"I'm telling you, his discoveries are going to be revolutionary!"
Daniel nodded and chewed boredly on his rock hard cafeteria sandwich as Peter went at it again. He was less interested in what his friend had to say and more interested in the break-time gossip that was going on around him. Daniel could pick up a few conversations now and then through the hubbub of voices. Today's gossip was pretty juicy: breakups, failed test scores, and even something about a lady who had her purse stolen, but found it returned to her front porch a couple of hours later by a 'mystery man.'
"…HEY!"
Daniel jumped slightly at Peter's unexpected shout, but he recovered quickly and shot his friend a quick glare. "What?"
"Were you even listening to me? No, of course you weren't. You never do."
"Sure I was," Daniel mumbled as most of his attention was diverted to a blob of ketchup he found on his shirt. He wiped it away with a ginger finger. "You were talking about revolutions or something."
"… 'Or something?' That's typically what people who aren't paying attention say, which is what you were doing."
Daniel sighed, "Look Peter, you like science and I like ancient history and archaeology. If I started rambling about the new tablet that was discovered in Egypt and how it contains a new dialect that hasn't been recorded in any language book up to date and how it was hidden inside of a secret passage with more modern technology than they thought possible for that time period then… you would… Oi."
Peter's eyes were already glazed over. The lull in the conversation snapped him out of it and he quickly nodded his head, probably in an attempt to cover it up. "Hey, I like history. I think discovering a new tablet is amazing."
"Sure thing Pete." It was probably better to drop the topic.
The bell rang, signaling the start of classes in ten minutes. Daniel let his half-eaten sandwich plop back onto his tray, except it sounded more like a five pound weight dropping to the floor. He really wondered what was in those sandwiches.
"I'll see you after school," Peter said with excitement etched in his voice. "I still can't believe we were both picked to participate in the tour of NOVA's facilities. If we're lucky we can even get an internship. We just have work hard. Can you imagine getting to work for the nation's leading company in biotechnology?"
"You know that's not the only thing they do. Wait till you see all of the ancient equipment they have stored in their basement." They dropped their trays into a couple of overlarge trash cans then went their separate ways, anticipating what was in store.
The hours passed slowly, but they finally found themselves standing side-by-side at the rotating glass doors of NOVA corps. The building was taller than almost every skyscraper in the city. New York was a big place, but this felt somehow bigger. It dominated the city's center and the glass exterior reflected the afternoon sun, making it practically glow. Daniel noticed the pointed looks they were getting from some people as they stood in the path of the doors, but he couldn't care less. He was standing in front of the building he had always dreamed of, and he finally had an excuse to go inside. It was beautiful, just beautiful.
Peter tugged on Daniel's arm. "Come on, what are we waiting for?"
He certainly didn't need any more urging. They filed in after a couple of serious looking adults. Although they were seniors in high school, they still looked like children compared to the employees that worked in NOVA corps. They all had an official look about them which made them look older than they actually were. Daniel and Peter were mostly ignored, but the receptionist lady looked at them with knowing eyes.
"You're here for the tour I assume?" She asked across the counter.
"Yes ma'am," Peter replied.
"Names?"
"Peter Parker."
"And I'm Daniel Jackson."
The woman searched her desk until she picked up two ID cards and handed them out. "The tour starts in fifteen minutes. If you would please head to the door on your right, a representative will be there shortly."
They nodded their gratitude and headed to the door where they joined other students from different schools, all waiting expectantly. Before they knew it a short, stocky man walked in, holding folders in the crook of his right arm. He wasn't old by any means, but his head was already balding. His face looked kind, but he still had an air of authority about him that demanded attention. He wore a standard, navy blue suit with small stars decorating his right chest. Perhaps to show his status in the corporation? Whatever the case, he had the attention of everyone in the room.
"I'm so glad you could all make it," He said calmly, despite all of the eyes glued to him. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is George Hammond, and I have the great honor of showing you around the NOVA corps, or the national operations of valuable assets. You should all be proud of yourselves. You were specially selected from thousands of students to explore our facility. If anyone has any questions please feel free to ask. As potential future employees of this wonderful corporation I want you all to feel comfortable asking whatever comes to your mind. Now, let's begin shall we?"
There were a few nods of assent and the tour began. Daniel tried to pay attention to everything that Hammond was saying as he showed them different rooms and devices, but he was lost in thoughts of ancient artifacts and what he would see once they got to the basement where all of their archeological finds were. Maybe the tablet they just found was somewhere down there and he would get to hold it.
"Did you hear that?" Peter whispered excitedly, breaking Daniel from his thoughts. "They can do genetic mutations on insects! They made a tarantula 2 times its actual size. That's so freaky, but cool!"
"Mm-hm."
"Hammond even said they're working on ways to be able to regrow limbs on humans using lizard regenerative genes."
"Cool. I've always wanted a lizard arm."
Peter sighed. "No, not like that. You would still have the same arm you have now, but if you lose it you could grow it back."
Daniel was about to mention how that sounded really gross and disturbing when four men in lab coats ran past. The coats billowed behind them in their haste as they ran down the hall. One of them stopped and whispered something in Hammond's ear before rushing off down another marbled corridor. A barely noticeable look of concern crossed Hammond's face and Daniel doubted anyone but himself noticed it. Culture and social interactions was also one of his strong suits. Yeah, he liked learning about dead things, and you would think that would inhibit his people skills, but he tried hard to make sure that didn't happen.
Hammond took a deep breathe. "I believe I've kept you archaeologists waiting long enough. Let's head down to the bottom floor."
"Yeees." Daniel would have done a happy dance if there weren't so many people watching.
The group of about thirty students started heading downstairs. There was a skip in Daniel's step as he imagined all of the things he would see; relics from ancient Egypt, jewels from the ancient mound builders of America. The possibilities were endless. They reached the bottom and Hammond swiped his card through a device on the wall, unlocking the metal double doors ahead. He pushed them open and Daniel stood on tip-toes, trying to see past the students ahead of him. He could barely make out a few shelves, but that was about it.
"Can these people not be so dang tall?"
One of the students directly in front of him gave a look. Daniel cleared his throat and made it a point to avoid eye contact with the person. "Sorry, I wasn't talking about you," he mumbled to the ground.
Everyone filed in and all Daniel could do was stare in awe. He couldn't believe it was all real. He gave Peter a quick grin, then ran up to the nearest shelf.
"May I remind everyone again, please do not touch the equipment," Hammond said, looking directly in his direction.
Daniel couldn't even remember him saying not to touch anything the first time. Nevertheless, he made a point to inspect the artifacts from a distance. He stared at the tags on every piece, relishing the data. There was old jewelry, metal shaped into scarabs, old carving tools, and so many more things.
"Pete! Pete come look at this!"
His friend poked his head over. "What am I looking at?"
"This is an Oldowan tool! These things are, like, over 2.6 million years old!"
Peter gripped the edge of the shelf to get a closer look. "How do you know it's a tool? It looks like a bent up rock." He suddenly pulled his hand away from the shelf with a quiet yelp, startling Daniel and making him almost knock the tool off the shelf. "Ow!"
"What? What hap- oh my goodness." Daniel watched in horror as a spider with long spindly legs descended from a string connected to his friend's hand. He wasn't the biggest fan of spiders, but he somehow found the courage to grab the spider's string and land it on one of the shelves. After that he kind of freaked out and absentmindedly grabbed a smooth stone artifact and thrust it down on top of the arachnid, squishing it flat.
That's when Daniel really lost it. He stared into space as a thousand images flashed through his head. He gasped and fell to his knees, vaguely aware that Peter was calling his name, but the information wouldn't stop coming. He somehow knew it was coming from the stone he had picked up, but he couldn't control his body. All he could do was try to keep his sanity while his brain was overloaded with things he didn't even understand. Before he knew it, he was on his side, gasping for air with a worried George Hammond kneeling over him, calling for personnel to come and help. What came next was more of an emotion than a complete thought. Daniel felt a wave of sadness, knowing that this experience would ruin his chances of ever getting into NOVA corps. He didn't have long to worry about it because the next thing he saw was blackness.
Daniel's eyes shot open and he bolted up into a sitting position. He was… where was he? He looked around and saw only medical equipment and cement walls. His breathing escalated into quick gasps as his confusion and fear took over.
"Oh! Daniel! I'm so glad you're awake."
He flopped back down on the bed he was on after recognizing the sound of his friend's voice. It instantly calmed him down and he found himself suddenly tired. "What's going on?" He asked groggily.
"Do you want the long story or the short one?"
"Both?" He said, realizing shortly after that doing both was impossible.
"I'll tell you what happened," Hammond said, stepping into the room as straight-faced as ever. "You two happened to tangle yourselves up in the biggest mess of NOVA corps history. Daniel, what happened back there?"
"I don't know. There was a spider, and then I squished it with a stone and then I saw… things."
"What kind of things?"
Daniel could only shrug his shoulders.
Hammond reached into his pocket and pulled out the exact same stone Daniel had grabbed earlier. He flinched in reply as Hammond held it out to him. "What does this say?"
Daniel noticed for the first time that the stone had writing on it, and he knew exactly what it said. "Sacrifice. It says sacrifice."
"It's just as I feared," Hammond said. "When you killed the spider with the stone it considered it a sacrifice and the stone downloaded all of its stored data into your brain."
"And dude, you've got to watch this," Peter interjected. He ran up to a wall and Daniel had to wonder whether he was still knocked out cold and dreaming because he started climbing it. "I've got spider powers! The spider that bit me was a test subject that escaped. I'm a spider man!"
Daniel put a hand to his head, quite overwhelmed. "The stargate," he mumbled, not even sure why. An image of a giant, alien looking circle kept popping into his head, and he felt like he needed to go to it. It was connected to him.
Hammond was definitely concerned. "I guess I have no choice," he said more to himself than anyone else. He pressed a button and a metal grate started raising on the opposite wall. On the other side sat a giant room with the stargate right in the middle. "I haven't been completely honest with everyone." Hammond looked out at the giant machine with a serious look. "NOVA corps didn't necessarily get where it is on its own. We had help."
Daniel stood from his bed, walking slowly to get a better look. "The portal, it's here."
Peter looked very confused. "What is that thing?"
"It's a portal to other planets," Hammond explained. "We're not the only living things in this galaxy, and you two are some of the select few that know it exists." He smiled a bit ruefully. "Welcome to the team."