N is for "Now!"
Title: N is for "Now!"
Author: ACarlGeek
e-mail: ACarlGeek@yahoo.com
Rating: Gen, PG
Category: Team, Team Alphabet Soup, Gen Fic Day July 2010
Spoilers: None
Season: Between 3 and 5: Sam's a Major, Teal'c has Junior
Summary: A seemingly leisurely mission turns into yet another race for the stargate.
Author’s note: 1335 words, longer than I expected.
Disclaimer: The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime, Sci-Fi Channel, Gekko Film Corp, MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and is solely meant for entertainment. The story idea and the story itself are the sole ideas of the author, but in the unlikely event MGM wants them, they can have them.
N is for "Now!"
Daniel Jackson carefully gripped the girder and shifted to his right to follow the inscribed symbols around to the next side of the hexagonal supporting column. He suppressed a shudder when the new panel turned out to be one of the filigreed ones, 'Not now,' he fiercely told himself, 'It's hard enough keeping everything steady, I don't need to deal with even a minor panic attack.' He locked his gaze and the camera on the filigreed metal immediately before him and tried his best to ignore the crystalline depths visible through the intricately tooled metalwork. He'd learned very quickly that the last thing he wanted to do was to shut his eyes to calm himself while floating in microgravity. That intensified his other senses, which were all screaming to remind him that he was drifting near the middle of an extremely large open space. Not that he was likely to forget how far "down" it appeared to be in every direction around him.
It had all seemed so fascinating and easy while they reviewed the MALP data back at the SGC.
SG-7's scientists had petitioned for the mission as soon as the MALP revealed that S2M 669 was apparently an abandoned space station of enormous proportions. SG-1's Major Sam Carter had trumped their bid by being the first to combine atmospheric jetpack technology successfully with NASA's MMUs to create a maneuvering harness that had enough thrust to work in a breathable atmosphere, yet retained the gentle precision necessary for weightlessness. She and Teal'c had sealed the mission for SG-1 by coming up with a viable plan for getting the MALP back to S2M 669's stargate without the assistance of gravity or even a continuous approach path connected to that 'gate. It wasn't until after SG-1 had secured the assignment that Colonel Jack O'Neill admitted he thought it would be cool to go on a mission where the team floated instead of walking.
To be honest, all of SG-1 had thought it would be cool, until they actually arrived.
As soon as SG-1 floated out of the stargate, Daniel discovered that it was one thing to look at MALP footage of bottomless rooms while gravity firmly anchored his body in a chair. It was quite another to function at such apparent heights when his whole body realized he was in free fall. He was immediately and constantly checking to see how much further he had to fall. Daniel wasn't certain whether his stomach was clenched in fear or nauseous from the microgravity. Fortunately, Daniel also learned that Jack and Sam routinely took Dramamine before they flew, and Jack was prepared to share. Teal'c, of course, needed no chemical assistance in dealing with weightlessness.
As Daniel was mastering the art of swallowing water and a pill without gravity to help keep liquid out of his nose, Sam and Teal'c determined that the equipment clusters and support girders criss-crossing the vast chamber that housed the stargate were composed of a combination of non-ferrous metal and some form of ceramic. So although the modified jetpack harnesses worked superbly for maneuvering both SG-1 and the MALP, the magnetic tethers they'd planned to use for leverage and station keeping were useless. They had to rely on bungees, which could only be clipped to a few places, or resort to the oversized recoil-countering tools designed for astronauts wearing spacesuits. This complicated not only the plan for recovering the MALP, but almost every activity scheduled for the mission.
SG-1's spirits began to fall even though there was no up or down on S2M 669.
"OK, Teal'c, let's try it now." Sam said for the umpteenth time in the past hour and a half. Her voice reflected her thinning patience. Every minute spent wrestling equipment into place, and keeping it there, was a minute she didn't get to spend examining the technology of the site. "Yes!" The triumph in that single word reflected the successful solution to the current complication.
"Good work, Carter." O'Neill's voice also reflected satisfaction. He'd long since jetted through several perimeter checks, all the while speculating as to the correct term for a three-dimensional survey of boundaries. 'Spherometer check' was his current front-runner. "Teal'c and I should be able to finish getting the MALP back home now; you get to work on your technical survey."
"Thank you, sir." Carter promptly jetted over to the most promising of the nearby knots of alien equipment. The radial, icosahedral, or seemingly haphazard orientation of the clusters of equipment brought home the fact that the aliens who had built this station had not felt any compulsion to orient things along either vertical or horizontal axes. Consoles were attached to the support girders in an Escherian combination of directions.
Daniel was relieved to follow his inscription onto another of the solid panels. The workmanship of the panels, especially the filigreed ones, was amazing, and the preservation of everything inside this station was absolutely outstanding. There were no signs of wear or metal fatigue. Evidently the natives had floated between destinations, rather than climbing along the girders.
The total absence of dust had at first seemed to reinforce the notion of fairly recent abandonment of the site, but then Sam and Teal'c had started encountering bolts and joints that were fused in place, presumably from disuse. It was possible that the lack of dust merely reflected builders who didn't shed dander the way mammals from Earth did. Teal'c's suggestion that the lack of dust might indicate a still-functioning maintenance system gained some support.
After successfully sailing the MALP through the stargate and back to earth, Teal'c and O'Neill rejoined Sam at the largest of the instrument clusters. Shortly thereafter, both Sam and Jack exclaimed as a set of display screens burst into life, providing views of even more sections of the enormous facility. "Oh, wow! "
"Hey, Daniel, you may want to see this." Sam invited, followed by a curious, "Is that something moving on this screen?"
Daniel had barely begun the laborious process of stowing his camera and releasing his anchoring bungees when Teal'c answered Sam's question, "Indeed, it is. But it appears to be mechanical, not living."
O'Neill chimed in, "I think we've found your maintenance system, Teal'c. There's a set of them, and they seem to be moving from one side to the other of those two rooms. Daniel, hurry up, maybe you can figure out how to adjust the settings on these displays."
Daniel rolled his eyes as he braced himself prior to unhooking his final bungee, "Coming, Jack."
There were simultaneous gasps and expressions of alarm from the trio observing the screens, then O'Neill spoke, "Well, I guess that explains why there's no dust on anything, and why everything is made from metal and glass: neither of those materials burns very easily. Woah! I guess the settings change automatically as the maintenance robots move from compartment to compartment."
Carter interrupted, "Sir, what's that already moving on that girder on the new screen?"
"I believe it is Daniel Jackson moving toward our position." Teal'c supplied. "We must leave this place, immediately!"
O'Neill concurred, "Oh, crap! Those maintenance robots are entering our compartment. We are so not sharing with them. Daniel, jet over to the DHD and then shoot the magnetic end of your tether over to me! Carter, Teal'c, collect our equipment here. We've gotta get out of here, now! "
Daniel managed to forget about heights, or the appearance of heights, while getting to the DHD and dialing out. O'Neill, Carter, and Teal'c quickly stowed gear, jetted over to the spot they'd used for launching the MALP on its final leg back to the stargate, and tethered themselves together for their own return trip.
Carter sent their IDC as O'Neill reeled Daniel's tether line in. Teal'c positioned himself to provide guidance propulsion for the entire group.
The quartet sailed through the stargate at a rate that was probably faster than advisable for giving themselves time to adjust to a gravity field on the other side, but they were eager to leave S2M 669 now.
Author: ACarlGeek
e-mail: ACarlGeek@yahoo.com
Rating: Gen, PG
Category: Team, Team Alphabet Soup, Gen Fic Day July 2010
Spoilers: None
Season: Between 3 and 5: Sam's a Major, Teal'c has Junior
Summary: A seemingly leisurely mission turns into yet another race for the stargate.
Author’s note: 1335 words, longer than I expected.
Disclaimer: The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime, Sci-Fi Channel, Gekko Film Corp, MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and is solely meant for entertainment. The story idea and the story itself are the sole ideas of the author, but in the unlikely event MGM wants them, they can have them.
N is for "Now!"
Daniel Jackson carefully gripped the girder and shifted to his right to follow the inscribed symbols around to the next side of the hexagonal supporting column. He suppressed a shudder when the new panel turned out to be one of the filigreed ones, 'Not now,' he fiercely told himself, 'It's hard enough keeping everything steady, I don't need to deal with even a minor panic attack.' He locked his gaze and the camera on the filigreed metal immediately before him and tried his best to ignore the crystalline depths visible through the intricately tooled metalwork. He'd learned very quickly that the last thing he wanted to do was to shut his eyes to calm himself while floating in microgravity. That intensified his other senses, which were all screaming to remind him that he was drifting near the middle of an extremely large open space. Not that he was likely to forget how far "down" it appeared to be in every direction around him.
It had all seemed so fascinating and easy while they reviewed the MALP data back at the SGC.
SG-7's scientists had petitioned for the mission as soon as the MALP revealed that S2M 669 was apparently an abandoned space station of enormous proportions. SG-1's Major Sam Carter had trumped their bid by being the first to combine atmospheric jetpack technology successfully with NASA's MMUs to create a maneuvering harness that had enough thrust to work in a breathable atmosphere, yet retained the gentle precision necessary for weightlessness. She and Teal'c had sealed the mission for SG-1 by coming up with a viable plan for getting the MALP back to S2M 669's stargate without the assistance of gravity or even a continuous approach path connected to that 'gate. It wasn't until after SG-1 had secured the assignment that Colonel Jack O'Neill admitted he thought it would be cool to go on a mission where the team floated instead of walking.
To be honest, all of SG-1 had thought it would be cool, until they actually arrived.
As soon as SG-1 floated out of the stargate, Daniel discovered that it was one thing to look at MALP footage of bottomless rooms while gravity firmly anchored his body in a chair. It was quite another to function at such apparent heights when his whole body realized he was in free fall. He was immediately and constantly checking to see how much further he had to fall. Daniel wasn't certain whether his stomach was clenched in fear or nauseous from the microgravity. Fortunately, Daniel also learned that Jack and Sam routinely took Dramamine before they flew, and Jack was prepared to share. Teal'c, of course, needed no chemical assistance in dealing with weightlessness.
As Daniel was mastering the art of swallowing water and a pill without gravity to help keep liquid out of his nose, Sam and Teal'c determined that the equipment clusters and support girders criss-crossing the vast chamber that housed the stargate were composed of a combination of non-ferrous metal and some form of ceramic. So although the modified jetpack harnesses worked superbly for maneuvering both SG-1 and the MALP, the magnetic tethers they'd planned to use for leverage and station keeping were useless. They had to rely on bungees, which could only be clipped to a few places, or resort to the oversized recoil-countering tools designed for astronauts wearing spacesuits. This complicated not only the plan for recovering the MALP, but almost every activity scheduled for the mission.
SG-1's spirits began to fall even though there was no up or down on S2M 669.
"OK, Teal'c, let's try it now." Sam said for the umpteenth time in the past hour and a half. Her voice reflected her thinning patience. Every minute spent wrestling equipment into place, and keeping it there, was a minute she didn't get to spend examining the technology of the site. "Yes!" The triumph in that single word reflected the successful solution to the current complication.
"Good work, Carter." O'Neill's voice also reflected satisfaction. He'd long since jetted through several perimeter checks, all the while speculating as to the correct term for a three-dimensional survey of boundaries. 'Spherometer check' was his current front-runner. "Teal'c and I should be able to finish getting the MALP back home now; you get to work on your technical survey."
"Thank you, sir." Carter promptly jetted over to the most promising of the nearby knots of alien equipment. The radial, icosahedral, or seemingly haphazard orientation of the clusters of equipment brought home the fact that the aliens who had built this station had not felt any compulsion to orient things along either vertical or horizontal axes. Consoles were attached to the support girders in an Escherian combination of directions.
Daniel was relieved to follow his inscription onto another of the solid panels. The workmanship of the panels, especially the filigreed ones, was amazing, and the preservation of everything inside this station was absolutely outstanding. There were no signs of wear or metal fatigue. Evidently the natives had floated between destinations, rather than climbing along the girders.
The total absence of dust had at first seemed to reinforce the notion of fairly recent abandonment of the site, but then Sam and Teal'c had started encountering bolts and joints that were fused in place, presumably from disuse. It was possible that the lack of dust merely reflected builders who didn't shed dander the way mammals from Earth did. Teal'c's suggestion that the lack of dust might indicate a still-functioning maintenance system gained some support.
After successfully sailing the MALP through the stargate and back to earth, Teal'c and O'Neill rejoined Sam at the largest of the instrument clusters. Shortly thereafter, both Sam and Jack exclaimed as a set of display screens burst into life, providing views of even more sections of the enormous facility. "Oh, wow! "
"Hey, Daniel, you may want to see this." Sam invited, followed by a curious, "Is that something moving on this screen?"
Daniel had barely begun the laborious process of stowing his camera and releasing his anchoring bungees when Teal'c answered Sam's question, "Indeed, it is. But it appears to be mechanical, not living."
O'Neill chimed in, "I think we've found your maintenance system, Teal'c. There's a set of them, and they seem to be moving from one side to the other of those two rooms. Daniel, hurry up, maybe you can figure out how to adjust the settings on these displays."
Daniel rolled his eyes as he braced himself prior to unhooking his final bungee, "Coming, Jack."
There were simultaneous gasps and expressions of alarm from the trio observing the screens, then O'Neill spoke, "Well, I guess that explains why there's no dust on anything, and why everything is made from metal and glass: neither of those materials burns very easily. Woah! I guess the settings change automatically as the maintenance robots move from compartment to compartment."
Carter interrupted, "Sir, what's that already moving on that girder on the new screen?"
"I believe it is Daniel Jackson moving toward our position." Teal'c supplied. "We must leave this place, immediately!"
O'Neill concurred, "Oh, crap! Those maintenance robots are entering our compartment. We are so not sharing with them. Daniel, jet over to the DHD and then shoot the magnetic end of your tether over to me! Carter, Teal'c, collect our equipment here. We've gotta get out of here, now! "
Daniel managed to forget about heights, or the appearance of heights, while getting to the DHD and dialing out. O'Neill, Carter, and Teal'c quickly stowed gear, jetted over to the spot they'd used for launching the MALP on its final leg back to the stargate, and tethered themselves together for their own return trip.
Carter sent their IDC as O'Neill reeled Daniel's tether line in. Teal'c positioned himself to provide guidance propulsion for the entire group.
The quartet sailed through the stargate at a rate that was probably faster than advisable for giving themselves time to adjust to a gravity field on the other side, but they were eager to leave S2M 669 now.