The Fortuneteller Part 1-Was, Is and never shalt be
The Fortuneteller Part 1-Was, Is and never shalt be
by Tanwen
Summary: A trip to a new planet gives Sam and Jacksomething to think about.but then she starts acting strangly
Category: Action/Adventure, Humor, Series
Season: any Season
Pairing: Jack/Sam
Rating: PG
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. I have written this story for entertainment purposes only and no money whatsoever has exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author(s).
Archived on: 08/16/03
Hey, not entirely sure where this series is going, so any feedback is gladly welcomed! Hope you enjoy.
The sun beat down far too hotly for Jack's liking, combined with the number of bodies pressed around too closely made the heat almost unbearable. The bazaar like market of this desert planet was teeming with life of all varieties. It seemed that they had stumbled across the planet where every being from all walks of life would come to find whatever they needed on the cheap. It was a great discovery for the world and the rest of his team were having a great time (Daniel examining ancient artefacts, Sam broken ship parts and Teal'c was being very interested in a collection of... thingies being sold by an old and scared Jaffa) but to him, it was just another planet with far too much sand for anyone's liking. There were too many shifty characters here, and it was making him feel uncomfortable. He sat down on the steps of a now ruined temple in the shade of one of its ways and started to take off his boots and pour out the sand from them.
"Good morrow sir" a woman came and sat beside him. A veil, like many of the people here, covered her face and a light gold coloured cloak that covered her head. From the little of her body that he could see he could tell she was young, 20 maybe, and that she didn't stay out in the sun as much as most of the people her.
"Um, hi" he said eventually.
"I see you have found the Steps of Annyarah! Are you interested in her
teachings?"
"Sorry, I haven't a clue who Annyarah or her teachings." There was
something in those eyes and that voice that made him want to be polite and avoid his usual sarcasm.
"Ahh. Annyarah was the goddess to whom this temple was dedicated, though the temple has fallen and she is mostly forgotten, though some of us still remember and pass on her ways. She was the Lady of Fate and Prophesy. Today I am forced to sell her sacred prophesising ways to live... but I believe it is her will that I should give tell you a prophesy as a gift."
"Thanks, but I'm not a great fan of Fate. I prefer to think that I control my own destiny."
"Yes, yes, perhaps I am wrong. No, it is not you she wishes, no. But someone close to you in every way imaginable." The woman looked at him with her strange honey brown eyes, staring further than she could physically see, but Jack didn't seem to mind. She turned away, he followed her gaze to see his 2IC coming forward.
"You," the woman said softly, "Yes. Yes I see it no, though it would be very easy to confuse the two. Come sit here and let me foretell for you the future
"Umm, we really should be getting ba..." she said as the woman took her hand and lead her to sit down.
"Oh come on Sam, it's just a bit of fun." He tried to make his interest as unobvious as possible. "Afraid she's going to tell you you're going quite your job to be a happily married mother."
"It will not take long. Only as long as the Colonel takes to put his boots back on."
Sam couldn't resist the voice. She looked into those mesmerising honey brown eyes and found her hand being pulled forward as the noise of the market seemed to fade, and all she could hear was the beating of her own heart and the soft voice of the fortune teller.
"Ahh," she said running a gold ringed finger over the lines in the Major's palm. "You have had much pain in your life, more than you should have done. You have sacrificed much for others, with little in return, but soon this will change. Within your life are three great loves. One that was, one that is and one that never shalt be. The first you thought you knew, but you were wrong, and so will not make that mistake once more. The second you do not love yet or perhaps you do but don't know it, the line is blurred and confused, but you shall know soon, and love with all your soul. And the last. The last is that that never shalt be. This causes much sorrow in your life. More than you though it would. But I cannot see why it cannot be. Your future is blurred, almost as if it has been changed. I have seen this only once before. Ahh. I see. You had a choice in your destiny, a rare occurrence, but this choice has been removed from your life. I wonder why. That is all I can tell for now." The fortune teller looked up, catching Sam's eyes, and holding them once more for a moment. Sam could tell that she was smiling beneath her veil as she slowly closed her eyes and opened them again and then stood. "The only the other things I can tell you is that we will meet again. Farwell...Samantha."
Sam watched as she walked into the crowd and disappeared. She looked at the spot that she had disappeared into the crowd and wondered. She thought about how she knew those things she kept in her heart, but then she remembered those eyes. Those eyes could see right into your soul, hold onto your heart and never let go. She thought about what she had said. 'One that was, one that is and one that never shalt be'. She felt a strange feeling in her heart, it wasn't joy knowing that she would be loved and happy or apprehension at who it might be, but a strange feeling she couldn't put into words. Almost fear, almost worry, almost elation. They would meet again. How did she know?
"Well that was strange." She had forgotten Jack had been there, listening to the whole thing. She looked at him, broken from her chance when something suddenly leapt to her attention.
"Did you tell her my name?"
"No, why?"
"Neither did I."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Sam sat on her sofa at home in the dark with a cup of coffee in her hand, a
bandage on her hand. On her way back to the gate she had tripped over a goat that had been in the way and cut her hand on some glass. It wasn't too bad, but it meant that she wouldn't be able to do any work for the next few days, and so she was just sitting on the sofa staring into her full mug of stone cold coffee. She had been thinking about it for sometime now. It shouldn't affect her this badly, but there was one question that plagued her. One that every time it came into her head made her try her best to push it out again, but one that she needed to ask.
Which was Jack? Was, is or never shalt be?
She had loved him, but now she wasn't sure anymore. The decision had been
taken out of her hands now. Was that because she had joined the army? Was her choice in her destiny taken from her because of some regulations placed in her way. No that couldn't be it, that's how she'd met him. But then what about the Sam from the other universe. She buried her head in her arms as her head filled with questions, confusing her. Years ago she had resigned herself to the fact that she would never be able to be with Jack, and buried her feeling as deep as she could, but now...
She stopped thinking suddenly. She decided it was time for bed. All that was going to happen at the moment was that she'd give herself a headache in the morning. She distracted her thoughts by thinking of the anomaly the computer had registered when they stepped back thought the gate, and how best it was to work the glitch out of the computer. She walked over to the kitchen to pour her coffee down the sink. Suddenly realising she hadn't switched the lights on she walked in a table, banged her knee and swore, dropping her coffee onto he white rug. She swore again, much louder. In the dark she bent down to look for the mug and didn't notice as something heavy came into contact with the back of her neck and she fell unconscious.
Six days later Sam was walking through the corridors of the SGC with a folder in her hand, what now only looked like a scratch on her hand and no sign of even a bruise on the back of her neck.
"Good morning sir!" she spoke brightly as she saw Jack walking towards her with a smile on his face.
"Major. How was the down time? Get a life yet?"
"Oh you'd be surprised at what you can do with six free days." He didn't miss
the devilish tone in her voice.
He's been over to see her the day after they got back to talk to her about what
the fortune had told her, but she'd been busy. She wasn't the only one who needed to know where Jack stood in the standing of things. It had taken him all day to get up the courage, but then she'd turned him away. 'One that was, one that is and one that never shalt be'. He wasn't sure whether to hope or despair. He wasn't sure if he loved her anymore either, but in the days he'd decided that whatever was going to happen, was going to happen, and their was nothing much either of them could do to stop it.
"Ready to get back to work?"
"You better believe it! But I've gotta get the all clear from Janet first, see you
sir."
Jack watched her walk down the corridor. There was something different
about her walk, but the not instinctive thought that he shouldn't know that pushed that from his mind as he walked to find someone to annoy.
"Sorry I'm late"
Sam came into the briefing looking slightly flushed and her erratic breathing
showed that she had been running. Smiling nervously in apology she took her chair and turned to see what Daniel had been talking about for the past twenty five minutes, after Jack's speedy report on how there appeared to be no danger on the planet. Frowns looked at her from all around the table as she gave Hammond an 'I'll explain later' look and Daniel carried on.
"As I was just saying that a MALP sent back an image of some ruins on a planet we recently connected with. These are the ruins on the right seem to be of a culture similar to that found on P3X-238. Now, the ruins on 238 were in a far greater state of disrepair than these ones seem to be, but the ones on 238 told us of 'a great warrior from the stars whom built and taught the great roads of the stars, so that the Selnat', that's the people of the planet, 'could spread through out the universe and become prosperous'. You can see where I'm going with this?"
"Of course I do, but for Teal'c and Sam's benefit, why don't you tell us." Sam smiled slightly, her eyes flicking to Jack momentarily.
"These people, the people who built the temple, were acquainted with the makers of the 'great roads of the stars'"
"The Stargates?"
"Exactly!" said Daniel throwing his file on the desk in his excitement. "Now
this temple looks maintained. If there are still settlers on the planet then..."
"They could still be in contact with the builders of the Stargates" Sam finished
off for him.
"Do you see the implications?"
"Humour me"
"Sir, we could actually get to meet the builders of the Stargates. Think of all
the things that we could learn, not just about the Stargate, but all the other things they must have done."
"Okay Major, calm down. We don't even know that they're the same people yet. When do we ship out?"
"10 00 hours. Are you all done Dr Jackson."
"Well I was going to talk about the similarities it bore to..."
"He's done, sir."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Trees. Always trees. Or sand. But usually trees.
Daniel and Teal'c were in temple; Sam was checking the soil for traces of
anything, which left it to Jack to make sure they weren't about to be attacked by a group of rouge anything's. Jack decided that it was time to look for any signs of a settlement of these people who might know the stargate's builders.
"Sir" He turned to see Sam walking up to him to pack her things away in the bag she'd left by the DHD, "I'm all done here, and those two look like their going to be a while. Maybe we should go and..."
"Have a look for any of these settlements, my thoughts exactly. Better not go too far a field though, just in case we run into any trouble. If I don't do something soon I'm going to have to kill someone."
"I'll just go tell Danny and Teal'c. See you on the ridge in five minutes?"
"Sure." He and Sam seemed to be able to pre-empt each other's thoughts more
and more in these recent months. Something seemed to be growing between them, something that he didn't know quite what. It wasn't love, he'd gotten over that a long time ago. It was something different he'd never felt before. They knew each other better than themselves, or anyone else. He knew that she could tell him anything, and she knew the same. They knew that know they were safe with each other, now that all possible romantic feelings were gone or suppressed to nothingness. He only hoped that what the fortuneteller had said hadn't changed anything.
He walked over to the ridge and sat there. He watched as Sam entered and left the temple a few minutes later. She ran a few steps, looking around at the scenery before catching Jack's eyes on the ridge. Her steps faltered for a moment as she smiled at him, like she hadn't smiled at him for quite a while, did she really feel safe enough to give one of 'those' killers to him. Perhaps she didn't even know. Perhaps it was time to stop thinking.
"They say that they'll met us later and we should radio in if we find anything. Shall we go?"
The lake looked beautiful in the twilight. They'd found it an hour ago, and were waiting by it until the other two members of SG-1 arrived. The water was boiling, the camp was made and so Jack and Sam were sitting on the edge of the lake admiring the view.
"Wow."
"It's really something, isn't it. Maybe I'll bring my 'One that is' back here
someday."
"So you've been thinking about that a lot huh?"
"Well wouldn't you? The thing is, I have no idea who is what. The one that
was, well that's probably Jonas, after all I was engaged to the guy. The other two, they just confuse me."
"I'd be more worried about the 'your fate being changed' thing. She was a strange woman."
"Indeed she was." Sam's tone became low as she looked away and grimaced to herself.
"Wha' did ya say?"
"Hmm, nothing" her eyes flashed back and her smile returned. "Umm...
Jack... about the whole Fortune teller thing, could you not tell anyone. They'd just kid about it, but it's really bothering me."
"Why's that? Aren't you glad that you're going to have someone? I know I would. Who'd ever want me now."
"Aww come on Jack. I'd have you any day if it weren't for the regs."
Something was up. Not only had she called him by his first name (something
that despite their new connection they had never started doing) but she'd brought up those feelings again, even if it was only as a joke. He opened his mouth to say something when Daniel yelled at them.
"Hey guys! I can't wait to show you what we found."
"Here we go again" Sam whispered in his ear as she walked away from his
stunned form.
"Is it just me or is Sam..."
"Acting really weird lately, yeah"
Jack sat looking at sleeping Sam on the opposite bed as Janet gave him his
check up. Sam had managed to work herself almost to death in just under a week after returning from their mission by the lake. She'd shut herself in her office, then dashed off home without saying anything and snuck back in again without talking to anyone. It appeared that when she was at home she hadn't been sleeping, as she had collapsed earlier from exhaustion. Sure Sam was the definition of a workaholic, but even this was excessive, especially as there was no real reason for it. Neither the world, nor any of her friends were in any immediate danger. There was no reason for her to be working all hours of the day and night.
"Do you wanna talk to her or should I?"
"I'll do it. I'll take her home and talk to her then" Jack offered after a pause.
He had more of an idea of what it might be about due to an extra bit of information he had.
"Hey, what's all this about. Where am I?"
"Sam, you're awake. Now you're going home to go back to sleep. For a week.
And not do any work. Understand?"
"Yes Ma'am"
"Okay, Jack, take her home. Oh but I'll want to see you tomorrow. But not
until the afternoon. Sleep, rest and relax until then"
"What's going on, Carter?"
"What are you talking about, Jack?" She said it again.
"You almost killed yourself and I don't know what for, that's what I'm talking
about. What is wrong?"
"Well, a girl's gotta have her secrets. Couldn't have you knowing
everything, now could I?" There was something a bit too suggestive in her voice for Jack' liking. She dropped her jacket over the back of her chair and looked at him with what had suddenly become very dark and shadowed eyes. She stepped forward, moving her teeth down to bite her lower lip as she looked at Jack like he was a bowl of blue jello after a particularly long misson.
"Sam?" He said taking a step back from her. She quickly closed the gap again so that she was almost touching him. He stepped back, but found that a wall prevented him from going any further. Suddenly Sam's form pinned him to the wall, running her teeth along the top of her bottom lip and blinking slowly. "What are you doing?"
"Something I should have done a long time ago. I want you Jack, I want you now!"
"Sam, I thought that we had an agreement."
He grabbed her wrists and side stepped to where he felt more comfortable. As
much as he wanted to do what she did, she wasn't herself and he couldn't take that step when she was like this. Or at any other time, he had to remind himself.
"I don't remember saying anything. Do you? Or are you talking about some... silent thing? I don't care I want you. Don't deny that you don't want me too"
"Look, Carter" he made a point of using her surname, "I'm really flattered but you're not yourself, I'll just be going..."
Suddenly she leapt at him, throwing him to the floor. She was like some kind of wild animal, tearing at his shirt and trousers.
"I've never been more myself. This is me. The real me. I'm tired of being boring old Sam Carter. I want to live. I want to be thrilled. And I want you."
Jack pushed back at her with all his strength and flipped her so that he was on top of her. Anger flashed across her face for a moment, but was soon replaced by an evil grin.
"So he does want to play! Come on mister, you know you want to."
For a brief instant that seemed to last for ages, he stopped fighting back and
looked at her.
'NO' his mind screamed at him. 'GET OFF HER AND GET OUT!"
But his muscles wouldn't obey. They screamed for her. They wanted her too.
As his grip weakened she pulled up and slid a hand behind his neck through his hair and lifted her lips to touch his. Softly she kissed him, and he felt himself kissing back. She gripped the back of his neck tightly suddenly, and hungrily attacked him with her lips. The sudden pain reconnected the connection between brain and body and he pulled away. Without meaning to he threw her across the hallway and into a wall. She hadn't hurt herself, but all the passion and want in her eyes turned to sudden and furious anger. She had slid into the kitchen and was now clawing on the work top, her fingers closing round a kitchen knife. Without waiting to see what was going on Jack stumbled up and out of the door. He didn't even look back until he had reached the safety of his car.
Jack knocked on the door apprehensively, even though he knew there was no one home. Sam's car was gone so she was probably at her check up with Janet. That should buy him a few hours while he looked around her house. He knew that something was up with Sam, and so he decided he needed to look around and find what she was doing in the early hours. When there was no sound inside, he took the key that he knew was in the plant pot in the doorway. "Hello?" he called into the house he already knew was empty. "Sam, you home...no? Good."
Quickly stalking through the house he opened every draw he found and rummaged through, leaving them in the state he found them. He looked through all the files in her study, her kitchen, her bedroom (but he didn't linger very long in that room) and found nothing. He knew that he was missing something but he had to be sure that he wasn't there when Sam got back, or this time she might skip the rape and go straight to trying to kill him. Half an hour after getting in, he had found nothing, and now fear of being caught was compelling him to leave. He was half way out the door when he noticed it. In the middle of the hallway was a bookcase where a bookcase shouldn't be. He looked at for a moment and then decided to investigate. He pushed against it, and found that it slid away easily to reveal a door that looked like it led down to a basement. He knew he couldn't ignore it, but Sam could be home any minute. He wrestled with his thoughts for a moment and then pushed open the door and looked down the steps into a grotty little basement. The smell was disgusting. Now he knew he had found what he was looking for. Covering his mouth and nose with the sleeve of his jacket he went down the stairs and looked around in the gloom. He couldn't see anything at all, it was far too dark. He felt the light switch beneath his fingers, when he heard the noise from the corner.
"Hello!" he spun in the dark before frantically flinging his arm back and finding the switch once more. Blinded for a second, he looked back to the corner and froze.
"Oh my God..."
There, curled in the corner, bound, gagged and chained to the wall, beaten and bruised with dried blood staining her skin, was Sam.
Jack ran forward. His limbs suddenly fuelled with panic, he took the beaten form in his arms and watched her shake as she cried tearlessly. Quickly he eased the gad from her mouth, and her sobs echoing round the small, cluttered room. He looked round the room as she cried into his arms. Remains of her meals, a filthy blanket to sit on, bloodstained tools obviously used to inflict her deep wounds. Wounds. They were already healing, the deep sores around her ankles and wrists were starting to scab over and break open again as the metal cut into them again, most of her bruises were old and she looked like she hadn't eaten properly in a week. This was not the same woman who had attacked him yesterday.
"Shh. It's okay, I'm here don't worry." He soothed stroking her hair as she gripped on to him and buried her face in his jacket. Something in the corner caught his eye and he reached out to grab it. Sam grabbed back at him, her frail form had hardly any strength at all. He took her withering hands in his to show he was still near by, and reached over to grab the wire cutters that were on a shelf. With in a minute he had cut the chains around her, and lifted her into his lap as her sat on the floor. He rocked her gently back and forward for a full five minutes, quietly reassuring her. Conscious that the other Sam might return any minute, when she stopped sobbing so violently he lent her forward and brushed the hair that had been plastered to her cheek by sweat.
"Can you stand?" He whispered to her quietly. She shook her head as she fought back the tears that couldn't come even if she wanted them to. "Okay." He took the blanket she had been sitting on and wrapped her up, covering her head to protect her eyes that wouldn't be used to the sunlight and scooped her up in his arms. She was worryingly light.
"What happened?"
He had pulled into an alley as soon as they had gotten far enough away. He had found her some water and something to eat in his bag, and cleaned her up as best as he could. He couldn't tell how long she'd been down there, but it was much longer than it should have been. He should have known sooner that the Sam in the SGC wasn't his. Maybe he had, but refused to admit it. He didn't know, but he knew that now they were both in a lot of danger.
He carried on stroking her face, her entire body shaking, just letting her know he was there, though he doubted that she was even aware of who was holding her tight and keeping her safe.
"She... she... mind reading ... she knows... everything... how to...she could... oh God." Sobs swept through her body again. "But why?! She knew... everything... it was... fun... for her! She took my life... just lifted it out of my head... taunted me with all the things she was going to do. I... she said she was going to kill you!" She suddenly fell quiet and pressed herself into Jack again, grateful to be near a human being who didn't want to torment her again. "Hey, I'm alright. Who was she?"
"I don't know. She said she was... hired, but by who or why... she loves seeing others suffer... I... I... I just want to get away from her!" Anger mixed in with her anguish now as she became filled with hatred at what had been done to her. Jack held her close again, whispered to her again, let her know he was there again.
"Where is... she, now?"
Sam's voice shaked as she asked, scared at what the answer might mean. "Back at the base... I think."
"Jack?" His heart skipped a bit as she said his name, it shouldn't have done, but it did. He leant her back and looked into her tired but determined eyes. "Let's get the bitch!"
"Something is up with that woman."
"Hmm, what?"
Daniel looked up at her over his file and coffee, suddenly aware someone was
talking to him.
"Sam. There is something wrong with her."
"Yeah, I noticed that too. I'm sure it'll pass. It always does"
"But what if it doesn't? What if something is really wrong? Maybe we should
go talk to her?"
"I thought Jack was going to do that?"
"He did... or he was going to. Where is he anyway? Hammond is going to get
military on his ass if he doesn't get in soo... talk of the devil!"
Janet looked up to see as Jack walked in carrying something big in his arms.
She had seen that look on his face before; concern for a friend mixed concern for his own safety, looking over his shoulder as if he was being chased by something.
"What's wrong?" Daniel had read the look too.
"Is Sam here?" From his tone you think he was asking about whether there
were 300 jaffa round the corner, not if one of his best friends was around.
"No. I think she's in the commissary, why?"
"Because it's not her."
Janet looked on in horror as he put the shabby bundle on the nearest bed,
pulling it back to show a beaten, unconscious, mess that was the real Sam. It took a moment for her to regain her senses, but she immediately leapt into doctor mode and began shouting to her nurses.
"What the..."
Daniel was not so quick to recover. It took him several moments before he
could even manage to vocalise anything. The friend he had just talked to a few minutes ago was now lying on a gurney, covered in blood and all other manner of filth. He looked around to find the man who might be able to give him some answers, but found the area that Jack had occupied a few moments ago was empty...
Jack stormed down the corridors until he came to the commissary. A sudden realisation struck him. He had no weapon. Quickly checking himself, he patted himself looking for something, anything, he could use to subdue this animal. Strapped to his ankle he found it. His combat knife. He's put it on this morning in case he'd had to use it against Sam, hoping it would inflict less damage than a bullet. It wasn't much, but it would have to do.
He walked into the commissary, and tried to look inconspicuous, a skill he'd become quite good at over the years. He nodded to someone he knew as he made his way over to where he had seen 'Sam' sitting, avoiding eye contact with her. He glanced over quickly, to make sure that the person getting up wasn't her. Unfortunately, she chose that moment to look up too. Their eyes locked for a second and she knew.
Throwing her knife at him to slow him for a second, she darted for the nearest door, knocking over her table in the process. He quickly jumped it and ran after her as she slammed the door behind her, dodging the obstacles she threw in her way as she bolted through the corridors of the SGC. Anything that could be knocked over to hinder his way was sent flying to the floor, from water coolers to people to a critically injured soldier being pushed to the infirmary on a gurney. Jack ignored them, never taking his eyes of the doppelganger for more than a few moments. She dodged into hallways, doubled back, ducked into rooms around the corner until he passed, but he could always tell where she was. Years in the army had taught him every trick there was. The rest of the SGC looked on in wonder as he chased his 2IC through out the base. Left. Right. Ducking as she threw things at him. You had to give her credit. Whoever she was, she was fast and could throw very accurately. Jack's head was already bleeding from a tool she'd thrown at him. He heard as people yelled at him about what was going on, but he ignored them, and kept after her. The same animal instincts he had seen yesterday seemed to have reappeared once more, sending her into a frenzy. But this time her violence was to help her survive, and that was far more dangerous.
It was only a few minutes before either of them stopped, but it felt like hours, and then it was out of necessity. 'Sam' ran into the gate room, suddenly realising that it was a dead end. Turning she saw her escape blocked by Jack. Looking around only confirmed what she already knew. There was no other way out. She was trapped. But an animal is most dangerous when its cornered, and they both knew it. He grabbed one of the airmen's guns and screamed at them to get out and close the door. "What ya gunna do, Jackie boy? Gunna kill me? You can't!" "Give me one good reason? You're not Sam, why shouldn't I" "Try it. Go on. Try and kill me. Pull the trigger against her your precious Sam!"
Jack tried to ignore the words, tried to pull the trigger, tried to remember that this wasn't Sam. He tried and failed. 'Sam's' face broke into an evil grin as she saw him lower the gun.
"There's a good boy." She began to back up the ramp to the Stargate. "Now, get them to open the 'Gate for dear old... ha, 'Sammie'" she spoke the name with contempt.
Suddenly something in Jack broke. He ran forward, throwing the gun to one side as he leapt at her. Screeching and scratching she slashed out at his face and kicked him. She fought with every dirty trick she knew, but he was stronger this time, and he had a weapon. He still held his knife in his hand. She felt as its cold tip scratched over her face, cutting deep enough to leave a scar. Then came her brake. From somewhere a shot rang out around the room. That slight distraction coupled with an unexpected adrenalin surge gave her the sudden power to twist him and grab the knife from his hand.
Jack tried to see who had fired the shot, but the knife was pressed so closely to his neck that he couldn't turn his head much. "Oh..." said his captor "It's you. How did you get out my little puppet." "Shut up!"
Jack recognised the voice before she stepped into view. Sam. The real Sam. She could barely stand, and she was bleeding even more from when she had run away from anyone who had been trying to stop her. She'd picked up the gun that Jack had discarded, and was now pointing it at her former captor. "I'm not going to give into you this time. You can't control me" "Sammy, my dearest. Perhaps you haven't noticed, but... I am going to get away. See, if I don't then your precious Colonel is going to die." "DON'T call him that!"
"Ohh, struck a nerve have I? But then, I knew it would. I know everything that goes on in your head."
"You don't. Not anymore. I've changed. You've got old information" "Oh what, now the puppet thinks that she's a real girl! You can't change who you are Sammy, you'll always just be a weak, insignificant, little girl stuck in a man's world. Think they care? HA! You're just some piece of show candy, some little bimbo who had the dumb luck to get herself a PhD" "I'm not listening to you anymore. I'm stronger than that. Stronger than you." "No, Sammy dearest. You're not. You never will be and deep down you know it. Look at you. You have to hide behind a gun to feel safe." "And you have to hide behind a man you can't kill." "Ahh, yes, but Sammy, this is different. I can't kill him because then you'd kill me. He's my safety net. You can't kill me because you'd risk me killing him, or worse, you missing and killing your precious Colonel yourself instead. Your just a weak, scared, little girl... nothing more!" "SHUT UP!"
"Don't listen to her Carter!"
"Shut up you!" She twisted the knife against his neck enough to cause a drop of blood to trickle clearly down the side of his neck. "Ahh, humans. So easy to break, in every way. A piece of metal will kill you. A few words will break you. Just got to know what you're doing. Isn't that right me preci... AH!" Her shout was drowned out by the shot. She staggered back half a step but kept a firm hold around Jack. It seemed to be the force of impact rather than the injury that affected her more. She stared down at the wound in the leg that was already bleeding severely like it was a paper cut. The real Sam seemed to be more affected; the jolt of the blast had made her frail form wobble dangerously "You shot me! Bitch! These were my favourite trousers. Or rather they were your my favourite trousers. Maybe there is something more to you I haven't seen before. But I tire of these games. WHY HAVEN'T YOU OPENED THE GATE YET!" She screamed towards the control booth, but they didn't do anything. "You, nothing, tell them to open the gate...NOW!" "Never" she was starting to get agitated. Maybe that was something that they could use to their advantage.
"Look, Samantha, tell them to open the gate, or the blood of your Colonel will be on your hands." She twisted the knife further so that more blood flowed down his neck.
"You can't. You said it yourself. You can't kill him, or I'll just kill you." She was at a loss of words. Blazing fury flashed through her eyes but then sudden hysterical laughter came from her throat. "Well done! Well done! You've won my dearest Sammy. No matter. I need not your puny machines to get me home." Shifting her hold over Jack, she held out her right wrist to the gate and yelled something in a foreign language. A beam jumped from the 'watch' on her wrist to the gate, and suddenly the event horizon leapt into existence. "Fare thee well my Major and Colonel." She backed to the event horizon, still clinging to Jack. "I hope to see you again. I need payment from you for this" she held out her leg towards Sam, "And this... from you my dearest," she said flicking the knife to the heavily bleeding scratch over he left eye. "Here's part of it now!" She let go and jumped back through the Gate, still laughing hysterically. The event horizon held for a moment and then flickered out of existence, and both soldiers collapsed to the floor as it did.
"Sir! She's awake"
Sam woke to a shadow leaning over her and footsteps running towards her. As soon as she could see better she saw that her team, Janet and Gen. Hammond, surrounded her... well most of her team. She painfully lifted herself up to a sitting position to find herself clean and covered in bandages. Her eyes roamed around for her CO and saw him sleeping in the bed next to her, a bandage around his neck. She was soon informed that in her rush to escape, the alternate Sam had taken the time to slash Jack across the throat. Deep enough to hurt him, shallow enough for him to recover. The woman, whoever she was, was a professional. But Sam already knew that. As soon as they were sure she was all right, they quizzed her about what had happened.
"She followed us through from the planet with the market about two weeks ago with some invisibility thing. She followed me home and then knocked me out. Apparently she had some device that doesn't just read a persons mind, but actually lifts their entire mental pattern out of their heads, and downloads it into hers. Not just memories, but behaviour patterns, all your quirks, the way that you walk and talk, all the subconscious things we do so that she could act exactly like me. I don't know why she chose me; she had no concern about the Stargate program, or about what she could do with the information. All she seemed to want to do was torment me." Her voice faltered. She took a deep breath that rattled in her weak body. She felt her friends' supportive hands on her shoulders, and knew that she was safe again. She looked out of the corner of her eye as she saw Gen. Hammond sneak out of the infirmary, no doubt to make some emergency changes in case the information had been sold to their enemies. "I don't know who she was, or where she came from, or even if she really looks like me but I think she's a one off. She's totally crazy, and I don't think that's just by Earth standards. But she'll be back, if she say's she'll be back, she'll be back."
Sam had managed to remain a fairly calm tone to her voice, but she began to crack towards the end. She was obviously terrified of this woman. "Okay, I think that Sam's had enough for now. She needs to rest. Everybody out. See you later." Janet ushered everyone out of her cubicle as she left her friend to sleep.
"Do you think she'll be alright, Doc?"
"Physically Daniel, she'll be fine. Mentally... that could take a while." Sam lay down on her side and looked across to the man in the bed next to her. She painfully thought back to the last weeks, how many times she had been forced to confront her feelings for him or the number of times she'd been beaten with them. She smiled quietly to herself. She knew that things would be all right now. He had rescued her, he had seen through her captor's perfect faade, he had been there. At least now she knew that she had a friend, if nothing more. With a serene look on her face, for the first time in weeks she fell into a peaceful sleep.
A nurse that no one had ever seen before walked into the infirmary unnoticed. She walked straight over to the beds were CO and 2IC were both sleeping serenely. A smile played across her lips as she saw his eyes flicker open and blink slowly. He tilted his head to see the woman facing him in the next bed and thought back to the woman that had fooled him and his friends the day before. What had finally made him snap. Oh yes. If he couldn't call her Sam, then that... that... thing had no right to. He smiled knowing that one day he would, if he had to move heaven and hell, he would call her Sam, and drifted back into sleep without noticing the woman standing over him. She ran her delicate fingers over his shoulder, causing silent sparks where skin touched skin. She looked at the pile of things on the table next to him and picked up the glass of water. She stared at her eyes reflected in it, they were the colour of dark honey, and bent to take a sip. She let a drip of water run from of her lips into the glass again and for a fraction of a second it turned the water crimson before it returned to its normal clarity.
"Just a little gift, my friend to help you onto the right track. Stage 1: Complete."
She put the charmed water back onto the stand, ready to work its magic on him. Then, the nurse nobody conscious had seen before left the infirmary, never to be seen there again.
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