TITLE:The Petri Dish
AUTHOR: Roeskva
CATEGORY: Drama
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters and places are the property of MGM, World Gekko Corp and Double Secret Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment only and not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
SUMMARY: The last surviving members of SGC, as well as three Tok'ra, and a few Jaffa flee the advancing Ori forces. This is the story of their experiences.
RATING: PG-13
CHARACTERS: O'Neill, Sam, Daniel, Teal'c, Mitchell, Malek, Thoran, Delek, others
STATUS: Incomplete
SPOILERS: Takes place around season 4 of SGA, before the Ark of Truth.
WARNINGS: Character deaths.
AUTHORS NOTES: \\ denotes thoughts or host/symbiote communication.
"...some of you may have had occasion to run into mathematicians and to wonder therefore how they got that way, and here, in partial explanation perhaps, is the story..." Tom Lehrer in his album 'Tom Lehrer Revisited', recorded before a live audience at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1959.
It had been almost a year since everything had begun to go wrong. Col. Samantha Carter was sitting in her office at the gamma site, thinking about what had happened. The first sign of problems had been when some of the inhabitants of the Pegasus galaxy had started to talk about a new group of people that were showing up on their planets. These missionaries tried to spread a new religion, and bad things had happened to those who refused it. Then first one, and soon after two supergates were spotted and Ori ships were starting to show up here and there. It had not been long before Atlantis itself was threatened and had to be abandoned. Its personnel had been evacuated to Earth, and the city, with its easy access back to Earth and the Milky Way had been thoroughly destroyed. This had been their last act in the Pegasus galaxy.
Then, only a few months later, news had come from the Tok'ra that Ori Priors and followers were again showing up in large numbers everywhere. Apparently Adria was either powerful enough to to continue on her her own, or their attempt to kill the Ori had failed. It did not really matter anymore. Clearly, the knowledge Adria had gained from the brief time she was host to Ba'al had been enough for her to be able to send her forces to the Pegasus galaxy, and when that was conquered, she used the added strength to continue the Ori crusade that was already underway in the Milky Way.
It had not taken long to overrun all the known human and Jaffa planets, as well as the remaining Goa'uld systems. The Tok'ra too were attacked repeatedly, since they had no intention on worshipping the Ori, and they fled from base to base, until only Malek, Delek, and Thoran were left. They then fled to Earth, and joined the SG teams in their futile attempts to first stop the Ori and then to merely avoid a total defeat and being totally overrun. Finally, a month ago, Earth had fallen and the last remnants of her military and scientists, as well as the 3 Tok'ra, and a couple of Jaffas, had relocated to the gamma site. The alpha and beta sites had fallen before Earth.
Generals Landry and O'Neill were in command of this last stronghold - the small group of scientists and the 3 remaining SG teams: SG-1, now consisting of Daniel, Teal'c, Sam, and Thoran, SG-2 with Mitchell, Malek, a Jaffa named Ralek, and one additional Tau'ri - a Lt. Erikson. SG-3 were commanded by Delek, and the other members were one Jaffa - Jih'lka, as well as two Tau'ri. Capt. Jones, and Lt. Waters. The teams made small missions to various planets, keeping an eye on the Priors and gathering what information they could find, without arousing too much suspicion. Using crystals provided by the Tok'ra, they had moved the entire base underground. While this would hopefully give them some protection, it had not helped enough to save the Tok'ra from the Ori in the past.
Sam sighed. It did not do any good to dwell on all the grief and sorrow which had befallen all of them lately. She made an effort and concentrated on the task at hand: writing a report of yesterday's mission to P3X-468. It had turned out to be yet another newly converted Ori planet - fortunately there had been no Prior present, but her team had not stayed long. Very little new information had been gained, except a couple of vague comments about a new Ori super weapon and yet more 'glorious victories' for the cause. Sam hated these depressing missions, but they were, unfortunately, necessary. She again sighed, and then returned to her report.
-
"Silan, we have made another correction to the main equation!" Xilto announced, entering the room.
"Good...and the effect?"
"No apparent difference to the current situation. Everything appears to continue unchanged."
"I see. How unfortunate. We shall have to make another attempt." Silan distractedly dismissed Xilto, already deep in new calculations.
-
Sam looked up from her tedious work with the report, as the klaxons of a base attack sounded. \\Not again!\\ she thought. \\Will it never end?\\ she pushed the paperwork away and got up, then started to quickly gather the important papers and other stuff that needed to be saved.
Out in the corridors people were running back and forth, trying to get as much packed and with them as possible. The gate was located in one of the tunnels and they were quickly moving their things through to a potential new base planet, which they had located two days before. Usually they would have preferred to scout it for much longer, but now they had no choice. Sam grabbed the box of reports and papers that she had collected and quickly ran to the gate. Depositing the box in the pile which Delek, Daniel, and Malek were moving through the gate, she hurried back to her lab and started gathering her personal stuff as the room shook from the first of the Ori bombs.
"Hurry up, Carter." O'Neill yelled through the entrance. We're leaving...the Tok'ra are ready to collapse the tunnels."
"Just a few more minutes, General...I need these data crystals."
"Now, Carter!" he ran to the next lab, fully expecting the three scientists to want more time too. \\Those damn eggheads don't understand anything besides their science...maybe we should just let the Ori take them. It's not as if anything they come up with will matter one bit anymore!\\
A quarter of an hour later, Malek jumped through the Stargate as the last, the tunnels destroying themselves behind him. They had all made it to their new base world; now they would just have to hope they could be safe there, and that Sam's new program would truly wipe the memory from the DHD. The Ori were more than persistent enough to dig up the DHD and decipher the last address dialed.
-
The New Base Planet
Having arrived on their new planet, they quickly set up base. What they did not know was that the preliminary check had missed several villages. Unfortunately, the inhabitants were fanatic Ori-followers and they almost immediately detected their new neighbors.
After a short meeting the locals made a decision; it was clear the newcomers, with their strange ways, were unbelievers. The only prudent action would be to kill them, before the contamination could spread. They decided to attack at dawn.
Malek awoke to the sound of battle and a voice yelling in his head. He realised he was running.
\\All right, all right...I'm awake! What is happening, Johan?\\
\\Finally! You slept like a rock...I've been trying to wake you for the last 10 minutes! We are under attack...by Ori-followers. Landry, Ralek, and Jih'lka - the two Jaffa - are dead, and so are the three Earth scientists. We, and Daniel are supposed to gather all our equipment, while the others hold back the locals.\\
Outside, Teal'c and Delek were helping Erikson and Jones to fight back a group of villagers. The locals had been given both Ori weapons and some training, so it was not as easy as expected.
Meanwhile, Sam and O'Neill, together with Thoran and Waters, were doing their best to kill another group of fanatics. Thoran had just disposed of an enemy, when he saw a large villager sneaking up behind O'Neill, who were busy with another warrior. Realising that O'Neill would not be able to hear him over all the battle noise, Thoran quickly ran towards them and jumped, pushing O'Neill away and out of the line of fire. The shot that would otherwise have made a big hole through O'Neill's chest now only zinged his shoulder. The wound was still bad enough that he lay somewhat dazed on the ground afterwards, and he would most likely have been killed shortly after, had it not been for Thoran pulling him away from the fighting and towards some fallen trees and shrubbery.
They had almost gotten to safety, when a shot hit Thoran in the back, causing him to fall unconsciously to the ground. Using his last strength, O'Neill managed to use his good arm to pull himself and Thoran behind a fallen tree, then he, too lost consciousness for a little while. When he awoke again a couple of minutes later, Thoran and his host Milek had also regained consciousness, but it was obvious that they were dying. The wound was much too serious for the symbiote to heal on its own - nothing short of a sarcophagus could probably save them now.
"General...please...please take Th...Thoran..." Milek managed to get out. "I beg you...he doesn't have to...to die..." he coughed weakly and almost fainted again.
O'Neill looked at him, scared and confused. \\I can't go through that again...not after Kanan! He can't expect me to...I swore I would never again let a snake infest me...but he just saved my life...and the Tok'ra have worked just as hard as anyone else against the Ori - and continues to do so, even when they have almost been wiped out...\\ He thought for a while longer. He had always thought he would celebrate the day when the Tok'ra were no more - and now they were almost there...then why did he feel guilty...and why did he even consider becoming a host again? \\I need it's healing powers to cure this wound...to go on fighting...for Earth! Against these cursed Ori...perhaps I can even handle one of the snakes...\\ he relaxed a bit, having convinced himself that he should do it...for Earth.
"All right...I will do it. I just put my mouth down to yours as if I was going to kiss you, right?"
"Yes..." Milek smiled faintly. A few moments later, Thoran had jumped into his new host and said goodbye to his friend, Milek. O'Neill/Thoran then lay down and concentrated on healing the shoulder wound as quickly as possible.
\\General O'Neill...I'm very sorry this happened. I know how you feel about us...and what my friend Kanan did..\\
O'Neill hated hearing a voice talking in his head, but pulled himself together. \\It's...it's all right...I guess. You're not Kanan...it's not your fault what he did...I...eh...I'm sorry about your host, he was a good man...\\ O'Neill gasped as waves of sorrow and grief hit him from the symbiote.
\\I apologize for making you feel that. It was in no way my intention...it is never easy to loose a host...\\ Thoran sounded extremely distressed.
-
The shoulder wound had healed and they were starting to feel stronger. They saw Malek running towards them, yelling at them to get up - more enemy reinforcements were arriving. When he reached them, he bent down to quickly check on Milek, then, with a sad expression turned to O'Neill. "We need to hurry." Swaying slightly, they had managed to stand and now started to walk. "Thoran?" Malek questioned, sensing a symbiote in O'Neill.
"Yes."
Malek nodded, then motioned for them to follow. Moving quickly, they followed Malek to the Stargate, where Daniel was waiting for them at an open wormhole.
"Quickly. More villagers are coming." Daniel looked at Malek. "You didn't find anyone else alive?"
"No, unfortunately not."
Nodding, Daniel ran into the wormhole. Malek and O'Neill also jumped through, the Stargate disengaging just behind them.
When they looked up, they saw that Delek was already dialing a new address. There hadn't been time to run the memory-wipe program on the other DHD - assuming it had even worked the first time, and now they had to rely on conventional means to mask their trail, through 'gate-hopping'.
After going through 6-7 gates - O'Neill quickly lost count of them - they apparently seemed satisfied that they would be safe on this planet, and that the Ori would not be able to track them. He looked around at the place. It appeared peaceful enough, and it seemed as though no one had been near the gate recently. You could never know for sure, though. The planet could still be inhabited by someone who preferred to stay home - or who had their reasons to conceal their whereabouts, as Thoran pointed out. They would have to be careful until they knew more about this world.
A headcount revealed that they had lost many people. The only ones left were Teal'c, O'Neill/Thoran, Malek/Johan, Delek, Daniel, Mitchell, and Sam.
"You are now host to Thoran, General O'Neill?" Teal'c asked.
"Yes." O'Neill was quiet for a while. "He saved my life, but his host...Milek...was killed. I...became host to Thoran. I was wounded and would likely have been killed, if he had not healed me - he needed a host. It was a...mutually beneficial agreement."
"I see. You both made the correct choice. Thoran - I offer my condolences for you host. He was brave, and his death was an honorable one."
"Thoran says thank you...he does not think I am ready to let him assume control to answer, himself...he is probably correct, but I will have to work on this, if I am to remain his host."
\\We will get through this, General O'Neill...it always takes a while, both for the host and the symbiote, to get used to the changes, but the pair eventually become very close friends.\\
\\Understood...Thoran, if we are to be friends, then I think the first step would be for you to call me 'Jack', instead of 'General O'Neill'...less formal, more...friendly, OK?\\
\\Yes...Jack.\\ Thoran gave his new host a small hug. \\We will be fine.\\
To his own surprise, O'Neill found himself agreeing. It wasn't as bad as he had expected, not at all. They really would be all right.
-
The planet seemed to check out. No one was living anywhere near the Stargate, so it was decided to stay on the planet and lie low for the time being. They all needed some time to rest, and to come to terms with recent events. The Tok'ra still had some tunnel crystals, which they used to build a small underground base.
Mitchell volunteered to try out his cooking skills. There were fish in a nearby lake, and they found fruit, roots, and berries, as well as the occasional rabbit, in the surrounding forest. They would be able to survive here, but they would probably loose some weight.
Almost a full month had passed since they arrived on this world, and the time had given O'Neill and Thoran the opportunity to get to know each other better - they were actually starting to become good friends. This 'inside view' of the Tok'ra was changing O'Neill's opinion of the, and he had even been seen talking to Malek from time to time. He still flat out refused to exchange more than short messages with Delek, but this dislike was shared by Thoran, so they just stayed away from each other.
Jack was sitting on one of the fallen tree logs, that made up a third of their make-shift seating around the fireplace. This was where they usually gathered to eat and talk about the ir day. Daniel came up to him and sat down beside him.
"Hi, Jack. Have you heard that Teal'c, Sam, and Malek met some people on their scouting trip?"
"No, I didn't think they were back yet."
"They returned maybe 15 minutes ago, so they'll probably be here soon...Jack, Malek said the people they met were Ori-followers..."
"Of course they were, we're the only heretics left - or haven't you heard?"
"I know, Jack. It's been a long time since we met anyone else...I just hope we are not going to get into trouble. Sam said she, Malek, and Teal'c had pretended to be devout Ori-worshippers - God knows we've got enough experience to respond correctly - but she wasn't sure they weren't suspicious."
"They'll probably report us, just to be on the safe side...overzealous bastards."
\\Time to get packed and move planet again, I guess.\\ O'Neill sighed.
\\Yes\\ Thoran agreed. \\Unfortunately. I was actually starting to like this place.\\
\\Yeah, but not the food! It's too...healthy for my taste.\\
\\My poor Jack. I'll make sure to look for steak and beer sales the next time we look for a new base...\\
\\Yeah - and TV. I miss the Simpsons.\\ O'Neill chuckled and Daniel looked strangely at him.
"Why is it suddenly so funny that rabid Ori-worshipping villagers are going to do us in?" He asked, testily. This information was making his already lousy day worse - it had started this morning when he discovered that Sam had drunk their last coffee. Then he had gone through his secret cache of cookies, only to learn that some vermin had gotten into the box and had eaten them. The day had gone downhill from there.
"Sorry, Daniel. Thoran and I was talking about the food here - hoping it would be better on the next planet."
Daniel smiled. "Yes, it has been sort of...bland, has it not? Poor Cam - he really is doing his best, but there just isn't much to work with here."
Just then Mitchell came walking towards them, smiling happily for a change.
"I was out looking for some of those beet-like root the Tok'ra claim are nutritious, when I found several herbs that I hadn't noticed before. I have found something similar to both rosemary, and thyme, as well as some sort of mint. You are so going to love dinner tonight! Delek and I also caught three rabbits, so it's party time!"
"Yes!" O'Neill exclaimed. "The first good news I've heard today. When do we eat?"
Mitchell grinned. "Not for a couple of hours, at least. The food isn't cooked yet, so unless you want it raw..."
"No thanks!" O'Neill made a face, but then he went back to smiling. It would be good to have some decent food for once.
Mitchell smiled broadly and left to prepare dinner, while O'Neill and Daniel turned to the group of people approaching them. Sam and Malek were walking in front, talking about something - something serious, if their expressions were anything to go by - while Teal'c brought up the rear. He looked as if deep in thought, and didn't seem to feel like joining the others in discussion.
\\Looks bad, doesn't it, Thoran?\\ O'Neill felt how his short-lived good mood was already being replaced by a sense of doom.
\\Yes, I don't like their expressions. Usually, they look relatively happy and relaxed when they return. Today they seem very tense. It must be true, then, what Daniel said - about there being Ori-followers here.\\
\\Yes. The damn vermin is everywhere, so it doesn't surprise me.\\ He gazed up at the small group, who had come up to him. "Hello," he looked questioningly at first Sam, then Malek, and last Teal'c. Neither of them seemed eager to speak.
Sam finally let out a deep breath. "I see you already have heard something from Daniel...it's true, unfortunately. We ran into a group of Ori-believers - from a distant village. It is no wonder we hadn't noticed them before. It was just bad luck that they happened to pass by close to here right now."
"It seems they were on their way to the chaapa'ai," Malek continued, "to welcome a Prior which will 'honor' them with his presence during their yearly celebration of life - which is now being changed into a solemn time of thanksgiving." Malek spat out, clearly not enjoying the worship of the Ori more than that of the Goa'uld.
"Do we have a problem?" O'Neill knew very well they did, but he asked the question anyway.
"Yes," Malek looked over at Sam, "we discussed this among each other and with Delek. We believe we should leave, as quickly as possible before the Ori Prior has time to rouse the local inhabitants and attack us - we are not exactly in any position to fight. We are very few, and we only have limited weapons left - one zat'nik'tel each, three P-90's total, almost out of ammunition."
"Yes, yes...I know. You don't have to remind me. I agree...we should leave. We will just enjoy Mitchell's food - he has something special in store for us - and then we will pack up and head for another planet...perhaps the nice, tropical one we found a couple of days ago? The one with lots of exotic fruit, friendly edible animals, and naked, seemingly harmless people - it was a paradise!"
"Yes, but there were people living there - and that means it is only a matter of time before the Ori shows up." Sam pointed out.
"Too bad," Malek smiled. "I really liked it there. The inhabitants were very friendly, especially that beautiful, young woman, the one with..."
"Yes, thank you." O'Neill interrupted him. "I remember too well how she threw herself at you...there's no accounting for taste...she even sat beside you at the party, feeding you fruit!" O'Neill made a face.
"You're just jealous," Sam said, grinning. "Well, if you don't mind, I think I will take the time to have a bath and a change of clothing before we eat. If we are soon to be on the run again, then there is no way of knowing when we will again have that luxury, if ever."
The others agreed, an they all left to enjoy what might very well be the last taste of civilization they would have in a very long time.
