email: travelling_one@yahoo.ca
website: http://www.travellingone.com/
Season 5
Related episodes: Scorched Earth, Spirits
Summary: As a last resort to placate the Pentagon's needs, SG-1 is forced to venture to the newly-terraformed, hostile environment of the  Gadmeer.

July, 2010

Note from me (T.O): To those of you who are still reading my stories, my deepest thanks and appreciation. To newcomers to my site, Welcome!

Okay, so it was pretty cool. And blue. Ish. Bluish, if one could attribute a colour to it. Pale teal, Daniel had corrected, before shrugging and contradicting himself, much to Jack's smug satisfaction. But even Jack admitted it was pretty cool. The whole damn town was blue. Ish. A monochrome city that beat all Earth's standards of living, working, and technology, the only thing it was missing was colour. And trees. But blue was good. The Sapphire City. Next best thing to Emerald.

“I'd say it's worth further investigation, Colonel,” General Hammond nodded vaguely, hoping his number one team would hit upon bright new ideas. SG-8 had already canvassed P3X 944 but the inhabitants had refused to part with any raw samples of the material from which they constructed their buildings, vehicles, and technological equipment. The surfaces were all smooth and shiny, yet not metallic as the scientists had thought from original telemetry, but almost a pseudo plastic. The locals would not even reveal what the precious substance was composed of, so how SG-1 would find out was anyone's guess.

“How, Sir?” Jack eyed his CO with an almost innocent expression. Hammond decided he was just being cheeky.

“I was hoping you and your team might be able to tell me, Colonel. The Pentagon is suggesting you return to P3X 944 and find a way to retrieve some of that material.” The only sample they had so far managed to obtain weighed less than one gram, in the form of a narrow finger band grudgingly given them by a female who'd seemed intrigued with SG-8's team leader. All they had discovered was that the stuff was very, very lightweight, and sturdy.

“Wait a minute,” Daniel interrupted. “They blatantly refused to cooperate, General. At what point does no mean no?”

“Doctor Jackson, a substance that can be used to construct anything from homes to aircraft would be an invaluable resource here on Earth. For all we know it might end up replacing trillium or even naquada. Giving up is not something the Pentagon is willing to do, at present.”

“I'm not suggesting it wouldn't be valuable, Sir. I just don't think we have the right to interfere.”

“We've had this discussion already, Doctor Jackson.”

“And we've encountered this situation before, General.” In Daniel's defense, Jack frowned with the memory of another occasion in which the Pentagon had wanted what they couldn't have, a circumstance that had come extremely close to ending disastrously, with the entire base personnel nearly relegated to the netherworld of non-existence. “Are you suggesting we take it by force?” Again?

“No Colonel, I'm not suggesting that. For all we know, this substance is manufactured from materials we have right here on Earth. What you need to do is find out just what it is; that's all anyone's asking.” Yet.

“Sir,” Carter interceded, “with all due respect, we've tried to analyze the material in this ring, with no success.”

“And SG-8 tried their best to represent Earth in a positive light and initiate a diplomatic relationship with those people,” Daniel added. “They spent three days on P3X 944 and found no one willing to reveal anything about the properties of the material. For whatever reason, it's a closely guarded secret.” Hammond knew that. They all knew that.

“Well, unless you have another idea, I'm sending you to try your own hand at convincing them to give up that secret, Doctor Jackson. SG-1 has two days to put together a plan; you go offworld at 1100 hours day after tomorrow. Dismissed.”

Jack's annoyance was evident in the clattering of his pen and clamping of his lips. Daniel's frustration mirrored the expression in his own wide-eyed fashion, as he slowly gathered his papers and books into a rigid hold. But before General Hammond had even made it through the briefing room exit, Daniel's voice gently smoothed away the uneasy, disturbing silence.

“Wait. There's something else we could try.”

The air was cut with an inaudible whip, a miniscule rip in the thick film of tension. Hammond halted his departure and turned towards the conference table. The rest of SG-1 ceased their motions, then followed Teal'c's lead and returned to their seats, Jack a little more slowly than the others.

Hammond was the last, however, to retake his seat. Purposefully, methodically, his gaze was intent upon the archeologist. He wanted all eyes on him, a superior officer with a load on his shoulders and serious business on his mind. Today, leadership was fifty percent appearances and fifty percent decision-making. No matter how valid SG-1's point, he had to have the final say in this particular matter, whether or not he agreed that it was in the best interests of all parties involved. There was too much pressure from above. “Let's hear it, Doctor.”

Daniel knew the craziness of what he was about to say, knew what his idea was going to sound like, and he wasn't taking the opportunity lightly… not that he ever did. It was just that at times, his superiors didn't always see things his way or even take him seriously, and right now, this was a whopper of an idea. Taking a breath and smiling self-consciously, refusing to look cowardly and uncertain, he met the eye of the general, braved a step, and charged ahead. “We already know a race that has the technology to scan planets for thousands of resources and parameters in minutes."

“We do?”

Daniel nodded, still not dropping the intensity of his gaze although his fingers were nervously rippling the tip of the papers he had placed back on the table in front of him. “Their highly advanced scanners might be able to analyze the composition of the ring and match it to other planets in its system, or at least tell us what it's made of.”

“Daniel, exactly who - ”

Jack's query was drowned out by Sam's inhalation and subsequent exclamation. “The Gadmere!?”

Jack's eyebrows lifted in stunned surprise; across the table, the same look appeared briefly on Teal'c. “The Gadmere?” Checking out Daniel's expression to see if his friend was putting them on, Jack saw only hope and expectation… and a hint of embarrassment. “Are you nuts? We're talking about a planet that's been inhospitable to humans since about, oh,” Jack looked dramatically and sarcastically at his watch, “last year.”

“We can go in with oxygen.”

“The atmosphere might be corrosive as well as toxic.”

“We'll wear Level A hazmat.”

“Hazmat.”

“Yes. Or space suits, although gravity hasn't been altered and I seem to remember the air temperature and ultraviolet radiation are still within acceptable limits.” Daniel's unwelcome thoughts flashed back to the use of space suits on another inhospitable planet, where they'd found what unfortunately had turned out not to be a time capsule. He grimaced inwardly. The suits had worked, however uncomfortable. On the newly terraformed Gadmere planet, however, he was almost positive it would just be protection from the unbreathable sulfuric atmosphere that would be necessary. Sam could figure out the details. He looked over to her and gently smiled. Although she was staring his way she seemed lost in thought.

“Oy.” The Gadmere. Technologically advanced aliens whom they could definitely use as allies… but whose living requirements were so far off those of humans they couldn't even share the same space for more than thirty seconds, holding their breaths. And with whom they could not communicate. “And we'd find what we need, how?”

“They had equipment aboard their ship to not only mimic our atmospheric requirements, but to enable communication.”

Seeing the expectant look in the eyes of Teal'c and the now-eager ones in the faces of Carter and Daniel, Jack only muttered, “General?” He couldn't decide for sure, but Jack guessed he might be hoping Hammond would veto the whole idea.

____

“I'm still not sure I like it, SG-1.” Ten minutes of debating had not brought forth any final conclusions or decisions.

Jack wasn't sure he liked it either, after giving it minutes of more serious thought, but playing Devil's Advocate was what Jack did best. Almost. “We've gone out in hazmat before, General.” Jack was more inclined to agree with General Hammond, yet for the sake of his team, and in the interests of the people of P3X 944, this did seem to be their only possible shot via non-interference. He knew what the Pentagon was going to make them do otherwise. “The tanks can last up to ninety minutes under slow and steady conditions; that ought to be plenty. Hopefully the Gadmeer will notice us right away, and if not we'll come straight back through the gate.”

“It's worth a try,” Daniel nodded his agreement, his grip tightly torturing a pen, but relieved that his CO seemed to be on his side.

“I concur.”

“A win-win… okay, a no-lose situation, General.” Oy. Jack shuddered; realizing he'd been contributing to his team's cause, he himself was still unconvinced and wary. Got to stop doing that. There remained the small matter of an inhospitable environment, a very foreign species, and the indisputable fact that everything could go wrong. The Murphy-O'Neill law. But, hey. They'd attempted worse, hadn't they?

Hammond needed one more assurance, however. “What about these Gadmere? How do you expect to communicate with them once you've made contact? You aren't even certain that their ship is still in orbit.” Too far from the stargate and their ship might not even be able to recognize or locate SG-1.

“We can see what the MALP and UAV bring up. But by now they've probably put similar technology elsewhere on the planet, General, more than likely in a surface structure,” Daniel emphasized. “It's a valuable information system. They wouldn't just get rid of it once the planet was terraformed.”

“You don't speak their language. Whatever it is.” Jack faced Daniel now, one last feeble attempt at switching sides and changing tactics. He already knew what Daniel would say.

“We communicated once.”

“Right, with a robot who, may I remind you, now resides on the Enkaran homeworld.”

Daniel shrugged. “They can make another one.”

“Ya think?”

Daniel was not to be easily dissuaded, and he knew if he failed to come up with a reasonable response, Sam would back him up. This wouldn't be the first time he'd been initially unable to communicate with an unfamiliar species. “We'll find a way.”

“An assumption I'm not taking lightly, Doctor Jackson.”

“No, General, I'm not ask - ”

Hammond stopped him with a harsh look. “How do you know the individuals there now will treat you as respectfully as the original representative did - what was his name - Lotan? The specimens you'll be encountering were just that last time you were there, Doctor Jackson. Specimens.”

“I know, General, but the Gadmere are an ancient and peaceful race, with the inclination to preserve all life.”

“Mainly their own,” Jack muttered. It had been no easy task, getting them to empathize with the Enkarans. In the end it hadn't even been empathy that had won them over, but semantics used against their own empowered race. A brilliant logics tactic on the part of his younger male teammate… who nearly gave up his own life in the process. The memory stirred a sour feeling in Jack's gut.

“All life, as long as it's possible.”

“As long as it's possible is what has me worried, SG-1. Major Carter, do you think your present knowledge of the substance will be of use on this mission?”

“I can't say that I know anything of the substance, Sir. As I've said, so far we've been unable to analyze any of it.”

“Colonel, I might consider having you go alone with Doctor Jackson. I don't care to risk - ”

“I need to go too, Sir,” Sam interrupted, although she knew she'd already lost the argument moments before. Daniel was the linguist and cultural expert. And she had just admitted to knowing nothing the others didn't. “I might be needed to analyze the information given us by the Gadmere, should we get that far, General.”

“I will not remain behind,” Teal'c held his gaze firm and straight.

“Assuming I allow anyone to go.” Hammond was not yet convinced that the attempt would be worth it, although he knew the hazmat gear would serve to protect the team for a limited amount of time. He wasn't completely sure what his hesitation stemmed from, but there was a negative instinct holding back his willingness to give in. Maybe it was the indecision he sensed from the colonel himself; if a team leader didn't have his head fully into a mission, anything could go bad.

“General Hammond,” Teal'c contested, “if our prior visitation remains in their memory banks, they will be able to create an environment aboard their ship or surface dwelling that is suitable to our needs. We will then be able to negotiate without danger to ourselves.”

“That's a lot of 'ifs', Teal'c.”

“Doesn't this bother you at all, Teal'c?” Jack gazed at him inquiringly. “Why would they even care what we want?”

“If they are unwilling to assist us, we will simply return through the stargate.”

“Simply. What could possibly go wrong?” Jack scowled humorlessly, sarcasm tainting his words. He had an uneasy feeling about this… even if it was only because he couldn't scratch when the hazmat gear made him sweat.

_____

In the end, Hammond agreed to let them go, after a UAV's perusal of the Gadmere world. It was a land foreign to their eyes, with crusted pools of sulfur foaming around structures that looked more like termite mounds than newly-created ancient dwellings. On closer inspection, via grainy zoom shots from four hundred feet in the air, they realized the mounds were stepped enclosures protecting interior gardens, the bubbling moisture within hosting fungi and other growths, presumably future food sources. The trees of a year ago were gone - their broken, dried, and disfigured shells littering the land - along with anything else recognizable. Further out were the vague dwellings they might have suspected of a people or species over ten thousand years old. The few very large, gleaming white domes were reminiscent of the Gadmere airship. An airship which, in fact, hovered many, many kilometers higher than the UAV could reach, a small, nearly unidentifiable blur on the horizon. Their transmitters might be traceable, maybe.

Out and about were a large number of creatures, none of which looked like the one contained within the pod housing the body of the Gadmere shown them by Lotan. Most looked like nothing they had seen before, but that was to be expected of creatures who preferred breathing sulfur than oxygen. Some meter-long crustaceans seemed to be the most prevalent, ambling freely like wildlife. All the creatures appeared to have shells or thick scales for combating the harsh environment.

Again, Jack had the dismal sinking feeling that they were wasting their time, risking their lives in the process. Carter and Daniel, however, were oblivious to his concern, and Daniel's “if nothing else, Jack, we might get to interact with a race that's over ten thousand years old!” rang in his ears.

Full hazmat A suits with the ninety minutes' worth of oxygen had been procured, and twenty minutes of squeezing into them later, SG-1 was standing on the ramp in front of an open, inviting wormhole, beckoning them into a world where even the air was tinged yellow.

The only problem, Jack couldn't help thinking, was that either the Gadmere invitation had been lost in the stargate mail, or he hadn't gotten the memo.

_____

Up close it looked even worse. A fairy tale land of pink and coral mounds and dunes from afar, slippery stretches of dried yellowish rivulets dotted with purple growths, the fairy tale ended when one looked between the mounds to see the fiery, bubbling pools amid thorny red and violet prickly plant life. Pools from which a wetland of small spiny creatures were either emerging or contentedly drinking, in spite of the steam rising from the swampy quagmire, stretched endlessly. Jack tried to put the fact out of his mind that should his team become dehydrated and need water, they'd have to first gate home and struggle out of this gear. Just thinking of that made him sweat... and itch. This suit was damn hot and humid. Being sealed tight, it let no moisture in or out. The 16 lb air tanks were enclosed in built-in pockets on their backs, and their radios were attached to the interior facemasks. In addition, Jack and Teal'c both carried a small pack with minimal first aid supplies, along with water should the opportunity - aboard ship, most likely - arise. “Everyone okay?”

He saw three nods, but barely heard the voices, muffled as they were. The sound of his own breathing echoed in his ears, disconcertingly drowning out most of everything else. It would not be fun to try communicating with a new species wearing all this headgear; good thing he could keep quiet and let Daniel do the talking. “So, what now?” Funny how he'd left the plan to Daniel and Carter. And how he'd thought it a long shot even back at the base. Communicate, buddy boy. Any time you're ready. “How will we know which life forms to approach?”

“Whichever ones look like the one Lotan showed us on the ship, Jack.”

“Don't see them.”

“We will.”

“And then?”

“And by then hopefully their equipment will have picked up our transmitter signals. The ship will beam us up, the contact will understand our search request, give us some addresses, and send us back to the gate.” Yeah, so Daniel thought it was a long shot too, but he wasn't about to admit that to Jack or give up so easily. They'd had worse plans, most of which involved Goa'uld, not Gadmere, ships. The Gadmere would be friendly… right? Peaceful and intelligent.

If they could find any.
_____

The Gadmere devices were indeed turned on. They found that out pretty quickly.

It had been less than five minutes of walking towards the domes when a yellow light suddenly rained down upon them, covering the team from head to foot like a jaundiced spotlight. Caught by surprise, Jack's utterance of “What the hell?” was interlaced with Daniel's “They've found us!” along with a slight hope that maybe this wouldn't take as long as Jack had anticipated.

He was wrong.

Jack's second utterance of “What the hell?”, was motivated by something entirely different. For within a second, he found himself staring at an extensive, sludgy black tar pit, a half baked sulfur desert, and domes that were now way farther off in the distance than they'd been just moments before, the direction nowhere near where they'd been heading… or previously standing. “What the hell?” he swiveled around as gracefully as the cumbersome, barely flexible hazmat would allow, then regretted the exertion.

“Uh-oh.”

Jack swiveled again, in a stare-down with his archeologist. “Care to elaborate? And why aren't we aboard that ship?” His accusations might be muffled, but Daniel had better be able to read eyes.

“I have no idea.”

“Cute.” Jack bit back further sarcasm, but his tone was sharp.

“We were scanned, Jack. I don't know why they sent us here instead of transporting us on board.” They couldn't even see the ship from this angle, and Daniel's nerves were as edgy as a night owl's, so the antagonistic attitude on the part of the colonel was pointless, missing its mark and its victim.

“It is possible we were deemed unworthy of boarding the vessel,” Teal'c theorized.

“Why? And why send us here?” If Jack expected an answer, all he got were three creepy hazmat faces turned towards him in silence. “Ideas? Anyone? Feel free to jump in.”

“We have to find someone to talk to.”

“I like the detail in that, Daniel.”

“They did not seem to want us to approach their buildings.”

Jack growled a mumble from somewhere deep in his throat, trying to choke down all sarcasm on Tealc's account, then angrily snapped, “Yeah, well doesn't look like we have a choice any more. Eighty-four minutes of air.” If they were lucky. Although air could sometimes be drawn out, depending on exertion, it was less than predictable and always best to be cautious, counting on less than more. Jack stared towards the tops of the distant domes, partly obscured by angry-looking, fuming, purple-black dunes or hillsides. “Think we can make it?”

Again there was silence, but the team followed as Jack shifted direction and began the long slow march towards what came passably close to looking like the main, or only, Gadmere habitation.

There was a mixture of silence with voiced half theories, mostly between Daniel and Carter, for the next fifteen minutes of trekking in awkwardly hot airtight hazmat and clumsy rubber boots. Jack listened in as best he could, radios non-discriminating, aggravation and worry escalating with every step. He was fully aware that he wasn't alone in his sentiments. The domes were hardly getting any closer. Seventy minutes of oxygen. On a good day, in regular gear, they could make seven or eight miles. This wasn't a good day, their pace was slow, and with much-needed rest breaks there would barely be time to make contact or find the gate.

“They know we can't survive in this atmosphere,” Sam contested. So much for friendly.

“Right. So why are they leaving us here?” Daniel wasn't asking, so much as trying to analyze the situation in his own mind. Still convinced the aliens were genuinely concerned about life in general, empathetic and compassionate, this predicament made no logical sense. Not that he could realistically get into the heads of ten thousand-year-old Gadmere who'd just been reborn from slices of dried DNA. But he'd thought he'd understood them, and had thus engineered a way to get his team into an alarmingly disturbing and potentially lethal situation.

“They don't care to deal with us again?” Sam looked over at him, trudging next to his shoulder.

“I don't think that's it, Sam. We came to a friendly compromise last time. They can't possibly think we want them to stop terraforming again. It's already completed, anyway.” Wasn't it? Was there more to be done, to which SG-1 was seen as a threat?

“Okay, so what then? Why put us here, unless to get us out of the way?”

Daniel frowned. He had no idea. He didn't think the Gadmere would be completely disrespectful of their lives. Then again, the alien species had continued to terraform the planet knowing full well the Enkarans wouldn't survive. “They don't realize we need to go back through the gate soon. Why?”

Jack intervened. “Because they didn't beam us up on the ship to ask.”

“Perhaps they were unable to do so.”

Three teammates looked towards Teal'c, expecting elaboration. “Teal'c? What're you thinking?”

“The organisms and specimens have all been released; would they now not be aboard the ship as well as on the surface of this planet?”

“So?”

“So, O'Neill, if they create an environment aboard the ship to suit our needs, their own life forms would be at risk.”

Then Jack understood. They couldn't be beamed aboard that ship because they could no longer fill it with oxygen without endangering their own species. He turned fully towards Daniel. “And you didn't think of that before we got here?”

The hood reflected Daniel's stunned features, but not the heat of blood in his cheeks. Why the hell hadn't he thought of that?

Same reason he hadn't expected to be teleported nearly half a dozen miles from the stargate. Why had the Gadmeer done that, if Teal'c's reasoning was correct?

Sam jumped to Daniel's defense. “We didn't think of it, because we expected to be close enough to the gate to leave whenever we wanted. You know we would still have taken the chance, Sir.”

Jack held his silence for a moment. He did know they'd've come anyway. Just like he knew Carter and Teal'c would insist on coming along. Damn him for unnecessarily risking his whole team; it should have just been himself and one other, following Hammond's initial suggestion. Better still, just him, checking things out. But a team didn't operate that way; he knew that too. Still, the annoyance nagging at him from within was a killer. He'd had squirmy feelings about this mission; when would he learn to let his gut speak more freely? “My fault anyway, Carter. I made the final decision.”

“No, Jack, General Hammond made it. And it's my fault; this whole thing - coming here in the first place - was my idea. I'm sorry.”

“Stop it. It was a good idea.”

“I thought you - ”

“You thought wrong. So,” Jack continued hastily, not conceding the guilt track, “we still need to get to the gate, or the town, or find someone… something to communicate with, before we run out of oxygen. We don't know for sure they can't beam us aboard that ship. Let's get moving.”

_____

The planet would have been a cool and bearable 65 degrees Farenheit in normal uniform, but it was an uncomfortable twenty degrees warmer in barely flexible airtight Level A hazmat and helmets, an additional layer of Tyvek suit over their SGC jumpsuits, sealed at the neck, wrists, and ankles. They'd been walking for fifteen more minutes already, the domes of the town growing larger but still a ways off, and they'd be hard-pressed to make it within the next hour, attempt to complete the mission, and still have time to find the stargate. Not impossible, just difficult. The buildings, it was becoming clear, were smaller than had originally been anticipated, so not quite as far off as they'd all privately and silently believed. Reaching them and then getting back to the gate before the last of their tanks ran out was looking assuredly more hopeful with each passing minute. The terrain, though, was not making their task easy, covered as it was with sludge and tar-bordered growing-pods and open pits, narrowly intercepted here and there by dry yellow mud and low steaming dunes. The only life forms they had so far encountered, apart from fungal growths, were ten-legged crustaceans, foot-long slugs, and palm-sized shell-enclosed… somethings.

“This what you expected of a ten thousand year old civilization, Daniel?”

“They're starting over from scratch, Jack. They only seeded the planet with specimens a year ago.”

“So they haven't gotten 'round to the intelligent life forms yet?”

“Colonel, we know the Gadmere themselves are highly developed. Just having a spaceship like that is incredible, not to mention the technology to terraform a planet and reseed it with life preserved from tissue samples. The ability to preserve life that way, let alone repopulate an entire planet with thousands of species, is mind-boggling.”

“Not disagreeing, Carter. But you'd think they'd have found a way to make water… or air.” Jack kicked at a rock. “And why reseed bugs, anyway?” He asked as a thick multi-legged creature slid away, looking for a less conspicuous place to hide. Jack turned to take a good look - or as good as possible through his hazmat hood - at his teammates. They all knew that time was of the essence, but they'd been walking under unbearable conditions, without water, for a long stretch. While stopping wouldn't allow them to drink without removing their head gear, passing out from exhaustion wouldn't benefit their cause either. His own knees were reminding him he was not in home territory. He feigned optimism. “Loads of time, kids. Anyone need to take five?” With little time to spare, and knowing that pushing themselves too hard would be detrimental, Jack still hoped no one really needed to rest.

Although uncomfortably hot inside the gear, there was nothing they could do about it. Nerves were on edge and conversation had been bereft of theories or plans for most of the journey. While they knew they had to trudge on and find someone to communicate with ASAP - or at least make it back to the gate, which was even farther than the domes - they also couldn't deny how tired they were becoming. Their lungs had to work harder than normal, given the conditions.

“Two?” Daniel asked tentatively. All he needed to do was sit for a minute, bend his knees and back, stretch some muscles.

“Two sounds good,” Sam agreed. She lowered herself carefully onto a lumpy projection, porous mud and moss and dried tar black.

Jack steadied a look at Teal'c. The man had said nothing for a long while, and now his body seemed rigidly tense. Teal'c wasn't tired, Jack knew, just impatient to keep moving. Jack could distract him for a couple of minutes, for the sake of the others. Addressing them all but looking at Teal'c, he verbalized a problem that had been cloying at his nerves while he'd walked. “The base will call in after our ninety minutes is nearly up; Hammond will suspect that either we're negotiating on board that ship, or something's wrong. When we don't respond, he might send a search team. Think they'll be sent here too?” They had to make it back in time for more than their own sakes.

Sam had been pondering the same thing; could they expect a rescue? Might another team be more successful at contacting the life forms than they had been? Would it matter, if they couldn't make themselves understood? “I doubt it, Sir. He didn't even want to risk - ”

“Jack!” The utterance was more an inhaled breath than an outright exclamation, but the urgency caught the attention of the team leader as he followed Daniel's startled stare, and then Daniel's quick-moving hand, towards his own foot. Scraping a long bug off Jack's boot, leaving in its place a steaming, disintegrating hole near the toe, Daniel swung it away, as the claws clung to his glove and then gripped his sleeve, lower appendages scrabbling at air, as he tried unsuccessfully to fling it into the bush.

“Daniel!”

A third try, with enough force to unseal two inches of his glove, saw the bug finally flying through the air, writhing as it headed into a bubbling pool ten feet away, trying to get a grasp of solid ground.

Daniel felt his hand being lifted, and looked up to see two teammates crowding him, his right hand resting in Sam's palm. They were staring at the steaming hole in the double layers of rubber and cloth gloves, a small rip in the sleeve of the hazmat jacket. Daniel felt nothing but a strange dislocation of air, uplifting of a mound -

“Whoa, easy there.” Arms kept him partly upright, as three distorted faces peered down at him from above. When had he sat down?

“What the hell were you thinking?” The voice came from a fuzzy distance, somewhere in the heavens above him.

It was a moment before Daniel processed the words, his brain still dazed. “It, uh,” he cleared his throat and tried to speak up, his own echoing voice originating from somewhere beside him, off to the left. “It was eating your boot.” Good thing they hadn't gone with regular leather. Thoughts slowly clearing, he tried to stand, sagging against someone. Teal'c? Couldn't see Teal'c any longer from where he was, so it must be Teal'c. Jack still kept hold of his left arm.

“It was a boot, Daniel.”

“Within which is your foot.”

“So you pick it up with your hand?” Jack let go of Daniel's arm, knowing there was nothing they could do for him at the moment. Hopefully whatever had eaten through the fabric hadn't made it through to skin. He wiggled his toes, heart speeding up as he prayed the numbness was temporary.

“What else was I supposed to use?” Daniel's right hand was regaining some feeling, but it occurred to him that that wasn't particularly a good thing. It was now beginning to sting and burn. “I didn't think it could grab me from that angle.” Flexible devil. The burning sensation jolted through his palm and fingers, then kept on going up past his wrist. He rubbed it with his left, as Sam batted that hand away.

“Don't touch it, Daniel.”

Jack eyed the domes not too far away, but didn't need his watch to remind him they were still running too late for comfort. “You okay to walk?” Am I? No choice, here.

Daniel nodded. “My two minutes are up,” he lamely quipped, knowing the predicament had just taken more time and added to everyone's tension. His head still felt a bit muzzy, and he couldn't tell if his hand was on fire or numb, but that shouldn't get in the way of putting one foot in front of the other. He couldn't let it.

“Probably not a good idea to sit here with corrosive bugs crawling around, anyway,” Jack contributed. If they didn't keep moving, one way or another they'd eventually all be dead out here. “So much for hazmat. We could've just stayed comfortable in BDUs.”

“We'd've been dead from the atmosphere in seconds, Colonel. Let's just stay away from the wildlife, okay, Sir?”

The hike resumed in silence, with discreet glances being cast around the group now and then, tinged with worry. Other than Sam's occasional utterance of “You okay, Daniel? Colonel?” no one mentioned what had happened. But Daniel saw Jack's intensifying limp; Jack noticed Daniel favouring his right arm, the occasional stumble, and the grimace that was visible behind the helmet.

Jack himself knew his foot wasn't getting better; the numbness had given way to a burning, stinging sensation, and each step shot bolts of pain up his calf. He knew exactly what Daniel's arm felt like, and he'd been wearing reinforced rubber.

He watched his team slowing down. His wary eyes didn't miss Teal'c catching Carter under the arm, preventing a stumble. Only Teal'c seemed to be keeping up his original pace, but even the big guy had to be steaming inside that suit.

“You okay, Carter?”

“Just a cramp,” she nodded, then hesitantly added, “I need a break, Sir.” The quiet request had not been uttered lightly; O'Neill knew Carter knew they needed to hurry. They had been walking now for forty-five minutes, and each had only half a tank of oxygen remaining.

“Take two.” God, watching his teammates drop to mounds - carefully examining the terrain around them first - Jack couldn't help but feel as though his little group had just walked through a field of poison poppies, the wicked witch of the west watching them through her crystal ball. Should he be expecting snow?

The body that shuffled up beside him, casting a tiny bit of shade, spoke quietly. “How's your foot?”

Jack shrugged. “How's the hand?”

“I don't have to walk on it.”

“I'll manage, Daniel.” He'd keep to himself the fact that the interval seemed to be making things worse; the burning was rifling up his leg in waves. He knew Daniel knew. But the domes were close; they ought to make it to the habitation within fifteen minutes. Half an hour to spare; plenty of time, Jack lied to himself. But then what? Trying to get inside one of those domes, uninvited, would not aid their attempt at communicating. Would it be too late to make it back through the gate, which itself was on the opposite side of the domes from where they now were? “We're almost there.”

“If you need to lean on someone…” The offer was left open.

“Thanks. I'll be fine.” Jack gave Daniel a wary look, before patting his arm. “Let's do this.”

As the team trudged wearily ahead, Jack decided it wasn't an implausible analogy that they were being watched through the magic crystal ball of a wicked Gadmeer ship.

_____

Jack was achingly aware that they were approaching their final half hour of oxygen. The shiny white domes were just one long steaming pool - fringed with spiny purple and blue growths, and littered with crustaceans - away, but so far, no intelligent beings had crossed their paths. Jack felt Daniel stepping up beside him.

“I'll find someone, Jack. I promise.”

“I know.” They had no other choice; it didn't pay to consider the possibility of failure.

Daniel nodded, keeping steady at Jack's side. As soon as they saw a Gadmere to speak to, he'd give it a try. But either the Gadmeer didn't take walks during daylight hours, or they were intentionally secluding themselves in self-imposed secrecy.

The ship's beam interrupted his mental plans.

As the brief yellow light swept around them, Daniel had only a moment to think that they all might actually make it.

Jack's first thought was, Finally! And why did it take so damn long, anyway?

_____

Jack's second thought was solely… what the hell?

SG-1 stood frozen in place, relief plummeting to despair, as they realized the futility of their predicament. They were again in the middle of nowhere, sulfuric tar pits steaming around them, mounds crawling with what they now believed to be corrosive arthropods. The domes of the town were once again a long, long way off.

For a prolonged, taxing moment no one spoke.

Then the futility and despair made its way through soul and skin and hazmat. “We don't have enough air to make it back again.” Not unless they ran.

“It would be in vain anyway. They don't want us anywhere near them.” Daniel's voice was angry and desperate.

“Daniel, I thought you said the Gadmere are a compassionate race,” Jack thought he roared, but knew his voice, too, sounded pathetically forlorn. He also knew his foot would never carry him back to the domes, even if he thought there was a way to make it. Were the Gadmere trying to test his team's persistence, or were they just evil?

“They are. I don't understand their behavior, Jack. It's as though they're afraid of us.”

“Maybe they are.”

Eyes turned towards Sam. “Spill it, Carter.”

“Maybe they remember the bomb, Colonel, and are afraid we'll try something like that again. Maybe they want us as far away as possible from their populated areas.”

“Perhaps they wish revenge for the attempt on their lives.” Lives of an entire civilization.

“That's a comfort, Teal'c, thank you.”

Daniel slowly shook his head, frowning, staring at the crusty yellow and black soil. “I don't think that's it. Lotan represented the Gadmere; he said they had a respect for life. They don't unnecessarily commit murder.”

“Let me remind you that Lotan also didn't want you to elicit sympathy for the Enkarans, and said he wasn't programmed to prevent their demise, Daniel. He was willing to wipe them out, heard him say so myself.”

Daniel couldn't deny that. Beginning to have doubts himself as to the Gadmeres' integrity, he knew it was imperative they come up with some other plan. Even if their oxygen would get them back to the city, Jack couldn't walk the distance. And more likely than not, they'd be sent right back here anyway. “Damned if we do, damned if we don't,” he muttered.

As the four teammates stared at each other, Jack eased himself down onto a mound. He'd be damned if he'd let them just sit here waiting for their oxygen to run out, but he also knew heading back to the city was impossible for him. His lower leg was nearly paralyzed, while his upper leg burned like fire.

“We cannot remain here, O'Neill.”

“I know that.”

“Maybe they'll get fed up if we just keep on trying, Sir, and will decide to talk with us if we try again.”

“Maybe.” With the ensuing echo of silence signifying no other plans or options, Jack heaved a defeated sigh. “Fine, let's try again.”

This time Daniel didn't ask; with his good arm he helped Jack to his feet, Teal'c on the colonel's opposite side. No one had failed to notice the increasing limp and fatigue. “You going to make it?”

“I'll get as far as I get. After that, you'll have to go on without me.”

“Like hell.”

“Daniel - ”

“Quiet, Jack. You're wasting oxygen.”

As the teammates trudged onward for the next few minutes, their bodies and optimism fighting not to give up inside the steamy sweaty hazmat gear, Jack felt his steps falter. Maybe the oxygen would last another thirty minutes, thirty-five with some luck; maybe it wouldn't. Maybe it wouldn't matter even if it did. And as far as luck went, it didn't exactly seem to be following them around lately.

Daniel reached out, grimacing in empathy as Jack's leg buckled under him. He would have gone down had it not been for the quick hands of two comrades.

“I'm fine,” Jack tried to lie. Then, “No I'm not.”

Jack knew he was slowing them down, and if they were to get back to the town in time they'd have to pick up the pace, a lot, hazmat be damned. Suggesting they continue without him wouldn't go over well, but he could make it an order. An order he knew Daniel wouldn't consider following.

“Okay, kids. Here's the deal. You three go on ahead. Took us sixty minutes before, with breaks, a leisurely pace, and a nasty encounter with the wildlife. You can do it in thirty if you put your minds to it. Make contact, get the scrawny reptiles to beam me to the gate. Meet you there.” Jack braced himself for the impending arguments, aware they had no time for such nonsense. If there was no contact, meeting them at the gate would not be an option. Three voices chorused.

“No way, Jack.”

“Sorry, Sir. We all make it or none of us do.”

“That is not acceptable, O'Neill.”

“Then I'll make it an order.” Wasting time, here. It was playing out exactly as he'd heard it in his head moments before.

“Are you?”

“Am I what, Daniel?”

“Making it an order?”

“Yes, Daniel, consider it an order.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“Sir - ”

“It's an order, Carter.” Jack lowered himself abruptly onto a mound. “I'm not going anywhere.”

“Sir - ”

“Carter! Go.”

“Yes Sir.”

But she didn't move.

“What the hell are you all waiting for? Damn it, Carter, I gave you an order! Stop wasting time.”

“Yes, Sir.” Reluctantly Sam pushed forward, certain they'd never make it to the town and not knowing what they'd find if they did. But now, they had to try. Had to power-walk, jog, run, if necessary. She would not let the colonel die out here alone. “Keep in touch, Sir.” Slowly at first, without taking his gaze off O'Neill, Teal'c followed. He knew Major Carter would not disobey an order, nor would he, yet he was unwilling to leave his friend alone in this hostile environment. That was when he realized Daniel Jackson would, once again, do the right thing, and nodding his head, he continued quickly after Major Carter.

Daniel had so far made no move... to move.

“Go.”

“No.”

“Hey! I thought you understood.”

“I do, Jack. When they get help, you and I will be beamed to the gate.” They both doubted either part of that utterance would hold true.

“Who's going to communicate with the aliens?”

“They'll talk English. They've done it before.”

Jack exhaled in exasperation. “Daniel. I thought you said you'd follow my order. At long last.”

“No, I said I'd consider it an order. I didn't say I'd follow it.”

“Crap. Daniel, if they reach the gate without making contact, that means both you and I are dead.”

“I know.”

“So go and make it only me, okay?”

“Sorry, I can't do that.”

“You can.”

“Won't.”

“Damn it, Daniel.”

“Jack.”

“I don't want to hear it, Daniel.”

“No, I mean, Jack? Shade.”

“What?”

Daniel nodded towards a dune past a patch of cracked ground not thirty yards to their left. “I think I see shade.” There was an overhang, shadowed in darkness. A bit of relief for sweat-filled hazmat wearers.

“Probably teeming with flesh-eating spiders and mosquitos with proboscis…es… the size of straws.”

“Probably. Can you walk?”

“Maybe.” With help, Jack lifted himself from the mound, as another ugly deadly bug scurried past his injured foot. “Whoa.” He hobbled out of the way, grabbing Daniel for support.

Together they shuffled towards what they could now see was a tunnel, or cave. “I'll check it out,” Daniel announced, letting go of Jack near the entrance. The colonel grabbed the archeologist's forearm.

“Not alone.”

“Jack - ”

“If something nasty's in there, we find it together. No argument.”

Having won the first round of ignoring a direct order, Daniel decided to let Jack win this one. Nothing they did would, in the end, matter all that much anyway, all things considered. They had less than thirty minutes left of oxygen. Jack paused, leaning his hand on Daniel's leg as he bent down, and scrawled "SG-1" in the dirt, with an arrow. There was no humor in his grin. “In case a rescue team gets beamed here.”

The shade and coolness seeped luxuriously into the hazmat, as they stepped tentatively into what now presented itself as a large cavern. A connecting tunnel almost seemed to be man - or alien - made, even though they had believed the planet to be uninhabited before the Enkarans. Then again, it boasted a stargate, so some long-lost race had once been here. The tunnel stretched downwards into darkness, and Daniel retrieved two flashlights from Jack's pack. “Here.” The unnatural battery-powered light revealed a gleaming phosphorescence, coating nearly every surface of the chamber. A hazy bluish glow tinted the air, and eerie, misty halos spun themselves around the flashlights' beams.

“Uh, Daniel?”

“What?”

“I might be tempted to spend my last minutes in the hot sun outside.”

“You'll be going out there without me.”

“Fine.” Jack huffed. “Bully.”

As they trudged onward, Jack with increasing numbness and Daniel with growing trepidation, noises sounded from deep within the interior. The two men pulled to an abrupt stop. Carefully scouring the floor and walls of this curious tunnel, then easing himself down to the ground, Jack lifted a hand to his hood, realizing a finger to the lips lost something in the hazmat translation. “Ssh.”

For a moment they listened. Sounds were definite, but indistinguishable. “There might be Gadmeer, Jack.” Daniel suggested excitedly. “I'll go check it out.”

Jack's gloved hand once again caught Daniel's uninjured left arm, holding fast. “Could be Gadmeer lions. Or tigers or bears.”

“Or a shortcut to the city.”

Jack shrugged. He couldn't walk any farther, but maybe Daniel was right. All things - and Daniel's safety - considered, he gave in; they now had little to lose. “Go slowly. Keep me informed. And don't expose yourself to anything, Daniel, unless you know what it is.”

Daniel nodded. He'd been stung once; he wasn't making himself obvious bait a second time. Reluctantly Jack released the hold on his teammate's sleeve. Twenty minutes of oxygen. Nothing yet from Carter or Teal'c, although by now they would be out of radio range. No beam. No stargate. They still had some time, though; Teal'c could move damn fast when he needed to. Soon enough, however, it wouldn't matter what Daniel encountered. “Don't touch anything. And be back in ten, Daniel. If the Gadmeer decide to stop playing games and beam us up, I want them to be able to find you. And if not - neither one of us is going to face this alone.” Daniel knew what he meant, nodded again, and took off as quietly and quickly as the cumbersome gear would allow. They both knew that Daniel would make use of every second he could, to get help. If alone they had to die, then so be it.

_____

He'd been walking for close to five minutes, the wide tunnel dragging deeper, the air becoming cooler, when the noises grew suddenly louder and movement… many movements… off to the side grabbed his attention. Spinning his flashlight around, Daniel's eyes still took seconds to comprehend what was there.

Skeletons.

And things were crawling on them.

His initial shock slow to wear off, Daniel watched in horror at the gopher-sized fish-lizard-rats suctioning away at the bones. Bones, he presumed, of Enkarans who had not made it to safety. Enkarans who had not realized help was available, and had taken refuge from a giant ship that was destroying their land.

The fish-lizards had stopped now, staring at the intruder, wide tooth-filled mouths pumping in and out, claws kneading the moist ground.

Daniel was not quick enough to back away.

A shape flew at him, smacking into his neck as he gasped and knocked it backwards.

From behind, something sharp grabbed his leg, and Daniel let out a reflexive shriek, hitting the tunnel's wall with his back as he spun around. Teeth were snapping at him, sucking mouths plastered to fabric, gripping his hazmat pants, and belatedly he realized he was only inches from a large nest, filled with smaller versions of the scaly creatures. They were protecting themselves.

_____

Jack heard the noises, then a shout.

What the hell? Time running out or not, he wasn't about to sit around and let Daniel be eaten by monsters, or sizzled by caustic bugs. He pressed his palms to the wall to help him slide upwards, then took a tentative step. His numb foot gave way and he landed on both knees, falling forward. Oh crap, ow. Ow.

“Daniel!” He listened for a response from the radio, but there was nothing. “What's going on? Daniel!”

Rolling over, he leaned half upright against the wall. Some help he was going to be. Damn it. The noises began to fade, and he sat there, not knowing if Daniel was still alive.

_____

Hazmat tearing with every movement, Daniel struggled free of the claws and teeth and ran, sweating and panting, towards the entrance of the tunnel, the fading noises indicating the creatures had not followed him far. Perhaps they didn't care for daylight, perhaps they didn't want to stray too far from their nests. It didn't matter, as long as he wasn't leading them to Jack. He'd assess his own damage later if necessary, given time; time that they no longer had anyway, for any hope that Sam and Teal'c had encountered help was far from becoming reality. Daniel's heart was pounding hard as he retraced his steps and saw Jack sitting worriedly on the ground where he'd left him.

Jack almost rose, before realizing the pain and effort weren't about to release him this time either. “What the hell was all that?” he demanded. Emotions lurched one after the other, surprise, relief, fear, despondency. Daniel was safe… just in time for them both to die.

Then he saw the rips in Daniel's hazmat. “What the hell is down there?” 

“Lizards. Or something. They were feeding on dead Enkarans.”

Jack stared in disgust. “Oh.”

Daniel nodded slightly, standing, half leaning, beside Jack, staring towards the chamber's entrance and the bright bit of daylight filtering in up ahead.

“Are you hurting?” Bites aside, was the toxic atmosphere burning his legs?

Daniel responded absently, still staring ahead. “Doesn't matter.”

For a moment Jack was silent, focusing on his friend and teammate. No, it probably didn't. He reached up to put a hand gently on Daniel's leg, above the ripped outerwear. “So I guess that's it.” Jack was used to his team staging last minute rescues, but this time he was certain their luck had run out.

“That can't be it.”

“Daniel. This was a long shot. This whole mission was a long shot.” For some damned blue substance that the Pentagon wanted so badly.

“No.”

“Come on, Daniel. We have a few minutes' worth of oxygen left. Come and sit down.”

“They don't want to kill us.”

“Good. So we'll just wait for that transportation to the gate.” Jack saw the stupor overcoming his teammate; he thought it was shock.

“I don't understand.”

“Give it up, Daniel.” Jack patted the ground beside him. “Sit.”

Daniel hardly heard him, distractedly staring and almost talking to himself. “It's taking too long.” Enough was enough. Daniel's mind was plagued with the inconsistencies; Lotan had not only found the Enkaran homeworld and been repentant that it had taken so long to do so, but he offered the use of his ship to transport the displaced people across the galaxy. The Gadmere were not an intentionally cruel species, of that Daniel was certain. So why would they send SG-1 all the way out here, knowing they would die, when there was something they could do to help them? Even if they didn't know they were the same Earth individuals who had come before, the Gadmere must know the visitors could still return through the stargate and save themselves. And that brought Daniel to a sudden, difficult realization. “Damn it. Why didn't I think of this before?”

“What?”

“I don't think they know it's us in here, Jack. I mean, what we're wearing doesn't exactly look familiar to them.”

“So they kill what they don't know?” Jack's paltry sparks of goodwill towards the species had long since run out. “What good does that premise do us, Daniel?”

“I don't know.”

“It was only Lotan who'd recognize us, anyway, and he's not here.”

“I imagine it was all stored in their computer banks, Jack.” And Daniel still had that nagging feeling that the hazmat was a good part of the problem. So, maybe the Gadmere didn't recognize them, but SG-1 was still human, still from the same race that had contacted them in the first place, the same species that had forced a compromise between them and those they were about to unwittingly conquer. “They can't know we're from Earth. They think we're some odd species from somewhere they don't know, and are trying to figure us out.”

“You think they'd've done that by now.”

“No, Lotan didn't realize we weren't Enkaran until we met face to face. This hazmat is really throwing them off. If they are up there analyzing us, we're giving them artificial readings.”

“And this helps us how?”

Daniel, though, now knew how. And he also knew he'd have less than sixty seconds to pull this off, while - literally - holding his breath. He likely wouldn't make it, but his teammates had a chance. “Come.”

“What?”

“Come.” Ignoring the blazing heat rifling through his legs, Daniel limped out of the tunnel and cavern, into direct open sunlight. And with that, his gloved hand awkwardly grabbed at the zipper holding his hood and hazmat closed, clawing it open with the grip of a desperate man. Then, inhaling a lung full of oxygen, he pulled open the hood and ripped off his air mask.

“Hey!” Jack grabbed the wall, heaved himself up awkwardly, and stumbled, mostly hopping, after Daniel. He'd crawl if he had to. What he saw froze his heart. While unlikely to survive this ordeal, he was not prepared to watch his teammate die as long as he himself still breathed. Not to mention Teal'c and Carter still had ten minutes to save them. Stranger things had happened. “Daniel!”

He lunged at Daniel's traitorous, murderous hands, but it was too late to stop him; the facepiece was fully unhooked and dangling.

The burn of sulfur hit Daniel's face, his nostrils, even without taking a breath. As the last traces of clean air left his lungs and his lips, Daniel remained aware that his plan relied solely on the hope that the Gadmere were not only keeping a continuous eye on SG-1, but that their computers were really, really quick.

The last of his air exhaled, Daniel heard his friend's frantic call, Jack yelling as he rushed futilely to re-fit the mask, and Daniel noted his own desperate attempt at trying to pass out before his lungs were forced to inhale burning sulfur. Daniel's last thought, as two arms pulled him around the waist, dragging him up off the burnt ground and onto a softer lap, was, God, if this doesn't work…

_____

Daniel rose to awareness. His first thought was, breathing feels awesome. That was his second thought, as well, as he again inhaled deeply. His face and throat stung, his arm remained numb, and his calves burned with invisible fire. But didn't all that mean he was still alive?

“Mind telling me your plan?” A gruff voice sounded beside him, and Daniel blinked his eyes open.

The walls around him faded in and out, then cleared to a pure white, the air crisp and fresh. Peering down at him were the faces of friends - Sam, Jack, and Teal'c, without face masks. Daniel realized he was lying on the floor, the concerned but relieved faces peering down at him from where they knelt. “What?”

“How'd you know they'd transport us here, Daniel?” Jack's voice was softer than before, but no less confused and worried. “And how d'you feel, by the way?”

“Um,” Daniel slowly tried to sit up, fingers instinctively supporting his pounding head, before hands grabbed him gently from behind. His head rested on someone's chest. Teal'c. “Great, if this is what I think it is.”

“Think so. We just got here, haven't seen anyone.” As the words left his lips, a voice spoke, approaching from another side of the sparklingly pristine chamber, and a body came into view.

“I apologize for being unable to greet you. It took a few moments to recreate a form you would understand.”

Four heads turned upward to meet the kind eyes of a human, wearing… hazmat with no hood.

“And I assume you've been created by the Gadmere,” Jack pursed his lips.

“Yes. Your forms were stored in our database. Unfortunately, we did not make the connection with your previous visit; you appeared to be life forms who were most comfortable with our atmosphere.”

“We did?”

“Jack, we were breathing the fumes. How were they supposed to know we had a time limit on that?”

Jack turned to Daniel. “So that was your plan? Show them we couldn't breathe?”

“No, actually, I wanted to show them what we really looked like. It just happened to work both ways.”

Jack glared at him. “We'll talk later.”

“Did you not understand that we were aiming to reach your city?” Teal'c stared the biochemical creation down fiercely.

The Gadmere representative remained placid. “We thought you arrived here to settle your people, as did those who came before us. We wanted to show you that most of our planet has not yet been revived to a healthy standard.”

“Why not just tell us?” Jack fumed.

“It takes us a while to create a reasonable environment here. Much of what you seemed to be was mechanical, and were full of discrepancies. Your bodies seemed to require oxygen, yet you were breathing adequately on the surface. We were unsure of what you required… until this one revealed your true natures.”

“Sir? The SGC is expecting us to report in within minutes.”

“Yeah, right. Ask about the stuff, Carter.” Jack helped Daniel sit, keeping a lingering arm on his back, as Teal'c relinquished his space and stood. Jack's leg was no better than it had been ten minutes before, and he knew Daniel would likely be feeling the same way. That was three limbs down for his younger teammate, he realized with a sympathetic twinge.

“Um,” she addressed the friendly face of the pseudo human. “We know your database has stored much information from thousands of planets. We only came here to find out if you know what this is made of, and where we can find all the elements.” She had been rummaging through Teal'c's pack, and now held out the ring.

The biomechanical life form stared at it, then placed it in a slot connected to the computer system. Holographic information flashed out in waves and visual imagery. “Yes. There are five components. One can be found on your own home planet, as well as on many others.”

“Really? So it is synthetic!" Carter had figured as much, judging by the blue colour, but had had nothing definite on which to base the assumption.  "What about the other four?”

“Two substances can be found on thirty-two planets. However, the final two elements are native to only three planets, only one of which has the transportation you used to arrive here.”

“Stargates.”

“Yes.”

Four team members exchanged exasperated glances; this had all been for nothing. That single planet had to be P3X 944. No wonder they were so protective of their planet's resources.

“Would you like me to send you back to the stargate now?” The biomechanical man asked helpfully. “After you reattach your cranial paraphernalia, of course.”

Jack glanced awkwardly at his teammates; they looked as sullen as he felt. “Yeah… that would be good.”

_____

“Chevron seven will not lock.”

Jack breathed a shared sigh of relief with his teammates, and risked a knowing look at Daniel. At least there was no chance of a team being sent to steal the stuff and piss off the natives on P3X 944. At least some aliens were smart, and buried their gates. Maybe they'd just figured out a way to filter and lock out unwanted gate addresses and visitors… which in itself would have been reason enough to get to know them.

Jack forced a look at Daniel's bandaged arm and legs, feeling the corresponding throbbing of his own wrapped limb. It would be at least a week before they would be out of their wheelchairs and walking with crutches. That was some venom those critters spouted.

“So.” Not alone in the control room, but with no one paying them any attention, it was time to talk. The fine sulfur burns on Daniel's face spurred him on. “How did you know?”

“Just a hunch.”

“Some hunch.”

“What else was there, Jack? We weren't going to make it if I didn't do something.”

“Carter and Teal'c still had time.”

“They hadn't even reached the city.”

“You didn't know that. The Gadmeer might have figured them out and beamed them aboard.”

“Jack, waiting to the last second wouldn't have got us anywhere. We wouldn't have had enough oxygen to get back to the gate.”

“Assuming your plan would work, we could have contacted the SGC from the ship. A team would have brought us new tanks.”

“Yes. So I should have waited nine more minutes?”

“When there's a chance, I expect you to take it.”

“I did.”

“That's not what I meant.”

“Okay, I'm sorry. Next time I'll wait 'til my last breath before trying my final plan.”

“Good. So… now what?”

“Lunch?”

“You buy. You owe me for scaring me like that.”

“You owe me for saving your life.”

The two men looked at each other, both silently agreeing at the same moment. Jack spoke first. “Sam and Teal'c owe us; they both have useful legs.” Then they twisted their chairs towards the exit, each nudging the other out of the way in friendly competition - Jack with the added advantage of two good arms - to go in search of a free lunch.

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