Work Text:
Jacob Carter had called in every favor he could possibly drum together in the past year. Nobody seemed to have any idea what was happening in Cheyenne Mountain, and any further digging lead to being stonewalled and shut down. He kept close tabs on his daughter and was aware that recently something huge had happened in the mountain. They didn’t bring bombs and set up military cordons for a telemetry station. “Deep space radar telemetry, my ass.” Jacob muttered as he leaned back in his desk chair, glancing at the picture of his family on his desk. Sam had just been promoted as well, now a Major. Jacob knew she was involved in something dangerous. A deep worry churned in his gut. If he couldn’t get anywhere on the phone, he’d just have to see for himself.
Colonel O’Neill, Major Carter, Daniel Jackson, and Teal’c all stood at the bottom of the ‘gate ramp, the chevrons locking in place as they checked their gear.
“Chevron 7 locked”
They all looked up as the gate ‘wooshed’ open, settling into its blue pool.
“SG-1, remember this is only a recon threat assessment mission. If you make contact with any locals, try to use some diplomacy and set it up so SG-9 doesn’t have to undo any hurt egos. Check-in scheduled for twelve hours. Godspeed.” Hammond spoke through the mic as SG-1 started up the ramp, Colonel O’Neill saluting him on his way through, acknowledging the reminder.
General Hammond watched the ‘gate disengage and took a deep breath. They had no idea what they were walking into on this planet. They hit these coordinates by luck, a cold dialing process Major Carter created. The MALP had showed a town in the distance, the buildings rising up the sides of a mountain. He just hoped the locals were friendly.
Jacob arrived at Cheyenne Mountain early in the morning. He had tried calling Sam multiple times the day before, even went by her home and was met with silence. He wore his dress blues and approached the first checkpoint, the young airmen coming off the night shift didn’t fight him as he walked into the main area, reaching a desk next to an elevator.
“Major General Jacob Carter, here to speak to General Hammond and Major Carter about a matter of utmost urgency.”
The airman at the desk looked down at his computer and typed a few things in.
“I’m sorry, General Carter you don’t have clearance to go down. If you wait in the next room to my right, I’ll have either General Hammond or Major Carter come up as soon as one is free.” The airman stood and gestured to his right at a doorway.
Jacob didn’t miss the two guards at the elevator straighten and grip their weapons tighter. Jacob leaned in closer across the desk, his voice lower.
“Check your system again, airman. I have top level security clearance granted from the President himself. The next words out of your mouth better be what floor I can find my daughter and the commander of this base. If you don’t, you’ll find yourself stationed overseas doing latrine duty in a sandy desert.”
The airman seemed to fight internally, his loyalties clearly being tested. He shook as he bent back down to his computer and looked at Jacob’s file more deeply.
“Sir, you don’t have clearance to the project, but you do have high enough clearance I can have you escorted to a meeting room on the same floor. That is the best I can do without breaking several laws.”
Jacob nodded, satisfied that he was getting in. He could do more from there. The airman nodded and escorted him to the elevators, pulling a key card from his pocket. He nodded at one of the guards and he also produced a key card. Together they swiped their cards on each side of the elevator and waited for the doors to open. Jacob could feel his worry churn more at the level of security displayed. The doors to the elevator opened and an airman guarded the doorway, hit weapon at a relaxed but ready position.
“Escort Major General Jacob Carter to level 18 VIP room. Have someone notify General Hammond or Major Carter to his presence if available.”
The guard nodded and stepped back into the elevator, letting Jacob step on as well. The guard pulled another key card and swiped it, pressing a button for level 12, the final button on the panel. The elevator began moving and Jacob’s eyebrows furrowed.
“I believe you were ordered to bring me to level 18, airman, not level 12, how do you plan to do that?”
Jacob bristled as he was met with silence. It took nearly two minutes before the elevator stopped and the guard stepped forward, nodding to another guard standing near another desk, a new checkpoint for them to pass through. The guard escorting Jacob motioned for Jacob to follow him as the second guard replaced them in the elevator.
Jacob watched as those doors closed and the guard next to him took a few steps to their left. Jacob turned to speak and noticed a secondary elevator, this one also coded for key card entry.
They went through the necessary steps and this time Jacob saw the numbers on the button panel start at 12 and go to 22. The ever-increasing security and secrecy had his skin itching. They continued in silence, reaching level 18. The guard stepped off the elevator and nodded to two more guards that stepped forward. Jacob’s head swiveled as the two new guards flanked him and they began walking down the concrete hallways.
They stopped at a blue door and the airman that had escorted him the entire time finally spoke. “If you would, wait in here, General Carter. These two airmen will be on guard and outside the room at all times. You can find a small library, a tv and all necessities inside. If you need anything, let one of them know and we will get it brought to you.” He then opened the door and gestured for Jacob to enter.
Jacob looked around the room, entering what looked like a living room, two doors leading off the back were propped open enough to tell that one was a bedroom and the other a bathroom. Jacob unbuttoned his jacket and walked around the room, wondering what the hell was going on for there to be living quarters down here. Sighing, Jacob took a look at the two bookshelves on one wall and picked up a book to read to pass the time.
Hours went by and Jacob grew impatient. He was hungry and had not talked to anyone. He was sure if Sam knew he was here she would have at least stopped in. Instead, Jacob had heard absolutely nothing. Opening the door, Jacob stepped out to talk to one of the guards.
“Where can a General go to get something to eat?”
The airmen looked at each other then back to Jacob.
“Follow us, sir.”
Jacob fell into place between the airmen as they started down the hallway. Years of service is the only thing that stopped Jacob from flinching as alarms began to ring and General Hammond’s voice came across the speaker, a slight panic very evident.
“All defense teams and medical to the gate room!”
Jacob saw both airmen tense and take a step away.
“You heard Hammond. Go. That was a direct order. I’ll go back to my room.”
Jacob watched them both take off running in the opposite direction, several more boots echoed in the hall around them. Jacob looked around and then straightened his coat, his posture exuding the kind of confidence that only came from years of experience. He walked with a purpose, following the sounds of boots and chaos, all going down a stairwell. He worked his way to a room, the flurry of people moving inside the darker space let Jacob know it was important. He strode up the few steps, one airman running down past him in full combat armor. Jacob didn’t know what the hell was happening, they were 22 floors underground.
“Incoming wormhole!”
“Defense teams standby!”
“This is SG-3! We got them! Open the iris and have a couple crash carts ready! We’re coming in hot, clear the ramp and be ready to lock it up!”
Jacob strode forward, his jaw opening of its own power as he saw the looming gray metal through the window in front of him. He watched as an airman looked up to George Hammond and when he nodded, he reached over and placed his hand on a scanner and Jacob gasped as the center of the ring retracted and a blue glow lit up everything.
General Hammond turned at the sound, his own jaw dropping as he saw Jacob Carter standing there.
“Jacob?”
Gunfire and energy blasts flew through the gate and Jacob flinched back, his eyes focused on the room below them.
“We’ll debrief later. I’ll yell at you then.” George said, his focus shifting back to the room as well.
Jacob watched as a soldier came rushing through the blue circle of water carrying a shaggy haired man, his body limp and blood running down his arm. One by one, between errant shots of weapons coming through, more soldiers came in, a few joining the wall of bodies protecting a medical team at the corner of the room.
The bleeding man was dropped onto a gurney, a short female airman yelling and pointing for him to be removed. Another three people came through, a tall black man with a gold symbol on his forehead being supported between them as he limped quickly down the gate and out the side door.
He felt his body go completely cold as the last batch of soldiers came through, some firing back through the circle as if they were shooting when they stepped backwards through. The two bodies being carried in was his sole focus though. He could recognize one in any crowd.
Jacob watched as the lifeless, bloodied body of his daughter was roughly dropped onto a gurney, the small doctor reaching immediately for Sam’s neck to check for a pulse. Jacob couldn’t hear for the roaring in his ears, but he didn’t need to. He distantly noticed the other man that was brought through with her; his face familiar despite the blood covering him as well. He was shirtless and had a team working on him, the defibrillator already being used on him.
The small doctor though, began yelling orders and Jacob reached for the console in front of him for support as she jumped onto the gurney, straddling Sam’s body and started pumping her chest. The gurneys moved fast out of the room after that, and Jacob felt as though his entire world had shattered.
He felt a hand on his arm and looked to the right, meeting George’s drawn and concerned face. “Come on, Jacob. We’ll go to the infirmary.”
The two men walked swiftly down the hall and Jacob knew he was in shock. He couldn’t remember getting to a new room, this time looking down into a medical suite, his daughter still being worked on. He was silent as he caught glimpses of Sam’s heart rate dropping and then rising again, her body struggling to hold on. He began to come back into his body and he could hear the voice of the female doctor again.
“We need to get her back stitched up first. We can’t keep going through her blood stores, we’ll run out before we get her fully stable. I need someone to turn her, we’re going to have to work simultaneously. I don’t care if it’s pretty right now, just get the deepest ones closed.”
Jacob felt silent tears roll down his face as Sam was rolled to her side, her clothes having been cut off her except some parts of her bra and her pants. Her back was a bloody mess, lines of open wounds crisscrossed her back. There were a few of them closed, the skin around it obviously burned.
The doctor at her back began rapidly stitching, the flowing blood slowing as he controlled the deep wounds. The doctor in front of Sam had begun stitching a wound on Sam’s stomach, Jacob could only guess to be a gunshot wound of some type. He focused on Sam, cataloging everything. She had bruises on most of her body, bloody rope burn marks on her wrists and what looked like rope burns around her neck as well.
The door to their observation room opened and the tall black man that had been escorted through stepped into the room. Jacob knew he was staring, but the man just looked at him, a slight turn of his head before addressing George.
“General Hammond, I have come to update you and the rest of SG-1.”
Jacob watched as George turned and looked the man up and down.
“How are you first, Teal’c?”
The man, Teal’c, lowered his head and then looked back up to George. “I am well enough. My symbiote is healing the rest. Dr. Warner released me from the infirmary so he could assist with the rest of the team’s checks.
“Daniel Jackson has been stabilized. He has received a blood transfusion and a sedative to let his body rest. He had been used for endurance testing. They forced him to run and stay awake the entire time, his physical injuries were sustained as we escaped.
“Colonel O’Neill has also been stabilized. He had been electrocuted repeatedly. He had a wound from our initial capture that needed to be closed.
“The rest of the rescue team only sustained minor injuries.”
George sighed and a large portion of his body relaxed. He turned back to the window and looked down at Sam. Jacob also watched as his daughter was turned over onto her back again and the doctor hung two bags of blood.
Teal’c voice broke the tense silence again.
“I am sorry, General Hammond. I failed them. I did not sense them surrounding us until it was too late. They shot me first in the leg, Colonel O’Neill, Major Carter, and Daniel Jackson fell shortly after. When we awoke in our individual cells, they began questioning us. When they asked Major Carter a, rather personal, question and she refused to answer it, they took offense. While their society seemed to be more technologically advanced, they viewed females as property. When Major Carter refused to answer them at all, they chose to make an example of her in the entire city.”
Jacob swallowed the rise of bile burning the back of his throat. Teal’c had grown silent, his stare focused on Sam as well.
“After Major Carter was put on display in the town center, they somehow learned of the naquadah in her blood. I am unsure of the method of discovery, but we watched as they began her public torture. They spoke of cleansing the evil from her. The inhabitants had some form of projection devices. We were confined to our cells while we, and the entire city, watched this happen to her as if she was directly in front of us.”
Teal’c seemed to sag where he stood and Jacob stumbled back as well, finding a chair to sit in. There were many things he didn’t understand, terms he would ask about later if he could remember.
He watched the room below him slow, the doctors working to clean up their messy stabilization. Jacob flinched as Sam was turned onto her stomach again and both doctors worked slowly, cutting through hastily thrown stitches and replacing them with careful, neat sutures. They covered most of Sam's back in tiny black thread and then covered it all in medicated gauze before rolling her back over.
The female doctor looked up at the observation deck, nodded to General Hammond and then began cleaning up Sam of dried blood. Jacob noticed the doctor’s hand shaking as she carefully stroked a soaked gauze across Sam’s face, redness quickly overtaking the stark white of it.
General Hammond turned to Jacob finally, sighing deeply and pulling up another seat next to him. Jacob didn’t even notice Teal’c stepping out from the room.
“How did you get here, Jake? I know you don’t have clearance.”
Jacob leaned onto his knees, his head supported in his hands as the weight of the world settled onto him. He turned his head slightly, looking not at General Hammond right now, but at his old buddy.
“I was worried about her, George. All she’s ever wanted to do was go to space. I couldn’t understand what happened for her to give that dream up. I couldn’t let it go. I burned through every contact I had to get information. When all my leads hit wall after damn solid wall, I decided to come directly to the source. I bullied my way down and was made to wait, most of the day mind you, in your VIP room waiting to meet with you or Sam. We were on the way to get food when your “all call” came over the speakers. I just followed the rush like I knew what to do.” Jacob sighed and glanced at his daughter again. “You may also want to let the airmen that were supposed to be guarding me know what happened. They may be freaking out right now because I didn’t return to the VIP room like I said I would”
Jacob smiled as George shook his head and stood up, stepping over to a phone on the wall. He spoke to someone for a moment before hanging up and returning to his seat.
“Come on, we can go sit next to your daughter. Dr. Frasier would probably like to talk to you as well.”
The two men made their way down to the room they had just watched Sam be stabilized in. As they walked in, her bed was being placed against one wall, another door opening and the two other beds being brought in holding the other two hurt members of SG-1.
Dr. Frasier, Jacob guessed, looked up at the men as they stepped in, then back to the beds that were being settled against the same wall as Sam.
“I figured I’d go ahead and save myself the headache and extra work. At least if I keep them in the same room, I can probably keep Colonel O’Neill in his bed when he wakes up. Otherwise, he’d just make a break for it and sneak in here anyway.” She said. Jacob could hear the tone of annoyance, but there was a warmth under it that made him curious.
“If you don’t mind, sir, I’m going to go check on the rest of the infirmary. I’ll be back to talk to you shortly.”
George nodded and found two rolling chairs, sitting on one at the foot of Sam’s bed and rolling the other to the side where Jacob stood, staring down at his daughter’s abused face.
They didn’t speak for a while, George allowing Jacob to process some of what he was seeing. He took a deep breath after a while and leaned against the bed.
“I’m not going to lie, Jacob, I’m awfully pissed at you for breaking so many laws that you could have ended up in solitary confinement in Leavenworth. I understand it though. You’ve seen what we do here, even if you don’t understand it. I’ll try to give you the cliff notes version”
Jacob turned and looked at George. He found the stool and pulled it to him, sitting and holding Sam’s hand as he gave George his focus.
“That ring you saw is alien technology. A race of aliens made what we call the Stargate and placed them on different planets all across the galaxies. Each planet and its’ Stargate have a set of coordinates. We dial the gate with the right coordinates and make a connection. When you step through the wormhole connecting them, your body gets broken apart and then put back together as it was on the other side. Are you understanding so far?”
Jacob stared at George like he had grown a second head.
“You visit other planets?”
George nodded and Jacob continued.
“You’ve talked with, aliens?”
George smiled slightly and nodded again. “You just met one, Jake. Teal’c is from a planet called Chulak. He is a warrior.”
Jacob swiveled towards the door then looked up at the observation room again, finally turning back to George.
George chuckled, knowing Jacob’s mind was struggling to wrap his head around this.
“The Stargate Program became an active project again after a race of aliens gated here nearly five years ago. They abducted a female airman and killed several others that were tasked with just guarding the gate. We assembled our team and sent them through to find her. Long story short, we didn’t find her, but we found ourselves dropped into an intergalactic war. Sam, Jack and Daniel were put together as a team designated SG-1, our frontline team. From that rescue mission, they were captured but managed to escape and return home with Teal’c.
“This war we are fighting is against a parasitic race of aliens called the Goa’uld that are determined to enslave the entire galaxy. They view themselves as gods. They forcefully take over a human body and use it as a host to do whatever they want. They have warriors to fight for them. They are called Jaffa. They fight and protect the Goa’uld and in turn, are used as incubators for their young. While the Goa’uld grows inside the Jaffa for years, the Jaffa have increased senses, healing and several other benefits. Teal’c is a Jaffa who has chosen to no longer serve the false gods. Instead, he pledged his loyalty to Earth and its people. He is the fourth member of SG-1.”
Jacob just stared at George, his mouth open. George allowed him to go over everything he said and let it sink in. After several moments, Jacob stood up and began pacing.
“My daughter is an active duty, front line soldier who travels to other planets and is actively fighting a war none of us on Earth are aware of?”
George nodded, pleased that Jacob hadn’t hit him or fainted, yet.
“This, Goa’uld, you mentioned. They did this to her? To them?” Jacob gestured at the silent occupants in the beds against the wall.
George shook his head and glanced at the team.
“They were on a recon mission. This war, Jake,” George sighed, and Jacob saw his friend’s entire body grow heavy, “we aren’t even in the same league as the Goa’uld. They have much more advanced technology than we do. We spend most of our time traveling to planet after planet in search of allies. We have made several high-profile allies that have saved all of our asses multiple times, but it’s not enough. Any weapons, strategies, technology in general that we can trade for or learn to copy is one step further to being able to hold our own in this war. The past three years, Jake, it’s come at a high price. SG-1 has paid the most.”
George stood up and stepped over to Sam’s side and looked down, smoothing her hair away from her forehead. “Sam has paid an enormous price.” He spoke softly but Jacob heard it.
“What’s happened to my daughter, George?”
George looked up and Jacob flinched slightly at the haunted look in his eyes.
“Sit down.” Jacob complied and George did the same, facing each other from opposite sides of Sam’s bed.
“There is a branch of this alien parasitical race, The Tok’ra. They are fighting against the Goa’uld as well. While genetically the same, they do not control their hosts unwillingly, or at least are not supposed to. While on a mission to save a village from the Goa’uld, Sam was giving CPR to one of the men that had went down during the fighting. During her giving mouth to mouth, this symbiote left the dying man and took control of Sam. She did it so flawlessly that we almost didn’t know until it was too late. Even then, we did lose Sam for a short time.
“The Tok’ra symbiote, Jolinar, was running from an assassin. She forcefully took Sam as a host trying to escape. Unfortunately, the assassin made it to Earth as well. He jumped several bodies and made his way into the holding cell we had Jolinar in. He killed them, Jake. If Jack and Teal’c hadn’t gotten Doctor Frasier to Sam when they did, I wouldn’t had to stand beside you as you buried your daughter a year ago.
“Instead, Frasier was able to keep Sam’s body alive long enough while Jolinar repaired what she could with her last bits of energy. Jolinar died inside of Sam. While Sam was alive again, Jolinar had died and couldn’t be extracted without killing Sam. Her body had to break down and absorb the symbiote. It changed Sam. Doctor Frasier can tell you all the ins and outs of it, but Sam has the memories of Jolinar, and many of them are not good. She suffers from time to time with these memories.
“She also can’t get blood from anyone else, nor can she give blood. The symbiote left a protein marker inside Sam. She can sense others with a symbiote and can even use Goa’uld technology although it weakens her for a while. Jake, I wanted to get you read in last year when that happened. After Jolinar died, it sent Sam to a dark place. I thought we might still lose her in the end.”
Jacob ran his hand down the side of his daughter’s face, tears streaming down his own. She had suffered so much and kept it all in. He knew why she was upset with him about NASA. What she was doing here was infinitely more important, and all he did was guilt her because he thought she just gave up.
“I don’t know where she got all her strength from, George. It sure as hell wasn’t me. I can’t even begin to imagine walking through that-” Jacob paused for a second, struggling to remember, “-Stargate! Every trip is completely unknown, and they step into a world that may or may not accept them being there, all while fighting aliens who are ahead of them. She must have taken her strength from Debra and built on it. I’m so proud of her, George.”
George turned and looked at the other two silently sleeping men.
“She draws it from them too. They are a family. I’ve never seen a bond as strong as the four of them.”
Jacob gasped as Sam’s head turned into his hand, George standing abruptly as he saw the movement too.
“I’ll get Frasier.”
Jacob leaned closer, his thumb stroking Sam’s cheek.
“It’s okay, kid. You’re safe. You’re home.”
Sam's head turned back and forth a few more times before she groaned, her mind connecting to the pain coursing through her.
“Breathe, kiddo. George went to get Doctor Frasier.”
Another moan and Sam’s head turned towards the voice, her eyes blinking and face scrunching up in confusion.
“Dad?” Sam’s voice was broken, barely able to form the simple word.
“Hey, I’m here. Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. You focus on getting some rest.” Jacob glanced up as George and Doctor Frasier came rushing in. Jacob stepped to the side the best he could, but he wasn’t able to go far, his hand still clutched in Sam’s, and she held him in a death grip.
“Sam, honey, do you know where you are?”
Doctor Frasier leaned close as Sam tried to form words. George reached for a water cup that was on a nearby table and brought it to Doctor Frasier who helped Sam drink some.
“SGC. Home... Jan, hurts.” Sam croaked out, her eyes scrunching shut again and Jacob winced as her hand tightened on his.
“I got you, just breathe.”
Doctor Frasier drew up a vial and injected a large amount of liquid into Sam’s IV. Jacob watched, concerned as he realized that it was a massive dose of painkillers.
Frasier looked over at him and saw his face. She opened her mouth but promptly shut it, looking down at where Sam clutched at his hand then over to General Hammond. Once he nodded, she turned back to Jacob.
“Doctor Janet Frasier, I’d offer you my hand to shake but yours seems to be taken” she introduced herself with a smile.
“General Jacob Carter. Sam’s father. I would shake your hand too, but she doesn’t seem to be letting go yet, although I no longer feel my bones shifting. I also don’t want to introduce myself and then question your authority but, that was a large amount of pain meds. Why?”
Janet nodded and looked down at Sam, doing a quick assessment.
“Her changed blood makes her resistant to sedatives and pain meds. We must give her nearly double for them to take effect. It’s why she woke up before the others.”
Jacob softly acknowledged that, still coming to terms with everything he’s been told.
“No offense sir, both of you. You both look dead on your feet. The Colonel and Daniel will be asleep the rest of the night. Sam may wake up again, but I’ll put her back under quickly. Both of you, get some rest before you also end up being my patients.”
Jacob stared down at his daughter; her grip finally relaxed enough he could extract his hand. He looked at Doctor Frasier and then back again.
“You’ll get me if something happens?” He asked softly.
Janet nodded and carefully herded the men out.
Jacob and George walked slowly through the hall, Jacob not even realizing George was bringing him back to the VIP room.
“She’ll be okay, Jake. Sleep and wrap your head around all this information. You’ll need to fully understand these basics when Sam gets back up to par. She’ll be able to tell you the entire history and you’ll just have to listen.”
Jacob laughed for the first time since he started this trip.
“I look forward to it.”