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Title: Immortals Immortals
"Looks like a room-sized tanning bed to me," Sam remarked. "There's a control panel over here, but it doesn't look like there's any power."
She took the battery-powered lantern they'd brought along from Teal'c, set it
alongside the darkened control panel, and began to look it over. "All kidding aside - what does it say?" Sam asked.
"I have no idea," Daniel said.
He eased toward the room cautiously and shone his flashlight inside. The beam
illuminated the three bodies huddled on the floor. "Sir, we've got an incoming signal from SG-1. Looks like they are coming back through the gate." "We just sent them through - that can't be good news," General Hammond walked to the window of the control room worriedly. "Have a medical team standing by." "Standard protocol for whenever SG-1 is coming in from a mission, sir," Sergeant Davis said, almost to himself. Hammond went down to the gateroom to wait on the team's arrival. After a few moments, Teal'c came through the gate, carrying two small children with him, a boy and a girl. Neither one was moving, and he laid them gently on the ramp. Behind him, another figure stumbled out of the gate, a long-legged teen. Teal'c grabbed him as he almost fell. "My God - who are those children?" Hammond said. As the medics poured in to assist, he went to Teal'c and the older boy. And stopped in shock. The older boy was probably around twelve or thirteen, but was dressed in Jack O'Neill's clothes, which hung off his thin frame loosely. Spiky blond hair peeked out from under his cap. He self-consciously pulled the waistband of his pants tighter to keep them from falling off. The other two children only wore the black t-shirts that were a common part of the BDUs of any SG team. The girl was all skinny arms and legs, with an unruly mop of long blond hair. The younger boy's brown hair dipped over his oversized glasses in a way that made him look like a real-life Harry Potter. "Teal'c," General Hammond said slowly. "Where is the rest of SG-1?" "How are they, doctor?" General Hammond asked Dr. Fraiser later that day. She handed him a report with a sigh. "Well, in good health generally, although their adrenaline and glucose levels are abnormally high. I can't seem to get them down, so they're going to be a little hyperactive and probably emotional for a while." "Just like real kids?" he asked. "More like the effects of a sarcophagus," she said. "From all the tests I've been able to run, it looks like these children are SG-1, sir." She looked over to where the three children were sitting together in the infirmary. "Mentally, however, they're still adults. They still retain all their memories and I can't tell that there's been any mental degradation." "The fountain of youth," General Hammond said. "What men have been searching for centuries to find - and they found it." "More like it found them, sir. Do you want to talk to them?" "I need to de-brief Teal'c - I'll see them later, after they've had a chance to rest. Thank you, Doctor." He walked out of the infirmary, wondering what Teal'c would have to say about all this. Inside the infirmary, Jack, Sam and Daniel sat waiting for someone to return. "So - how old do you think you are?" Sam said, pulling her t-shirt down to cover more of her knobby knees. Daniel sighed, pushing his glasses up on his nose. "Probably seven or eight - you?" "Nine, maybe ten - hey, I was big for my age," she said as she saw their looks. "And you, Colonel?" "Under legal age, let's just put it that way. Too old to be hanging out with kids your size, though," he said. Sam and Daniel glared at him. He took them. "I'll just leave them off, thanks," he said, staring at them morosely. "What - no Tommy, no Gap? Do you want us to get picked on? We won't be cool," Jack joked as Dr. Fraiser's aide handed them the clothes. "You wouldn't be saying that if your pants didn't fit," Daniel said, happily putting on his new set of glasses. Sam looked at the clothes she'd been given in
horror. "Who picked these out?" she said, looking at the frilly jumpsuit she'd been given. SG-1 took their places at the conference room table with General Hammond, Teal'c and several other staff members. A Colonel Robinson from the Pentagon had also joined the briefing. Jack could tell most of them were struggling to keep smiles off their faces. "Would any of you like something to drink - soda or water..." General Hammond's aide asked. "Formula?" one of the staff members said under their breath. Jack glared at him. "Any way I could get some coffee?" Daniel asked. "I'm sorry, Dr. Jackson. Doctor's orders," the aide said. "Let's get started, people," General Hammond said. "Teal'c has been telling us about the technology on the planet. Some sort of room, with a device?" "Yes, sir - the room appeared to be covered in some sort of reflective panel. Possibly used to amplify the effect of a particle beam or radiation treatment," Sam said, self-consciously smoothing down the ruffles on her jumpsuit. "You were able to get it to work?" Colonel Robinson said. "Duh," Jack replied, leaning back in his chair. "Yes, sir - we accidentally triggered the device," Sam said. "However, we blew whatever power source it was using after only a few seconds of use." "Could it still be made to function?" General Hammond said thoughtfully. Robinson's eyes lit up greedily. "Well - I suppose so. If it had a power source compatible with its design," Sam said. "There was also writing on the panels - some sort of language. It's possible that there's a key to its use there. I'll get to work on analyzing it later today," Daniel said. "Well, it's obvious what its use is, Daniel," Robinson said. "It's used for regeneration - to prolong life." "It's Dr. Jackson," he said solemnly, "And we don't know that it was created for that purpose alone. Many inventions were created to serve one purpose, yet the side effect of their use proved more valuable." "You're saying that what happened to you is just a side effect?" Robinson said. "Or an attack," Daniel finished. "Are you certain I can't have that coffee?" he asked again. "Get him a cup of coffee, Sergeant - decaf," General Hammond said. "I'll be honest with you all. This discovery could have significant ramifications." "It's already had significant ramifications - for us, at least," Jack said. "We're going to send a team back in to study it further - I think we need more data before we can make decisions," General Hammond said. "Fine," Jack said, "when do we leave?" There was silence in the room. "You don't leave," General Hammond said. "I can't send you back there. For obvious reasons." "I didn't see a "you have to be this tall to use the gate" sign anywhere," Jack protested. "Colonel, we don't yet know if you and your team have fully recovered, and even if you have - if there were trouble you'd physically be no match for it. I'm arranging quarters for all of you here at the base." "What about our own apartments?" Sam said. "Major, do you want social services to come looking for you because a nine year old is staying alone at your apartment while you're away?" General Hammond said. "I see your point," she agreed. Teal'c spoke. "May I make a suggestion? They could all stay at Colonel O'Neill's house. I would be their connection to the base, should they need to come here." General Hammond nodded. "Sounds good to me. If there is any news, we'll contact you. Until we get this sorted out, though - consider yourself on temporary leave." "Temporary being the most important word there," Jack said. General Hammond smiled briefly. "We'll keep you informed." Jack, Sam and Daniel sat around listlessly in Jack's living room. Teal'c had dropped them off but had returned to the base after making sure they had lunch. "So are we going to hang out here all day, or are we going to find out what we can do to get ourselves back to normal? Ideas, people?" Jack said. "I could do some research into the possible mechanics behind that machine - I'd need to tap into the computers at some of the universities," Sam offered. "You can do that at the library - and I can do some research on the script we saw," Daniel finished. "Great - I love the library," Jack said dryly. "Let's go, kids." "Go - as in how?" Sam asked. "I have a car, don't I? Jack replied. "Yes," she said, "but do you think you should be driving it?" "Oh, come on, Major! I remember how to drive a car. And my feet can still reach the pedals, unlike yours." "I'm not worried about your driving - I mean, we're technically supposed to be in school. What if we get stopped?" she said, gathering up her things. "I'll act mature," Jack said, grabbing his coat. "There's a first time for everything," Daniel mumbled, following them out. "I heard that," Jack said.
"I can't believe you let him do this," Sam said, as she and Jack waited in the car for Daniel. "What can I say - he gave me that look," Jack said. They were sitting outside of Starbuck's, near the library. "Do you think we should have gone in there with him?" she asked, looking out the window worriedly. "I think he can handle a solo mission to get a cup of coffee, okay?" Jack replied. "He just looks so - small," she finished. "Even for an eight year old. Do you think he got picked on when he was a child? Of course he did," she answered her own question. "Hey, this is no different than normal - we'll just have to keep our eye on him, okay?" "Right," Sam said. "Just like normal." "Colombian, cream and sugar," Daniel said, realizing he barely came up to the counter at Starbuck's now - but he wasn't about to let that stop him. The cashier eyed him suspiciously. "You know that's coffee?" she said to him. Feedback? Please email me! Back to completed stories on Kelsie's Stargate Page |