Linea turned slowly and faced away from the stable wormhole for a brief moment before glancing up at the observation room of SGC. She saw the stern expression of General Hammond looking down from the control room, commanding her to climb down the ramp. Colonel O'Neill stood beside him with Captain Carter on the general's right. She wore a dazed expression on her face and something akin to hurt. The thought passed as the seconds' ticked down before finally proceeding through the gate.
Sam shook herself inwardly to get her bearings and summoned her attention on the task at hand. She tabbed a series of command to assist in aborting the self-destruct sequence but the systems would not obey the commands.
"The entire system just crashed!" said the female technician seated beside Sam. The technician was dumbfounded when the control room lights went out next.
"Well, get it back up!" O'Neill said a second later from behind them.
The usual hum of computers stopped and it was silent for a few seconds before they came back on. They had all expected to be blown to bits when the countdown reached zero, but the explosion never came. Sam breathed a prayer of thanks to whomever who was watching over them and glanced at her monitor.
"Colonel, I think you should take a look at this," Sam said nodding at her computer screen.
The blinking white words appeared on the screen: [Thank you for your kindness. All debts have been paid.]
"We let her out," Sam muttered.
"The destroyer of worlds," Daniel added succinctly realizing that his simple statement weighed on their shoulders. They made an error in judgement in trusting Linea and they could be paying the price in the future.
"What did you mean, when you said 'Destroyer of Worlds?'" Sam asked a beat later, half swiveled away from her computer terminal. Quickly, Daniel summarized what Simian said at the briefing room.
Sam glanced away, disgusted, letting her gaze settle on the personnel working inside the gate room. If she had known earlier, she wouldn't have trusted Linea.
A few minutes later, a chorus of sigh came from the rest of the SGC personnel at the control room when the base was fully illuminated when main power has been restored.
Daniel scrutinized Sam's expression for a moment. He could already see her mind working on different scenarios of 'what ifs'.
Below the control room, the embarkation area resumed to their normal flurry of activities as SGC personnel readied their diagnostic instruments for the Stargate.
All debts have been paid. Sam mulled at the last parting words of Linea. What could it mean? Was the time Linea spent in Hadante enough to atone her for the unforgivable things she had done on her own home planet? Would Simian lie to save his own skin? What would he gain? He did look mortified after seeing who restored his vision. Sam continued to stare into space and would have gone on had Daniel not lay his hand on her shoulders.
She glanced up seeing a resigned expression on his face along with a trace of worry in his eyes even as he watched the personnel below.
"Without those coordinates she dialed, we won't be able to find her and bring her back," Daniel said an after thought.
Sam nodded as a slight furrow etched her brows. "I should have memorized the address," she berated herself again.
"Hey...hey..." Daniel said giving her a gentle shake on the shoulders. He was concerned that Sam could have misinterpreted him. "Don't give yourself a hard time. Who would have known that Simian would be telling the truth?"
He had a hard time digesting that Linea would go back to the ways to end a world she just gated through. For her sake, he hoped wherever she was, SG-1 wouldn't be the one to find her.
~~**~~
Linea took a deep breath, gazing around the green valley to collect her composure. It was an unnerving experience traveling through the Stargate and she hope it would be the last time she embarked again. Her eyes roved around slowly, taking in the peacefulness of her surroundings. She had long resigned to the thought that she would not see the day outside of Hadante for as long as she lived. However, with the help of SG-1, the hope she thought was gone, sparked. She was given a second chance to feel the warm sun on her face, to see the clouds crossing placidly above her head and to breath in the cool scented breeze sweeping through the vale. All these lifted her spirit once more.
She knelt on the lush ground and touched the short blade of grass, still swaying from the breeze. It was wonderful to see life again.
She vowed she would not jeopardize a planet again with her knowledge. She stayed for a few more minutes savoring the calmness coming from the area before standing up, walking leisurely towards the gentle incline 100 yards from her.
An hour later and the Stargate looked like a ceramic figurine sitting in the middle of a green carpet grass. Reaching the top of the incline, she gazed below. Numerous villagers dotted the shoreline. They dragged their respective heavy fishing boats, leaving deep marks on the white sand to the open ocean. Linea shielded her eyes from the sun with one hand. There was a high ridge several meters away from the beach and beyond it, was a small coastal village. Behind the village, were well-trodden paths, cutting through the forest. Linea guessed the villagers have also directed their food gathering towards the forest.
She took one last look at the ocean. It was inviting but it would risk exposing her to the villagers. Maybe in time, she could pay them a visit, learn their customs and perhaps live along side them in peace. For now, the forest will be her home.
A boy glanced up from feeding a young peregrine falcon, startled to see a lone figure on the hilltop. The individual was too far for him to discern his features. The boy waited in bated breath, watching what the 'man' would do next. However, all 'he' did was walked away, vanishing from his sight. The boy exclaimed when his pet falcon pecked his empty palm.
The boy jumped down from the branch where he was perched and went inside of his house before coming out with a middle-aged man whose eyes searched worriedly at the empty hilltops following the pointing finger of his son.
"Goa'uld?" The man asked.
The boy shook his head. "I don't think so, father," he answered, standing beside his father.
"I will inform our village elders about this tonight, son. Now, go on and finished your chores." The man said and went back to house while the boy pick up a seed basket and shot one last look at the hilltops. Satisfied that the figure won't be appearing anymore, he walked away.
Linea finally reached the cool shade of the forest and shrugged off her jacket. She untucked her shirt to let the cool breeze calm her down. Reaching into her pocket, she took a chocolate bar she received from a technician back on Earth and sampled it. After several bites, she began scouting the area, hoping to find a natural dwelling close to a fresh water source then perhaps later, think of ways to introduce her 'stay' to the inhabitants.
She also hoped that the SG-1 team wouldn't find her. She had longed made penance to the objectionable actions she had done. All that she wanted now is - peace.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is my first attempt in writing a fic about the show. Thank you Genie for being my beta.
© July 01, 2003 The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp. The Stargate, SG-I, the Goa'uld and all other characters who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.