36 Hours to Zero Hour:
Her eyes fluttered open, she tested her neck. Check. The brace was gone; Cate turned to the right gently, there was a little pain in her back, but not enough to bother her. Her head, however, felt like she’d just spent several painful hours listening to a heavy metal band in the front row, without ear plugs. Instinctively a hand went to her head, bandages, damn… she vaguely recalls bouncing a few times on that ramp. You’d think metal could be made a little more flexible.
There was light coming in through a window, beautiful sunlight. She wasn’t on Vegema, and she knew she wasn’t back home on Earth, the trees outside were different. The Alpha site. A light snoring, very faint, alerted her to a figure asleep in a chair next to her, covered in a cotton hospital blanket, the blonde head of Tyra. Movement of feet warned her that someone else was in the room, she turned to the left, a young dark-skinned man in blue nurses scrubs.
“You’re awake ma’am.” He said, his accent pinning him to Pacific Island origins, possibly Samoa. His well-muscled frame was telling, she could see him easily playing for her football team.
“Has it been a while?” There was still a definite feeling of her mouth full of cotton wool.
“Since we brought you in, or your surgery?” Like all those she had met, mostly professional Rugby League players, his intimidating looks were in complete contrast to his gentle voice.
She kept her voice to a slight whisper as she glanced to her right briefly, then back to the nurse. “The first, or both really, what time is it. Hell, what day is it?” It was then, as her body instinctively wanted to sit up, that she realized she only had a standard ward gown on… loosely tied in the front instead of the back. She pulled the sheet up.
“And you do have a name, don’t you?”
“Last question first, Lieutenant Aonani Fuamatu ma’am, US Navy. It’s zero eight hundred and it’s Tuesday April seven.” Smooth and even, there was no sense of panic or impending disaster in his voice.
“Nice to meet you, Lieutenant.” Then it hit her like a brick. “Shit! She sat up. “Get me some clothes, or pyjamas, something better than this piece of rag.”
“Yes ma’am.” He ducked out, Cate watched him leave.
At the same time, Tyra aroused. “Cate, Cate! Are you okay?” The girl was at her side in a second.
She felt a mess. Everything ached. Cate figured quickly that it was only three hours since she saw her parents when she was in recovery back on Vegema, given the time differences. Damn! She thought they must have moved quickly. Why the hurry? “Yes, as good as can be expected Tyra. Have you been here all this time?”
The girl started fussing immediately. “Do you need something to drink? There’s sandwiches in the refrigerator… um anything? I’ve got some chocolate in my bag.”
Cate placed her hand on Tyra’s cheek and left it there for a moment. “Kiddo, what would I do without you?” She smiled. “No, I’m fine, I don’t think I could eat or drink right now, still feeling a bit off. But I want you to tell me what’s happening, where’s Dusty right now?”
A sweet young face returned the smile. To any passer-by they’d be struck by the similarity between the two. Blonde, tall and with bodies that would be more suited for ballet than in your face combat exponents. An older sister with her younger sibling perhaps? “Dusty is on CAP with Francis at the moment Cate, why?”
Cate raised an eyebrow. “Oh, so it’s Francis now, is it?” She chuckled. “I need to speak to him. While he’s a top notch CAG, strategy isn’t his forte’, we have thirty six hours before the shit hits the fan and we need to get some planning measures put into place. If there was one thing she had learned about the Alliance, they kept tight schedules, and neutralising worlds fell into that time keeping. Her bum hurt, badly. She vaguely recalled her mother telling someone, or was it, Caroline? That she had fractured her pelvis. Is that what it felt like?
Red faced at being caught out, Tyra did her best at pretending to not notice. She failed miserably. “Erm, the lieutenant has been helping me with my studies, navigation, mostly.” While that may have been true, Cate didn’t think it ended there.
The lieutenant graciously left the room for a moment, he had four sisters, and he knew where this conversation was going.
Cate blinked at his departure, then she got straight to the point. That was one thing that some people found irritating with Cate, her honesty was too blunt sometimes. “Have you slept with him?”
The girls eyes went wide, her mouth dropped open. “How did you?” There, she admitted it. “You’re not disappointed in me, are you? I mean we’re in love and you know, how many times have you told me Cate, shit happens.”
Just as she was about to respond the Nurse returned. “Pajamas.” He pronounced it, just as if he had spelt it. “Although I think you might want to put a hold on the pants ma’am.” They were pink, with maroon piping around the edges. The boys got blue. Some things never changed.
“Why?” Then Cate thought it might be an idea to have a look. She lifted the sheet. “Oh, oh… crap!” On the right side of her hip were four metal pins protruding from the skin about five centimetres. There was no pain, just a dull ache. Cate very vaguely recalled another nurse giving her something a little while ago.
“Not a good fit, is it?” The man was enjoying her discomfort, Cate was sure of it.
Tyra leaned over a moment before Cate, taking a quick peak. “Wow, that is so…”
“If you say cool, Tyra, I will smack you!” She just didn’t quite realise what a mess she was in. It was all hitting her now. Hard. “Right, Lieutenant, leave that there.” She pointed to the end of the bed. Tyra made a face.
It was as if she had offended him, the look on his face was pitiful. “I can help you ma’am.”
“Like hell you will. Ya ‘all might be a nurse, and I don’t care what you see when I’m under, but you sure ain’t seeing nothin’ while I’m wide awake!” That was her best Dolly impersonation, and it was an icebreaker. Tyra started laughing first, then Aonani, it wasn’t long before the three of them were laughing.
“Okay, okay I can take a hint. If you need me, I’ll be outside.” The young man back out, quietly closing the door behind him.
Once he was out of sight, Cate had Tyra help her out of the useless ward gown and slip the pink pyjama top on. It felt warm and smelled new. But she needed to feel normal, even if it meant only the top half. “Did they leave my clothes behind?” She looked around, she couldn’t see anything other than her backpack. Someone was thoughtful in that regard at least.
Still fussing as if she was Cate’s mother, Tyra was buttoning the top for her friend. “No, they asked me to take them to your room. Karen had to gate back to the Tel’tak to bring it back, SG-1 went with her. I heard Colonel Mitchell saying there was no sign of the alien.” She let Cate settle back into the pillow. “She dropped the rest of your things off last night.”
“Thank heavens for Karens,” Cate joked, which of course, Tyra was clueless to. The girl looked like a confused puppy, tilting her head that way. “In any case, your personal life is yours to own, Tyra, but you’re so young; just be careful, okay?” She sighed deeply. “I’ll explain about the ‘Karens’ later. So, is Parker still here?”
Tyra sat back in the chair, glancing outside for a moment, watching the falling autumn leaves. She turned around. “Uh-huh. I saw her in the canteen about an hour ago.” The window caught her gaze again. Francis was out there. She was worried, and Cate saw it.
“He’ll be okay. Dusty will take care of him.” Cate felt responsible for Tyra being here; she wanted her to go back to Vegema. That was a dead end. The girl simply refused.
“I know, I know, Cate. It’s not just Francis… I’m worried for everyone here, especially you.” That was something wonderful about the girl; the care she showed for others. Cate had seen that in her a year ago.
“We’ll make it, Tyra. They won’t win.” She left it at that, then mused for a moment. She hated asking for things; being independent was something she took great pride in; but she figured she didn’t have many choices at the moment. “Listen, would you mind running a few errands for me? I hate to ask.”
The girl’s eyes brightened. “Cate, you don’t have to ask. We’re family; well, to me we are anyway.”
Now there was a confession Cate wasn’t prepared for, and she wasn’t sure how to respond. But sometimes, in your worst moments, a sudden thought opens your eyes. Perhaps she had been insensitive. Cate just had to ask. “Tyra, do you mind if I ask you something?”
A big smile greeted her, making Cate feel a little guilty. “No, not at all.”
“Be careful,” Cate cautioned herself. She hesitated, knowing the question might reopen old wounds, but she had to ask. “When you went back to Plaxia last month, did you find what you were looking for?” She refrained from mentioning Tyra’s parents. She was confident what the answer would be.
The smile faded. Damnit. What was she thinking?
“Morena and James did everything possible. They’re gone, Cate.”
Tyra had been granted leave to find some answers. It wasn’t a given that the Alliance had wreaked so much havoc on the city, that many of the older Vegemahan had survived; and while some had, Tyra’s parents had not. She knew her father was strong, just not strong enough to survive in the mines, and her mother would not have lasted long without her loving husband.
“Come here.” Cate held her arms out, and the younger girl fell into them. That moment lasted until the last tear was gone.
“How would you feel about calling Earth your home?” Cate asked in a quiet whisper.
Tyra pushed away just a little without letting go. “Do you mean it?”
Cate hesitated again. She’d never thought of herself as the protective, big-sister type, but with Tyra… it felt natural. “You’re still under eighteen. In the laws of my country, any adult can be named as your guardian. I’m going to ask Mum and Dad to make it official.”
Mum and Dad already adored Tyra; they’d practically adopted her in their hearts long before Cate put it into words.
“Really? You would do that for me?” The smile struggled to return, but it was there in her eyes.
Nodding, Cate stroked the girl’s cheek. “I want to. I think, in my heart, I’ve been calling you my baby sister for a year anyway.”
Now it was Tyra’s turn to show some scarlet on her cheeks. “Aww, that means the world to me, Cate.” One more tear ran down her cheek. It wasn’t a sad one this time. She brightened visibly. “So, okay... what was it you wanted me to do? I’m all yours today. Mrs. Djorski has given me the day off, and besides, I’m ahead of the class anyway.”
“The English teacher? You’re going to skip a whole day of class?” That wasn’t something Cate felt comfortable with. “No, no, Tyra, you really shouldn’t.”
“It’s done. I gave her my paper for the next two days. I’m free, honestly. I want to do this.”
Honesty. The kid had that in spades, and Cate knew she was going to be on the losing side of that argument. How could she not love her, as a little sister?
“First of all, in relation to our rooms, where am I? Could you draw me a map, or better still see if you can… “ She stopped. There was an easier way. “… forget that, could you go to my room, grab my laptop and a clean set of BDUs. The laptop is on my desk, the clothes are in the locker.” She reached for her backpack, that nearly killed her. Cate gritted her teeth; the strain of simply reaching, was like getting an electric shock.
“Cate! What are you doing?” Tyra watched in horror, seeing her strain herself like that. “Honestly, I’m gonna be babysitting you forever.” She stepped around the bed and grabbed the pack. “Now from here on, you want something, just ask, okay?” The damn thing was heavy, and it wasn’t even a regular day pack. “Here.” She said, gently placing it beside Cate.
At any other time, she would have had a sarcastic reply, or at worst, something totally stupid. “Okay.” She had surrendered. Her left hand reached in for what she was after. “Here, take my card Tyra. That will get you into my room and my locker. And thank you.”
The youngster took the plastic card. They were essentially your ID card and swipe card all in one, and as you went up in rank, the base’s data base was updated, and you gained admittance to areas that required a higher clearance. “God,” she thought, the places Cate’s card could get her into, and of course the trouble that might cause. She put the thought of any irregular activities out of her mind. “I’ll be back in about ten minutes. Was there anything you think you might want?”
“My watch!” Cate exclaimed, it wasn’t in her pack. “Did someone take it off me, back on Vegema?” She felt vulnerable. Having her life thrown into chaos in such a way was more than alarming, it was scarry. Knowing people could do whatever they wanted with you, take whatever they wanted from you, when you’re completely out of it. She could feel panic in her throat. That was until her ‘baby sister’, stood there grinning, dangling the said watch from one hand.
“Why you!” It couldn’t be helped. By now they both realised they were so much alike, even to the point of the practical joker. On cue, they began laughing.
“What’s going on here?” Another voice asked. And it wasn’t the nurse.
Tyra stepped aside, it was Parker. The teenager sat on the edge of the bed, she was still grinning.
“I’ll go now, back soon.” She said, leaving Cate safely in Karen’s hands.
The older woman stood there with her arms folded, a half-smile on her face. “You’re looking better Cate, how do you feel?”
“Do you really want to know?” Suddenly, once Tyra was out of the room her mood had soured. Not because of Karen; it was the sudden awareness of her situation. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” She shook her head. “I’m always the first to lecture people that others are not responsible for your own misery and here I am, contradicting myself.”
Cate noticed Parker was wearing that suede clothing she saw Anise in the other day. “Off somewhere?” She added, trying to distract from what had come over her.
“Yes, I’m due to meet with the Tok’ra council in a few hours. It’ll take me two hours to get there.” There was a vagueness about her. As if she had more to say, but something was keeping her from saying it. She pulled up a chair and sat. “I can say this though, as I’m sure you’ll hear of it soon enough. Allienna has you up for an award, well both of us really, I just wanted to let you know.”
An award? That was something Cate could never get her head around. Doing your job and someone wants to give you a gong for it. “I’d tell her to stick it Karen, but Allienna is the most caring person I know.” She knew this was going to be awkward, but Cate was one to throw caution to the winds. “I have to get out of here. Today, not in three months’ time. Can any Tok’ra use one of those Goa’uld healing devices? I remember reading about them in old SG1 mission files.”
Now it was Parker’s turn to look serious. She lowered her head, as it lifted again, Pretaya took over. “Yes, but some are stronger than others in the effectiveness of the device. I personally have never used one, I know Anise has, often. Why do you ask?”
There was no fumbling for words, Cate came straight out with it. “I want, no, I need these injuries healed asap, I can’t lay here knowing we have a disaster at our door step. Karen, I need someone to use one of those things on me.” Her tone was almost pleading.
“No, Cate I’m sorry but it can’t be done like that. And I don’t think any of the senior commanders would go for it. This is what you’re up against. One, the SGC’s device is under lock and key, and though General O’Neill could authorise its removal, he wouldn’t.”
“But…” Cate tried to interrupt.
“I haven’t finished.” Pretaya told her. “Over the last ten years or so, since Earth’s exposure to these devices, your medical professionals have found there is a downside to the use of them. They are like a drug, and you’d need quite a few hours work on you. A quick healing of a few minutes doesn’t really have any lasting effect; if we used one on you Cate, you’d end up being an addict.” She let Parker back into the conversation. “It’s worse than heroine Cate. We never noticed it in the early years; but there were a couple of cases where someone had the device used on them, more than once. At first, we couldn’t understand where the behavioural changes were coming from, until we connected the dots.”
A sense of depression tried to open a door into Cate’s mind. She refused to succumb to it. As Karen finished speaking, another idea started to evolve. “That’s okay. Well, no, it sucks, but I can’t do anything about it can I?”
“I’m so sorry Cate. I would try and do something if I could. Anise said the effect is minimised by trickle healing, short sessions of ten minutes. But in your case, that would take days, perhaps even weeks, without risk. I know you can’t wait that long.” Her mind raced, Cate had become a friend, Karen had few, there must be something that could be done. “I will speak on your behalf at the council.” Pretaya took over again. “I must go. Do not lose hope Catherine.” Karen stood, she bent and kissed Cate on the forehead. “I’ll be back tonight.” And with that, she left, the soft Tok’ra boots she wore almost making her footsteps silent.
“Bye.” That was about it. Now she was alone, that scared her. Cate knew Tyra would be back, but that wasn’t enough. She had to do something, and she knew where she could get some help, without them even realising they were helping her.
She picked up the watch from her lap, turning it over, making sure it wasn’t damaged. Reading the inscription made her feel warm, connected. ‘To our dearest Cate, Happy 21st, love, Mum and Dad’. Of course, Ben got one as well, but that wasn’t important. So, it might not be one of those fancy G-Shock watches everyone seems to be wearing; no just a good old diver’s watch, automatic so she never had to worry about winding it or changing batteries. She held it close to her chest, then fitted it to her wrist. Without a thought, her right hand felt around her neck; relief. Her necklace and crucifix were still there.
The pain was still there, yet Cate had this way of ignoring it. A trick she learned long ago when she reached puberty, it hadn’t been easy. Then there was that time she was thrown from a new horse her dad had just broken in. He was still a little wild and despite Cate and Ben being told not to go near him; she did of course, saddled him with the intention of riding him. Biscuit had other ideas, no sooner had Cate and the horse cleared the yard, when he thought he'd have some fun with his human passenger. She ended up in the water trough, Ben laughing his sides off and Cate ending up with a broken leg. She had just turned sixteen.
Memories, they can make you smile or cry. All this had done was to make Cate think harder. She was living on another planet, far out in the galaxy; she knows people who have aliens in their heads, and she’s met some of the strangest creatures in her journey and apparently made some enemies as well. There must be a way out of this mess.
There were voices outside, she could hear two of the staff chatting. Cate strained her head in their direction, her natural instincts were to pick up information wherever she could, and hospital staff were always a source of that information. “… they’ll be moving them all back to the SGC, starting from seventeen hundred… “ She did not need to hear that. “No, no!” A voice in her head screamed. Then almost immediately she heard another, a third speaker.
“Knock, Knock.” A familiar voice woke Cate from her reverie. “Can I come in?” Vala stood in the doorway, she had something with her.
Heaving a deep sigh, before settling back into her pillows (3 of them), Cate could only but smile and say a silent prayer of thank you. Now she knew someone, was watching over her. “Vala! Yes, yes please, come in.” She patted the side of the bed, Cate wanted her friend close. She glanced at her watch, trying not to look obvious. Tyra would be another five minutes or more.
Vala strutted into the room, holding up a small box with a triumphant grin. “I come bearing gifts, darling.”
Cate raised a sceptical brow. “Those aren’t Mitchell’s macaroons, are they?”
Vala gasped, pressing a hand to her chest in mock offense. “How dare you! Do you think I would subject you to such horrors in your delicate state?”
“Yes,” Cate deadpanned.
Vala huffed. “Alright, fair, but these are from an actual bakery in Foreston. I may have… borrowed Daniel’s wallet for the occasion.” She plopped onto the bed and opened the box, revealing perfectly crafted macaroons in an array of colours.
Cate smirked, selecting one with practiced caution. “If I get food poisoning from these, I’ll be sending Teal’c after you.”
“Oh please, Teal’c loves me.” Vala popped a macaroon into her mouth, speaking around it. “Besides, I figured you could use a distraction. I hear you’ve been making one of the nurses miserable. And I love your hair Cate!”
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
It was still short of course, but somehow in the last twenty four hours, someone had bathed her and washed her hair. Cate prayed it wasn’t Aonani.
“Thanks, Vala and it isn’t my fault he insists on treating me like I’m made of glass.” Cate chewed thoughtfully. “Speaking of distractions, got any gossip? You’re usually a walking tabloid.”
Vala waggled her brows. “Oh, I have plenty, but you’ll owe me.”
Cate rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll owe you. Spill.”
“Well,” Vala leaned in conspiratorially, “word is, Jackson has been avoiding Sam ever since he lost a bet and now owes her a week of lab assistance.”
Cate snorted. “What was the bet?”
“Oh, something about whether or not she could get one of those new combat droids to do a backflip.”
Cate blinked. “A backflip?”
“Yes, apparently it worked. He was so sure it wouldn’t.”
Cate shook her head, amused, then played her next card. “You know, I’ve been thinking…” She stretched, careful not to show how much effort it took. “Since I’m stuck here, I might as well do some research. You remember that sarcophagus Parker had? Any idea where they stored it?”
Vala, mid-bite, narrowed her eyes slightly. “Why?”
Cate shrugged with casual ease. “No reason, just curious. And bored. Mostly bored.”
Vala studied her for a second, then grinned. “Cate, darling, if you’re fishing for trouble, at least take me with you.”
Cate chuckled. “Not fishing. Just making conversation.”
Vala seemed satisfied with that, nodding. “It’s in the vault on level three. Under heavy lock and key, of course.”
Cate hummed in understanding, taking another bite of her macaroon. Vault… level three… biometric sensor. She kept her expression neutral, but her mind was already working through the logistics. Only Bixby and General O’Neill have access…
A plan began to form, slow but certain.
Vala nudged her. “You’ve got that look.”
Cate blinked innocently. “What look?”
“The ‘I’m about to do something reckless’ look.”
Cate smirked. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Vala rolled her eyes, popping another macaroon into her mouth. “Liar. But I like you, so I’ll pretend I believe you.”
Cate just smiled, filing away the information she needed. Now, she just had to get her hands on that beer in her room fridge. Tyra, the poor kid is going to have to do the run back again. “You’ll just have to trust me Vala.”
The brunette raised an eyebrow. “Now why does that tell me, you are up to something?”
There was a time when Cate would have something really witty to say, but right now her mind was full of something else. Should she take in a confidant, that might endanger their position as well; there was no way in hell, she could do that. “Me? Never!” She gave that beguiling smile of hers, it never failed.
Back and forth for another few minutes until Tyra returned. Vala greeted her with a hug. The kid had that effect on others. Most of the older women on the base, wanted to mother her; the older men, felt she needed a father and the younger seeing her as a little sister, needing protection. Strangely, only Nugget saw her as a love interest. Like Cate, there something about Tyra that very easily warned predators off.
“I gotta go Cate, now you two behave, you hear me?” She was sounding very much like the bigger sister of three.
Tyra had gone around to the window side of the bed, she was about to pack Cate’s clothes in the little bedside drawers, she looked up, answering. “We will.” He own grin could match that of Cate’s.
“Before you go, Vala have you seen General O’Neill recently?” Cate asked.
Nodding affirmative Vala replied. “Yes, he’s with Cam and Daniel down in the control room. Do you need him?”
Cate glanced at the phone next to her. “I may. I can call him from here. See you soon Vala and thank you for the macaroons, that really made my day.” She was being honest in that regard.
The dark haired woman gave the two of them one last suspicious look, blew a kiss to the two of them and was gone. Cate counted to five, before saying anything. “Thanks Tyra, now, I’m really getting thick headed. I hate to ask you again.”
“It’s okay, really, I don’t mind Cate. I only have to think of everything you’ve done for me, ever since we first me. Gosh, can I say I owe you big time!” The girl was full of enthusiasm, that was a trait Cate saw in her from the beginning.
This was difficult, she hated using people, Cate had no other choices though, it had to be done. “Would you mind going back to my room. I have some beer in my fridge, and since I’ve just found out I’m being moved back to the SGC, I’d like to thank General O’Neill personally for all the help he has given me.” It was lame, but it was all she had.
Now it Tyra’s turn to look at Cate with suspicion. She was up to something, and she could feel it. But she decided to play along and see where it led to. “Um, okay.” But she had to ask. “Cate are you alright? I mean I know you’ve got a lot going on, but… “
“But what Tyra? I seem distracted? Is that what you were going to say?” There was a seriousness to her expression, one she rarely showed.
The youngster was spot on of course. “Yeah, you’re not going to do something stupid are you?”
“Me? God no. You know me kiddo, all rules and regulation.” She hated lying. If she had to be honest, Cate wished she could tell the girl; she was determined though, if anyone was going to get into trouble, it’d be on her own.
Tyra dutifully left her, again Cate counted. Just to be sure the girl didn’t turn back. She then picked up the phone next to her and called the control room, she had no trouble getting through to Jack. He sounded bored, which was a good omen to her. “Sir, I just wanted to let you know I believe they are shipping me out to the SGC later today… I er, wanted to thank you personally. I’ve got a couple of beers if you’re interested?”
“Drinking on duty Cate?” came the dry reply.
Cate grinned at the phone. “Come on, General. The universe as we know it might end tomorrow. And, besides no one would be more off duty than I am right now.”
Jack relented. “Alright, but just one, I’ll be there in five.” He hung up.
Five minutes. She opened her laptop, waited a moment for it to power up, before her fingers were tapping keys. Cate used one of her own programs to bypass the base’s firewalls, once she was connected to their wi-fi. It took mere seconds for her to bring up the schematics. “Hmm, down the hallway outside my room, a lift. I have to pass a ‘T’ junction, nurses station to my left.” She mapped out her route, and getting passed that junction was going to matter. Cate also considered, she may come across and SF here and there. Then there was the CCTV cameras, they were everywhere, she knew that. In all, from her room to level three and the vault, four minutes and twenty seconds, if, and it was a big if, she didn’t encounter someone. She also looked into the possibility of overriding the biometric sensor on the door. No luck there, they had another firewall in the system, and she knew it would throw up an alarm if she tried to get passed it. So, plan A will have to suffice. Plan C was a bit dramatic, and she didn’t think she could persuade anyone to ‘borrow’ some RDX, or C4 as it was commonly known.
Footsteps? They were light. A moment passed, voices and then Tyra appeared. She had one can and a paper cup. “Aonani stopped me Cate.” She walked over, placing the beer and cup on Cate’s tray. “He felt that mixing alcohol and your meds wasn’t such a great thing… “
You could almost hear the laughter in her head. Cate pulled the trolly closer, she picked up the cup, its contents was a lovely golden yellow, much paler than what she knew was in the can. It smelt of beer. “So, what do I have here, then? Make believe booze?”
Tyra was grinning her trademark smile. “He opened one can, poured you out half a cup and topped the rest up with lemonade, or soda as he called it.” She then turned the smile into something apologetic. “I have some errands to run for Dusty and Colonel Bixby, I promised him I’d get it done before he gets back, you don’t mind, do you? I’ll be back in about thirty minutes.”
“Aww, honey that’s okay, you don’t need to ask. Go, get your work done and I’ll see you when you get back.” The voice in Cate’s head had to add. “That’s of course I’m not in the cooler, by the time you get back.” She held the girl’s hand for a moment, before letting her go.
“Can I bring you anything when I come back.” She was stalling, Tyra felt her duty was with her friend, but at the same time she knew her responsibilities.
A silver/grey head popped around the corner. “I’m not disturbing anything am I?” It was Jack.
“No sir, I was just leaving.” Tyra told him, releasing Cate’s hand.
“Cadet.” He said simply, nodding as she passed him.
Cate smiled as Jack sat down next to her, taking the beer with a raised eyebrow. He took a sip, a thoughtful look on his face before breaking into a smirk. "Hmm, tastes like real beer. Not like the creek water some of those American brews are trying to pass off as beer." He set the can down, a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. "What is this, some kind of high-class Aussie secret?"
Cate chuckled softly, shaking her head. "It's Cooper's Lager. Comes from a little brewery in Sydney. It’s good stuff."
"Cooper’s, huh? Well, it beats that swill they make back home," Jack said, leaning back in his chair, clearly impressed. "You really do have good taste." His eyes flicked to her briefly, the humour giving way to something a little more thoughtful. "You know, you take after your father more than your mother, right?"
Cate paused mid-drink, feeling a pang in her chest. She took a slow sip, trying to mask the sudden wave of emotion. "I get that a lot," she said quietly, her voice betraying a bit of the weight she carried with those words.
Jack's expression softened slightly, but only for a moment. He quickly recovered with a small chuckle. "Don’t worry, it's not a bad thing. Just means you’ve got a better shot at pulling off some of the ridiculous stunts you’ve been known to pull."
She couldn't help but smile, despite the tension gnawing at her. "You’re not wrong."
Jack’s gaze lingered on her for a second longer than usual, his tone more serious now. "So, what’s the plan when they let you out in a couple of weeks? You have anything special in mind?"
Cate looked down, her fingers tracing the rim of her cup absently. "Nothing exciting. I’ll be back at the SGC. Just... trying to figure out how to make things right, I guess."
She tried to keep her voice steady, but the weight of her thoughts pressed heavily on her chest. She couldn't shake the feeling of betrayal; of doing something behind everyone’s back, even if they wouldn’t understand her decision. What if the sarcophagus healed her completely? Would they accept that she was doing what had to be done, even if it was the only option she had left? “Damnit! Would her mother and Caroline understand after all the work they did on her?”
Jack studied her for a long moment, then broke the silence, his voice gruff but not unkind. "Whatever it is, Cate, I’m sure you’ll handle it. Just don’t get yourself killed in the process, alright?"
Cate met his gaze for a brief second, her voice quieter than before. "I’ll do my best, sir. Promise."
Just as Jack opened his mouth to say something more, a voice crackled through the comm, calling him back. Jack sighed, standing up and giving her a wry grin.
"Guess that’s my cue. You’ll be fine, Cate. Just don’t go pulling any more stunts while I’m not looking."
"Wouldn’t dream of it, sir," Cate said, her tone light, but the tension in her chest didn't quite ease.
Jack gave her a small salute, but there was something about the way he looked at her that made her feel like he knew exactly how she was feeling. "Take care, Cate. We’ll catch up soon."
As he turned and left, Cate sank back into her bed, staring at the empty cup in her hands. The silence that followed was deafening, and her thoughts circled, still unsure if the decision she was about to make would be worth the cost.
Minutes passed, Cate waited, she then set the dial on her watch. She gave herself, seven minutes. When all was quiet, she leaned over to her left, grabbing the arm of the wheelchair. “Ugh!” She cried in pain, not loudly, but enough to make her pause. Sweat broke out on her brow and around her mouth, she stretched a little more, wincing. “How the hell are you going to do this MacGregor?” The voice in her head asked her.
Next, she examined the can Jack drank from, handling it very carefully by the rim. Leaning to the right, more pain, Cate hefted her backpack onto her lap. She pulled out a small kit she had kept from her ASIS days, among other things. First, she sprayed the can with something similar to the dusting powder police used; she looked closely at the can, muttering, “Perfect, thank you, General O’Neill.” Using a clear film, she laid that over the prints, peeling it off carefully. She had a small machine that held a Nitrile glove; the film she placed in a separate slot. In less than ten seconds, the prints were transferred to the glove.
Now came the most difficult part. Getting into the chair. Cate placed her clothes and the glove on the trolley. She didn’t have boots, but that wasn’t going to be a problem, she figured she would have them soon. Throwing off the bed covers, she tightened her stomach muscles, gritted her teeth and swung her legs to the side. She wanted to scream, the agony was so bad. Tears streaked down her cheeks, and she began sweating profusely. Using her arms for support, with the chair next to the bed, she knew she had just a couple of seconds to get into the chair or risk having it slide away, as the brakes were not locked.
Cate gave one quick heave, slipping sideways, she dropped into the chair. “God!” She uttered silently. But she was not going to wasted energy on swearing, as much as she wanted to. Pain wracked her body, especially the lower back and hips. She could feel the pins, pressing against the vinyl sides of the chair. Grabbing the clothes and glove, placing them on her lap, she then pulled the woven cotton blanket off the bed, placing that over her lap; effectively covering her precious cargo.
She twisted the chair around, every move took such an effort, she had self-doubt if she was even going to pull this off. Yet without even thinking about it, the next thing she knew, she was waiting for the lift (elevator), after only just slipping passed the T junction and the nurses station. The clock was ticking loudly in her head; not that she had to worry too much about it, there was another seven hours before they were going to move her. Down on level three, the doors opened, Cate wheeled out, only to be confronted with voices coming down the side corridor that stood in her way between where she was and where she had to get to.
Gingerly she wheeled the fifteen feet between the lift doors and the junction, as best as she could manage, she leaned forward. There were two SFs exchanging a few words; they were part of security, and she knew for a while now, Colonel Bixby had SFs or some other armed personnel, on every level of the base. Even in the accommodation level you had to get past a guard now. Her mind was racing, how the hell was she going to get around this? “Think Cate, think! What else is on this level?” It felt like an eternity, those precious wasted seconds. Finally, she remembered there were some labs on this level and there was absolutely nothing better for rehab than getting into some sciency, unsolvable problem. That was her theory anyway. The wheelchair slowly came into full view of the SFs, it was bluff time. In her head, Cate could hear the theme from Mission Impossible. “Er, excuse me guys.” That got their attention.
Both men turned, their conversation pausing as they saw the woman in the wheelchair. The Marine, a solidly built man with close-cropped dark hair, straightened up slightly. His companion, the RCAF sergeant, gave her a polite but wary nod.
“Ma’am,” the Canadian said, eyes quickly flicking to the blanket covering her legs.
Cate gave them both a tight, sheepish smile. “I think I took a wrong turn,” she admitted. “Doctor Francie McKell’s lab is on this level, right?”
There was a moment of hesitation before the Marine responded. “Uh, yeah, ma’am. About thirty metres past the vault.”
The Canadian added, “We can give you a push if you’d like.”
Cate let out a small, nervous chuckle, shaking her head. “Appreciate it, Sergeant, but I have to get back to doing things myself sooner or later. Besides,” she added with a self-deprecating smirk, “rehab says I need to build upper body strength. Apparently, I’m not allowed to slack off just because I got shot.”
The Marine let out an amused snort. “Well, guess they’ve got a point, ma’am.”
The RCAF sergeant gave a small smile. “Heard about your little exit on Vegema. Hell of a move.”
Cate pulled a face. “Wouldn’t recommend it.” Then she adjusted her hands on the wheels. “Anyway, I won’t keep you. Just need to get my brain working on something that isn’t physiotherapy.”
The Marine nodded. “Understood, ma’am.”
“Take it easy,” the Canadian added.
Cate gave them one last smile, her heart hammering in her chest as she wheeled forward at a steady, deliberate pace. Now all she had to do was to get to the vault without raising suspicion. Easy, right?
Steadily she wheeled herself forward. Cate glanced at her watch, five minutes, thirty nine seconds. She was almost there. The door soon loomed in front of her, it was wider than a normal door, but roughly the same height. Just with the thing closed she could feel the bulk of it; it was meant to keep people out. The biometric panel was on the right side, she could just reach it from the wheelchair. Her head swivelled left and right, even doing that was excruciating, it felt like her brain was going to explode. “Just fucking do it Cate!” The voice in her head yelled at her. She slipped the glove on her hand, then placed the thumb over the sensor. From another corner of her mind, a voice asked. “How do you know if he used his left or right hand?” She replied. “Shut the fuck up!” Still, no one was around and, she was getting angry. A blue light illuminated on the panel, there was a soft hiss, that made her look to either side; again, she wanted to cry with the pain. “This had better work.” She whispered as she wheeled herself into the ‘Vault’.
The door slid shut, a moment before Sergeant Adrian Greer started his rounds down corridor L3A7, he walked passed the Vault casually, stopping by the huge door. He wasn’t quite sure if he was hearing things or not; he gave his head a shake, telling himself he was hallucinating. Yet he was certain that he heard a hissing sound. “Never mind Greer, this place is full of ghosts.” He moved on, making a note that perhaps he might check in on Doctor McKell and see how Squadron Leader MacGregor got on.
Four feet six inches away from where Greer stood, Cate had a set of tools from a small kit she brought with her. She had prised the cover off the inside door control panel. “That will do it.” Three wires hung from the frame, cut neatly, so that she could easily re-connect them when she needed to.
Up to this point, she hadn’t paid much attention to what the Vault held within its protective walls and security door. But now, as she turned her wheelchair around, her breath caught in her throat.
The air was thick with a strange mix of scents; sterile hospital antiseptic still clinging to her skin and clothes, mingling with the subtle musk of old parchment, aged metal, and something earthier, almost like forgotten tombs. Her stomach twisted, not in fear, but in the sheer weight of the history that surrounded her.
Then she saw it.
The golden sarcophagus dominated the room, its polished surface gleaming under the artificial lights. Cate had seen the research, read every documented case file, memorised the physiological effects… but none of it quite prepared her for this. It was beautiful, almost hypnotic, its ornate carvings whispering of power and the untold stories of those who had lain inside before her.
Her fingers flexed against the armrests of the wheelchair. This was a Goa’uld device… designed to cheat death, to sustain hosts for centuries. The risks were enormous. And yet, her body ached with every breath, her vision swam in and out of focus, and the pounding in her skull was relentless. She had no choice.
Cate swallowed hard and exhaled, her gaze finally pulling away from the sarcophagus to the rows of shelves packed with treasures; gold, relics, artefacts of lost civilisations. “Oh, my dear Vala, if only you could see this,” she murmured, a wry smile breaking through despite the pain. It was like stepping into the Goa’uld equivalent of Fort Knox. A part of her wanted to reach out, to run her hands over every artefact, to decipher their histories… but there was no time for that.
Not yet.
She tightened her grip on the wheels of the chair and rolled forward.
A blaring alarm sounded throughout the hospital, nurses and aides rushed to room twenty seven where young Tyra stood by an empty bed. She had finished her errands for Colonel Bixby and since her duty finished at 1200 hours and it was now 1115 hours, Michelle gave the cadet the rest of the day off so she could spend some time with Cate. Panic swelled in her chest when she found the room vacant. Lieutenant Aonani Fuamatu was doing his handover to Captain Louise Jarenko, his replacement for the afternoon shift. Dusty Dixon had finished his morning flight on CAP and Nugget Bianchi was with him. They both wanted to see Cate as soon as they had finished their duty. The room was quite suddenly very crowded.
“She was here with General O’Neill.” She pleaded. Acid was forming in her stomach with the approaching fear that came with it.
Everyone tried to talk at once and since Dusty was the most senior person in the room, when he spoke, they all fell silent. “Have a look around Tyra, is anything missing?”
Before she answered, Francis gave her hand a squeeze. A little support like that went a long way. Tyra went around the bed, she pulled the drawers on the bedside table, they were empty. The only thing she could see was Cate’s backpack and the laptop that was on the bed, closed. “I brought up a change of clothes for her, a set of BDUs, they’re gone.” She didn’t want to, the circumstances had forced her to; she looked in Cate’s backpack, Tyra fairly well knew the contents. “She has this small bag of things, um, gadgets, Cate keeps. I think it’s stuff she keeps from her spy days.”
“Christ!” Dusty exclaimed. “That woman will drive me insane. She is up to something.” He tapped his coms. “General O’Neill.” He said.
Jack’s radio crackled to life. “General O’Neill.”
He tapped his earpiece. “Go for O’Neill.”
Dusty’s voice came through, clipped and tense. “Sir, we’ve got a situation. Cate’s missing.”
Jack froze. “What do you mean missing?”
“In the literal sense, sir. She was here. Now she’s not. Room’s empty, BDUs gone. We think she’s up to something.”
Jack squeezed his eyes shut. “Dammit, MacGregor. Why wasn’t she being watched?”
A new voice cut in; Lieutenant Aonani Fuamatu. “Sir, she was there five minutes ago. I walked past her room after you left. She hadn’t moved.”
Sam couldn’t help but to overhear Jack’s conversation. “I think we should check the security camera feeds.” She didn’t wait for an answer.
A few keystrokes later, a monitor lit up. They scrolled back an hour. The footage showed Cate in bed, talking to Jack. Then, as soon as he left, she was reaching for the wheelchair, then she seemed to be doing something with the beer can Jack drank from, they could see her using some kind of device. A few minutes later flung back the blankets, awkwardly got into the chair and after gathering some things, wheeled herself out. The next clip showed her arriving at the elevator.
There was a moment of anxiety before they managed to pick up her trail again. This time exiting the elevator on level three. They saw her exchanging a few words with the SFs. Another feed caught her rolling down the corridor, right up to the Vault and using the sensor, she had the door open.
Jack’s jaw clenched. “Someone wanna tell me how the hell that was possible?”
Cam shrugged. “She’s ex-CIA, sir. She can do pretty much anything.”
Daniel, not looking up from the monitor, corrected him. “ASIS, actually. Not CIA.”
Jack waved a hand. “Whatever. It’s the same thing.”
They didn’t have time to debate it further. Jack, left with SG1 closely on his tail, they met with Dusty, Nugget, and Tyra, before all of them made their way down to Level Three. The Vault’s entrance loomed before them, the biometric scanner pulsing with an ominous red glow.
Jack pressed his thumb to the panel. Nothing. The light stayed red.
“Cate disarmed the controls,” Sam concluded. “Only she, can open it now.”
Jack scowled. “Alright, call up the gate room. Get Siler over here.”
Twenty minutes later, Chief Master Sergeant Siler arrived, toolbox in hand. He eyed the door, then Jack, then back at the door.
Jack folded his arms. “We need through that door, Siler.”
Siler sighed. “Sir, this thing is a metre thick. It’d take hours to cut through.”
Jack threw up his hands. “Who the hell put that in place? This isn’t a damn bank!“
Daniel cleared his throat. “Uh, you did, Jack. When we built this place.”
Jack shot him a look. “And when did anyone ever listen to me?”
He turned back to the group. “Alright, options. What do we do? We don’t have hours. The Alliance could be here any minute.”
Sam exhaled, crossing her arms. “We don’t have to do anything.”
Jack narrowed his eyes. “Carter?”
She nodded at the door. “We wait.”
Jack scoffed. “Wait? She just locked herself in with a Goa’uld sarcophagus, for cryin’ out loud!”
Sam’s lips pressed into a thin line. “Exactly. Which means she’ll come out soon.”
Jack frowned. “And?”
“You’ll probably want to court martial her, General.” Cam told him, his expression unreadable.
Up until this point, Teal’c had kept his mouth shut. He did have something to say now. “I think that would be an ill-advised plan O’Neill.”
It wasn’t often someone could put Jack in his place, Teal’c could always be trusted to be the one who did so. Jack was curious though. “That would be, why T?”
“Squadron Leader MacGregor was merely following your own doctrine.” He half bowed as if he had just done Jack a great service.
Vala chuckled. “It would be a little contradictory wouldn’t it General?”
Poor Jack’s face was going scarlet. “Is everyone gangin’ up on me?”
Sam gave him a knowing look. “It would seem so sir.”
“So, we wait?” He hated resigning himself to defeat. Surely, he had something up his sleeve.
“We wait.” Sam repeated herself.
For nearly three hours, the corridor outside Vault on section L3A7 had been a pressure cooker of impatience, speculation, and, because SG-1 was involved, a steady stream of questionable humour. Jack paced like a caged lion, Dusty leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, and Tyra and Nugget hovered nearby, eyes locked on the massive, red-lit door.
Daniel had abandoned all pretence of professionalism twenty minutes ago and was now playing tic-tac-toe with himself on a data pad. Vala had taken it upon herself to shake the vault door every so often, just in case “tactical rattling” made it open faster. It did not.
Then, finally, with a deep mechanical groan, the door began its slow, deliberate slide open. Everyone snapped to attention. The air was thick with anticipation, like they were about to come face-to-face with some ancient horror; because, knowing Cate, that wasn’t entirely off the table.
As the heavy panel pulled back, revealing the eerie glow of the vault’s interior, Cate stood there in full BDUs, barefoot, looking every bit like someone who had absolutely just done something inadvisable. She blinked at them, head tilting slightly as if confused why they were all here.
A long silence.
Jack was the first to recover. “Cate, I have exactly three questions. One, what the hell were you thinking? Two, why are you barefoot? And three, why do you look like you just spent three hours in a salon?”
Cate gave a slow blink, as if still piecing together reality. “...In my defence, that sarcophagus is a hell of a power nap.”
Jack pinched the bridge of his nose. “Oh, fantastic. Now she’s well-rested and breaking all my security protocols.” He turned to Dusty. “I think we need to consider an appropriate punishment for this level of insubordination.”
Dusty, who had been biting back laughter, shrugged. “Well, sir, normally we’d do two hours of CAP duty for minor rule infractions… but considering she staged a full-blown heist on our own base, I’d say four.”
Sam arched an eyebrow. “Four hours? You sure that’s enough? Maybe throw in an additional debrief where she has to explain this to Landry.”
Daniel, arms crossed, nodded sagely. “That might actually be worse than the flight hours.”
Vala, eyes gleaming with mischief, gestured grandly toward the vault behind Cate. “Darling, you just cracked open the mother of all treasure troves and you didn’t fill your pockets? I’m honestly disappointed. We should rectify this immediately.”
Cam, exasperated, shot her a look. “Not happenin’, Vala.”
Cate rubbed the back of her neck, finally registering the entire squad staring at her like she’d just crash-landed an Al’kesh on the White House lawn. “…So, does this mean I’m not getting lunch?”
Jack groaned. “Get her out of here before I demote her to latrine duty.”
Nugget, barely containing his grin, moved to escort Cate out of the vault, only to pause. “Uh… should we be worried about any lingering side effects?”
Cate gave him a slow, almost mischievous smile. “Oh, I feel fantastic.”
Jack immediately pointed a finger at Sam. “Carter, I want her scanned, have the medics run every test they have on her.”
She resigned herself to the blatant fact that they had all put poor Jack through enough. Sam didn’t argue the point, as much as she wanted to. After all, he had been in a sarcophagus at least eight times when Ba’al tortured him. Daniel once or twice and neither of them were raging megalomaniacs, were they? “Yes sir.” She said sweetly.
24 hours to Zero hour:
After all the hubbub had died down sometime in mid-afternoon, after Cate had met with her mates in the 56th ‘Buzzards’ squadron and a short conference with Elle on the Invincible and some of the unit commanders on the base. There was no surprise from Elle when she was told of Cate’s ‘miracle’ recovery; in her own words, “I would have done the same.” Two other ships stood ready to defend PG8-K59, the Chekov and the Daedalus. Due to joining them with the next twelve hours was the Hammond and the new battle ship, Aurora. (named in honour of the Ancient ship of the same name)
Cate retreated to her room. She needed some alone time, except of course for her shadow, Tyra. The girl was sound asleep on Cate’s bed; dead tired after being awake for almost twenty four hours. Cate sat at her desk, holding a silver framed photo of her parents. She had a video meeting with her mother, which ended rather abruptly. Cate really didn’t expect it to be any different, with Anne calling her selfish. She could see her mother’s point of view, still, it was stinging and it hurt deeply.
Long range scanners revealed that at least twelve large ships and numerous escorts were on their way. Intelligence from various sources that included the Tok’ra, said that the Alliance were going to mount a ground attack in the first stages, possibly landing as many as twenty thousand troops. The base’s tactical planners, in coordination with the regional commanders of the Cavaleiros, had identified three areas where the most likelihood ground offensive might start. All in the south. Landings north of the Alpha Site and Foreston was ruled out because of the terrain, which was mostly marsh lands and thick forests, as well as the Merrenden River and the Flood. Both extremely wide and deep. The river ran from the Flood just a kilometre north of the Alpha Site boundary, sweeping around to the east beyond Foreston, then eight hundred kilometres south until it fed the swamplands and massive wetlands of Ecador, the southern independent nation of the Wold. (the Cavaleiros name for their continent).
Those critical three areas were, the plains five kilometres south east of the city of Merrenden, a six hour march from Foreston, following the two roads that ran parallel to the river. Altan, a large fishing village on the west coast, roughly mid-way between the Alpha Site and Merrenden, and lastly near the shores of the Putaro lake, eight kilometres south east of Foreston. Stargate Command had dedicated artillery, tanks and fast moving infantry cavalry units using light armoured vehicles, as well as troops to all three areas. The Cavaleiros had in place somewhere near fifteen thousand infantry, which included mortar teams placed among the Tau’ri. It was a lot, quite a lot to commit as far as Earth was concerned.
Now it was a waiting game. Just twenty-four hours left, and still, Cate wondered if it would be enough. The Alpha Site had committed everything they could; their best minds, their best soldiers, their strongest allies. The Cavaleiros had pledged their forces, standing side by side with the Tau’ri, ready to fight for their home. Thousands of lives hung in the balance, and yet, as Cate traced a finger along the edge of the photo in her hands, she couldn’t shake the cold knot in her stomach. She’d fought battles before, but this one felt different. Bigger. The kind that either changed history… or ended it.