporter into the long ranges sensors and…"

"Two minutes, Carter," her commanding officer shouted over the cacophony. He waved two fingers in her face. "Two minutes and we're out of here if I have to shoot you! Is that understood?"

"Yes, Sir. Thank you, sir." Major Samantha Carter, turned on her heals and ran back into the smoke filled room. She knew Colonel O'Neill would give her the time she needed. She also knew that he had no other choice. If they had a snowballs chance in hell of getting out of this alive it was up to her.

"One minute, 40 seconds." He yelled back over his shoulder as he toward the bridge of the tattered ship. She could do it. He knew she would do it. She had always managed to save their collective asses in the nick of time. MacGyvering a bomb, blowing up a sun, whatever it took to get the job done. He counted on that, depended on it. As he pounded back down the corridor he realized the burden he had continuously placed on her: if you fail you die; if you fail we die.

"Carter, your two minutes are up. Let's go!" Jack had reached the bulkhead door, but he was 10 seconds to late to stop her.

She had done her duty to her country, her team, and herself. She had saved them all. The core was overloading and there was no stopping it. She pulled wires, moved crystals, typed faster that she thought possible, but it was inevitable. The ship would be torn apart. There wasn't enough power to run and nowhere to hide. So she pulled a Hail Mary. Not for herself, but for the three others that had remained on board the Odyssey with her. The other members of SG-1 that refused to beam to safety with the rest of the crew, the ones that wouldn't leave her side unless she forced their hand. She did the only thing she could do.

"There's no time, Sir. I need you to trust me on this one."

"Carter, now! Let's go!" The room was sealed from the inside. She had overridden the door, locked him out. "What the hell are you planning, Sam!"

"I'm sorry! It's the only way!" She yelled through the bulkhead. Smoke filled her lungs and burned her eyes, but her hands still moving frantically over the controls. She checked, rechecked, and prayed she hadn't killed them all. "Jack, I'm sorry!"

Before he could process what was happening the steel walls of the ship had disappeared. Jack O'Neill was standing in a field under a blue sky. A Stargate waited stoically in the distance.

"O'Neill."

The voice behind him was unmistakable. He turned to see Teal'c standing beside him. Daniel Jackson was getting to his feet about twenty feet away after being deposited onto the planet. "No." It came out of him in a whisper. Then the sky exploded. "Carter!" The understanding of what had just transpired slammed him in the gut and knocked all sense out of him. He ran with no destination in mind until he fell to his knees, fists slamming into the ground. Daniel and Teal'c were on his heels. "No! Damn it!" Daniel put a hand on his friends shoulder and got a left hook to the side of his head in return. "Get off of me!" Daniel was forcefully thrown back. He stumbled for a moment then Jack went at him again. Fury coursed through the Colonel's veins and came out at the ends of his fists.

"O'Neill, this is not the fault of Daniel Jackson." Teal'c's armed easily subdued O'Neill's struggles as the Jaffa pinned him to the dirt. He fought futilely against his friends support. Daniel was in front of him, nose bloodied and eye swollen. Jack's body shook from adrenaline and shock, then finally collapsed onto the ground. "I recommend we return through the Chapa'ai, Daniel Jackson."

It has been ages since I've posted anything, but I guess I needed my creative fix. More to come quickly I promise. Let me know what you think. As always, be cruel, I can take it. )