Door To Heaven, Part One
Door To Heaven, Part One
by Jenifer
Summary: A member of the Tok'ra crash lands her stolen glider in Cascade Harbor, Washington State. She is recognised by an old flame of her host, Blair Sandburg.
Category: Crossovers
Crossover: The Sentinel
Season: Season 3
Pairing: other pairing
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: minor language
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: 05/14/03
*Disclaimer: I don't own either "The Sentinel" or "Stargate: SG-1." No money has changed hands and no copyright infringement is intended. If you sue, you will only receive my debts.*
*Author's note: Just a couple of quick ones. This story is post TSbyBS, and somewhere in the third season of SG-1.*
X X X
Erica/Maricet angled their stolen glider for entry into the atmosphere, the human praying to God that they wouldn't be automatically shot down by American fighter planes and the Tok'ra wishing it had someone to pray to for the same thing. This was an emergency landing. Neither would ever have even considered coming to Earth like this, but if they didn't make a somewhat controlled landing here and now, they were going to crash either crash on Venus or Mercury or fall into the sun. This was their only shot at survival, so they had to take it.
The glider's computer beeped at them, indicating that all available fuel had been used up. Shit. They would have to dead stick the landing. Erica decided that a water landing would be best and aimed for the Pacific coast. Unfortunately they would be a bit farther north than she would have liked, but at least they would be in territory she knew. In fact, they were probably going to end up in Cascade Harbor, or at least a bit out to sea from it. That was her home town, or it had been before joining the Air Force.
With all the calculations and maneuvers complete for a few moments, Maricet took the opportunity to ask a question. [Do you miss this world?]
Erica smiled. Sometimes. But I wouldn't miss working with you for anything, so don't go getting all guilty on me. I made the choice, and now you're stuck with me.
The feeling of a grin passed along their link. [As you are with me. Somehow I think this little unplanned trip will be very, ah, enlightening.]
Erica's smile widened into a grin and she said aloud, "No doubt. One thing, though. You'll need to stay under while we're here until we can get to the SG-C. We wouldn't want word getting out."
[Of course. We wouldn't want to annoy anyone further than we already have.]
Another beep from the computer got their attention. They made their way through the atmosphere, fighting the turbulence all the way down. As the coast became visible in the coming dawn too quickly, Erica swore softly and sent up another prayer to whomever might be listening that they would survive their landing. Then the craft plowed into the water, slamming the joined pair into the yolk and knocking them unconcious.
X X X
Detectives James Ellison and Blair Sandburg watched from the docks as the strangely shaped meteor crashed into the water. They had been here on a stakeout, but at the sight of the falling star, the superstitious slime ball they had been waiting on to make a move had hightailed it out of the area. Jim cursed their luck, but he didn't bother to try and chase. Louis wouldn't be selling any drugs tonight. He'd run back to his little rat-hole apartment and hide for a week, expecting the world to fall down around him.
Having nothing better to do, they watched as the fiery object plowed into the waters beyond the harbor. Blair said, "Um, is it just me or did that thing seem to be going a little slowly for a hunk of rock?"
He'd been thinking the same thing. "Nope."
Blair looked at his Sentinel. "Could you see through the flame, see what it was?"
He shook his head. Always looking for another test. "No, it was too bright. I had to dial it too far down to get any kind of definition."
The younger detective shrugged. "I guess we'll know soon enough. Should I call it in?"
"No. There'll be enough people panicking over this to overload the phones for a while." Jim looked out at the steaming, boiling section of water. It didn't take too long to cool down and settle. There wasn't much of a shockwave from the impact, not even enough to crest over the edge of the dock. That really was strange. Something was off about this. He thought about it for a moment, then said, "Hey, Chief, I think we should go out there."
Blair looked at him strangely. Mr. Fear-of Deep-Water was suggesting they get on a boat and go out to check on some downed space rock? "You sure about that, Jim?"
He grinned. "Yeah. I can handle it as long as the shore's visible. There's something really strange about that thing, and I think I should check it out. You coming?" He turned around and headed for the small motor boat that was tied behind them. Since it was Louis's neither worried about taking off with it.
It didn't take them long to get there, and it looked like they would be the first to respond. Jim looked over the side of the little boat into the water, making sure to keep his phobia in check. Blair kept a hand on his arm to ground the big man. He peered past the dawn sun light that was reflecting off the surface, past the intervening water to the object at the bottom of the sea. What he saw was shocking to say the least. "It's a plane of some kind. I can see the pilot. He's unconcious but I hear a heartbeat. There's water getting into the cockpit. If someone doesn't get him out of there, he's going to die!"
Just then, a Coast Guard boat arrived. The water was clear enough for anyone to see that the shape at the bottom of the sea was a plane, so the diver who went down had automatically taken a canister of spare air with him. The person inside looked up at the man floating outside her cockpit canopy, an odd look crossing her face. Jim thought the woman was probably a little disoriented. He could only imagine what she was thinking since her last coherent memories were likely to have been in the air. Her face cleared and she raised a hand to touch some control. The air seal cracked, letting water in to the cockpit. He knew that they would have to let the pressure equalize before they could get her out of there, but as it was she was about to be very cold. Hypothermia was going to be a big consideration.
Once the cockpit had equalized, the canopy opened fully, allowing the diver to get in and put the spare air over the mouth and nose of the pilot. Once she could breathe again, she passed out, leaving the diver to haul her to the surface without any resistance. He came slowly to prevent the bends, which would be very fatal to someone with so obvious a concussion. It took about ten minutes to make the slow ascent, the diver being careful to keep the pilot's head immobilized.
Once they had broken the surface, several other people entered the water with equipment. The water was still supporting her at the moment, so they put her on the backboard and put a stabilizing collar on her neck, making sure that everything was completely immobile before pulling her out of the water.
While all this was going on, neither partner could see the figure behind all the men who were trying to save her life. But as they brought the backboard over the side of the Coast Guard cutter, Blair saw her face, and his own flashed in recognition. "Erica!"
Jim looked at his partner. "Erica? You know this girl, Chief?"
Blair nodded. "Erica Long. We used to date when I was still an undergrad. I was seventeen and she was nineteen. We started at Rainier the same year, and from the time we met she was always kind of protective of me. There were several guys still in high school mode that... Anyway, our second year we dated for about six months. Then she got tired of the academic scene and joined the Air Force. I haven't seen her since."
"So what do you want to do?"
"They'll probably take her to Cascade General. You mind taking me over there? She likes hospitals just as much as I do."
It didn't take them very long to get back to shore and head for the hospital. Blair called Simon while Jim drove, telling him that the stakeout had been a bust and why, and that they were going to check on Erica. "All right. Keep me informed, Detective."
"Yes, sir."
X X X
Erica woke to the urgings of her symbiote and friend, Maricet. [Come on, girl. You need to wake up before these fine gentlemen discover something they should not know.]
Men?
[Doctors. They plan on running X-rays first, then a CT scan. Neither is a very good idea with me in here.]
Aloud, she said, "Shit." It came out as a hoarse whisper, warning enough that she was not at the top of her game. Then she began to hear other voices, one she vaguely recognized and several that she did not. She opened her eyes slowly, not wanting to blind herself with the bright lights of a hospital corridor. Her vision gradually cleared and she blinked. She was on a gurney, strapped to it for safety. There were three medical people standing over her and two men in normal clothes. One of the men was tall, with a slightly receding hairline and a militarily short haircut. His ice blue eyes and strong face matched his strong build and all of it screamed military, former or current. The other man was of average height, with long, curly, dark hair that was tied at the base of his skull with a simple elastic band, dark blue eyes and a boyish face. She knew him. "Blair?"
He looked at her, realizing that she was awake. "Erica, you're awake! How do you feel?" She tried to grin, but it only came out as a slight smile. "Do you really want the answer to that?"
Blair grinned back. "Yeah, I know. Broken ribs hurt like a bitch. How's the head? Any dizziness or nausea?"
The doctor closest to him said, "Mr. Sandburg, I am perfectly capable of questioning my own patients."
Erica said, "I'm sure you are, Doctor, but since I won't be your patient, I think we'll just let Blair ask them anyway."
"What do you mean?" The old man looked positively flustered that someone so recently injured in the head could be acting this way.
This needed to be nipped in the bud right now. "I won't be staying, sir. I refuse to stay in hospitals I haven't personally checked out for any reason, for one, and certain scans that you would have to perform on my head and chest would reveal classified information that would get you a thirty-six hour vacation in a US Air Force debriefing room, not your idea of fun, I'm sure."
All five men looked at her like she was crazy for just a bit. Blair was the first to recover. "What kind of classifications would someone need to be able to do this?"
"What did you have in mind?"
"This is Jim Ellison. He's a former Army Ranger and a trained medic. Could he do the scans?"
She looked at the other man. "I appreciate that, but you would be the only one who could handle things, and I know field medics aren't trained to run a CT scan or process X-ray film. You would have to do everything for me to allow it."
Jim nodded. "She's right, Chief. Is there a number I can call to get someone here who can do those things?"
Erica closed her eyes briefly. "I've been under for too long. I don't know the numbers."
Blair was pacing, trying to figure something out. "Jim? What about the loft?"
"Chief..."
"I trust her. We didn't always agree on some things, but I'd trust her with my life. You and I know what to watch for with head injuries. If there were a problem, then we would bring her back." He turned to face her. "And she would then allow what ever had to be done and we'll all sit through debriefing, as long as they don't try to take us out of Cascade."
Grinning at the stubbornness that she remembered so well, she gave a brief nod. That it didn't hurt told her that Maricet was already working on the head injury. "I know I can make sure they don't."
Jim said, "Just one question. Is whatever you're carrying physically dangerous?"
"No. Not at all. The only danger is in people finding out about it."
"Then I don't have any problem with it. Doctor?"
The older man sighed. "I don't like it, but it's the sad truth that these boys have been in here enough to have a working knowledge of how to treat a head injury even without Detective Ellison's training. All right. I'll let you go with them, but I want you two to call me in five hours with an update. If I don't like how things are going, I'll pull you back in and deal with the damned debriefing."
The male nurse took the hint and began unstrapping Erica from the gurney.
X X X
Once they were in the truck, Erica started to settle. She had been very nervous in the hospital, which Jim thought would make sense if she was carrying classified information not only on her person but literally in her head. He could tell that she had been telling the truth, but she also wasn't telling them everything, though that also made sense. He only hoped that whatever was going on didn't end up in his and Blair's laps.
As he drove them to the loft, a trip that was made in silence, Jim started to notice a strange smell. It was fairly faint, even to him, but he could tell that it was actually coming from her, not something she had been around, like her plane. The scent was bugging him severely, and he didn't know why.
When they got to the loft, Erica went to sit on the couch. Blair brought her some tea. "Thanks, Blair."
"No problem. Can you tell us what happened at all?"
She smiled at him. Same ol' inquisitive Blair. "Some. I was undercover in a, um, foreign country. My cover was blown, and I had to get out of there fast, so I went to the hanger and stole one of their planes. A few of their shots made it in, one of them hitting the fuel tank. By the time I got close enough to land to make a good landing, I had no fuel and had to dead-stick it. I couldn't see very well through the flame wall, but the instruments on those things are pretty advanced and I could tell where I was in relation to the land. I was coming in too hot, though. That's why I got knocked out. I was rammed into the console when I hit the water." A massive yawn went through her. "You mind if I sack out here on your couch? I know you have to wake me up every hour or that doctor's gonna come head hunting, but I'm so tired."
Blair smiled at her. "Sure. How's lasagna sound for dinner?"
"Ooh! It's been so long... I'd love that! Thanks for putting me up, man. I didn't want to ask-." She stopped, remembering the circumstances of their parting.
Blair shook his head. "I'm not one to hold a grudge, Erica. We'll talk when you're feeling better."
She shot him a grateful smile. "Thanks. I don't know what I'd have done if you hadn't been there. They probably would have called the cops on me." She would have said more, but suddenly she was asleep, the stress of the running and the last few hours catching up to her. Blair smiled as he watched her nod off, then took the afghan from the back of the couch and draped it over her still form.
Jim had heard the entire conversation from the kitchen. As Blair joined him there and started preparations for lasagna, the bigger man said, "She wasn't lying at all. She's not telling everything, but we can't expect her to if she's covert. That'll just get her and us in trouble." Then he sighed. "I noticed something weird, though. She has an odd smell coming off her. It's not exactly a bad odor, though I wouldn't use it for perfume."
Blair looked up from his work with curiosity. "You think it has something to do with her mission?"
"If it does, then she's carrying a biological. The smell is definitely organic, not chemical."
Blair frowned. Surely she wouldn't be carrying a biological weapon inside herself. That would be a stupid risk indeed, especially under cover. If someone shot the container, whatever was inside would get out, and it wouldn't just harm the target.
"Don't assume she wouldn't do it, Chief. You'd be surprised what they can order people to do."
"Maybe, but I doubt she'd have come with us if there were a danger. She's not the kind to endanger anyone else if she's doing something stupid. Is the smell affecting you?"
Jim shrugged. "Not really. I just get an uneasy feeling around her, not enough to get my hackles up, but enough to make me alert."
"It's probably something you instinctively recognize, something that could be a threat. Man, I hope she's been careful with it. I'd really hate for some weird virus to get loose around here or something. And what if this thing was damaged in the crash?"
Jim shook his head. "I don't think so. If anything like that had happened, I'd bet she'd know. They'd have briefed her pretty thoroughly on what to do if there was a break and make sure she would know if it had occurred. That way she'd know how to proceed." He didn't tell Blair that the likely procedure for that event was to get as far inside enemy territory as possible so that the agent would do lots of damage, or that there weren't cures for these things, only bodies. If she had been exposed to that kind of weapon, she would already be dead, because she would have stayed under cover and let herself die to spread the agent. He knew this, but he didn't think Blair did or needed to. It would only haunt him.
X X X
Colonel Maybourne stepped off the military jet and onto the tarmac, breathing in the air of the coastal city. He knew what had been in that crash. He knew that those at the SG-C would be annoyed with him for making that assumption, but he felt it was warranted. After all, who else but the Goa'uld could it have been?
One of his lieutenants came up to him, handing him the report from the Coast Guard. The description of the craft at the bottom of Cascade Harbor was definitely that of an attack glider. There was plenty of evidence that the vessel had been shot at. One of the hits had pierced the fuel tank, probably the reason for the unannounced visit. However, Maybourne had no intention of being lenient for lack of intent. He would have to find the occupant of the glider quickly. It was most likely a Jaffa. The Goa'uld didn't often travel in a lowly glider. The report said that the lone female occupant had been taken to Cascade General hospital.
Maybourne addressed his lieutenant. "Send a team to retrieve the glider from the sea-bottom. I'm going to this hospital to retrieve the pilot. You three are with me." He indicated which of his men he meant and they all got into the black rental car. As they drove toward the hospital, the paranoid colonel contemplated what he might find when he got there, hoping that the SG-C was still outside the loop on this. That would be his only way to ensure that he got the credit for saving Earth from the danger this intruder would represent. He smiled grimly at the thought of finally getting some back for all that Hammond and his pet teams had done to him. They would be forced to realize that Earth was too vulnerable to attack to allow their niceties to continue, and to finally start actively seeking weapons off world, not just making alliances and scientific studies. The non-military attitudes that surrounded the Stargate project were sure to get them all in a lot of trouble some day. They had to realize that the rights of the individual were not as important as the survival of the rest.
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