By: Triscia
CATEGORY:
Angst, Alternate Universe
SEASON/SPOILERS:
Season 8, 9 & 10 (just to be on the safe side).
WARNINGS: None
AUTHOR’S NOTES:
This story was a brainchild of mine after watching Beachhead. When talking with a friend the subject came
up of how a rescue mission for Vala would
happen. Much of the ideas talked about
in that moment led to the creation of this fic.
AUTHOR’S WEBSITE:
http://triscia.livejournal.com/
CHAPTER 1
It had been several months since the last time he had heard her voice and yet every time he closed his eyes he could hear it clear as day. Vala had that way with people. From the first day that he had met her, strike that, from the moment that she kidnapped him and took him on a cross galaxy journey straight out of a science fiction novel, she had always been on his mind. Whether it had been annoyance or sympathy – no, it was annoyance, definitely annoyance. Vala was a hard person to forget. This is why he found the possibility that she did not survive the Al’Kesh explosion that destroyed the Ori Beachhead, almost impossible to comprehend. Despite Sam’s suggestion that she somehow was pulled into the singularity and taken somewhere into the Ori home galaxy was something that he wanted to believe.
With a sigh, Daniel got up from his bed.
He hadn’t been getting a lot of sleep lately and had just been ordered by both General Landry and Dr. Lam to get some or you would spend the next forty eight hours in the infirmary. Whether it was staying up all night studying the Book of Origin or dealing with the latest artifact brought in by another SG team, his time was becoming more and more precious and therefore, he often went without rest. After a while, it became noticeable to his teammates and pretty much everyone else around him resulting in him being ordered to do so. Something that right now was easier said that done. For the last few days it wasn’t the job that was keeping him up at night, it was Vala. Or rather, dreams about Vala. For the last three days she had become the only thing that he could think about
He couldn’t understand why all of a sudden he was thinking about her. A day didn’t go by that he hadn’t thought or hoped that she was alive and well but the moments would last for only a few minutes and he was able to go about his day. Now though, it was almost like an obsession. As if every moment of every second of his life at this point revolved around her, and she wasn’t even there. He had blamed this on his lack of sleep and thought not to share it with Dr. Lam and the others. The last thing he needed right now was a session with Dr. Mackenzie. So for now he kept these thoughts to himself in the hopes that with some rest they would clear his head.
Exhausted he walked over to the nightstand and grabbed the Book of Origin. Walking back to his bed Daniel found himself overcome with pain. Images began rushing before his eyes, each one more unbelievable than the next. So caught up was he in what he was seeing he couldn’t hear the sounds of someone pounding on his door, or calling out his name. When it had finally ended, he found himself lying on the floor, with Colonel Mitchell standing above him.
“
Daniel felt extremely dizzy as he pulled himself up
onto his knees and took a long look at Colonel Mitchell.
"She's alive," he said just before the darkness claimed him.
CHAPTER 2
Consciousness returned to Daniel like mist lifting up from
the fog. Sensations of sight, sound, touch -- all began to leak thru the haze
and overwhelm his senses. The feeling was similar to what it was like waking up
from a zat blast. Rubbing his forehead to ease his
pain he was able to slowly open his eyes and although the figures standing
before him were blurry, it was obvious to him who they were.
"What the hell happened?"
"We were gonna ask you the same thing,"
Colonel Mitchell said standing at the end of Daniel's bed.
It only took a moment for it all to come back to him.
"Vala."
"Back in you're quarters you said, 'She's alive.' Was Vala who you were talking about?"
"Yes."
"Told ya," Mitchell said turning around to
where Sam and Teal’s where standing.
Daniel was confused and it must have shown since Sam walked up to his bed and
sat down beside him.
"Do you remember that project Dr. Lee and I were working on? The one with the Ancient communication stones?"
"Yeah, the one that you made me activate after Vala
and I regained consciousness. You were trying to duplicate the process that was
created by the Ancient terminal."
"Well, the three of us where in my lab when it started to go haywire.
"I would be the one that they would communicate with."
"Exactly. Only something else happened because
when
"More sure than I have ever been of anything in my
entire life."
"Then she did survive the Al'kesh
explosion?"
"Yes, and from what I can tell she is in a village similar to Ver Ager. That was the town where
Harrid and Sallis came
from. Everything is still sort of jumbled so it’s going to take me a while to
process it all. However I am almost certain that she’s in trouble.”
Sam got up from the chair allowing Mitchell to take her place.
“What makes you say that,
“I’m not going to pretend to understand how the stones work but this was different from what happened when we were taken over by Harrid and Sallis.”
“How so?”
“When Jack and Joe Spencer activated the original stones on Earth they didn’t take over each other’s bodies they just had flashes of what that person was doing at the time. This was like that, mostly impart because the stones weren't connected to an Ancient terminal. However, like what happened when were connected to the Ancient terminal, whatever happened to the person who activated the stone, in this case Vala, happens to whomever is holding the connection to the other end, in this case, me.”
“So you’re saying that the whole writhing in pain and agony that you did before you passed out actually happened to Vala?”
“Yes.”
“Waking up just now it felt like I was hit with a zat blast. If something similar happened to Vala on her end, it would explain the way that I feel.”
“If what you’re saying is true, then why didn’t it happen to General O’Neill and Joe Spencer?”
Daniel sighed as he sat himself up.
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s connected to our exposure to the Ancient terminal or maybe it has to do with those Goa’uld Nut marriage bracelets that she used to bind us together.”
“But the effects of the bracelets wore off.”
“The effects may have worn off where their lives would have been endangered,” Sam said as she began to pace the room. “However, it’s possible that they left some small permanent connection between the two of you.”
“Whatever the reasons for it, she’s in trouble. She needs our help.”
CHAPTER 3
The touch of a silky and familiar hand caressing his cheek awoke Daniel from his slumber.
“That’s it my Daniel, open your eyes.”
Like a bolt of lighting, Daniel’s eyes snapped open. There, sitting at his bedside was Vala.
“I must be dreaming,” he said trying to pull himself up. It was then he noticed his surroundings.
Daniel found himself in a bedroom, eerily similar to that of Harrid and Sallis in Ver Ager.
“Where am I?”
“It’s a village called Ver Isca; it’s very similar to Ver Ager, almost identical. And for the record, this is not a dream.”
“Then what is it?”
“It’s a kind of . . . hallucination.”
“I’m hallucinating?”
“I had every intention of telling you everything. However we got interrupted and I had to think of something else.”
“Interrupted how?”
“One thing at a time darling, lets start from the beginning.”
“Okay. So we’re in Ver Isca. We’re in someone’s house. Whose house are we in?”
“It belongs to a man named Tomin. He was the one who found me after I had been transported to the Ori galaxy. He has taken care of me ever since I came here.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’ve been better.”
“That didn’t answer my question.”
“I believe I told you to take it slow, now where was I . . . ah, right. So Tomin took care of me and brought me back to health. Tomin was stricken as a child and as a result he walks with a limp. The other villagers look down on him because they feel that the Ori have deemed him unfit in a way. He seemed as if he longed for company and I wanted to blend in so I went along with it at first. After being there a while, I realized that I needed to find a way to contact you or at least someone in this galaxy so I started putting feelers out for any sign of the Anti-Ori underground that Harrid, Sallis and Fannis had belonged to.”
“Well did you find anyone?”
“Yes. There was a barmaid with whom I struck up an instant friendship. Her name was Denya. At first I had no idea that she was some part of a rebellion. She worked for Seevis; he was the town barkeep and administrator it was his job to keep the flock in line so to speak. After the first few weeks I realized that Denya was feeling me out so I took a chance and made a few interesting remarks.”
“Then what happened?”
“Seevis knocked on the door, dragged me out of the house and chained me to the altar. He called me an unbeliever and made me stay there without food or water until I decided to tell on whomever else were conspiring with me.”
“So how long were you chained up?”
“Three days.”
“Oh, my god.”
“Eventually Tomin, who at first was afraid to defy Seevis, believed that I had been accused unjustly and let me out of the binds.”
“Seevis did nothing to stop him?”
“No.”
“So neither he nor Denya were part of the underground?”
“No, that’s the thing, they were. They were testing me to see if they could trust me. Soon after that I was let into the inner circle.”
“What did you find out?”
“There are ships, hundreds of them on planets all across the Ori galaxy. You were right Daniel, they are preparing for crusade.”
“Have you seen the ships, do you know what they look –“ Daniel said as he tried to pull himself out of the bed. Getting as far as a sitting position he was once again overwhelmed with pain.
“Daniel are you –“
“I’m fine, just tired.”
“Then rest, we can pick up where we left off later.”
“But you need my help,” Daniel said as he tried to hold back a yawn.
“Sleep, Daniel,” Vala said as she ran her fingers thru his hair. “I will be here when you wake up.”
Daniel gave Vala a large smile and closed his eyes. With a small sigh Vala bent down and kissed Daniel on the forehead.
* * * *
Vala slowly opened her eyes. Looking around the room she quickly hid the Ancient communication stone under her pillow. Tomin entered moments later, his faced filled with an enormous smile.
“Did you sleep well?
“Yes.”
Tomin sat besides her and gave Vala a warm embrace.
“It’s going to be okay. I know that you have been thru a lot in the last few days. Especially since Seevis and Denya were forcing you use that machine to contact the unbelievers."
“I’m fine, really I am,” Vala
said returning his embrace.
"Once again I
am sorry that you were injured. I only meant to stop them."
"I know you did, and I am fine. The Prior healed my wound."
“The ships will be leaving soon and when they do we will spread the word of the Ori to all of those touched by evil. It will be a glorious day for us all.”
Still in the comfort of Tomin’s embrace Vala
closed her eyes and softly cried.
CHAPTER 4
“
Daniel’s eyes snapped open to notice not only was he was still in the infirmary but he had apparently never left. Taking a moment to look at each of his teammates, it had become painfully aware that the conversation he had with Vala might not have been a private one.
“Are you all right DanielJackson?”
“I’m fine, Teal’c.”
Teal’c exchanged with Mitchell what only could be described as a look of concern before Mitchell sat down in the chair next to Daniel’s bedside.
“Well a few seconds ago you were kind of talking to yourself.”
“I kind of figured that based on the way you’re looking at me right now.”
Sam especially was giving Daniel a look of great concern. Whatever had happened must have really freaked them out.
“The last thing we talked about was Vala being in trouble,” she said as she motioned for Mitchell to get up from his seat. “Then you started talking to yourself. We tried everything to get your attention.”
“It was creepy,
“Well I’m glad that you didn’t.”
“We tried to make out what you were saying Daniel, but it was sort of hard to follow.”
Mitchell picked up a pad of paper that had been lying at the foot of Daniel’s bed.
“From what we could make out it had something to do with being in a house in place called Ver Isca with some guy named Seevis. I think there involved someone being chained up… not too sure I want to know more about that part.”
“I was talking with Vala.”
“Was Vala chained up? Or did she have you chained up?”
“I though you didn’t want to know about that part?”
“I said I wasn’t too sure I wanted to know.”
“And now you do?”
“Well - - “
“Do you think you were actually speaking with her?” Sam interrupted throwing Mitchell a glance that made him stop talking, “Or was it the result of the memory burst that she had sent to you when she was first connected to the stones?”
“I’m not sure Sam, but it was just so real. I was in a room, just like the kind that the two of us encountered while we were in Ver Ager that is the village where Harrid and Sallis had lived. We were in this bedroom and I was lying down, Vala seemed to be tending to me. She started to tell me things.”
Mitchell smiled and opened his mouth as if to say something sarcastic but quickly changed his demeanor when both Sam and Teal’c gave him looks that screamed: Don’t go there.
“Like what?” he said instead, trying desperately to look like he had not been told nonverbally to shut up.
“Like the fact that she is in a village in the Ori galaxy called Ver Isca and from what she has been able to gather so far there are ships and soldiers preparing to come to this galaxy at any time. Its just like I feared, they are preparing for crusade.”
“That would mean that the Ori have a working Supergate?”
“Yes, Sam,” Daniel said pulling himself up from his bed. “And if we have any chance at stopping them, we have to find it first.”
“What else did Vala say?”
“Most of the things she told me were about what she had been up to since being stranded in Ver Isca. The most important thing that we know right now is there is a Supergate somewhere out there and that is going to need all of our concentration.”
“Did she tell you anything else that maybe of use?”
“Not yet.”
* * * *
“Dr. Lam believes that she can release Dr. Jackson from the infirmary within the next few hours,” General Landry said as he took his seat in the briefing room “What concerns me right now is the fact that the Ori have a working Supergate and we never knew about it until now.”
“We have the Tok’ra doing long range sweeps of any known black holes within a thousand meter radius of the first Ori beachhead,” Sam said looking over her notes. “We have also sent SG’s 3, 5, & 11 to planets orbiting nearby black holes to look for any signs of the Supergate.”
“The
“Thank you, Teal’c. Let the Council know that this effort on their part is most appreciated,” Landry said turning to Mitchell. “Did Dr. Jackson mention anything else about this vision that he had?”
“No,” Mitchell said tapping his pen against the table. “However I’m a little bit worried about these visions of his.”
“How so?”
“He was completely unresponsive during the hallucination. I think that we need to find out if it was a side effect of the memory burst Vala sent to him or if it was actually Vala herself. If this is a side effect of the memory burst then we can find a way to control it. If not . . “
“Then Dr. Jackson could literally be taken over at any time, I see you’re point.”
“Vala has no way of knowing what Daniel is doing at a certain time or when. If we were off world and this happened, there is no way for him to be able to defend himself.”
“So what exactly are you suggesting
“What I’m suggesting is that I think until we can figure out
exactly what’s going on with
“Cameron – “
“Just hear me out Sam, please. I don’t want to keep Jackson locked up anymore than anyone else, however, the last thing we need is for him to end up getting hurt, or worse or getting anyone else hurt or worse, just because he is Jackson.”
“DanielJackson, will not be pleased.”
“I know that big guy, but I know he’d understand.”
“I’ll talk it over with Dr. Lam,” Landry said getting up from his seat. “See what she recommends before I make a decision.”
“Yes, sir.”
“If you’ll excuse me, I have a meeting with Woolsey in about twenty minutes I need to prepare for.”
Mitchell watched as Landry left the room. Once the General
was gone he couldn’t help but notice the hard looks that he was getting from
his teammates. He knew that he had just crossed a line. He knew that it wasn’t
gaining him any points in the leadership department. Being the new guy was
difficult enough but being a new guy positioned to lead a group of seasoned
veterans made respect an impossible but ongoing feat.
CHAPTER 5
Dr. Lam had told him that he could leave the infirmary by lunchtime. Daniel sat there with the large pad of paper that Mitchell had left behind and began to write down everything that he had seen during his hallucination. He knew there was something that he had missed. Something important that Vala had been trying to tell him but he was too distracted to notice during their all too brief conversation. He had written down in almost visceral detail everything that had happened and yet whatever he had missed had apparently been missed by him over and over again. It was the result of the memory burst, he continued to tell himself, however he couldn’t shake the feeling, or the desire to believe that it had actually been Vala he had been talking.
But if it was her, why didn’t she want him to know it?
The Vala in his mind told him that she was a hallucination, a figment of his imagination. If that was the case, then why did it feel so real to him? And if it had been real, then what reason would she have to lie to him?
He went over the details again and again and nothing sank in. Sighing deeply he placed the pad of paper besides his bed and rested his head on his pillow.
“Is this a bad time?”
Looking up Daniel could see Mitchell standing in the doorway to the infirmary.
“A great time,” Daniel said propping up his pillows. “I was just trying to remember everything that happened during the hallucination. Trying to figure out if I missed anything.”
“And?”
“Nothing yet, which is kinda why I put the thing down. I can’t wait to get out of this place and get back to my lab. I’ve always been able to think better there.”
“That’s kind of the reason why I am here.”
A bad feeling erupted in Daniel’s stomach. Although Mitchell did have to say anything to him, one look into the Colonel’s eyes spoke volumes.
“I’m not getting out of here, am I?”
“Not yet.”
“What reason was given for my being held here,” Daniel asked trying desperately to hold back his emotions.
“I had made the suggestion to General Landry during the briefing that maybe it would be for the best that until we know more about the nature of you’re hallucinations that you be confined to the infirmary. Dr. Lam agreed.”
It was if he had been punched in the stomach.
“You recommended I stay here!”
“
“Upset doesn’t describe how I’m feeling right now. Betrayed is more like it.”
“I didn’t betray you.”
“Vala’s in trouble in some far off galaxy, the Ori are coming, and there is a working Supergate out there and this is where your priorities fell? I thought you were my friend.”
“I am your friend,” Mitchell said taking a seat next to Daniel’s bedside so that he could look the archaeologist in the face. “Until we know more about what’s happening to you, you’re vulnerable. That makes the rest of us vulnerable. We can’t afford to be that way right now.”
Daniel could see that Mitchell was sincere. He had to admit that becoming friends with him and been tough. He had spent all those years being friends with Jack and Teal’c it felt like this inner circle for which he could trust and depend on. When Jack left, it created a void, one that Mitchell tried desperately to fill. Daniel kind of admired Mitchell’s attempt to be his newest best friend, harkening back to days when he was younger and wider eyed having an experienced person like Jack to back him up. After time had passed and Mitchell realized he didn’t have to impress him all that much, they had found common ground, and began to build their friendship.
“Look, I understand that you mean well. Right now though, I need to get out of here. Too much is on the line for me to be laid up in some bed.”
“Daniel,” Mitchell said for the first time calling him by his first name. “If these turn out to be nothing more than images made by the memory burst we will find a way to deal with them. However if this turns out to actually be Vala you’re talking to then we can’t predict when the next one will come. If it happens and were in the middle of a sticky situation, what then?”
Daniel had to admit that Mitchell had a point.
“Besides, do you have any idea what General O’Neill will do to me if something happens to you?”
“What did he say to you?”
“Well he said, in so many words, that I would suffer horribly if his archaeologist should, well, die while under my command.”
Daniel couldn’t help but laugh at that, “That’s Jack for you.”
“Look, we’ll try to get this over with as soon as possible. But right now, it looks like you’re stuck here.”
“Can you do me a favor then?”
“Name it.”
“I need you to get a few things out of my lab that would help me make sense of all of this.”
“You bet. What do ya need?”
“My laptop, for starters, a few more pens and a few more pads of paper.”
“Will do.”
“And coffee, you remember what kind, right?”
“How can I forget, it smells terrible. Be right back.”
Daniel watched and waited until Mitchell was out of sight. Looking around to make sure that no one was watching he pulled out his IV and swung his feet off the side of the bed. Taking one last look to make sure no one was watching, he hopped down and hightailed out the door.
CHAPTER 6
Vala sat on the steps staring at Tomin, who was putting on his uniform.
“You know I wish that you didn’t have to be a part of this.”
“But I am honored,” he said walking over towards her. “I never thought I could ever serve the Ori this way.”
“I just feel conflicted. I mean we have never even met these unbelievers and yet were going to war with them.”
Tomin placed his staff on a nearby table and took a seat beside Vala.
“Anyone who would lead us to stray from the path are evil. If they cannot be shown the light then they must be destroyed. Our very souls depend on it.”
“But if we believe in the Ori and are strong in our faith, they why should we care what a bunch of people far, far away think or believe?”
“These people are corrupt, they don’t care about our happiness or our beliefs. They want to spread their evil to any and everything and they will not stop unless we stop them.”
Sensing the conversation was getting her nowhere Vala said no more. Tomin touched her head gently and kissed her forehead.
“I must be off. They are expecting me.”
With that Vala watched Tomin leave. She waited until she knew that he was gone before heading back to the bedroom. She cared for Tomin, she would admit that much, but the more time she spent with him the more terrified of him she became. He was a devout man, a man who couldn’t see reason when it was staring him in the face. She needed to let Daniel know. To warn him about what was coming. Even if it meant it would be the last thing she would ever do.
* * * *
Getting out of his room was one thing but getting out of
“Hello Daniel.”
“Hello Vala.”
“So, what have you been up to since the last time we spoke,” she said taking a bite out of what looked like an apple.
“Well I was trying to break out of the mountain.”
“Why?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” he said fiddling with the forks in front of him. “Maybe it had something to do with being confined to the infirmary because I seem to be talking to myself.”
“Sorry about that.”
“Before we go any further, just tell me, is this,” he said pointing around the room. “The result of the memory burst that you sent before you were disconnected from the stones or am I actually speaking to you, Vala, somewhere in the Ori galaxy.”
“I can’t tell you.”
“What do you mean you can’t tell me?”
“Its very complicated and right now I can’t tell you.”
“Well what can you tell me?”
“The invasion happens in three weeks.”
“Three weeks.”
“Yes, so we have no time to waste,” she replied speaking with a mouth full of apple.
“So what am I supposed to do?”
“I’m not exactly sure but I’ve been thinking. Remember when you told me that when Anubis was going to fire the weapon that would destroy all life in the galaxy that they tried to dial in to prevent it from happening. And that you’ve done that successfully in past situations.”
“Yes?”
“Well what if you were to dial out to the Ori Supergate before they had a chance to dial in.”
“I’m not sure that it would work, but I could ask Sam, maybe she could think of something.”
“Good, then I’m guessing you’re not going anywhere, are you?”
“Guess not,” Daniel said giving Vala a small smile.
Vala smiled back and for one
moment he remembered just how beautiful she was. She looked different somehow,
and Daniel couldn’t quite place how. She was the same Vala
that he had remembered -- just as much a pain in the ass as always. Beautiful
hair, magical smile, soft silky skin that looked almost as if it were glo --
Daniel's thoughts stopped dead. He began to think back to the first vision. To
what he had missed and that had been nagging him ever since.
"Oh, my god," he said taking a good look at her. "You're
pregnant!"
CHAPTER 7
Thinking quickly, Vala ran over to Daniel and put her hand over his mouth.
“Shut up, it might hear you.”
“What might hear me?” Daniel asked thru a muffled voice.
“The baby.”
“The baby!” Daniel cried removing Vala’s hand from his face. “What do you mean ‘the baby’ and how is there a baby?”
“First off I want to assure that I did none of the necessary bits. I just woke up one morning, pregnant.”
“People just don’t wake up one morning pregnant Vala.”
“Well I did,” she said walking back over to her chair and sitting down. “It was not too long after I had arrived in the Ori galaxy. I just woke up one morning and knew. I think the Ori created it.”
“What would make you think that?”
“I overheard a Prior one day. I think this child might be some kind of Ori in human form. You said it yourself that they can’t come here or they would feel the wrath of the Ancients, so creating a human with all their knowledge and power would certainly give them an advantage.”
“It’s also cheating.”
“Well I never said it was fair.”
Daniel walked over to Vala and pulled up a chair to sit beside her. She could see the warmth in his eyes, the overwhelming concern almost immediately. The months of fear and uncertainty that she had been experienced seemed to be wiped away in that singular moment.
“I’m glad you’re here,” she said softly as her hands began to caress her swollen abdomen. “Even though, technically you’re not really here.”
Daniel grabbed Vala’s hands gently, “Just tell me one thing – “
“It’s really me, Daniel” she said before he could finish.
Without thought Daniel’s hands gave Vala’s a small squeeze. With an expression of what Vala could only describe as joyful sadness, he looked directly into her eyes.
“Tell me everything and start at the beginning.”
* * * *
“
“What?!” Sam replied looking up from her calculations. “How long has he been missing?”
“About half of an hour.”
“What happened, do you know?”
“I went to talk to him, to personally break the news about why he had to stay in the infirmary. There was an argument but we eventually came to an understanding. He asked me to go to his office and pick up some supplies and when I got back he was gone.”
“Have you told anyone else yet?”
“Not yet,” Mitchell said as he began to pace. “Landry’s still in a meeting with Woolsey and Teal’c left for Dakara to check on their progress regarding the Supergate.”
“Daniel hates the infirmary,” Sam said as she walked out the door of her office and down the hall.
“Who in the world likes it?” Mitchell said sprinting to catch up. ”Except for maybe, Dr. Lam.”
They stopped at the elevator as Sam pushed the button for up.
“You don’t get it.”
“No I don’t seem to understand much of anything nowadays.”
Sam waited until both of them were in the elevator before saying anything to him.
“Daniel died in that infirmary Cameron.”
“I know that he has, more than once according to record.”
Frustrated Sam pushed the emergency stop button and for the first time Mitchell could see that there were tears forming in her eyes.
“I’m talking about the time that he died and ascended. For three agonizing days I watched and waited and hoped and prayed. But nothing helped. He just wasted away before our eyes. Then finally he left us. And I didn’t think I could ever move on from it. A part of me never has. Every time he gets injured or ends up in the infirmary all I can think about is that moment and I know that Daniel does too.”
“Sam – “
“When we lost Janet, that’s the first place Daniel went to. We found him just sitting there alone and in the dark. Everyone who knows him well enough know that he shouldn’t stay in the infirmary any longer than he has to.”
Pressing the button to get the elevator started again, Sam turned her back to Mitchell.
“He’s not in control of his own mind right now Sam, he needs to be supervised until we can find a way to help him.”
When the elevator doors opened, Sam walked out briskly and turned toward Mitchell.
“I think you’ve done enough helping for one day,” she said and walked down the hallway.
All Mitchell could do was look on as the elevator doors shut in front of him.
CHAPTER 8
“I don’t’ remember much after getting into the rings, but the next thing I remember was waking up in a bed. Tomin had found me and believed that I had been sent to him by the gods. So I let him keep on thinking that. I was in the Ori home galaxy and had no way of knowing if the Ori knew that I was there or not. Tomin was a very sweet man. As I had mentioned earlier he had been stricken with a limp since childhood, the others lookdown on him and it had been some time since he had company. A few weeks past and I began to feel better. Then I realized that I was pregnant.”
“How could you be certain?”
“Women know these kinds of things Daniel.”
“Sorry, do go on.”
“Anyway I knew that I had a problem because Tomin was a very devout man and if he knew that I was pregnant he would more than likely report me to Seevis, whom at the time I did not know was an Ori rebel, and they would burn me alive.”
“So what did you do?”
“The only thing that I could go given the circumstances. I took advantage of the fact that Tomin was smitten with me and convinced him to marry me. That way I could sleep with him and pray the timing was close enough that he could be convinced that the baby was his.”
Daniel was dumbstruck.
“You married him?”
“As I told you before I had no choice. It was that or death and excuse me for not wanting to be slapped on an altar and fried.”
“I’m sorry,” Daniel said apologetically. “It’s just a lot to take in.”
“Tell me about it.”
“What happened next?”
“Well, Tomin and I got married and as I had hoped the timing was right and I was able to convince him that the child belonged to him. After a few months I began to put out feelers regarding the Anti-Ori underground. That’s when Seevis chained me up without food or water for three days.”
“And the baby survived?”
“Yes,” Vala said looking down at her stomach. “Part of we was kind of grateful for it. However that’s when I realized that it may not be a normal child. Not too long after I overheard a Prior telling Tomin that the child did not belong to him, but was in fact, the will of the Ori.”
“How did Tomin react to that?”
“Not good. But we’ll get to that part later. By that time I
had earned Seevis and Denya’s
trust. I had explained to them who I was and how I got here. That’s when they
showed me the communication terminal and stones that Harrid
and Sallis had found in Ver
Ager. It seems that every so often objects that
pre-date the creation by the Ori is are dug up and
taken to Celestis to be burned. However, it’s seems
that your speech about people from another galaxy did not fall on deaf ears. Seevis’ spies managed to pass that information along to
monks that he has working within the city of
“That’s what you used to try and contact me the first time?”
“Yes, however we got interrupted by Tomin. It seems that he had grown suspicious after his conversation with the Prior and began to follow me.”
“What happened?”
“He killed Seevis, then Denya. During the confusion I was accidentally hit.”
“This explains why I passed out.”
“When I woke up I learned that Tomin had the Prior heal me. He was livid and accused me of betraying him. However I was able to convince him that Seevis and Denya took me against my will and that they forced me to try and communicate with the unbelievers. That I honestly believed that the child belonged to him and my pregnancy meant that the Ori chose us to partake on an important duty.”
“And he believed you?”
“Like I told you before he wasn’t a man that had a great deal of companions over the years, he came to love me a great deal.”
“How do you feel about him?”
Vala blushed and Daniel could tell right away that Vala cared for Tomin. However her eyes gave away her answer before she could say a word.
“I care for Tomin. He’s sweet, kind and not that bad looking either. However he is a very devout follower of the Ori and I don’t think that there will be anything that I could say to him that would change his mind. There are times when I wish I could convince him, to show him that what the Ori preach is false. But if you’re asking if I love him, I do. But not in a romantic way."
Daniel couldn’t help but feel strangely relieved by that. He could tell by her smile that she did indeed care for Tomin, and it hurt her that she could not give more to him that he had given to her. It seemed that time in the Ori galaxy had been hard on Vala. However it was the kind of hard that usually led to one becoming a better person. Vala gave Daniel a smile and tightened her grip on his hands.
“You need to get me out of here,” she whispered, her voice
cracking ever so slightly.
Daniel got down on his knees to where he was eye level with Vala.
Taking her head in his hands, he kissed her forehead.
"I promise. I’ll bring you home.”
Stifling back tears Vala hugged Daniel and for the first time in months, she felt truly safe.
CHAPTER 9
By the time anyone had been told that Daniel was missing, he had apparently returned to the infirmary on his own. When Dr. Lam questioned him on it, he stated merely that he needed to take a walk and clear his head. Mitchell was glad for that small favor, since neither Sam nor Teal’c had said much of anything to him when the archaeologist was no where to be found. He screwed up, big time, and he was well aware of it. Sam had made a valid point. He too knew what it was like to stare death in the face and he came out of the experience a different man. For Daniel, who had died more times that anyone at the SGC, it had to be more than a bit unsettling. Walking into the infirmary he fully expected to see both Sam and Teal’c sitting by Daniel’s side and was surprised to see they were no where to be found. Instead Daniel was sitting by himself, reading a very large, very heavy looking book.
“
“Hey,” Daniel said closing the book and placing it on the table besides him.
“So I hear you went on a little field trip?”
“Yeah, nothing major just needed to get some air.”
“Don’t lie,” Mitchell said taking a seat beside Daniel. “You were trying to escape.”
“There was that too.”
“What changed your mind.”
“I spoke with Vala again.”
“Really?” Mitchell said trying to hold back his surprise. “What did she say? When did it happen?”
“I was in the locker room, all ready to leave, when I found myself having lunch with Vala. We started talking, mostly about things that have happened to her while in the Ori galaxy and about the pending crusade.”
“And?”
“We have about three weeks.”
“Three weeks?”
“By all estimations. She said that there are armies, on dozens of worlds filled with people willing to fight.”
“Damn.”
“Tell me about it. Teal’c went back to Dakara to check on the status of the Supergate while Sam is working on a way to try and dial into it before they can dial out.”
“Um, hold on a second,” Mitchell replied as Daniel’s words finally hit him. “Why would we want to that?”
“We’ve done it several times with the Goa’uld. We dial in to a specific location so they can’t dial out to this galaxy. Kind of like a way to prevent the invasion?”
“Yeah, but this gate is different than the ones that we’re used to, are we sure it would even work?”
“Sam’s making a simulation based on data that we collected from the original Supergate. Hopefully we can find out if such a thing is possible.”
Mitchell could tell that there was something else on Daniel’s mind. He wasn’t sure exactly what it was but he had been around the man enough to know when he got what Sam called his ‘bothered face’ which meant he was upset about something and didn’t feel like talking about it. Mitchell, on the other hand, had noticed that no one really got him to speak up on what was bothering him either. They had been around him long enough to know it made him uncomfortable and did their best not to pry. Although he never questioned it, to him, it just felt wrong somehow.
He wasn’t sure if it was due to the situations that they saw on a regular basis or if all the other members of SG-1 were dealing with their own stuff to not want to deal with anyone else’s, but Mitchell knew that when it came right down to it you don’t keep stuff in. It would just come back and nip you in the ass when you weren’t looking. He had tried to shut down after his accident but in the end, the courage that he saw in his father on a daily basis lead him to keep going – to keep fighting. It was also on this courage that he let his inner pain out for the world to see. It had been refreshing and ultimately the strength of his heart that kept him alive.
For Daniel, however, it seemed as if he had the weight of the universe on his shoulders. It’s hard to believe that he wasn’t always this way. To read back to the mission reports of the early days of SG-1 and to hear about the wide-eyed and curious guy that he was . . . it was almost unfathomable that the young man whom he read about and the man who lay in the bed before him were the same person. However, he had been a solider long enough to know what combat does to people. It made him kind of sad to know of the toll that almost a decade at the SGC had cost Dr. Daniel Jackson.
Even during their occasional basketball games or movie nights, the burden Daniel carried was still there. Maybe less prevalent that it was on a regular basis, but always there. There was only one time where Mitchell had noticed that the burden Daniel carried seemed to disappear, and the internal struggle he was dealing with took a back seat. And that was all thanks to Vala. She brought out a different side of Daniel, albeit it was thru a combination of utter annoyance and anger, but it was something that seemed to have been missing. All one had to do was look into the man’s eyes when she was around and it was there. For as annoying a pain in the ass that Vala was, and for all the fighting, nit-picking and sexual innuendos, Daniel had somehow become more alive in her presence.
That spark had been noticeably absent since the day that Vala destroyed the Ori beachhead,
her fate unknown. It was the uncertainty that he could tell was bothering
“What else did Vala tell you?”
Mitchell could see instantly of Daniel’s discomfort and knew that the archaeologist was going to try and change the subject.
“Nothing important.”
“
Daniel looked at Mitchell curiously, “Is this newfound interest in my well being legitimate or are you just trying to make it up to me for having me confined to the infirmary?”
Mitchell looked back at Daniel kind of offended.
“First off, I did not have you confined! I merely suggested that until we find out more about your condition we shouldn’t have you traipsing about the galaxy. And secondly, I brought this up because I can tell by the way that you’re acting that something else happened and I know that you need to talk about it. And I am not trying to make up any– “
“Vala’s pregnant,” Daniel mumbled halting Mitchell in his tracks.
“What?”
CHAPTER 10
“Back it up for just a second, did you just say that Vala is pregnant?”
Daniel nodded.
“Oh, my god,” Mitchell said running his finger thru his hair. A few seconds had passed before a wild look came across the man’s face. “Oh, my god!”
“What?”
“The kid,” he said in a quick almost panicky tone. “It’s not y–“
Daniel gave Mitchell a confused look before realizing what he was trying to say.
“No!” Daniel spat out quickly before he could regain his composure. “No. Vala’s child is not mine.”
Mitchell felt a strange mixture of relief and concern as
that fact didn’t seem to pleasing to
“What did she tell you about it?”
Daniel gave a heavy sigh. Mitchell could tell that it was really bothering him.
“Cliff notes version is this: Vala ended up being ringed to a planet called Ver Isca where she was rescued by a crippled man named Tomin. Tomin thought the Ori had sent Vala to him so he did his best to take care of her. It was during this time Vala discovered that she was pregnant. She knew that as a devout follower of the Ori Tomin who have her punished for getting pregnant out of wedlock so she convinced him to marry her in the hopes of sleeping with him and passing the child off as his own.”
Mitchell looked at Daniel in confusion, “So you’re saying that according to Vala it’s an immaculate conception?”
“Yes, she thinks the Ori were involved.”
“Ok. So Vala’s carrying Darth Vader. So why do I get the feeling that you don’t believe that?”
“I know that Vala would have no reason to lie to me. I honestly think that she thinks that the baby was immaculately conceived.”
“I’m sensing a ‘but’ coming on.”
“But, I don’t know how that would be possible. There is no evidence anywhere of Ascended beings having the ability to create life in that way.”
“You think that something else happened?”
Daniel nodded at Mitchell a pained expression growing across his face.
“And it kills me to even think it. All I know is that however the child was conceived or why, we cannot leave her there.”
“I know,” Mitchell said in a sad tone of voice. “But we don’t have anyway to do that.”
“If Sam can find a way for us to dial the Supergate before the Ori have the chance, then we can send a ship thru to the other side to try and find her.”
Mitchell could see the desperation in his eyes, but knew that what he was purposing was not possible.
“Look, Daniel. I know that you want to get Vala back and it’s understandable since she means a lot to you. But you have to think this thru.”
“I have.”
“The Supergate doesn’t work like a regular Stargate. You just can’t dial in and out as you please. Once you dial in, it’s more than likely going to stay open to the Ori galaxy. Once you go in, you more than likely won’t be coming back out.”
“I know that. I know that if I get thru to the Ori galaxy, that I probably won’t ever get back, but I just can’t leave her there. She reached out across galaxies for me to find her. To bring her home. As impossible as it may seem right now. I have to at least try.”
Mitchell wasn’t sure if it was his yearn to help Daniel or the pleading, almost desperate tone of voice but he knew as insane it sounded he had to help.
“Count me in.”
Daniel looked at Mitchell in disbelief.
“Really?”
“Granted it is a totally insane idea, however, since when has that ever stopped us.”
Daniel looked at Mitchell, a wide smile coming across his face.
“Thanks, Cameron.”
“No problem, Daniel. Just tell me where we begin.”
* * * *
The pratically deserted streets combined with the
cold and fog made Vala's trek that much more
frightening. Even though she had every confidence that Daniel would be able to
find his way there, she wanted to do everything she could to find out more
about the upcoming invasion. She had to head to the training ground where the
soldiers were training and the plans were being made. She had to find
something, anything that would help. Coming to the break in the woods, she
raised the hood of her cloak and looked both ways before stepping into the
thick of trees.
Tomin watched from a distance. His eyes welling with tears of
pain and anger. With a stout resolve he turned around. Standing before
him was a Prior. The same Prior who had healed him of his childhood affliction
and had informed him of the importance of the child his wife had carried.
"You were right," he said, his voice cracking ever slightly.
"She lives, only because of the child."
"And the child is Orici?"
"Yes. She will bring forth our armies into the galaxies
of the unbelievers and will bring Origin to all those touched by evil."
"How long before she is born?"
"Three weeks to the day."
"What do we do until then?"
"We keep our eyes and ears open to agents of evil."
Tomin looked at the Prior in surprise.
"Do you believe that they would try to come here?"
"One is already on his way."
"Is there not anyway we can stop them?"
"Yes," said the Prior with wide, menacing eyes. "We will find
him and kill him."
CHAPTER 11
Vala would stop every few meters and peer around her shoulder. At the slightest hint of movement she would duck quickly between a group of bushes or trees. Waiting until the noise passed she would peek out to ensure that the perimeter was safe before she made her way down the road again. She knew that her current mission relied heavily on stealth, something that is not so easy to achieve if one is eight months pregnant. However she could not fail. Daniel was across the stars in another galaxy working on a way to rescue her at this very moment so she couldn’t allow the fact that she was pregnant hinder her plans to seek out more information about the coming invasion. Besides, she could definitely use the incident as a way to score loads of chocolate ice cream and foot rubs from Daniel when she was rescued.
It was truly a cold night; one of the coldest Vala had ever experience since coming to Ver Isca. Shivering slightly she continued to move down the dirt path that led to a cliff face that overlooked the training ground. As she made her way past what seemed like another endless string of large trees she heard a loud noise coming from the direction in which she was heading. Thinking fast, she nearly dove into a set of nearby bushes. As she lay hidden the footsteps turned into voices, familiar voices. After concentrating on them with what seemed all the strength that she had, the recognition came to her. It was Tomin. He was talking to someone, who from the tone of voice alone, Vala recognized as a Prior.
“Do we know when the agent of evil is coming?”
“Within the next week,” the Prior menacingly.
“Do we know his reasons for coming?”
“I would have thought, Tomin of Ver Isca, that such information would be relatively clear.”
“He has come for the Orici?”
“Yes.”
“Do we know how to find him?”
“That will also be relatively easy. We know this individual by name. The Ori consider him the most dangerous agent that evil could send to us and stopping him in his quest will bring to the one responsible for it, everlasting glory.”
“I am willing to take up such a cause.”
“I am aware. Your tenacity and desire to serve the Ori are unmatched by any other warrior that we have. It is why the Ori have chosen you to kill the agent before he can complete his task.”
“You said that you knew of this agent by name?”
“Yes. Where he is from he is known as Daniel Jackson of Earth.”
Vala gave out a loud audible gasp that caused Tomin and the Prior to stop in their tracks. Before she could react and get away, the bushes that she had hid behind burst into flames.
* * * *
“So, you’re saying that this could work?” Mitchell asked, astonished that he hadn’t been drawn and quartered for even making the suggestion.
Sam gave him what he believed was a small smile before continuing with her presentation. Clicking the remote, she switched over to the next slide.
“Dr. Lee and I have been going over the data that we collected from the first Ori beachhead. We believe that if we had any chance of dialing the Supergate, we would have to be in the closest proximity to the Ori galaxy. That’s why it hasn’t been working. Like the interstellar drift we encountered with the original gate of Earth, the Ori galaxy is just too far away for us to dial from here. I’m thinking that if we maybe head to the Pegasus galaxy we may encounter a better chance of dialing the Supergate.”
“So what do we need and when do we go?”
Mitchell’s excitement turned sour upon noticing Sam’s expression.
“What? Did I react too soon?”
“A little,” Sam said as she pinched her finger and thumb together in a playful manner.
Mitchell had noticed that every since Daniel had returned safe and sound both Sam and Teal’c seemed to lighten up on him. He didn’t know if Daniel had said something to them or if they had realized that they had been a little too harsh about what he had been trying to do.
“Before we get too excited,” Sam said giving Mitchell a slight wink. “We need to work out a few kinks.”
“Such as?”
“Well first off we need a Stargate that we can use in the Pegasus galaxy to dial the Supergate, we need a black hole to circumvent the connection between Pegasus and the Ori galaxy and the most problematic, we need a power source, a really big power source, in order to generate enough energy to create a stable wormhole.”
“What about sending a ship thru?”
The apprehension was visible on Sam’s face immediately.
“Cameron, I’m not so sure about that.”
“Not so sure as it can’t be done or not so sure as you don’t think it’s a good idea?”
“A bit of both.”
“Look, Sam. Believe it when I say this is something that Jackson and I have been over already. There is no way in the world that anything or anybody is going to stop him from bringing her home.”
“There’s a good chance that he’ll never come back.”
“There’s a good chance we may never come back each and every time that we step thru that gate but it never stops us. We just need to have a little trust that what he is doing is for the best and faith that he’ll find a way back home.”
“He seems to have a knack for that.”
“Yes, he does.”
"We have already contacted Dr. McKay in Atlantis who is using long range
sensors to pick up the closest black hole in the closest region of Pegasus to
the Ori Supergate."
"And if we find it?"
"Then we will be able to try the hypothesis. Either way we
are heading for Atlantis within the next week."
"Well I know Daniel will be pleased with that."
"Definitely."
"I'm meant not only have we found a way to enter the Ori galaxy but he gets to go to Atlantis to do it."
"There's just one thing we need to sort out first."
Mitchell felt pensive. He was hoping to avoid another conversation like they
had in the elevator.
"And what would that be?"
"Which one of us is going to tell Daniel?"
Mitchell laughed, "You tell him. But I definitely want to be there. Can't wait to see the look on his face when he realizes he's
finally going to
CHAPTER 12
Daniel Jackson lay in a bed onboard
the Odyssey, Dr. Lam's orders, as they made their way
to the Pegasus Galaxy. Under her watchful supervision, the only stipend that
she would allow for him to even dream of going to Atlantis, he lay there bored
out of his mind. Unable to read any of the mission
reports and only allowed to be debriefed with information when it was
absolutely necessary, he sat skimming thru his mission journal in an attempt to
stave off climbing the walls.
Day One
I'm going to Atlantis!
With Vala in the Ori galaxy
and Jack stuck in
Dr. Rodney McKay arrived thru the Stargate this afternoon. I have to say that I
haven't really missed him all that much since he left Earth. His shrill sense
of self importance, a quality to which some found endearing, was ever present
upon his arrival. Within a matter of minutes he immiedately
shot down any hopes that we may of had to reasonably
believe that it was possible for the rescue mission to even get off the ground.
He had pointed out, what seemed rather obvious, was the error of how we were
going to travel to the Ori galaxy thru the Supergate, if such gate was being used to block the Ori from sending any more ships thru. Sam gave him a
menacing stare and vowed that she was working on it. The two traded barbs and I
feigned a headache to get out of the room. Going back to the infirmary is
better than listening to the two of them go at it.
Speaking of the infirmary . . .
Dr. Lam is keeping me confined to the
infirmary and is uncertain whether to give me the greenlight
to travel to Atlantis. I do all but beg to be allowed to go along. After a talk
with Landry she gives me the go ahead, on the conditions that I stay in the
infirmary while on Earth and for the entire length of the trip onboard the
Odyssey to Atlantis. I am also to check in regularly with Dr. Carson Beckett,
Atlantis CMO, who will have the final say in whether or not I get to go.
I understand that this connection I have to Vala is
putting my life in danger, and I understand the risks that I am putting my
teammates in by going along. However I feel that the risks are worth it.
If you would have asked me after first meeting Vala
that I would be doing this kind of thing, for her, I would have never believed
you. All I saw of Vala then was a lunatic
who kidnapped me, endangered my friends . . . a fruitcake.
But that's changed.
I don't know how, or why or when but it has. When Vala
first disappeared, when the Ori gate was destroyed, I
refused to write her off. Although the odds were against it, I believed somehow
she'd found a way to survive. And it turned out I was right.
I have tried concentrating to see if I could re-establish my connection to her
with no luck. I am trying not to get worried as it hasn't really worked for me
in the past. However, I cannot help but feel a pit in my stomach.
And the feeling had grown larger as each day had passed. He tried so hard to
ignore it but deep down inside he knew.
Something was wrong.
* * * *
The room was dark. Cold. Despite remembering little
after overhearing Tomin's conversation, Vala didn't
need much to put together what had happened. She had spent the better part of a
week chained to a bed in what looked like quarters of one of the Ori ships. Servants had come in occasionally to feed her
and escort her to the bathroom but otherwise she was helpless.
Despite her current situation, her mind worried for Daniel. This whole thing
had been a trap for him and she had fell right into
it. She had wondered if Seevis and the others had
been in on it or if they too were just unwilling pawns in a greater scheme. She
had a horrible feeling growing inside of her and despite her attempts to qualm
it, things only grew. If she didn't find a way, and soon, she feared that
Daniel would be killed.
Vala hadn't seen Tomin since that day. She knew that
if she tried there was a way she could reach him. Convince him to let her go so
that she could make her way back to the stones, if they hadn't been found, and
warn Daniel not to come.
Daniel was the first person to ever truly believe in her. Her. No schemes. No ploys to get
into her pants. Nothing. He had rejected her attempts
to use him and urged her to look within to find herself. He encouraged her and
supported her. He caused her to act out and look out for the welfare of others
before herself. He was her hero.
Now, it was her turn to be his.
CHAPTER 13
Journal Entry - Day
Two
I can’t contact her.
I don’t know why I feel as if I can because she has always been the one to
contact me. However, I feel compelled to do so. I am not sure if it’s the fact
that I haven’t heard from her since our last encounter or the fact that I
couldn’t get rid of the pit in stomach.
Something is wrong.
I am trying to hide these feelings from the others, especially Dr. Lam. No
reason why I should give them reasons not to let me continue on with the
mission. Speaking of missions, Sam has so far had no luck in trying to find a
way to travel to the Ori galaxy. According to Landry,
the IOA has put priority on closing the Supergate and
not the rescue mission, so if she cannot find a way soon, then all of this
would have been for nothing. It can’t end --
* * * *
“Knock. Knock.”
Breaking his concentration away from his journal, Daniel looked up to see
Mitchell standing in the doorway.
“Hey,
Taking a look at the book in Daniel’s hand, Cameron faltered slightly before
taking a seat next to his bedside.
“I’m not interrupting anything am I?”
“No, just trying to bide my time since I am not allowed to do anything else.”
“Well, that’s kinda one of the reason’s I’m here. I
was wondering if you gave anymore thought into the rescue mission.”
“Well, unless we are able to find a way to both block and destroy the Ori Supergate then any planning
on our parts would be moot, wouldn’t it?”
“Sam’s still working on it, and let me tell you she is as determined as ever to
find a way. I think it has a lot to do with McKay’s incessant droning that it
can’t be done.”
Daniel laughed, “He always seems to bring out the competitive streak in her.”
“What I had in mind was who was going to be going with us. Now, the best chance
we have of getting thru the Supergate undetected is
by going in a small vessel.”
“Easier to avoid detection.”
“So I brought the subject up to McKay and he has suggested using one of
Atlantis’ Puddle Jumpers.”
“That’s a good idea; it has clocking technology and Ancient weapons. What did
he say was the capacity?”
“Anywhere from 6 to 8 on the safe side, ten tops.”
“So that means whomever we take with us will need to be essential to the
mission.”
“Sam wants to go but I reminded her that we’re going to need her at Atlantis if
this is going to work.”
“Well, we for starters need someone with the Ancient gene to fly the ship.”
Mitchell gave Daniel a quizzical look,”Why can’t you
do it?”
“Because I don’t know how to fly, I’m an archaeologist not a pilot.”
“You’ve flown an Al’Kesh before, haven’t you?”
“Yes,” Daniel nodded. “But this is different?”
“How so?”
Daniel looked as if he was going to respond before stopping himself. Sighing,
he placed the journal on the bedside table and looked Mitchell straight in the
eye.
“I want to tell you something, as long as you promise that it stays between
us.”
“You can count on me, my lips are sealed.”
“I’ve never said this to anyone – not even Jack – although I tried to bring it
up to Jack once. But that didn’t go so well.”
“What happened?”
“Well, he seemed to completely ignore what I said and asked if I was hungry.”
“What exactly did you say?”
Daniel hesitated, he wasn’t sure that he wanted to continue to with what he had
to say. However he knew that if Mitchell was going to understand, he had to
know.
“I don’t remember much about my ascension and part of me is glad for that.
However, it’s also an impossible burden. To have lost an entire year of my
life, it’s hard to comprehend. That’s one of the reasons I have tried to not
talk about it.”
“I’m sensing there is a but in there somewhere.”
“But, I can’t shake the fact that there was something being kept from me.
Something I did or I knew that Oma didn’t want me to
remember.”
“Have you tried remembering?”
“More times than I can count but I keep coming up empty with
nothing more than the feeling that I can’t shake.”
“Maybe the reason you’re not remembering because deep down, you don’t
want to.”
“What are you talking about?” Daniel said angrily. “Of course I want to.”
“Well from what you just said, it sounded like, and don’t get me wrong, that
you’re scared to.”
“I’m not —“
“I know what you’re going thru,” Mitchell said giving Daniel a small smile.
“The crash and everything that followed was one of the best and worst
experiences of my life. The isolation, the fear – man, there were days that I
wanted to just lay down and die because I felt it would be easier than having
to deal with any of it. I didn’t though. You want to know why?”
“Why?”
“Because I had my family, my friends. People around me
who wouldn’t let me give up. Who helped me see past the fear, the anguish -- to
a life filled with better things ahead. You have that.
All of us, we’re friends. We’re your family. We’ll be here for you no matter
what happens.”
Daniel laughed again, only Mitchell noticed it wasn’t so much for amusement but
the bitter kind. The kind of laugh you give when someone says something dumb
and you know better.
“What?”
“It’s just – that’s the problem. I don’t have anyone to confide in. Ever since
I came back people have been avoiding talking about my ascension like it was
the plague. Everyone is walking tip-toes around me, trying not to bring it up,
and curtailing the subject as quick as possible when it does. Before it was easier to deal with because it wasn’t in my face all
the time but since the Ori showed up –“
“You can’t avoid it.”
“And they can't either. Although they do try. I
once told Jack, right when we first made contact with the Ori,
that they scared me. That for the first time in my life, for this first time
since I step thru that gate, something left me shaken, left me terrified to my
core, and you know what he said to me?”
An uncomfortable realization hit Mitchell like a ton of bricks, “He asked if
you were hungry?”
Anger began to swell up in Daniel’s voice the likes of which Mitchell had never
heard before.
“Jack is one of my closest friends. I’ve known him for over a decade and he is
one of the few people with whom I would gladly lay down my life for. He’s
someone with whom I have been thru so much with, someone with whom I trust more
than anything. Hell, when I was dying of radiation poisoning and wanted to
ascend – it was Jack with whom I reached out and begged to let me die. He’s my
best friend. And here I am, having been thru this horrendous experience that
left me completely rattled and all he can say to me is if I was hungry!”
Mitchell said nothing. He could only watch as a gamut of emotions ran thru
Daniel’s face. It was obvious that the stress of the recent week, combined with
the long and pent up buried emotions were coming to a head.
“I have to find her,” Daniel said in what was a barely audible whisper. “I
don’t think I would be able to handle it if I never saw – “
“Don’t worry,” Mitchell said placing a reassuring hand on Daniel’s shoulder.
“We’ll find her.”
Daniel looked at Mitchell, his eyes conveying a steely determination.
“No matter what?”
Mitchell gave Daniel a reassuring nod.
“No matter what.”
CHAPTER 14
Several hours had passed and Cameron Mitchell found himself still haunted by his conversation with Daniel. He had to admit that when he had encouraged the archaeologist to open up, he wasn't expecting the flood gates to be bursting at the seams. He found himself where he had been ever since, wallowing in the commissary nursing a large cup of blue Jell-O. Part of him, and he had to admit that it was the largest part, wanted to confront Sam with what he had been told. After everything that they had been thru it had been disgraceful to think that they had merely cast Daniel aside and forgot all about him. What stopped him was the fact that if he had said something, Daniel would never have forgiven him, and right now it seems that the good Dr. Jackson needed someone in his corner. So he swallowed his anger and nursed his resentment with strange wobbly blue squares of fruity goodness. So caught up was he in stuffing his face and drowning his sorrows that he didn't notice when Bill Lee came bursting thru the doors and plopped down in front of him. It wasn't until Dr. Lee actually removed the cup of sugary sweetness from his face did he acknowledge his presence. And when he did, Mitchell found himself struck by the large grin on the man's face. Sporting what he could only ascertain to be a smile similar to that worn by children on Christmas morning, Dr. Lee began to speak before a greeting could be formed.
"I was working in the South Lab, because the bickering between Carter and McKay was driving me crazy, and I guess I fell asleep but when I woke up it came to me and I realized that it could be possible so I looked and by gods, there it was. Do you know what this means?"
Mitchell paused momentarily, taking a look at Dr. Lee as he allowed what he had just been told to sink in.
"Bill, what the hell are you talking about!"
Bill sighed and opened a really large manila folder filled with star charts and other technical specs.
"I went to the South Lab to do research on a way to get Daniel to the Ori galaxy. Carter and McKay are too preoccupied fighting or looking for a way to disable the gate to even consider helping Daniel out. So I started looking for ways that we could both block the gate and get a ship thru."
"And"
"And nothing, its not possible. Every simulation I tried ended up the same way. We can either disable the gate or dial in to get a ship thru, not both."
"So, you're saying that its hopeless."
"It seemed that way, but I wasn't going to take no as an answer, impossible things always seem possible when Daniel is involved."
Mitchell smiled softly, "Yes, they do."
"So I kept running the simulations with the same result each time. I was working so long, I ended up falling asleep in the lab. When I was asleep I had this thought that there had to be more than one Supergate. If the Ori are planning this huge invasion, it seemed ridiculous to only have one means of access to our galaxy. So when I woke up I did a broad spectrum analysis given the criteria needed to created a Supergate and I hit the jackpot."
Mitchell again paused, only this time he could barely contain the excitement in his voice.
"Are you telling me, that you found another Supergate?"
Even before Dr. Lee could finish his nod, Mitchell was up on his feet jumping up and down like a man who won the lottery.
"Yeah, that's the kinda sign I was talking about man!" he cried pulling the unsuspecting scientist into a large bear hug.
So caught up was Mitchell in his enjoyment that he failed to hear the heavily muffled words that Dr. Lee was trying to say. Suddenly taken aback by his outburst Mitchell tore himself away from the good doctor.
"Sorry."
"That's okay," Dr. Lee replied retaking his seat and motioning for Mitchell to do the same. When both men were settled down, he sighed and removed from his manila folder a large star chart that looked as if it was a map of an entire galaxy. "This is a technical diagram of a quadrant of space in the Pegasus Galaxy, and that large blob that I circled in the middle of that quadrant is the Supergate."
"How can you be sure?"
"It fits all the criteria we know about the creation of a Supergate, a planet going nova, the presence of a black hole and recently there have been strange energy spikes similar to that which we located in the Milky way. Now so far there hasn't been any sign of activity in or out of the gate in question."
"Which means either it's not active?"
"No, I am guessing that they are waiting for orders to make their grand entrance. Now, from my other calculations I figure that I may be able to calibrate a dialing device on board one of the puddle jumpers to dial into the Ori galaxy."
"But the Ori galaxy is far, far away, would that require a massive amount of energy to even create an event horizon?"
Nodding, Dr. Lee pulled out another set of charts and place them in front of Mitchell, pointing decidedly at small blurry objects as he talked.
"From my readings, the Supergate is giving off a massive ionic charge, giving off a massive energy spike every few hours or so. Now if we can figure out the exact pattern of these burst we can rig a timer to a 'gate buster and detonate it at the same time. The combined energy along should give us enough of a charge to dial to the other side.
"Have you talked with the SGC about this?"
"Not yet, I wanted to run it by you first."
"Why?"
"Because I don't think the SGC will give us permission to go on this mission."
"Why not?"
Dr. Lee pulled out the last of his star charts and set it down in front of Mitchell. The Colonel's eyes widened with what he saw.
"Please tell me this isn't --"
"I'm afraid so. Our Supergate is located smack in the middle of Wraith controlled space."
CHAPTER 15
"It's in the middle of Wraith controlled space!" Daniel screamed, trying desperately to keep his frustration in check.
"Would you quite down," Mitchell replied giving Daniel a scolding look. "The last thing that we need is for anyone to find about this before we've had a chance to come up with a plan."
"What plan?" Daniel whispered. "Its in the middle of Wraith controlled space!"
"So, what, you're gonna give up on trying to bring her back?"
"No," Daniel said with a large sigh. "Its just, things keep getting worse and it just seems as if the fates are against me on this one."
"Since when do you believe in fate?"
"I don't, which just goes to show how frustrating this all is."
Mitchell was hoping that this news would give some hope to the archaeologist, however it only seemed to further depress his spirit.
"Look, we'll reach Atlantis in less than two days. When we get there, and Dr. Lee can get a better idea of what we're looking at, we'll go from there. It's not as hopeless as it seems."
Daniel couldn't help but smile. Since confiding in Mitchell his frustrations regarding his friends he found himself creating a surprisingly close bond with the younger Colonel. It reminded him a bit of the friendship that he had with Jack. Although nothing could, or would ever replace that, the distance between the two had cause their bond to wane and left Daniel feeling as if there wasn't a soul in the galaxy with whom he could trust. Now, and with some time, he felt that Mitchell could turn out to be just as good a friend and that was one of the best things to come out of this entire ordeal. He was about to thank Mitchell for standing by him like he had when he was overcome with unfathomable pain.
Within minutes he found himself back in Ver Isca. Back in the same small house that he had been all those days ago. Frantically, he began to look around and there, sitting on a chair beside him, was Vala.
"Hello, Daniel."
Without saying a word, Daniel put his arms around Vala and hugged her tightly. Momentarily taken aback by his show of affection, Vala did nothing, but soon fell into his embrace.
"I've been so worried about you," he said pulling away from her and caressing the side of her face.
"I know," Vala said as she tried to hold back the tears. "It wasn't safe."
"Are you okay? Tell me what's going on?"
"Hush, Daniel. We haven't got a great deal of time and there is a lot that I need to tell you."
"You can tell me anything."
Vala gave Daniel a soft, almost menacing grin, "I know."
Holding her face in her hands, she leaned over and whispered into Daniel's ear.
Daniel!
Daniel's eyes open with a start, he looked around to see himself clutching his forehead and Mitchell looking at him with a worried stare.
"What the hell was that?"
"Vala," Daniel said as he began to massage his temples.
"You talked to Vala, what did she say? Is she all right?"
Removing his hand from his head, Daniel looked at Mitchell with what could only be described as stealthy determination.
"She told me where to find her, and now that I know, I have a plan."
Cameron Mitchell practically ran the distance from the infirmary to the North Laboratory. He was hoping beyond hope that Sam wasn't there because he didn't think that he could have come up with an excuse to send her away that wouldn't rouse her suspicions. Thankfully for him there was only one person in the North Lab, and that was just the person he had been wanting to see.
"Ah, Colonel Mitchell, just the person that I wanted to see."
"Not now Dr. McKay, there is something that I need to talk to you about."
"Well, whatever it is I'm certain it can wait, I have a question to ask you regarding Colonel Carter."
"Rodney!"
Taken aback by the Colonel's tone of voice, Rodney was preparing a rather indignant reply when the Colonel's words cut him off.
"Atlantis is in danger."
"What?" Rodney said looking at Mitchell with confusion. "How?"
"It seems there's a Supergate deep in the heart of Wraith controlled space. Dr. Lee found it while looking for a way to get Daniel to the Ori galaxy."
"Well, why are we just standing here," Rodney said getting up from his seat and heading towards the door. "We have to tell someone."
"And we will," Mitchell said grabbing the good doctors arm. "We think we may have a way to keep the Ori from coming to Atlantis."
"And what would that be?"
"You need to listen carefully to what I am about to tell you. Do not interrupt or comment on anything until I am finished. You got that?"
Rodney nodded.
"Good. Now I want you to send a message to Atlantis and I need you to tell them word for word everything that I am about to say.
"How are we certain that it has worked?"
Tomin turned to face the Prior, worry etched in the line of his eyes.
"It worked because the Orici has made sure of it."
"How do we know that she did not warn him. How can we be sure that Vala didn't break thru."
Because
Vala sleeps.
The soft, almost echoing voice was barely audible but the power that emanated from it nearly shook the room. Tomin turned and within moments he found himself kneeling on the floor in fear.
Look at me. Do not be
afraid.
Tomin did as he was told, he looked up, his heart racing and his body trembling at the sight before him. It was Vala speak, but the words out of her mouth were not Vala's. Her eyes were a strange and sickly orange color. He knew without being told, whom it was that stood before him. It was the Orici. A few seconds passed before the orange of Vala's eyes faded. Gasping audibly she looked around confused, almost uncertain of where she was or what had just happened. Then like a bolt of thunder, it hit her, and when it did she screamed.
And she would not stop.
CHAPTER 16
John Sheppard found himself staring at Elizabeth Weir from across the briefing room table, a mixture of concern plastered across her face.
“Penny for your thoughts.”
“I know what you mean, as if the problem of the Wraith isn’t bad enough, now we have to worry about a possible Ori invasion too. It doesn’t seem like we can catch a break.”
“Which is why we have to hope that Vala gave Dr. Jackson correct information, because if this works, we have one less problem to deal with.”
“You do know that the SGC and IOA have not given the authority for us to partake on such a mission and if we go forward, you understand that this mission will not be and never was sanctioned by either of them.”
Sheppard nodded.
“I know, it never happened. Whatever we do, it doesn’t exist.”
“This is why I only told you first. I know for a fact that everyone here would be more than willing to do anything for Dr. Jackson, hell, half of them wish that he was the one heading Atlantis instead of me. However we can and probably will get into a lot of trouble for this.”
“You can bet Woolsey will serve all of our asses on plates.”
“Which is why I think the less people involved the better. You know that you don’t have to be involved John, you will probably end up court marshaled.”
“
“No.”
“Well, that settles that then.”
“You do also understand that if you choose to accompany Dr. Jackson that it’s more than likely a one way mission to Ori controlled space.”
“I know that too but the same could have been said about Atlantis. It may have taken a year but we got back in touch. I know its going to be difficult and I know that it seems impossible that we will ever make it home, but when has that ever stopped us?”
“Never.”
“Exactly. And besides they need someone to fly the ship and we both know that I’m the best person to have behind the wheel and one of the best chances we have of getting home.”
Weir took a moment to let what Sheppard say sink in. He was right. If this mission was to have any success they needed someone with the ability to fly a Puddle Jumper well and quite frankly John was the only person she could think of for the mission given the circumstances they faced.
“So who will you be bringing with you?”
“Well we have Dr. Jackson and Colonel Mitchell. Rodney wanted to come but Dr. Jackson nixed the idea stating that they needed his expertise working with Colonel Carter on the other gate. Bringing anyone else from the SGC would seem too suspicious so the rest of the crew has to be made up of people from Atlantis. I am thinking maybe Zelenka for tech support and Carson as medical.”
“Who else do we need?”
“Well for the kind of mission we are leading the less people in a Jumper the better. I am thinking at the most nine, leaving room for Vala. So we could probably fill up the rest of the detail with some grunts for protection detail.”
“Anyone in particular?”
“Not yet, but I got some ideas. I want to run this by Zelenka and Carson first. However I doubt they’ll say no. I mean, it’s not every day that you get to blow up a planet filled with Wraith in order to create a one way wormhole to another galaxy.”
Tomin sat outside Vala’s chamber door lost in thought. It had been hours before her screams had subsided and only then because her throat too raw and too bloodied to continue. His mind lingered on about what he had just witnessed. Not the splendor of being in the presence of the Orici, no, that was somewhere that he dared not to dwell. No, his thoughts were on Vala’s reaction to realizing that she had just sent the Agent of Evil, this Daniel Jackson, into a trap. He found the entire incident unsettling. There was something more to her reaction, something in her eyes that betrayed her. Something that filled Tomin with feelings that he had never before felt. Getting up from his chair, he turned and entered Vala’s chambers. Vala looked up at him, tears welling from her eyes as she lay chained to her bed. Her tears only made him more determined to do what he was about to do. Giving it no second though he walked over to Vala and wrapped his arms around her throat. As Vala struggled in his grasp Tomin looked at Vala straight in the eyes and to her fear, there was nothing but venom staring back.
“You used me! I took you in! I nursed you to health! All the while you charmed me like the wicked temptress that you are. You made me fall in love with you. Not because you loved me but in order to protect yourself. I took you in my home, my bed and I came to love you more than my own life. When you told me you were with child, I couldn’t help but keep thinking, that the Ori had looked down on me for all of my years of devotion and blessed me. But you’re no blessing, you’re a curse. You never loved me! It was never about me, was it? It was always about you . . . and him, wasn’t it? You never planned on staying with me, did you? It was all some trick. A way to bide you’re time until you get contact him and you could go back to him. This unbeliever. This Daniel Jackson. Isn’t it?”
Although Vala couldn’t speak a word, once again, her eyes conveyed her answer.
“Consider yourself fortunate that you carry the Orici, otherwise I would squeeze your wretched life out at this very moment. But rest assured that I will kill you but not before I defeat the Agent of Evil. In fact, I think I will extinguish his life before your eyes, make you watch as he fades away. All my life I had been told about evil and I prayed I would never see it. I guess that I was wrong.”
Giving one last look at Vala, Tomin released his hands from her throat and swiftly walked out the door. Vala wanted to stop him. To say that she did come to care for him, but she knew it would do no good. The truth was she didn’t love Tomin, not in the way he needed to be and it broke her heart to think that the kind and gentle soul she had met when she first came to Ver Isca had been corrupted. And as much as she tried to not beat herself up over it, she knew, deep down, that she had only herself to blame.
Daniel was about to walk into his death and for the first time she felt powerless to stop it.
CHAPTER 17
The incident with Tomin had left Vala deep in thought and she had come to the conclusion that no matter how hopeless things seemed she had to fight it. To fight this intruder in her mind and to protect the one most precious thing that she had in the universe. She was determined to protect her Daniel and save him from walking into a trap that would end his life. This was not the first time her body, mind and soul had been invaded by an alien entity intent on using her as an unwilling tool in the destruction of those who mattered to her. As a result of her experience with Qetesh she felt that she was a stronger person and therefore she had faith that she could resist the power of the Orici enough to save Daniel from certain doom.
Knowing that there was a being inside of her, malevolent and cruel, and to which she had no control of brought back unpleasant memories of days gone past. Once upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away from where she was right now, there was a home, and a man who pledge to love her forever. A place where there was a stepsister, who became her best friend, and greatest confidant. A place where there was a village full of friends and full of life. Then, one day, great ships came to her planet. And on these ships came great gods who forced her people into servitude, one of whom had chosen her to be his queen. And once she was, she brought the rain down on all of those who knew or loved her. She killed the man who once loved her, made him beg for his life before she broke his neck. A brutal deed, yes, and her heart bled for him. Then there was what she did to her sister.
Aja was her stepmother Adria’s only child. At first neither she nor Vala had come to like one another very well. It wasn’t until they had spent some time alone, and away from the influence of their parents did they get to see themselves for who they really were and were surprised at how much they actually liked each other. She became her family. When Vala was taken over by Qetesh, she tortured Aja. And for days on end she was beaten and deprived of all nourishment to the point that she drank her own blood off the prison floor to sustain her life. Qetesh thought it was miraculous that she managed to survive everything that she had been put thru. Vala remembered how helpless she felt as Qetesh forced Aja to watch Adria being tortured, raped and eventually killed.
As a result of all of this, Aja went insane. Instead of killing her, of putting her out of her misery, Qetesh did the absolute worse possible thing imaginable: she made Aja a Goa’uld. The combination of a genetically predisposed evil entity to an insane mind was not an ideal combination and soon, Aja brought chaos upon everyone and everything around her - - even the System Lords. Vala never found out what exactly happened to her, all she knew was that word from the System Lords had said the problem had been contained and she never looked into the matter then, and all her efforts after being freed from Qetesh hadn’t produced any results. She had to eventually accept that Aja was probably dead and was thankful for that small mercy.
Vala did what she could to hold back her tears. Even thinking about what Qetesh had done to what was once a beautiful young girl with a bright future filled her heart with sadness unlike any that she had felt before or since. She couldn’t even imagine what the Orici had planned and even though she was certain that she would meet an untimely death once the child was born, she couldn’t deny that a lot of bad things could happen in the three weeks she had left until that happened. Vala wiped the tears from her eyes and the thoughts from her mind. Instead of dwelling on the horrors of the past, she focused on the future, on fighting the power of the Orici and doing what she could to aid Daniel. The evil she inflicted in the past what unimaginable and it brought her to her knees. The thought that she could be capable of doing it again, was beyond the pale. She refused to let history repeat itself. She would save Daniel.
No matter what.
Carson Beckett sat in his office, his mind mulling over the conversation that he had just had with John Sheppard.
“Well?”
“I’m still thinking about it.”
“Come on
“And after what you just told me, I can see why.”
“What exactly are you having issues with?”
“Issues?” Carson got up from his desk and began to pace about the office. “John, any sane person would have issues with this. You’re talking about flying two puddle jumpers into a Wraith controlled sector of space and uploading a Goa’uld virus into their Stargate.”
“The virus was the creation of Anubis and Ba’al to use against the SGC by keeping a Stargate open longer than the thirty eight minute window. Now the first puddle jumper will be used as a decoy, it will dial into the gate and in doing so upload the virus into the Wraith gate system. With the modifications that Vala gave to Daniel it should prevent the Wraith from figuring out how to disable the gate until its too late as well as pull the force from the blast into the direction of the gate energizing it and opening the portal to the Ori galaxy. The second Jumper, in which we will occupy and be at a safe distance from the blast, will then proceed thru the gate into Ori controlled space.”
“That’s all well and good but how do we know this is even going to work?”
“Its similar to what the Ori was planning to do to create the original beachhead.”
“Yes, but they we’re omnipotent beings with Ancient knowledge and great powers. How do we know that this is going to work?”
“Daniel Jackson said it would.”
“And where did Daniel Jackson get the information?”
“From Vala.”
“That’s exactly my point John. I’ve been studying Daniel’s case and I am concerned about these blackouts he’s experiencing. We have no way of knowing when they occur and no control over his actions when he does. I’m not sure I can sign him off on the mission. He may be communicating with someone from another galaxy or it may be something completely different. This whole thing just sounds too convenient.”
“What are you saying
“What I’m saying John is that maybe Daniel Jackson has be compromised. That maybe his actions are being manipulated into leading us into the Ori galaxy and we’re walking right into a trap.”
CHAPTER 18
“On what grounds,
“If you knew anything about Dr. Jackson’s medical history Radek, you would know that Daniel has a history with being compromised by alien entities. There was that time he had over a dozen alien consciousness downloaded into his mind.”
“None of whom proved harmful.”
“Well, if you don’t count nearly driving him mad harmful, John, and then I guess not.”
“I meant he didn’t harm anyone while possessed.”
“That’s because they realized something was wrong and put him in a secured room. The next time they weren’t so lucky. When Dr. Jackson was possessed by Anubis he shot two guards. And by the time anyone knew what was going on a foothold situation developed and a decorated Russian soldier was dead. Not to mention the fact that Anubis was freed from the SGC to later nearly destroy all life in the galaxy with an Ancient weapon.”
“And that’s your basis for denying him access to a mission that could ultimately save this galaxy from an invasion by the Ori. As if the Wraith weren’t enough of a problem we need to add a new set of super villain’s to spice things up?”
“John!”
“No, Elizabeth. We can barely keep ourselves afloat dealing with the Wraith and now we’re looking at a group of evil ascended beings and their devout armies of followers who would gladly impale themselves or us, on the sword to please them. This may be the only way that we can stave off their entry into this galaxy and possibly the best chance we have to stop them from getting into our own.”
“Don’t you think that I want to stop the Ori as well? All that I am saying John is that there is something not right about this.”
“I have nothing against Daniel. I have the utmost respect for him. However, we still aren’t sure what exactly is happening to him. We’ve gone on Dr. Lam’s assumptions but we won’t know for sure without further study. All that I am asking Elizabeth is some more time. A chance to take a look at Daniel myself. We have far better diagnostic equipment here and we may be able to catch something they missed.”
“You of all people should know John how harmful it can be when someone has been compromised. You know first had what happened with Lt. Ford – “
“Now hold on just a minute. That was different.”
“Not really. We know just as much, maybe less about the Ori as we did about the Wraith at the time. We still aren’t sure how they operate and we have no clued what they are capable of. What you’re asking us to do is steep John. I cannot lie when I say I am having a few moral reservations about attacking the Wraith in this way.”
“Atlantis is in danger
“And that should justify genocide? Over the last few years we have done some pretty questionable things in the name of saving Atlantis and although I am not saying that we were necessarily wrong for it, when does the justification end? We can’t just say that Atlantis being in danger is justification for any action that we make against the enemy.”
“High and moral ground from a man who created a vaccine that ended up killing untold thousands?”
“I was trying to save people’s lives!”
“So are we!”
“Both of you that's enough!”
John and Carson turned to Elizabeth, who was now standing up and looking mighty angry.
“I need to take some time to consider Dr. Beckett’s request. John, I need you to contact Rodney, see if you can get him to send more specific information on exactly what they plan to do, specifically the modifications that Vala is having them make to the Goa’uld virus. When the information arrives, I want you to give it to Dr. Zelenka for analysis.”
“But
“John, go.”
John gave one last pleading look at
“
“I understand
“Neither do I.”
The planet was frozen tundra. Inhospitable and lifeless. It looked like it had been years since anyone or anything had set foot there and he could see now why he had chosen this place to keep her. So many years had gone by he had given up hope that he would ever see her again. He had been told and all the searching he did backed up the tales that she was dead. Slaughtered by the Goa’uld. For years he had mourned her and mourned what their lives could have been. That grief, over time, turned to rage and rage into determination. He worked hard alongside many factions, first with the Tok’ra, later with the Rebel Jaffa, to help bring about the demise of the Goa’uld. When that happened he felt a great victory and not just for him – but for her.
He had started the
Months had gone by as he had settled into his new position
of leadership when he had crossed paths with a
It seemed that Kebechet had been placed in a host that had gone mad. Slowly but surely the insanity began to infect Kebechet herself making her openly defy and act against the System Lords. Word had spread that she had begun to gather her own armies and the decision was made that she had to be reckoned with. The duty of dispatching Kebechet fell to Ba’al who had tracked her down and cornered her on an ice world. What exactly happened next, the Jaffa is not sure, but Ba’al spared Kebechet’s life. Mortally wounded, and with no Sarcophagus to heal her wounds, she told him to place her in an Ancient ice chamber. That it would keep her alive and give him time to find a way to save her. So Ba’al did this, leaving Kebechet on the ice world and walking away with valuable information.
Although many of his cohorts had found it interesting, he had found it interesting for other reasons. His wife, who had been slaughtered by the Goa’uld, had actually, been infested by a Goa’uld named Kebechet, who he had been told was murdered for her defiance. He pressed the Jaffa for more information and when he could not give it to him willingly, he tortured it out of him. What he learned had led him here, to this barren and lost world, in a last, almost desperate effort to reunite with his wife.
He had sent a team to explore a set of ruins in a nearby
mountain where the
“Sir, you need to get down here and see this. I think we found her.”
Grabbing a nearby jacket he headed towards the ring room and within seconds, found himself standing in the most wonderful place he had ever seen. What looked like a large science station had literally been carved into the tundra. Windows of colored glass panels acted as walls that separated the various rooms that were each filled with strange machines and other computers. He found himself overwhelmed by the beauty of it all he almost forgot about why he had come there in the first place. Running in the direction of where he heard people talking he came upon the largest of all chambers. There he found his men, standing around what appeared to be a glass coffin. Pushing them aside he walked up to the coffin and his heart nearly stopped at the sight.
There lying peacefully inside, was his long believed dead and well loved, wife. Netan could not find the words to speak. He merely put his hands to the glass and wept.
CHAPTER 19
Netan sat staring at the woman before him. Lost in thought of a time that although it wasn't that long ago, seemed like forever. So enthralled was he by her beauty, which had not aged a day since he had last seen her. So captivated was he by her long flowing dark hair and slightly rosy cheeks that he did not notice when the rings activated behind him. He did not notice the sounds of zat blasts and the screams of his men as they fell dead to the floor. It wasn’t until one of his men, barely alive, had staggered forward and fell onto the coffin beside him dead, was he broken from the haze. Taking only seconds to survey his surroundings, he reached for his weapon and turned around. The figure that stood before him was familiar and his presence was not that surprising.
"Ba'al."
"Netan, great leader of the Lucian Alliance, we met again."
Netan's hand held steady, his gaze never wavering from the Goa'uld's face.
"The Lucian Alliance has made quite a name for themselves over the past few years. Considering that you started out as nothing more than a Tok'ra ploy, it’s fascinating that you've managed to rise to something significant."
"We we're not a Tok'ra ploy!"
"Oh, where are my manners," Ba'al chided as he began walking closer to Netan. "You were freedom fighters, who banded together to rid your planet from the rule of the Goa'uld Qetesh. And with the guidance of the all mighty Tok'ra warrior, Lucian, you succeeded in doing so. You owe the Tok'ra your freedom."
"I owe the Tok'ra nothing!"
"Sorry," Ba'al said as he feigned remorse. "I forgot that the Tok'ra is a sore subject for you. And for good reason of course. Lucian promised to not only free your planet from Qetesh but to save your wife as well. Then like it is with all Tok'ra, he lied, and as soon as Qetesh was taken care of, he went away without giving you a second thought."
"It is not only the Tok'ra for whom I hold great resentment. You especially, hold the prime of the blame for what happened to her. For it was you who came to my planet and enslaved us. It was you who brought Qetesh and chose Vala as her host. It was -- "
"I who saved her from destruction," Ba'al seethed as he now stood face to face with Netan, whose weapon was still drawn. "For if it were not for me, she would have been assassinated by the System Lords. It was I who saved her life. Who kept her hidden. I am the reason that she lives."
As much as he hated to admit it, Ba'al was the one who saved her. He was the one, who despite being ordered by the other System Lords, chose to save her. To keep her safe. And like it or not, he was the only one who could help him bring her back now. Netan lowered his weapon slowly and turned back to look at his wife.
"For that I am grateful."
Ba'al chuckled softly and continued walking until he stood next to Netan, staring down at the sleeping beauty.
"Would you like to know why I saved her? Would you like to know the truth?
Netan nodded.
"Kebechet, daughter of Anubis, had laid years in stasis after her father was believed dead. Revived by Qetesh, she was implanted into the mind of Aja Mal Doran-An Tal, your wife, and stepsister of Qetesh's host, Vala. Driven insane thru days of torture, Kebechet was the only thing that was holding together Aja's fractured mind. Slowly but surely Aja's insanity began infecting Kebechet and she began to feel affection for her host. The last time a Goa'uld did that was with Osiris and Isis. Both felt affection for their hosts, so much so that they allowed them to conceive a child. Heresies. Who possessed all the power and knowledge of the Goa'uld. He became dangerous and brought the System Lords to their knees. The child was punished and Osiris and Isis banished to Earth. Kebechet began plotting her vengeance against the System Lords for what they did to her host and like Heresies, nearly destroyed us."
"Then why spare her if she was so dangerous? Why not just kill her if she was such a threat?"
Ba'al sighed and walked away from the Netan and over to a nearby console.
"What are you doing?" Netan asked nervously as Ba'al began to push various buttons.
"Why tell you, when I can show you."
Before Netan could respond, the room took on an iridescent green glow. Soon a young woman stood before them. Tall, fair-haired and almost ethereal in her beauty.
“She is not real,” Ba’al stated sensing Netan’s confusion. “It’s a holographic message created by the Ancients. You see, this was once a powerful Ancient outpost. It fell to ruin when the inhabitants fell victim to a plague. In fact, almost every Ancient world had been consumed with illness and death. This woman, the last survivor of the outpost, felt that it was important to leave behind a record of her people. It is incomplete."
Hitting another button on the console the figure before him came to life, and Netan listened intently at the story that she told.
All life began on Altera. How we came to be before that time is not known,
for no records exist before then. We were a peaceful people. Curious
and strong. As time wore on we set out from Altera
to search the many planets in our vast system of stars, hoping to answer the
questions of where life as we know it began. Orion, a great scientist, lead a
groups of explorers to a planet known only now as The First Planet. When the
expedition reached The First Planet they found nothing more than a barren
wasteland covered in dark storm clouds. Months passed the mission was deemed to
be an utter failure. Before returning to Altera,
Orion climbed the highest mountain of The First Planet to take one last look,
when something had caught his attention. Running back to his encampment he said
that he had made a great discovery. However, before he could utter a word, he
was struck down by a bolt of lightning. As the men grieved for Orion, something
curious had happened. The dark storm clouds came down from the sky and
surrounded Orion. When they had parted he was alive and well. He spoke to his
men and told them that the dark clouds were actually living beings and that
they had shared with him the revelation of their destinies. He called this
revelation Ascension and said that it was the goal of all living things to
reach a place where the mind was enlightened and the spirit freed and the body
mattered not. He said that these Great Beings, as he called them, had shown him
the way of their Great Path and that thru them he had reached Ascension. For
three days Orion spoke the great wisdom of Ascension and for those three days
his most trusted assistant, Doci, recorded his words.
On the third day Orion told his men to return to Altera,
that his place was no with the Great Beings of The First Planet and that it was
up to them to inform all who could hear them about the mysteries of Ascension.
So Doci did as he had asked and returned to Altera and began –
Netan watched in disbelief as the woman before vanished as the cavern once again grew dark.
“What happened?”
“The Ancient power source that runs this outpost has been severely drained over the years due to neglect. The fact that your wife has been held in stasis has also severely drained its power supply. That’s about as much of the message it has the power to play but I have seen it in its entirety and I must say, its one fascinating story.”
“I still do not understand.”
“A System Lord, wanted by his comrades, once took refuge here. He discovered this hologram and used its secrets to forever escape the hold of his enemies.”
It took a moment for Netan to put the pieces together.
“This is how Anubis learned of Ascension?”
“After Anubis reached Ascension, he became privy to all the Ancients knowledge, including the location of The First Planet. He said that it was so far away, that it would take thousands of years to travel there by ship alone and there was no Stargate powerful enough to speed up the journey. He felt that upon reaching The First Planet and coming face to face with Orion himself, that he would learn all the secrets of Ascension and then use that knowledge to create his own army of Ascended beings to take on the Ancients.”
“I still don’t see how this has anything to do with my wife?”
"Anubis came into contact with Kebechet shortly after she was implanted into your wife's mind. He made her privy to his plans and so much more. Kebechet led me here in the hopes that showing me this information it would cause me to spare her life. She succumbed to her injuries before she could tell me everything and so on her urging, I locked her and your wife in stasis. I planned to one day return and find out the location of The First Planet to use it to Ascend myself and well, finish the plans he started."
"Why didn't you come to retrieve her before now?"
"At first no one knew Anubis had survived and after it was known, I could not trust the information that she gave me. So I managed to convince Anubis that we would make great partners and used our working relationship to gather all of the information I needed to confirm her story."
"Anubis has been dead for months, why did you not come for her then?"
"Because there was something else while I was working with Anubis that caught my attention, something that peaked my curiosity even more thant he location of The First Planet."
"What would that be?" Netan stated, his hands nervously fingering his weapon.
"When I was working with Anubis, it came to my attention that he had some strange obsession with a member of the Tau'ri. Now, I didn't think much of it, until I learned much later that the Replicators found him of interesting as well. After sending spies to Earth to find out what they could, it seems this Tau'ri is interesting in many ways. Shortly before putting her into stasis Kebechet stated that Anubis had used the information he gathered here to learn of a myth regarding a Chosen One and the used the myth in order to convince an Ancient to Ascend him. She knows what the importance of The Chosen One is. She may be the only one living who can tell me the truth."
"And what truth would that be?"
Ba'al walked up next to Netan until he was once again, staring down into the glass coffin.
"The truth about Daniel Jackson."
CHAPTER 20
Daniel Jackson sat flipping thru The Book of Origin trying to pass the time as they continued their journey to Atlantis. It had been nearly a day since Rodney had relayed to Weir their plans and still nothing. Both he and Mitchell had come to the conclusion that although they would still wait for word from Atlantis, they may have to wait until they arrived to find out if they were onboard. He couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty for asking people who were virtually strangers to risk their lives for something totally insane. He knew, hands down, that the people he worked with at the SGC would help him without hesitation. However, there was no time and no safe way, to return to Earth to rally troops. He felt the most guilt for those whose help he could have once depended on the most: Jack, Teal'c, and Sam. There was a time he knew that they would have walked into hell and back for him and though he had no doubt they still would, he couldn't help but feel the distance between them. The doubt and the lingering fears that they had since his return from Ascension clouded almost every action they took with him. They were less reserved, less trusting and that hurt Daniel more than anything.
He would never or could never admit it to any of his friends but he had returned from Ascension a changed man, and as much as he tried to jump right back into his old life, it was beginning to become like an old sweater that just didn't fit right anymore. That his life was becoming more confined and constrained and the constant burden of trying to save face was weighing him down. He felt that he had to keep pretending that he was happy and that everything was fine for the sake of everyone around him. He realized that he was just as guilty as they were for not being strong enough to see what was right in front of his face. For the first time in his life Daniel wanted something different, something more than the life he had led. He knew deep down that the SGC didn't need him anymore. They had turned away from mere exploration and focused more on the militaristic acquisition of weapons and technology years before. And he found himself now reeling from the fact that he was right there along side them. That wasn't who he was. When he had first joined the SGC he would have protested at every shady move that was made. Now, well, he hated to admit that his experiences had jaded him to the point where he didn't really care.
He hated having to look back at himself and realize that he was becoming more and more the person that he always fought against. It is true that sometimes drastic measures and actions are necessary in times of war, but at what cost? Did gaining the upper hand on the Goa'uld and now the Ori mean that he has to sacrifice himself to achieve it. He had done that literally on more than one occasion and he came out of each experience worse for wear. He had to put things into perspective and to admit that his experiences changed him. To find out the person that he was now and not to let how others may feel about who he was get in the way. Mitchell had been right. He had supressed his desire to learn more about his time as an Ascended being .What he went thru and what he experienced. Until he learned the truth there would always be a part of him that was missing. Incomplete. Maybe it was it was one of the reasons why he was so eager to go after Vala. To throw himself right into the pit of the beast. In the hopes that somehow, somewhere along the way he would find something, anything that would give him a clue about his past. He admitted that he was frightened about where it may lead him, but he also knew that he would always feel restless until he learned the truth -- no matter what that was.
Slamming the book shut and placing it beside his bed he decided to have a talk with Rodney, and see if there was anyway to find out from Atlantis whether or not they were along for the ride. Taking a good look around to ensure that Dr. Lam was no where to be found, he got up from his bed and made his way to the door. He had made it about five steps out when he heard it. A soft humming sound coming from the observation room next door. It sounded eerily familiar and despite all of his efforts, he could not place it. Putting his quest to find Rodney aside, Daniel followed the sound. When he reached the observation room and looked inside, he was surprised at what he saw. There, sitting on a exam table was a little girl. No more than eight years old with dark brown hair, she gave Daniel a small smile.
"Hello."
Daniel walked hesistantly towards the girl, uncertain if he was really seeing what he saw.
"Um . . . hello."
"What took you so long, Daniel," the girl said jumping down from the table. "I've been waiting a long time for you."
Daniel said nothing only stared in strange bewilderment as the young girl walked up to him.
"Don't be afraid Daniel," the girl said stopping right in front of Daniel.
Suddenly overcome by an overwhelming sense of forbode, Daniel began to back away from the small child.
"What are youd doing silly?" the girl asked half giggling.
The child took one look at the door to the observation room and with one swipe of her hand, slammed it shut. Daniel began to band wildly on the door, pulling and jiggling the doorknob hoping beyond all hope that it would open.
"You can't escape me, Daniel," she said tapping the side of her head. "I'm in here."
"Who are you?"
"I am many things."
Daniel could do nothing but stare at the young girl, whose eyes narrowed and began looking at him with an air of omnipotence.
"Ultimately a man must walk his chosen path alone. That time has come."
"What do you want with me?"
"Many roads lead to the great path, Daniel. Lets just say that I have a vested interest in ensuring that we are both on the same path."
Within seconds Daniel awoke to find himself back in his bed. Unsure of exactly what had happened or why he knew beyond the shadow of all doubt that it was real. Rising up from his bed and nearly running to make his way out the door, he practically slammed into Mitchell who looked like he was running himself.
"Sorry."
"It's okay, Daniel, where you going?"
"To see you actually."
"Why?"
"I wanted to see if you've heard from from Atlantis."
"I have."
"And?"
Mitchell shook his head and grabbed Daniel by the arm guiding him back to his bed.
"You might want to sit down."
"Why?"
"Rodney just got a message from Sheppard."
"And."
"We're good to go," Mitchell said, a wide grin breaking across his face.
CHAPTER 21
Across the vast emptiness of space, across bilions of stars and a half dozen galaxies, Vala Mal Doran stood watching. However, with just one look into the eerie and putrid orange glow of her eyes, you knew instantaneously that Vala was no where to be found. Turning to around she came face to face with the Doci, who was in a half-standing, half-squatting position of reverence.
I know that Tomin
plans to kill Daniel Jackson.
"Yes. Orici."
I cannot permit that
to happen.
"What has changed Orici?"
Daniel Jackson may be
of some use to us after all.
"But Orici, you have said yourself that he is the Agent of Evil. That he has come here to destroy you."
That is exactly true.
"Then, if I may be so bold to ask, why is he not to be killed?"
Daniel Jackson is
dangerous. That has not changed. However, things are occuring
that I did not originally anticipate. The Ori have
shown me something that I could not see before.
"What would that be Orici?"
In order to bring
Origin to the unbelievers we need Daniel Jackson.
"What difference would Daniel Jackson make?"
The Ori believe he is The Prophet.
The Doci stood up from his position of reverence, a look of disbelief crossing his face.
"The Prophet is one of the most highly regarded beings of Origin, above even yourself, Orici. And you believe that this Agent of Evil, this Unbeliever, is The Prophet."
The Ori believe it to be true, Doci!
Who are you to question their will?
The Doci sprang back into his position of reverence, his eyes too ashamed to look the Orici in the eye.
"I apologize, Orici. I did not mean to question the will of the Ori. It is just that I have met Daniel Jackson, and I did not feel the same way that I do when I am standing in your divine prescence."
He is well gaurded by Beings of Evil who wish to keep him from us.
"What shall we do then, Orici?"
Leave that to me. For
now I want you to go down to the men working on the ships. Lead them in
prostration for the coming battle. Make my feelings known and make it known
that no harm is to come to Daniel Jackson. That he is to be held in the same
regard as Vala.
"Yes, Orici."
And with a small nod the Doci stood up and walked outside of her quarters, staring back into space, the Orici looked down at Vala's stomach. Knowing the time would soon come when she would be free and would bring the will of the Ori to all those who were unaware of their splendor.
Fear not little
vessel. We will soon be free. And when we are, the Beings of Evil will be
destroyed, once and for all.
The Orici once again turned to peer out into the vastness of space.
And Daniel Jackson
shall lead the way.
* * * *
Ba'al stood in front of the console as Netan watched impatiently.
"You've been fiddling with that stupid machine for nearly half an hour."
"If we're going to awaken the sleeping giant we need to first determine the condition of her body. We wouldn't want to bring her out of stasis and then have her die on us before we can do anytihing to save her, do we?"
"No."
"Then keep your mouth shut and let me do what I came here to do."
"I'm going to take a look around, let me know when you've got something useful," Netan said as he walked out of the chamber and back into the corridors of the outpost.
The outpost was beautiful. Everywhere he looked there were large paines of jagged colored glass, and the remains of an enormous ice palace that was once home to a remarkable but now extinct civilization. Despite everything that had changed over the last decade, there was a part of him that still lingered back to the life that he once had. The simple life of a historian, brother, and husband. That Netan would have been fascinated by this place. By the tales of the Ancients and the traigc downfall of their society. That Netan would stand for hours studying his planet's Stargate, lost in awe of the possibilities of new civilzations and peaceful explorations that it held. A promise or adventure that he would have gladly undertaken. An adventure forever lost by the coming of the Goa'uld and the destruction of everything and everyone he held dear.
He often wondered how his life would have turned out if the Tau'ri, not the Tok'ra had been the ones to orchestrate their freedoms. He had heard stories of the Tau'ri and how they helped to rid the Goa'uld from many planets under Goa'uld control. How they had worked to rebuild those socities to how they once were and protect them from upheavel with the guidance of the Asgard. If it had been the Tau'ri who freed them from Qetesh, would he have gotten back to that life of exploration or curisoity that he once held so dear? Would they have been able to free Aja from the grips of Qetesh before she had damaged her mind beyond repair? His mind trailed back to the woman lying asleep in the other room. What would she think if she knew what had become of him? Would she still recognize him or would she wonder what became of the gawkish scientist she married? Unable to allow his mind to wander back into what could never be, he began walking back toward the main chamber. He was about half way there when a whizzing sound, followed by a small cry echoed back towards him. Running as fast as he could he made it as far as the entrance before stopping dead in his tracks.
Down besides his feet was the charred body of Ba'al. Looking to the distance in front of him he saw her. His mind turning in a million differnent directions, he missed when her eyes flashed and her voice spoke in a deep and inhuman tone.
"I am Kebechet."
CHAPTER 22
Ten Years Earlier
Aja Mal Doran-An Tal sat staring out her kitchen window. From there she could see her husband, Netan, sitting beneath a large tree, his face buried in his notebook. The daughter of wealthy merchants, she had always resigned that she would marry the son of wealthy merchants and live out the rest of her life as a trophy wife whose only purpose was to look pretty and throw extravagent parties. She had grown up knowing that would be the course for her life and never thought that there could or would be anything else set in stone for her. That changed, however, when her father passed away unexpectedly leaving all of his wealth to her mother, Adria. Still a young child when it happened, Aja had only passing memories of her biological father, and the events that surrounded his death. She did, however, remember the many 'uncles' that would frequent their home in the months and years that followed. None of which were very likeable and none of which stayed for very long.
Around the time of her tenth birthday, her mother returned from an extended vacation with one such uncle and his teenage daughter. Her mother had told her that this uncle, Jacek, was her new father, making his daughter, Vala, her new sister. Vala wasn't around very often, only every few months and for long periods of time during the summer seasons. For the first few years, neither Aja nor Vala spent a great deal of time with one another and the time they did spend was often the scene of spectacular arguments and the occasional brawl. Aja saw Vala as her father, who she had come to learn was nothing more than a gold digging con artist and Vala had scene Aja as nothing more than the image of her mother, a spoiled and haughty brat. By the time Aja had reached her teens, Vala seldom came around anymore and she wished for the day when Vala would stop coming all together. At that age she began to follow the track that had been laid out for her all of her life, courting the sons of various wealthy merchants and businessmen in the hopes of finding a husband.
That was until she met Netan.
Netan An Tal, was by no means wealthy. His father, Tritan, was a drunk who ran a pub in one of the most dangerous villages on their planets. Known for being a meeting place of smugglers, it was a constant hot bed of the criminal under belly. His mother, Alyse, was a teacher. Alyse, came from a family that although it wasn't wealthy had enough money to secure her a place as a teachers apprentice. After many years of schooling and some time teaching small schools, she returned home and became a private tutor to their planets social elite. As a result of her background Alyse made sure that Netan, recieved the same level of education as any of the children she tutored. One of the families she tutored, the An Tal's, took to Alyse and Netan with great affection, often inviting them to various social occasions and families dinners. When Netan was young, his mother died. The An Tal's adopted Netan, feeling that Alyse wouldn't have wanted him raised by his father, given the kind of life he lived. Tritan agreed and Netan never saw him again. Although the An Tal's were kind to him and did their best to treat him like their son, Netan always felt as if he didn't belong. This was always evident in social functions when the An Tal's would introduce him to their rich friends, and make it a point to tell them of how he was rescued from a life of poverty and criminality.
It was at one such function, a birthday party for his step-brother, Rayden, in which the two were introduced. Aja immediately took to Netan and found him to be the most fascinating person she had ever met. Unlike the many boys that she had encountered over her life time he was interesting. Netan was very well read and talked about things that Aja had never even heard about before. She took to his every word as if it were gold and found the more time she spent around him, the more she never wanted to leave. That was until Rayden showed up and told her that Netan was nothing more than his families charity case and that she shouldn't be bothered with the likes of him. Embarassed, Netan took off and although he was supposed to be beneath her stature, Aja stood up to him in front of Rayden. Slapping Rayden, she took off after Netan, finally finding him sitting beneath a large tree, his face in a book. Aja told Netan that what Rayden said was wrong and that she didn't think of him like that.
Netan told her that one day soon, he would leave their village and he would travel to other worlds. He would become an explorer and would make a great discovery about some never before heard of lost civilization. For hours they sat, talking about their dreams and during that time she realized that maybe there could be more to life than wealth and that there could be more to her life than just being some man's wife. She kissed him and from that moment on, they were never apart. The opposition their relationship recieved from their families caused them to run away, seeking solace in a village a few days travel from their own. It was there she was reunited with Vala and she found that once removed from the constant eyes of their parents, the arguments ceased and the understanding began. At first the two would spend hours, just talking, catching up on the things that had happened to them since the last time they had met, including Aja's story of how she had met and fell in love, with Netan. For the first time in their lives, they had felt like real sisters. They had become family.
Now, years later, she found herself settling down into a life she had never imagined for herself, but never felt more comfortable in. In recent years Netan had grown to become Cheif Historian of their village and dedicated his time into researching the Stargate trying to figure what wonders lie on the other side. Watching Netan sitting there, she found after all of these years, she was still fascinated by the way his mind worked and how even the littlest things would set off his wonder.
"Is he under that tree again?"
The familiar voice broke Aja's concentration.
"Vala," Aja said as she walked to up to and greeted her sister with warm embrace. "What brings you here? I thought that you and Jaleyn's mother were going to be busy all day with last minute wedding preparations?"
"That was the plan, however on my way there I realized there was something more important that had to be done."
"What could be more important than you're wedding?"
Vala looked at Aja and immediately a cold feeling ran up her spine. With a cold, wide smile, Vala's eyes flashed a strange orange color. Terrified and confused, Aja began to back away from her sister.
"Vala, what's going on? What is with your eyes?"
"The name is Qetesh," Vala said in a deep and unnatural tone. "And there is something from you I need."
Looking out toward the window she could see Netan, frozen in his place, his eyes fixed to the sky. A few seconds later, their eyes met, and she could see them full of terror.
"Aja!" Netan screamed as he ran towards the house. "There are ships. Everywhere. I think the village is being attacked!"
Aja looked once more to Vala, who now had a large metallic object on her hand.
"Don't hurt him," she begged. "Whatever it is you want, I'll give it -- I'll do it, just don't hurt him."
"Done," Vala said raising her hand towards Aja. "But keep in mind, that later, I will hold you to that promise."
* * * *
Kebechet looked towards Netan, his eyes looking at her, but right thru her. She knew that it wasn't her he wanted to see.
"Netan!"
Calling his name seemed to snap him out of whatever trance he had been under. Looking back at Ba'al, he looked at her confused.
"Why did you kill him?"
"That is not Ba'al," she said as she lifted herself from within the coffin and stood heavily on the cold floor.
"What do you mean, that is not Ba'al?"
"He is a clone."
"How did you know that?"
"Let's just say that I may have been sleeping, but I was not asleep."
"What does that mean?"
"I will explain later. For now, help me to Ba'al's ship I need the sarcophagus, otherwise you will have awakened me only to watch me die."
Netan looked and saw small streams of blood began soaking thru her dress near her abdomen. No longer hesitating her scooped her up and walked towards the ring transport.
CHAPTER 23
Netan sat in the command chair of the Al'kesh waiting. He was suprised to find that there was nothing onboard Ba'al's ship. No other warriors, no other Goa'uld waiting in the wings to ambush him when they ringed onboard. Just a sarcophagus like Ba'al had said. With utter urgency he placed Kebechet inside and watched it close. Hoping that it could repair the damage done to Aja's body, he took a seat in the command room. He had been there ever since.
That had been almost a day ago. At one time he had been a patient man but years of suffering had turned him into an impatient and often times, hot-headed, fool. It was taking everything he had not to storm into the room and see what was taking so long. He was about to rise to do just that when he saw her walk into the room, her wound no longer bleeding and color restored to her pallid cheeks.
"Don't look at me that way," she spat as she took a seat near one of the nearby consoles.
"In what way?"
"Like I am about to keel over at any moment, I didn't survive this long only to die from some silly fleshwound."
Netan sighed. He tried desperately to not be overprotective. Although the creature before him wore the face of his wife and lay in the body of his wife, she was no his wife. His wife was somewhere buried deep within and given what she had been thru, it was doubtful she would be able to escape.
"Can I asked you something?"
"What?" Kebechet asked as she looked at Netan as if utterly annoyed.
"You said before that you knew Ba'al was a clone and your response was rather veiled. If I am to help you, I need to know everything. No detail left out, or I won't lift a finger to help you."
"You dare defy me?" Kebechet said as she arose from her chair giving Netan a murderous look.
"I dare."
"And what makes you think I won't kill you where you stand?"
"Because you won't do that to Aja."
Kebechet could not respond. Netan knew that the rumors were true.
"You do care for your host."
"As if she were my sister."
"Then tell me everything."
"Where should I start?"
"From the beginning."
Kebechet looked at Netan, unsure how exactly she should respond. Finally she sat back down and looked at him with what could only be described as reverence.
"You should know, first and foremost, that it was no accident that we came to your world. Nor was it no accident that it was left untouched by the Goa'uld for so long. Now, we both know the stories: that your planet, Sedaris, was founded by five people who fled from an unknown Goa'uld occupied world. They knew not what the Goa'uld were exactly, but they knew enough to find a place on the further most reaches of known space to take refuge. That part is true. What is not known however was the fact that twelve people had escaped from this world and founded two other planets. One now called Langara and another, now decimated planet, known as Hanka. Out of the three Sedaris became one of the more 'technologically advanced', if you could call it that. Are you keeping up with me so far?"
All Netan could do was nod.
"Good. Now I mention this because the planet that they escaped from was under the control of my father, Anubis. It also happens to be the planet on which we are currently in orbit over."
Netan was dumbstruck. There was a time, back in what seemed like an entirely different life, when he dedicated his life to Sedarian history. To learning everything about who they were and where they came from. Even though so much of him had changed from that wide-eyed man that he once was, he could not help but be moved by knowing that they were over the planet where all life on Sedaris began.
"Netan!" Kebechet screamed trying to regain his attention.
"Sorry, its a lot to take in."
"Yes, well there are alot more bombshells to be dropped before this is over, so don't waste your astonishment on the first one."
"Do continue."
"As I was saying, the planet beneath us is where my father discovered the Ancient laboratory and the message giving the history of the Ancient people. Were you able to see all of it?"
"No."
"Where did you leave off?"
"Orion decided to stay with the Great Beings and the Doci returned to Altera."
"Allright, well the message covers alot more than that so here is the condensed version: Doci and his men return to Altera and began preaching about what they found there. Now, you must understand that Alterans were a people of logic and reason, not faith. So when Orion did not return with his party and given the outrageous story they had told about what happened to him, the people thought the worst. That Doci and his men had killed Orion. They were tried, found guilty and put to death for their crime. However, during the moment of their deaths they Ascended, Orion having spared them death in return for their unwavering belief in him and faith in Origin. The Alterans used logic and reason to explain what happened but when they couldn't the Great Divide happened, where the Alterans split between those who had faith in Orion and those who didn't. Those who believed in Orion were persecuted and there was this war, eventually the Followers of Orion or Ori as they were called drove the Alterans into hiding, eventually causing them to leave the planet all together. Orion, who had become upset by the Great Divide had seen his followers had become lost on the path and there was nothing he could do to lead them back. So he left to rejoin the Great Beings vowing to one day return. The Alterans, over time, to become extraordinarily advanced so by the time they reached this galaxy, they were a highly advanced raced we now know as The Ancients."
"The Alterans were The Ancients and The Ancients apparently created all life in this galaxy."
"It gets even better."
"How?"
"The Ancients did seed worlds with life. But that mission to seed worlds led them to eventually leave this world and travel into the far reaches of space. After millions of years some returned to Earth and physically spawned life with the primitive humans that lived there."
"So some people on Earth, are actually descended from the Ancients?"
"Not just Earth. There is evidence of this on several different planets. After several generations these traits become dormant and they appear as regular humans with one tiny exception. A gene that is adaptable to Ancient technology and under exposure to certain conditions can reactivate Ancient abilities. This information was also on the Ancient message."
Kebechet got up from her seat and walked over to Netan, bending down in front of him, placing her hands upon his knees.
"Now, you see, Ascension wasn't my father's ultimate goal when he discovered the Ancient research. He, like the Alterans, was a man of science. His journey that led him to the Ancient that finally Ascended him was a last resort so to speak. He was more interested in these Hok'tars as he called them. Advanced humans. To think of the possibilites of matching a Goa'uld to a human with the knowledge and powers of an Ancient. He was never able to do it before his Ascension. However, his two assistants Qetesh and Nirrti, continued his research. Finally, Qetesh was able to succeed. You see those twelve people who had left the planet beneath us thousands of years ago were let out for a reason. They were an experiment to see if under the right circumstances and conditions, this gene would flourish. It did on Langara and Hanka. But nothing like it did on Sedaris. Qetesh kept a close eye on this world for that reason, protecting it from other Goa'uld. That is until one generation produced a single family where the gene was most prominent. As I said it was no accident what happened to this world."
Netan got a sick feeling in his stomach that he knew what Kebechet was about to say.
"And it was no accident that your wife became my host."
CHAPTER 24
A rollercoaster of emotions swept thru Netan at this most recent revelation. Anger. Sadness. Bitternesss. Emotions for which he did not think names existed hit him like a ton of bricks.
"I know its alot to take in," Kebechet replied as she touched the side of Netan's cheek. "But you wanted to know everything and I warned it wasn't going to be easy."
Despite the ranging emotions coarsing thru his veins, Netan knew she had a point. All confusion and pain aside, he needed answers, he needed the truth.
"Continue."
"Are you sure?" Kebechet asked and for the first time Netan noticed genuine concern in her voice.
"Yes."
Kebechet looked deep into Netan's eyes. She knew that the revelations were hurting him deeply. However, she also knew that this was something he needed to know if he was going to be of any use to her.
"I am not going to try and explain genetics to you, but you need to understand that after generations of breeding with humans, the Ancient genetic pattern all but disappeared. This gene, is that last remnants of that. But even then, it was a weakend form. Many times, it was too weak. Ninety-eight percent of all test subjects died and the remaining two percent were left so genetically mutated, they were better off dead. Without any success, my father turned to two Goa'uld with a great deal of knowledge in the ways of science: Qetesh and Nirrti, in the hopes that between the three of them, they could figure it out. My father had plans to challenge Ra and he believed that if he had the power of the Hok'tar, he would be unstoppable. Ever since his defeat over Sokar, Ra had reigned the System Lords. Brutally and tyranically, even for a Goa'uld. He was so feared that no one dare challenge him."
"Then why did Anubis want to?"
"My father was the offspring of Osiris and Nephthys. Nephthys coveted Osiris, but it was her sister, Isis, whom he took as his queen. Nephthys became jealous and enraged and plotted to destroy Isis. One night she, attacked Isis and forced her to leave her hosts body, trapping her in canopic jar. Nephthys took her place and using the body of Isis' host, seduced Osiris and my father was created. Jaffa loyal to Osiris figured out what had happened and freed Isis. Osiris did not kill Nephthys for her betrayl and for that she was grateful. She later married Osiris' brother, Setesh, who hated Osiris and wished to have Isis as his queen. He plotted along with Nephthys to destroy Osiris and use his forces to take down Ra. The plan failed and Nephthys was killed during the pursuit. Some say that Setesh himself murdered her. For that Setesh was banished. Isis, although not my father's mother, raised him as her own son and later helped him to gain the rank of System Lord. Many years later when Osiris and Isis allowed their hosts to produce a child, named Haresiese, they ran afoul of Ra. Haresiese was born with all the knowledge of the Goa'uld. The System Lords feared that Haresiese would somehow use that knowledge to rally the humans against them and cause an uprising like what occured with the Tau'ri. For that the child was killed and the Goa'uld banished. My father forever hated Ra for what he did to his family and vowed he would pay."
"So Anubis believed that by creating a Hok'tar, he would ultimately gain a weapon that he would be strong enough to have the other System Lords bow to his will?"
"Yes."
"So what happened?"
"Nirrti betrayed my father and sold out his plans to Ra in order to gain the rank of System Lord. My father was pursued by Ra's forces and ultimately he traveled to a small planet called Kheb, where an Ascended Ancient known as Oma Desala released him of his physical burden and out of Ra's reach."
"So why didn't your father then use the power he gained as an Ascended Being to just wipe the other Goa'uld out?"
"Ascension brings with it ultimate power and as it is in the human world, those with great power, do not wish to share. The Ascended Ancients, feared what my father would do and so they tried to destroy him. For some reason, they couldn't. He became stuck in a limbo between human existence and Ascension. It took a long time for my father to regain any sense of self. And when he did, the governing body of the Ascended known simply as The Others, told him that they would not punish him further, if and only if, he did not use his powers against Lower Beings. There was, you see, a loophole to that. They couldn't and wouldn't touch him so long as he didn't do anything that couldn't be accomplished by a typical Goa'uld. So my father simply continued to do as he had done before his Ascension, only with a bit more of an advantage."
"So how exactly does what happened to Aja fit into all of this?"
"The System Lords believed Anubis dead. Qetesh, my mother and his queen, felt strongly about avenging him and continued his research. She focused on finding a way to prevent death and mutation in the test subjects. She believed that it was the continued breeding with those humans who did not possess the gene that created the weakness. So she picked tweleve individuals, set them out on three isolated planets and hoped that after a thousand years of breeding amongst those who possessed the gene, would ultimately make it stronger. She found the most success on Sedaris. Everyone born on that planet, including yourself, were born with Ancient genetic patterns. Although, many on Sedaris ended up with the same genetic weakness that killed the other test subjects. What made your planet unique was the fact that a rare genetic mutation occurred within a single family. Aja's family. Qetesh protected Sedaris and began experimenting on the members of her family and although this genetic mutation did create a greater ability of survival and reduce the chance of disfigurement, it had one unfortunate side effect Qetesh did not anticipate."
"Insanity."
"She tried her best to prevent it but nothing seemed to work. Unable to see the humans suffer, she killed them and returned their bodies to the planet in the hopes it would be seen as an unexplainable natural death."
"Like Aja's biological father."
"Exactly."
Netan sat in silenece. It was so much to take in his mind felt as if it would burst. However, in a sad, strange way it brought him comfort to finally know the reason for everything that happened to them.
"What happened to Aja? I've heared stories, but I am guessing that they aren't entirely true, are they?"
"No. Not exactly."
"Why did Qetesh destroy my planet?"
"Nirrti had discovered that she was continuing my father's research and informed the System Lords. Ba'al, who at the time was merely a lieutenant of Kronos, was sent to take the planet by force. Qetesh knew that Aja was the last living descendant and she was adamant to protect her at all costs. So she struck first, attacking the planet as a decoy to take Aja away before Ba'al got there."
"So Qetesh took Vala as a host."
"Qetesh made herself aware of
the people in Aja's life, including you and her
step-sister. Her
"Did it?"
"For a short while. However, insanity came in a different way. Eventually, Ba'al caught up with Qetesh and she was able to use her guiles to convince him she was on his side. They thought of me as nothing more than a new host for Kebechet. We were forced to watch as the planet was destroyed. We were forced to watch as Qetesh and Ba'al tortured prisoners, including Adria. During the torture, Adria had brought the news of your death. She did not know that you had escaped with the other soon to members of the resistance. We were there when she spoke of your death. Adria did not understand why her daughter would just stand by and let this happen. She did not truly understand the nature of the Goa'uld. She pleaded with her daughter to help her. Talked in detail about how they killed her husband. After a few moments I excused myself, feigning disgust. What happened next, I could only describe as agonizing. A pain swept over me as if every fiber of my being was being torn apart by unseen hands. My heart felt as if it would explode in my chest. And there was a scream. One I could only hear in my mind. Never before had a hosts emotions ripped thru me in such a way. Her thoughts, so brutal. She had gone insane."
Netan's composure broke as he began to weep. He had known that Aja had suffered but to know that he was the reason for it, was almost more than he could bear.
"Do not blame yourself," Kebechet said as she began wiping away the tears from his face. "You could not have known."
"I should have saved her."
"She is not completely lost."
"What do you mean?"
Kebechet stroked the side of Netan's cheek, a tenderness that he had never seen in a Goa'uld.
"Cherish this," she said as she closed her eyes. "It will not last long."
Netan watched in confused silence as Kebechet opened her eyes. Only, it was not the Goa'uld who was looking back at him. His emotions, so raw and intense they caused his breath to catch in his chest. She said nothing as she stood up and sat on his lap, wrapping both of her legs around his waist. Netan watched breathlessly as she looked down into his deep brown eyes and kissed him. Netan could feel the tears streaming down her cheeks and he knew that he was not dreaming. He reached his hands up and cuped her face, kissing her back. After a time that seemed almost like hours they broke apart, looking deeply into one anothers eyes. Netan again wept because for the first time in ten years, he was looking into his wife's eyes.
CHAPTER 25
"You're alive," Aja replied in a voice that was so weak it was heartbreaking. "She kept her promise."
"Who kept her promise?"
"Qetesh," she replied as she ran her fingers thru his dark hair. "She promised me if I went with her willingly, she would spare your life."
"Willingly for what?"
Netan soon regretted his words. The look that came upon Aja's face could only be described as wild. She practically jumped off of his lap and onto the floor of the Al'kesh.
"Stay away from me!" she screamed as she back away from Netan so fast, he thought such a thing was not possible.
Netan looked at his wife in confusion, "Aleajandra, its me."
"You're dead!
You're not real. She didn't keep her promise to me!"
Netan watched helplessly as Aja grabbed the side of her head looking as if she was in utter pain. However, any attempts of his to reach her, only caused her to pull back even more.
"She won't get
out of my head! She won't leave me alone!"
"Who? Kebechet?"
"Not Kebechet. She protects me," Aja said in a half sob.
"Protects you from who?"
"The child of fire
is coming and the son of water will awaken. Boom. Boom. The universe will bleed. I can see it all. Why do I have to see it?!"
Aja squeezed shut her eyes as if trying to protect herself from the horrible images in her head. Netan could take this suffering no more.
"Kebechet!"
Within seconds her eyes flew open and a sickly orange glow signaled that the Goa'uld was back in control.
"I hope you understand now why I must remain in control."
Netan wiped the tears from his eyes, "What was she talking about? Who was in her head?"
"No one," Kebechet replied guardedly as she lifted herself off of the floor. "Just the ramblings of her broken mind. She is lucid sometimes, until something triggers her and she goes off like she did. What you saw though is tame to some of the battles that go on in our mind on a daily basis."
Netan was overwhelmed with disgust.
"She shouldn't have to live like this!"
"No, she shouldn't. No one should. Do you think I like to hear her suffer? To hear her cries in my head everyday and know I can do nothing to stop them?"
"Then why do you allow her to live? To suffer like this?"
"I cannot believe you would say such a thing?"
"As much as it breaks my heart, I would rather see her dead than to know she continually suffers like this."
Kebechet slapped Netan so hard that it threw him across the room, causing him to slam hard into a nearby bulkhead. Immediately he stood up and reached for his gun. Closing her eyes Kebechet focused on Netan. Within seconds the gun flew from his hand and into her own. Netan could only stare at her in brazen wonderment. Kebechet was about to reply to his amazement when a strange sound caught her attention. She closed her eyes to focus on its source and was saddened when she figured it out. She looked at Netan, tears catching in her eyes.
"That's why you went looking for her, isn't it?" she asked as she threw the gun down and walked toward Netan. "After so many years?"
Netan did not respond.
"You see before my time in my ice prison, I began to develop strange abilities. I can move things with my mind. I have an acute awareness of people and things around me. Which is why I knew that it wasn't really Ba'al that stood before us. When I was entombed they lay dormant, but always on. I know what happened to my father and my mother. I know about the destruction of the Goa'uld and the coming of the Ori. When you ringed to planet, I couldn't sense you. You were too guarded. I guess speaking to Aja brought down your defenses, so when I took the gun from your hand . . . I could hear it. Sickly. Irregular."
Netan again said nothing as he took his seat at the head of the console.
"So I closed my eyes and I concentrated. Found that it was coming from you. From your heart."
"I got it from my mother," Netan said trying to keep back his emotions. "She died when she was around my age. I don't really remember alot about her, I was so young. She was fine, she never seemed that sick. Then one day she seemed so tired. She spent so much time in bed. When she wasn't in bed it looked as if it took all of her strength to stand. I wasn't there when she died. All the An Tal's told me was she passed away and was at peace. It wasn't until years later did I overhear my step-parents talking about her. How her poor heart just gave out on her and that it was genetic. Which would explain why they always had a doctor hovering about me when I was there. But I never got sick. Showed any sign of illness and then all of a sudden feeling as if there was this weight on my chest. After a few minutes it went away but it began happening more and more, only this time, I was awake. I traveled to a nearby merchant planet and the doctors there confirmed what I already feared. So I put aside all of my other plans and focused on finding my wife. If the rumors were true, I had to see her, to be with her, when I . . ."
"Died?"
"Yes."
"You are not going to die."
"I would rather die than be healed by anything touched by the Goa'uld."
"I am not talking about the Sarcophagus. What if there was another way?"
"What other way could there be?"
"There is a ship that is going to be passing thru our orbit soon. We must be on it."
"Why?"
"I was less than honest before when I said Aja's ramble meant nothing. She can see things, things that have yet to happen. She cannot control it and its an ability unique to only her. I cannot see what she sees, but when she is lucid, she tells me. There is a being coming: part-Human, part-Goa'uld with the powers of an Ascended being. Because this being is human, the Ascended Ancients will do nothing to harm them. This being, the Child of Fire, will reign destruction over the universe and we will be powerless to stop it. Aja has said, however, that there is hope. Another being, she calls him the Son of Water, is the only one in the universe with the power to stop the Child of Fire. The Son of Water lies in secret, unaware of what he is until the time comes for him to awaken. She has said that we are the ones who will awaken him. The Son of Water will be on the ship that is passing by here. It is on its way to an Ancient base known as Atlantis. It is there we must go."
"Why do we need to go to Atlantis?"
"Atlantis is where Aja said it happen."
"What would happen?"
"Our Ascension," she said non-chalantly as she set turned the ship auto distress beacon.
CHAPTER 26
The Odyssey dropped out of hyperspace a day from Atlantis to conserve power on the ZPM. They would 'coast' as McKay called it until they were about an hour away from the city and then power-up for a jump to the planets orbit. The area of space in which they were moving thru was uninhabited, mostly planets inhospitable to human life. Dry deserts, murky rain-forests and vast ice worlds, places where not even the Wraith traveled. They felt that this was one of the best routes to take if they were going to 'coast' and reach the city on schedule.
For Dr. Daniel Jackson, it would provide the necessary time to once again consult the Book of Origin. He had tried several times to contact Vala but ever since his strange vision of the child, it was if her mind was cut off from his. He neglected to tell Mitchell or anyone else about his vision, waiting first to see if it happened again in the hopes he could somehow tie it to his connection with Vala. As he poured over the tome for the countless time, a knock on the door broke his concentration. He looked up to see Mitchell in the doorway.
"How's it going?"
"The same," Daniel said as he pushed the book away from his face.
"That bad?
"Yeah, you would think that I would have gotten something, anything by now, that would help lead us to Vala."
"You honestly think that that book is going to be of any help to us? You can't take most of what it says at face value."
"I know that its allegorical but from my understanding of Ascended Beings is allegory in which there is truth to their wisdom."
"That whole If immediately you know the candle-lite is fire kinda thing."
"Something like that."
"So what part are you working on now?"
"The Annals of the Emissaries"
"The what?"
"The Book of Origin is broke up into chapters, each imparting its own particular morality tale or word of wisdom. Except for this particular chapter, which is one of the reasons I skipped over it so much."
"Why did you skip over it?"
"I didn't see how it fit in with the others, I though it was something that was just thrown in for trivial reasons."
"Why?"
"Because it reads like Romeo and Juliet meets The Book of Revelations."
"Huh?"
"My first thoughts exactly," Daniel said as he tossed a copy of the tome over to Mitchell. "Its one of the longer chapters in the book, about two hundred or so pages, and for the first one hundred and sixty of those pages, reads like a love story between two celestial beings: Light, a wise sage and Shadow, a beautiful princess. They endure all of these trials and tribulations until finally they are free to be together. Only once together, and this is the strange part, their reunion paves the way for the coming of two other celestial beings: The Orici and The Prophet, who according to the remainder forty or so odd pages, bring about the Apocalypse."
"That is strange," Mitchell said as he sat down next to Daniel and began to flip thru the book.
"To make matters worse, the chapters regarding the Apocalypse are all written in Oma-like verses of wisdom."
"I know what you mean, listen to this," Mitchell
said as he got up from his seat and began to read from the book. "The Mother cried out into the universe
and The Prophet heard her lament. Her lamentations overwhelmed the Great Beings
and the universe cracked open, bleeding fire. From within the heavenly fires
The Orici came forth and every living thing trembled
at the magnificence."
As if a light bulb had went off inside his head, Daniel stared knowingly at Mitchell, "Read that again."
"The Mother
--"
"Not aloud, to yourself and tell me what you think it means."
After taking a moment to look over the verse, Mitchell replied.
"Its sounds like a creation story."
"It sounds like a birth."
"Birth?" Mitchell asked as the he realized where Daniel was heading. "You don't think?"
"Vala's pregnant."
"I mean, come on, this is Vala were talking about. Its not like she's the ideal choice to birth a messiah."
"Vala said herself that she was pregnant before she got married and she isn't sure how."
"Yeah, but this is Vala. Honesty, not a strong suit."
"She also said that The Prior told her the child was the will of the Ori."
"So your saying that The Book of Origin fortold that Vala will be the mother of The Orici."
"I think that the Ori are using Vala to make their scriptures true. I think whoever originally wrote the story created it for the same purpose as the remaining chapters, to teach morality lessons. However, I think that The Ori are using Vala to bring validity to their scriptures."
"So the big book says a messiah will come and so they create a messiah."
"Something like that," Daniel said as he began flipping thru his notes. "However I wouldn't think of The Orici as a messiah. More like a destroyer. Now according to The Annals, the messianic figure in the story is called The Prophet, said to be the second coming of Orion, the Great Being who first shared the wisdom of Origin with humanity. The Prophet is also the polar opposite of The Orici. The Book says, the waters of Celestis opened wide and out from within The Prophet stepped forth, they then dried up all of the water so that no other celestial being could spring forth from it."
"And the Orici is said to be born of fire."
"The Orici is female and The Prophet is male, its a classic good versus evil storyline. Its actually quite fascinating when you look past the fact that its true."
An unknown sense of dread filled every sense of Mitchell's body. He wasn't quite sure why, but all of a sudden, this mission to rescue Vala made him feel more apprehensive than ever.
"I should let you get back to your work," he sad as he got up to leave. "I want to go over some last minute details with McKay anyway."
"Allright," Daniel said as he turned back to his notes. "I'll let you know if I find out anything else."
“You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
"Huh?"
"It was my grandma's favorite phrase, it seems kind of fitting right now."
"It does, doesn't it?"
"Yeah," Mitchell said as walked out the door.
So is be careful what you wish for, he thought as he walked down the hall to McKay's office.
* * * *
Tomin of Ver Isca found himself troubled.
Since The Orici had revealed that the Ori believed Daniel Jackson to be The Prophet, he felt lost. He had been looking forward to destroying The Agent of Evil and winning a place of honor amongst The Ori. Now, however, he would be nothing more than a mere soldier. Though he would greatly and willingly serve the gods in that regard, he could not help but feel disappointed at not being chosen for such a special mission.
Currently he stood in the doorway where Vala slept. He hoped, deep down, that when it was all over, that somehow she would come to learn the truth of Origin and would reclaim her position as his loving wife. Sure, he felt betrayed by her, but he also loved her. If he didn't, her traitorous deeds would not have hurt him so much.
"Tomin?"
Tomin practically raced to her side.
"Yes, Vala?"
"Tomin, something's wrong."
"What do you mean?"
"Its becoming hard to breathe," Vala said as she lay there gasping.
"I will get a Prior," he said jumping up to leave.
"No!" Vala cried as she grabbed his wrist. "They are all on the planet leading the men in prayer."
"What can I do?"
"I know they brought a Healer on board. I know where they are keeping him. You must take me to him."
Tomin looked down at Vala, his face etched his internal conflict.
"Only a Prior can release you from your binds."
"I know how, I can show you."
"I cannot. You are only trying to trick me."
"Tomin, I'm not -- "
Vala's words were cut off by a huge gasp. Tomin could see her faces writhing in pain and her chained hands clutching her chest.
"Tomin, please," she pleaded as her eyes welled up with tears. "Something is very wrong. I can't breathe and now my chest hurts. Please."
"The Orici will not allow any harm to come to you."
"The Orici is also a baby and my body is still human. If my body dies, so does the child."
Tomin looked into Vala's eyes. Her pain and her concern were genuine.
"What do I need to do?"
"You see the symbols on either side of the bind," Vala said doing her best to point out the symbols. "You need to touch them both at the same time and hold them until the binds release themselves."
Tomin did as Vala instructed. As he waited for the binds to unlocked he looked up at her agonizing face, and began regretting everything he had done to her.
"You will not die," he said as the binds unlocked.
"I know," Vala responded as she punched Tomin in the face, knocking him to the ground.
Throwing off the binds, she raised herself from the bed and kicked Tomin in the stomach.
"You should know that my mother was a midwife," she cried again kicking him in the stomach. "I watched her birth hundreds of babies, some were very difficult pregnancies."
Bending down she picked Tomin's head up by his hair and after every few words began repeatedly punching him in the face.
"So suffice -- to say -- that I know -- what a distressed -- mother -- looks -- like."
Vala stopped punching Tomin and held his head in her hands. For the first time, it was Tomin who saw venom in her eyes.
"This is what you get for trying to strangle me, you son of a bitch."
Vala head-butted Tomin, knocking him out cold. Pulling herself to her feet she made her way to the door. Turning back to look at his sleeping form she grinned widely.
"I am no one's damsel in distress. Least of all yours."
As she made her way to the opened door a familliar voice echoed in her head.
What are you doing
Mother?
"We're leaving."
I cannot permit us to
leave.
"You don't permit anything, I am your Mother and I make the rules. We're leaving. Now."
I'm afraid I'll have
to stop you.
"I would like to see you try."
Vala could hear strangled sounds in her head, and finally an exasperated voice broke thru.
I cannot gain control?
What have you done?
"Now, you listen here and you listen good missy," Vala said sternly as she stared down at her stomach. "I did not survive one alien being invading my mind just to have it take over again by a spoiled, immature little brat."
You cannot get away
with this.
"I will."
You cannot escape.
"I don't plan to."
Then what is the point
of all of this?
"We're going to save Daniel."
To be
continued…
Feedback to: daniel-vala@hotmail.com
Stories
by Rating and Category
Copyright©2004-2011 Midnightstorms.net
All Rights Reserved.