"Alternate Lives" By Siobhan Gormley

Title: "Alternate Lives"

Rating: NC17

Warning: sexual content, mention of character death

Classification: S&J romance, angst

Summary: The appearance of another Samantha Carter at the SGC brings forth some previously hidden feelings.

Required reading: none

Spoilers: minor ones for "Stargate: The Movie", "Fair Game", "Enigma", "Hathor", "Children of the Gods", "1969", "There But For The Grace of God", and "Tin Man".

Distribution:

Feedback: Love it!

Disclaimer: I own nothing but this story. I intend no infringement in the use of the characters, who incidentally belong to Gekko, Double Secret, and MGM, and I make no money off of writing this story. It is simply for my, and hopefully the reader's, enjoyment.

Author's note: I came up with the idea for this story a couple of months ago, and then I read the synopsis for the upcoming episode "Point of View" when it came out the previous month. Because of the freaky similarity to the synopsis of the episode, I knew I had to at least get this one started before the episode was shown. I'm hoping to have it all done before the ep is shown, but it all depends on if I get the time. Also, the Samantha Carter that makes an appearance is always referred to as 'Samantha'. Any other references such as 'Sam', 'Carter', and 'the major' all refer to the Samantha Carter we know. =)

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The klaxons wailed as General Hammond entered the control room.

"The Stargate has been activated. SG-1's code has been sent through," the technician told the general.

"Who could it be? All of SG-1 are currently here on base, none are off-world," Hammond wondered, more to himself than to any of the others in the control room. "Have defense teams stay at full readiness and open the iris." The tech nodded and typed in the necessary commands, opening the iris. As the sound of metal locking into place was heard, everyone watched the event horizon as the traveller emerged, her molecules reintegrated. The woman, dressed in camouflage, stood unsteadily for a moment, then fell to the ramp just as the wormhole disengaged. The general looked around at all in the control room, his face perplexed.

"Is it me or did that look like Maj. Carter?" No one said anything, all of them as unsure as he. "Someone call a medical team to the embarkation room," Hammond stated as he left the control room on his way to the 'gate room.

***

"Doctor, how's our patient?" Hammond queried as he sat down at the head of the briefing room table. He had asked SG-1 and Dr. Fraiser to join him in a discussion of what had occurred merely hours before.

"Her injuries weren't as bad as we first thought. Some abrasions and cuts, but mostly I think she was in shock. When she finally woke up, she was quite surprised to be here."

"But she looks like Maj. Carter," the older man commented, nodding his head in Sam's direction.

"For all intents and purposes, she *is* Maj. Carter, right down to the blood type."

"Maybe this is a Sam from another reality," Daniel offered, gaining everyone's attention.

"Possible. It may even be me from a future time," Carter suggested. O'Neill raised an eyebrow at this. "Solar flares, sir."

"Ah, yes," he replied, remembering. "But then where are the rest of us?" Sam thought on this.

"We got separated? It wouldn't be the first time." As she gazed at her teammates, she saw expressions of agreement.

"And let us not forget clones," Teal'c stated, getting a sour look from O'Neill.

"Well, for now this is all speculation. Dr. Jackson, I'd like you to have a talk with our guest..."

"Sir, excuse me," Janet interrupted, getting a curious look from Hammond. "I think it might be a good idea if Col. O'Neill goes to speak with her first."

"And why's that?"

"When she woke up, she was quite eager to speak with him when she heard he was here. I think she'd respond better to questions from him."

"I'm up for it," O'Neill volunteered.

"Alright then, colonel, you talk with the young woman. Teal'c, you accompany the colonel. Dr. Jackson, maybe you can help Maj. Carter with the items we took off her. That's all for now. Keep me informed."

The general stood and seconds after, so did the others. Hammond left the briefing room, SG-1 and Dr. Fraiser slowly following, each person lost in thought. Once they reached a cross-corridor, Sam and Daniel waved to the other three as each group went in their own directions.

As Jack, Janet, and Teal'c arrived at the infirmary, the colonel stopped the Jaffa with a raised hand.

"Maybe you should wait with the doc, Teal'c. We have no idea if she's even met you or what kind of reaction she'd have to you." The taller man nodded and headed with Fraiser to her office.

The colonel entered the infirmary, nodding at the duty nurse as he made his way over to the lone patient. He made a quick assessment of the woman sitting in bed reading. At first glance she did look exactly like their Sam, yet her skin was tanned and her arm muscles were even more defined. Her hair seemed blonder and it was shoulder length, cut kind of roughly. As she pushed back some hair behind her left ear, he noticed she had a scar that ran from the lower part of her hairline to nearly the beginning of the lobe.

Finally the blond realized that she was being watched and looked up from her reading. When she saw Jack, she gave him a glorious smile.

"Jack! You're all right!" she exclaimed, putting down the book she had been reading. She attempted to get out of bed and over to him, but O'Neill quickly stopped her, holding her by the shoulders.

"Whoa, whoa, careful! You're not in here for the fun of it." She smiled shyly and sat back on the bed once again.

"Sorry, I was just happy to see you. I was certain they had... killed you."

Jack made a face. He had to tell her the truth, he just hoped she would handle it well.

"Uh, Miss..." The woman's expression changed from happy to perplexed at the colonel's formality. Slowly a look of comprehension dawned on her face.

"You're not my Jack, are you?" O'Neill gave her a regretful smile.

"No, I'm afraid I'm not." Jack waited to see what further reaction she would have, but she solely furrowed her brow in thought.

"Then I *am* in an alternate reality?" she queried carefully. The colonel nodded affirmatively. She seemed to be handling this quite well. He could tell she was already running through the implications of this in her mind by the expression on her face. It was the same look their Sam got when thinking through a theory.

"It was always supposed there were alternate realities, but it was all theory," she stated, seeming to talk more to herself than to the colonel.

"Yeah, well, we've had a bit of exposure to this kind of thing before." He paused, watching her. She seemed to be deep in thought, and Jack was afraid he was going to lose her attention soon. "Listen, we can discuss theory stuff later. If you don't mind, I'd like to ask you a few questions." The woman nodded absentmindedly.

"Of course, whatever you need Ja..." She trailed off, suddenly unsure what to call him. O'Neill caught on to her uncertainty and attempted to reassure her.

"Jack's fine. What should I call you?"

"Samantha. It's what you... I mean the others would call me." Jack smiled softly.

"Samantha it is."

***

"She's been through a hell of a lot, sir, but she's held up well. She's very much like our own Carter," O'Neill explained to Hammond as they walked to the briefing room, pointing at Sam who walked beside him. The major smiled.

"I'll be very interested to hear what she has to say," Carter stated.

"It's quite the tale," O'Neill told her.

"She does know that I'm coming, right?"

"Oh yeah. She's actually looking forward to meeting with you. I'm sure you'll have loads of theories to argue over with each other." Jack grinned and Sam gave him a look, which only made him smile wider.

They said nothing more as they had arrived at their destination. Daniel and Teal'c were already there with Samantha. The other Carter was trying to be inconspicuous, but she couldn't help watching the Jaffa carefully as she chatted with the anthropologist.

"I see our guest has gotten acquainted with you, Dr. Jackson," the general commented, gaining the attention of the other three. They stood momentarily, then sat again once everyone else was seated. Hammond sat at the top of the table while Sam slipped in to a seat beside Teal'c and Jack sat beside Samantha. Sam stared at her counterpart, amazed at the similarities. Samantha gazed at her in much the same way.

"Samantha, this is Maj. Carter. Maj. Carter, Samantha," O'Neill introduced, indicating each with a wave of his hand.

"Amazing," the two women said in stereo, gaining smiles from the rest around the table. Each tentatively put a hand of welcome out across the table and took hold of the other's. At first Sam got an odd look on her face when their hands touched, but then shook it off as nothing other than the fact that she was finding it strange to actually be shaking hands with herself. Identical smiles of wonder and happiness spread across their faces soon after.

"Truly incredible. It's like looking in a mirror," Sam stated as she sat back down.

"I'm sure you both have things you'd like to discuss with the other, but from what I understand we're here for a slightly more pressing reason. Samantha," Hammond turned his attention to their guest, "if you could tell us your story?" She nodded, then took a deep breath as if to gain courage.

"Approximately four years ago, my Daniel Jackson discovered how to make the Stargate work. I was working at the Pentagon at the time on the project, and when it was made known that the 'gate was working, I got myself put on to the team that was going through. My Col. O'Neill wasn't very happy about a female scientist coming with him, but Gen. West didn't give him any choice in the matter." Jack and Sam gazed at each other quickly, sharing a smile of a similar remembrance. Samantha hesitated a moment, then continued.

"We went through and found out that there were people of ancient Egypt being held captive there, used as slave labour for some alien being. Daniel and the Abydonians, as we came to know them, referred to the alien as Ra, who had placed himself up as a god. Not long after this discovery, the colonel revealed his true intentions for coming through, that he was going to stop any possible threat to Earth by blowing up the Stargate, even if it meant taking us with it. In the end, he didn't get to blow up the 'gate, but he did destroy Ra's ship, and Ra as well, or so we thought. When we went to leave, and also leave Daniel behind as per his choice, Ra suddenly appeared with guards and fired upon us and we attempted to fight back. Some of us, Daniel, the colonel, and myself included, were able to escape, but we lost many good people that day.

"From then on we were constantly caught between fighting off Ra and hiding from him. We managed to find a chamber filled with cartouches that offered us some hope of somewhere else to go."

"What do you mean, somewhere else to go? You had to use a Stargate to be able to put those cartouches to use, so why not just return to Earth?" Daniel commented, interrupting her narrative. She turned her attention briefly to him.

"We had been given a limited amount of time to achieve our mission, Daniel, and it had long since passed by the time we could actually get access to the 'gate again. They had told us that if we didn't return in that time, they would assume the worst and bury the 'gate. We didn't want to risk anyone's life in the vain hope that they hadn't." The anthropologist nodded in understanding, and Samantha continued to talk to everyone once again.

"So we finally had access to the 'gate again and tried a few addresses. We got one to work and went through, ready to fight off whatever might be on the other side. Fortunately we were able to find a relatively technologically advanced race, called the Tollan, and they were quite willing to help us in our fight against Ra."

"The *Tollan*?" O'Neill questioned, sitting up straighter at the name.

"Yes. You've heard of them?"

"Yeah, but they weren't as free with their technology with us as they obviously were with you." Samantha smiled.

"They had been threatened by Ra themselves, as well as other Goa'uld that we had yet to encounter, and they felt we were better equipped to act as infiltrators. They set us up with equipment for protecting ourselves and Abydos from the Goa'uld, putting a protective barrier over the 'gate to ensure that no one but someone with the proper codes could come through. They've been a great help.

"A couple of months ago, we discovered that the Goa'uld had found some sort of time/space technology and were planning on putting it to use. We had a perfectly set up plan to steal it from them, but something went wrong. We arrived on the planet in question in a small strike team of myself, Jack, Daniel, and a couple of the Abydonian youth force. We got in to the rooms where our intel had told us the tech was being kept, but the next thing we knew, Jaffa guards were firing upon us. The two boys were quickly dispatched. Daniel was hit, but we didn't know how bad because he was on the other side of the room, and Jack and I were stuck being fired upon. Jack, being the foolhardy type, told me to cover him as he went to go get Daniel. I couldn't stop him, so I did my best. He got over to Daniel, but not long after one of the Jaffa guards fired directly where he and Daniel were hidden, and the containers they were behind exploded. There had been some sort of gas inside them and a fire quickly started. The Jaffa left, and I quickly made my way over to the other two. Daniel was..." Samantha paused, gulping back tears that were forming. Jack reached out and took her hand in his, giving it a comforting squeeze. She gave him a thankful smile before continuing.

"Daniel was dead. If I hadn't known he was the only other person over there with Jack I wouldn't have recognized him. Jack was badly injured, but still breathing. I went to take him with me out of the room, but he insisted I leave him and save myself. I didn't want to, but he convinced me it was for the best. That was one of the toughest things I've ever had to do." She stopped herself again, breathing deeply. It seemed obvious that she wanted to finish the story for them and she wasn't going to let herself get distracted by the feelings the story was bringing up.

"I left the room and fortunately no Jaffa were nearby. I was able to get as far as the 'gate when a Goa'uld who called herself Hathor arrived with some of her Jaffa." Everyone else at the table moved uncomfortably in their seats at the mention of Hathor's name. "She effectively had me trapped, but, maybe out of confidence or foolishness or both, she asked that she be left alone with me and a couple of her Jaffa. She proceeded to tell me that she had great plans for this technology that had been found and she was going to use me as a host for one of her mature Goa'uld. Seems she had known in advance that we were coming, so now I knew we had a spy in our ranks. She knew an awful lot about me and she told me that my knowledge of astrophysics would be a very useful tool for her takeover of the system lords, especially with the device she had, which she showed off to me. She really was quite pleased with herself at being able to get this thing.

"I waited until she got close enough, then I grabbed her, taking her by surprise. I had her in a headlock that could easily lead to breaking her neck, and her Jaffa knew this so they didn't dare shoot on us. I was able to get the Jaffa to leave, then I dialled in to the address I wanted to go to. I grabbed hold of the device and she fought me. I took great pleasure in breaking her snaky little neck," Samantha stated, a look of grim pleasure on her face. "Once that was done, I had the device and had sent the signal through, but the Jaffa must have heard her cry because they came back in, ready to fire. I ran to the 'gate and dove in, hoping against hope that where I was going the code had gotten through. And that's when I ended up here." She looked around at the rest of the people at the table, observing their expressions.

"Were the Jaffa already firing on you when you went to go through?" Sam asked, sitting forward. This was a good indication that she had plenty of questions and she was readying herself to ask them.

"No. I think I know what you're wondering. How did I end up getting tossed in to this reality, hell, even to Earth when I dialled up an entirely different planet, right?" The major nodded. "I've thought about that, and I definitely believe that it has to do with the device I took with me. Somehow going through the Stargate must have activated it."

"Yeah, Daniel and I were looking at your stuff and nothing happened when we were poking at it."

"So unlike what happened with Daniel, it actually required you to go through the 'gate to get the device to work." Sam nodded at the colonel's assumption.

"Yes, that's what it seems to be. This is incredible." Carter paused, thinking this over. "That explains how you got thrown out this way, but what of the code you sent?"

"I guess there are just some things that are very similar between the two of us. I was the one who came up with the codes for each team." The major smiled.

"And I redid them not long after we got back from the Abydos mission. Very weird."

"Well, Samantha, your story is quite compelling," Gen. Hammond stated. He went to continue, but the other Carter held her hand up and he waited, curious. She had the others curious as well, and they all seemed to wait on the edge of their seats to hear what she had next to say.

"The device I took with me was not the only one out there. There were several others found, and it may be that other Goa'ulds now have them in their hands. They'll most likely want to use them. They could very well be a threat to your reality now as well as my own."

"That may be, but they can not be any threat to this Stargate. They require a code to have the iris open," Teal'c stated, finally speaking. Samantha glanced at him, a little surprised to hear his voice, but then she got over it and answered him.

"You forget, there was a spy in the ranks of our forces. Every team had a code, and I'd place safe bets on the possibility of at least some of those codes matching those you use here, since the one I used matched one. The Goa'uld of my reality are *very* much a threat, one you should not take lightly."

***

Carter slowly put her coffee cup to her mouth, carefully taking a sip of the still hot liquid as she shared her attention between the latest reports on updates to the SGC computer systems and the couple sitting across the cafeteria from her. She was trying not to watch them, but every once in a while, a laugh so like her own punctuated the air and she had to look up from the papers in her hands. Fortunately she wasn't the only one who would look, so she at least had that covered.

When she would allow her gaze to rest on them long enough, she would see the way he smiled at her, and he couldn't seem to stop touching her and she him. Sam worried for her friend. This woman who had appeared in their lives only a couple of days ago was still hurting from the loss of her friend and her lover, although she wondered if her counterpart had ever mentioned about the latter to anyone but her. And if she was hurting the way Sam thought she was, she was very likely to reach out to someone for more than simple comfort, and that someone seemed to be turning in to Jack O'Neill. The thing that worried the major the most was that the colonel was becoming very attached to Samantha, and she feared that he would allow himself to be used. Samantha was looking for a replacement for the love she lost, and Jack... well, she had no idea what Jack was looking for. Carter was certain they could only hurt each other if they went any further.

Sam sighed. [Nothing really you can do about that, Carter. They're adults, and if they want to rush blindly ahead in to a relationship, that's their choice.]

[Yeah, but guess who'll probably have to be there to help pick up the pieces afterwards.]

"Penny for your thoughts?" The major started at the sound of Daniel's voice. She smiled at him as he sat down next to her, placing his coffee cup in front of him on the table.

"Nothing really worth a penny to share, I'm afraid," she told him. The anthropologist nodded. He glanced at the papers she was supposed to be reading, then back at her.

"I guess redesigning the computer systems on base against potential attach from Goa'uld from another reality isn't as interesting as watching Jack and Samantha." Sam's face flushed slightly, but she quickly recovered and gave her friend a look of minor annoyance.

"What are you talking about, Daniel?"

"Don't try and cover it up, Sam. I saw you looking at them when I came in here, and you were still doing it by the time I made it through the line with my coffee."

"So I was looking at them. Is it suddenly a crime?" she asked, a tinge of amusement to her tone. Daniel drank from his cup before answering.

"No, but it's quite obvious it bothers you." Sam frowned. She evidently hadn't hidden her thoughts very well if they were coming out so clearly in her expression. And if Daniel had noticed it, who knows who else might have observed her and had seen it as well.

"I'm just worried is all," she finally admitted.

"Worried of people getting hurt if you say anything?" Carter looked taken aback at his question.

"What do you mean, Daniel? I'm worried that they'll hurt each other, not that I'll hurt them."

"Sam..." the anthropologist began, but the major interrupted him when she saw a sympathetic look on his face. It finally had dawned on her what he was getting at.

"Daniel, you can't possibly think that I'm, well, *jealous*, do you?"

"There wouldn't be anything wrong if you were. You know that, don't you?" Sam went to respond, but then closed her mouth again as she thought it over.

"I know there's nothing wrong with it," she stated, "I just don't see myself being jealous of *whatever* is going on between them. Samantha's still not over what happened in her reality, and we both know the colonel's track record with women." She paused as they shared a smile, then continued, her face a little more serious and her voice low. "I care about Jack, we've worked together for almost three years now. He's my friend and I guess I become even more protective of my friends when I think something may not be in their best interest. And, as I get to know her, I do care about what happens to Samantha. She is essentially me, but with different experiences. I know I wouldn't want to risk getting hurt for a simple fling, especially if I had just gone through what she did, so I guess I'm protective of her as much as I am of Jack." Daniel smiled softly, squeezing her hand gently.

"You're a very good friend, you know that?" Sam laughed quietly.

"Yeah, I'm really good at being a friend. I feel like I'm just sitting here allowing them to dive in to shallow water without a warning."

"Sometimes being a friend is also standing back and letting things play out without interference. And then being there if, or when, you're needed." Carter sighed, glancing over at Jack and Samantha.

"I have the distinct feeling I am going to be needed."

***

"Hey stranger!" Samantha's chipper voice exclaimed from the lab doorway. Sam looked up from her work, a tired smile on her face. The other Carter walked over to the worktable, taking a seat on a stool next to the major.

"Hi. Sorry I haven't had a chance to talk with you..." Samantha waved off her apology.

"Don't worry about it, I've been keeping myself busy. Jack's been really good about helping me out." Sam's expression became tight at the mention of the colonel and her counterpart noticed this immediately. "Do you two have something going on that I should know about?" Carter flushed in embarrassment.

"No, of course not. We're friends, nothing more."

"Mm, that's what he said. I just got the feeling there was something else."

"You got that feeling from him?" Sam asked, suddenly curious. Samantha smiled at the other woman's curiosity.

"From you both, as a matter of fact. But if you both say that there's nothing other than friendship..."

"Friendship, definitely. It would be against regs anyway for anything more," the major stated. This only made her counterpart smile wider.

"Funny thing that, Jack said exactly the same thing to me." Carter rolled her eyes at the mischievous tone Samantha was taking.

"Samantha..." she trailed off, her tone warning. The other woman held up her hands in a defensive posture.

"Okay, okay, I'll lay off it." She paused. "So you wouldn't mind if he and I went out or anything like that?" Sam held her tongue before she rushed out and said anything that could be misconstrued as something other than friendly advice.

"You're both grown-ups, I don't think you need approval from anyone but yourselves."

"I suppose I should count that as you don't mind."

"Whatever makes you happy." Sam went back to work on her latest pet project and they were both quiet for a minute before Samantha spoke again.

"What's up with that young lieutenant... what's his name? Simons?" Sam cringed slightly at the mention of her subordinate.

"Simmons."

"He's sweet."

"If that's what you like," Carter responded, trying to avoid this new topic of conversation by searching around for a piece of wire.

"He seems to have quite the crush on you. He got quite flustered when I actually complimented him on something." The major gave her counterpart a semi-admonishing look.

"Please don't tell me you're encouraging the boy in the least bit. The last thing I need is him getting all moony on me when there's work to do." Samantha laughed aloud.

"Don't you ever take time out for romance, Sam?"

"Not with junior officers that I have absolutely no interest in."

"Then who *do* you have interest in?" the other woman prodded.

"I don't really have the time to notice, to be honest. Half the time I'm busy in here or out in the field. It's so rare that I get time to observe anyone in any romantic way. Hell, the last time I was kissed was... oh god, I don't even think I want to recall how long it's been." Samantha laid a hand on Carter's shoulder, getting up from her seat.

"Maybe you should take the time before life has entirely passed you by," she advised, a sad look crossing her features. Taking a deep breath and pasting a smile on her face, she finished with, "And on that slightly depressing note, I'll leave you to your work." Before Sam got the chance to say anything more, she was gone.

***

Jack turned a corner headed for his office and ran straight in to Samantha. He went to apologize and make some silly comment, but when he saw the expression on her face, he thought better of it.

"You okay?"

"I'll deal," she replied, trying to keep a neutral expression. Once O'Neill touched her shoulder though, the expression faltered and her true feelings began to show once again.

"C'mon, let's go talk about it." The colonel went to lead Samantha toward the cafeteria, but she hesitated.

"Can we talk in private? I'd rather not lose it in front of the whole base." Jack smiled softly, nodding his head in agreement.

"Sure. Where to?"

"My quarters are nearby." Without another word they walked to the VIP quarters that had been given to Samantha once she had left the infirmary. She opened the door and they entered, closing the door once they were both inside. Jack stood in the middle of the room, waiting to see what she would do or say. She left the door and walked over to the bed, sitting down. She looked down at her restlessly moving hands, and once she looked up again O'Neill was seated beside her at a comfortable distance.

"I guess I haven't really let all that's happened within the last few days sink in for me and it's finally starting to hit me," she began, her voice sounding small. "In less than a week I lost two people who were very dear to me, and I've had to deal with the fact that I was sent somewhere that may look similar to what I knew before, but isn't exactly. And hell, there's another *me* here. It's not every day that you meet yourself, at least not for those of us who are relatively sane." Samantha giggled at this and Jack smiled. Tears began to form in her eyes as she said, "I've had moments lately where I actually wonder if I am really all that sane..." She trailed off, the tears falling as O'Neill pulled her in to a comforting embrace. Jack closed his eyes as he rocked her, whispering soothing words in to her hair.

Slowly the tears subsided and she pulled back. Wiping at the wetness on her face, she thanked the colonel for being so good to her.

"I hate to see a beautiful woman in pain," he stated, surprising both himself and Samantha. At that moment it seemed like any and all sounds around them no longer existed, they were concentrated solely on each other. Jack found himself pulling her toward him once again, but this time he brought his lips to hers. Their lips barely touched at first, brushing softly over each other, testing the feel. It didn't long for them to finally press them firmly together in a need-filled embrace.

Hands explored bodies, eliciting mildly frustrated moans at the clothing that blocked further exploration. That was quickly taken care of as tops, pants and underwear soon were disposed of, tossed wherever they might fall. Without a second thought Jack pushed Samantha back on to the bed and lay on top of her, kissing and caressing her as they built up to the moment when he finally entered her. Her back arched and she groaned as he slowly thrust in and out of her.

"Sam, my Sam," he whispered between kisses. He kissed down her neck, tasting the now sweat-soaked skin.

"We are indeed yours, as you are ours." The words, as well as the sound of the voice, froze him to the core and he stopped what he was doing. He raised his head and looked in to Samantha's eyes, eyes that were no longer blue. They *glowed*.

O'Neill desperately wanted to extricate himself from his current predicament, but Samantha, or whoever the hell she was, was not about to let him get away. With surprising strength she flipped him on to his back, straddling him.

"We are in need of your contribution, and we are certain that you will provide an excellent number of specimens," she purred. Samantha kissed him roughly, passing along something that seemed to leave him suddenly incapable of doing anything but to allow her to do what she wanted.

Samantha began slowly riding Jack, coaxing his body in to full arousal once again. O'Neill felt like he was watching outside of himself as this was all happening. He tried to convince his body not to react, not to give her what she wanted, but the traitorous thing responded exactly as it would if he truly wanted what was happening. He felt sick to his stomach.

Samantha finally reached climax, bringing him along with her as he came inside her. She sighed happily, then moved off him in search of her clothing. Once dressed, she turned her glowing-eyed gaze to him, returning to his side on the bed.

"Your offering shall not be forgotten by Hathor. It is unfortunate that we can not stay longer, but we fear that others will soon come in search of you and we shall be discovered. But once we have reestablished our forces properly, perhaps we will return for you, or even return permanently to this world. It may provide many new slaves for when we finally wrest power from those feeble-minded system lords." She leaned down and gave him a lingering kiss, then got up from her seat and her eyes returned to their previous blue. She walked over to the door and carefully opened it a bit, checking through the crack to see if anyone was around. Seeing no one there Samantha slipped out of the room, closing the door and leaving O'Neill alone with his anger and guilt, and feelings of illness at being used.

***

Sam walked down the corridor, just having left the colonel's office. Her worry for her friend had finally made her decide that it was time that she was honest with him about what her feelings were regarding the possibility of him starting a relationship with her counterpart. She was only looking out for her friend's best interests after all. But when she had gone to his office he hadn't been there, so she decided to go check the cafeteria next.

As she made her way in that direction she saw Samantha walking toward her. She put on a smile for the other Carter, who returned it.

"Where are you headed?" Samantha asked conversationally.

"The cafeteria. You haven't seen the colonel, have you?"

"Jack? I ran in to him before I went to go rest in my quarters. He escorted me there and then left since he was going to do some paperwork in his office." Sam made a face.

"I was just at his office and he wasn't there." Samantha shrugged, a regretful look on her face.

"Sorry, that's the last I saw of him."

"Thanks anyway. He's probably just gone to get some coffee or something." The major said a quick goodbye and went in the opposite direction. Samantha watched Carter go around the corner toward the cafeteria, then began walking again toward her previous destination.

***

"I don't understand it, Daniel. No one's seen the colonel since he was supposed to go to his office to do paperwork. His car is still in the lot, so he hasn't gone home and none of the guards on duty saw him leave either. And he certainly didn't go through the 'gate anywhere. Where the hell could he be?"

It was a half-hour after she had started looking, and Sam had yet to find Jack to talk to him. She had begun to think the worst, so she had gone in search of the anthropologist, hoping he might provide some help in calming her overactive imagination. They were currently walking the corridors, hoping that they might find him along the way.

"Well, why don't we start with the last person to have seen him?" Carter chewed on the inside of her mouth, thinking this over.

"There was a guard on the quarters levels that saw him... and *Samantha*!" The major's eyes went wide, her expression making it look like she had made some immense discovery. She headed off in a run toward one of the elevators, Daniel not far behind. She slid her security card through the slot, waiting impatiently for the elevator to arrive. Finally the doors opened and the two friends jumped in, Carter pushing the floor button she wanted with a touch of urgency.

They arrived at their desired floor and the doors to the elevator seemed to open slowly. Once there was enough room to exit, Sam charged out and down the corridor, Daniel attempting to keep up with her. They stopped in front of Samantha's quarters and without hesitation Carter pushed open the door. The sight that greeted them shocked them so that neither could move for a minute. Jack was lying on his side in bed naked, curled in to a fetal position, his expression somewhere between stunned and ill. The bedclothes were barely covering him, but he definitely was unaware of this. As the major approached him once she felt she could move, she noticed that his eyes were bloodshot, like he had been crying at some point. She went to reach out to him, but he shrank away from her touch.

"Colonel, it's me," she told him, but he still kept his distance. With a more gentle tone, she said, "It's your Sam." Something between realization and regret entered his eyes as he finally looked at her straight on.

"My Sam?" he croaked out. He looked away from her again guiltily and stated, "My fault, all my fault." The sound of his voice just about broke both their hearts. Carter looked over to Daniel who still had yet to enter the room. He had something of a haunted look on his own face, like he had seen this before.

"Oh god," she whispered, slowly putting pieces together. She returned her gaze to Jack. He looked so vulnerable right then and this angered her. How dare this woman to have done this to him! Sam was ready and willing to wring her neck personally.

Suddenly the klaxons began wailing and the warning lights flashed out in the halls. The computer generated warning of an unauthorized Stargate activation rang through the speakers and this spurred Sam in to action once again. She knew who it was and she wasn't about to let Samantha get away.

"Daniel, look after Jack, but call Janet to get here quickly. Keep the door closed until she comes." The anthropologist nodded dumbly seconds before Carter left the room and quickly made her way in the direction of the 'gate room.

Sam was just down the hall from the entrance to the 'gate room when she met up with Teal'c, staff weapon in his hand.

"I have been unable to enter the room, my card is no longer working. I am also unable to enter the control room. I had hoped I would find you," he informed her. They stopped in front of the 'gate room door.

"Let me try mine." She slid it through the slot, but it wouldn't accept it. "Dammit!" she yelled in frustration as she tried it a couple more times. Finally she grabbed hold of Teal'c's weapon and he relinquished it without a fight. Sam began shooting at the door not long after. As she began to make a hole, she could see her counterpart standing at the bottom of the ramp, waiting for the 'gate to finish locking all chevrons. At one point she turned to look back, her eyes glowing menacingly. This only proved to spur Sam on.

Carter could hear as the last chevron locked and the wormhole was established. As the hole in the door got bigger, she could see Samantha begin to walk up the ramp, looking at something she had in her hand. As she started to step through the event horizon there was a strange glow about her, then she was gone into the 'liquid'. Seconds after the wormhole disengaged, the door to the 'gate room rolled open finally having accepted their cards. Sam wanted to scream in frustration, but she knew it was useless. She handed Teal'c back the staff weapon and ran to the control room, pushing open the no longer locked door. She found her co-workers lying on the floor. She checked the first one and sighed with relief that the woman was unconscious and breathing normally. A check of the rest had the same results.

Carter went over to the computer console and checked for last destination. It showed the co-ordinates for the trip SG-4 had made a couple of hours ago. It seemed that all records of where she could have gone were wiped clean from the system. This was not really surprising considering Samantha was after all the same person who had help design the set-up, even if it was in a different reality.

Sam hung her head as she leaned against the console, feeling defeated. If she had paid more attention, if she hadn't held back, if she hadn't decided to stay 'detached', none of this would have happened. She had finally screwed up, she thought, and one of her friends was paying the consequences.

The End

(Before any of you ask, yes, there will be a sequel to this, but I think I'm eeviled out right now after these past two stories, so who knows when that'll be written. Have a good week everyone! =))