Stargate Sg1 Revolutions: Children of the Gods I
"Oh... I think I'm going to be sick. Uhhh..." Carter said as she clutched her stomach as she stepped out of the Stargate.
"Maybe you shouldn't have had that big lunch." O'Neill said as he patted her on the shoulder.
The soldiers fanned out, checking the area. The chamber seemed to be empty. As they moved a few paces away from the Gate, however, a young boy jumped out from behind a column, pointing a gun at them.
Others appeared at all sides, aiming their weapons at the team. O'Neill turned as a group of three popped out from another column, but then someone familiar stepped in their path.
It was a breathtakingly beautiful petite brunette, with bright blue eyes.
"Cha'hari! Cha'hari! Lower your guns." She said as she stepped between the two groups. The defenders obeyed, as O'Neill turned to stare at Danielle.
"Jack? Uhh... welcome back." Daniele said with a smile.
O'Neill didn't reply as he walked towards Daniele. He suddenly lifted her up, spinning her around before hugging her. "I missed you Dani." He laughed.
As Jack put her down, he glanced over to the side, someone immediately grabbing his attention.
Standing beside Daniele, the boy saluted and grinned, which Jack returned, "Skaara."
"O'Neill." Skaara said as they hugged, glad to see each other.
"I did not think to be seeing you again!" Skaara said happily.
Jack turned to Danielle. "So how are you doing?"
"Uh, good. You?" Dani asked, happy to see her friend again.
"Much better, now that I see that everybody's okay." Jack said as he looked around at the group of defenders
"Greetings from Earth Dr. Jackson," Ferretti said.
"Hello, Ferretti." Daniele grinned.
"Brought you a little something, Dani." Kawalsky said as he handed Danielle a mini-pack of tissues.
Danielle took it with a half-amused, half-irritated expression.
"Kawalsky," Danielle greeted
Sha're moved closer to Danielle, standing beside her and puts his arm around her. The message was clear, Sha're was very protective of Danielle, and still didn't trust Jack around her.
O'Neill extended his hand to Sha're, which he shook, not as enthusiastically as Skaara but not displeased either.
"Hi. Good to see you." Jack said. He knew that for whatever reason Sha're still considered him to be a rival for Dani.
"So, he still doesn't trust me?" Jack asked Dani teasingly.
"So, I... figured it would be just a matter of time before you had to tell the truth about us still being here." Danielle quickly changed the subject.
"Yeah," Jack said looking around, picking up on the not so subtle hint. "Why the militia? Something else come through?"
"No, we're just taking precautions. Why?" Danielle asked.
"Amazing," Carter said from off to the side. "This is what was missing from the dig at
Giza." She said as she examined the DHD. "This is how they controlled it. It took us 15 years and 3 superconductors to MacGyver a system for the gate on Earth."
"Captain?" Jack asked.
"Look how small it is!" Cater exclaimed, ignoring Jack.
"Captain!" Jack said, finally succeeding in getting her attention.
Carter looked up, confused, and O'Neill inclined his head, implying that she should come over.
Carter came over and smiled with delight when she realizes who Jack was speaking to.
"Dr. Jackson, I presume. I'm Doctor Samantha Carter," She said as she shook Danielle's hand enthusiastically.
"What's going on, Jack?" Danielle asked feeling nervous after she shook Carter's hand. She really didn't think that this was a social visit.
"Six hostile aliens came through the Stargate on Earth. Four people are dead, one's missing." Jack explained.
"One of them looked like Ra, Dani." Kawalsky added.
"Well, they didn't come from here. I mean, the boys take shifts guarding it 36 hours a day, every day. We'd know if they came through here." Dani said.
"Well, they came from somewhere, Dani. I'm going to have to look around." Jack replied.
"I - I think I can help you find out who it was, but, uh, it's going to have to wait until this sandstorm is over. … we were about to have our evening meal. Why don't you join us?" Danielle offered.
Inside the pyramid where the Stargate resided the soldiers and the natives gathered around. Several dishes of food were spread between them as they ate dinner.
Skaara makes his way through the crowd to O'Neill, careful not to spill the contents of
two canoe-shaped bowls he was carrying.
Skaara offered one to Jack, who was sitting next to Carter.
"What's this?" Jack asked taking it.
"Drink," Skaara said.
Jack curiously sniffed the brew experimentally. "Moonshine."
"Moon... shine?" Skaara asked.
"Yeah. Moonshine, as in booze. Dani, what are you teaching these kids?" Jack asked
He and Carter both looked at Danielle expectantly.
Danielle glanced up from where she was sitting with Sha're, giving O'Neill her most innocent look.
"Try it." Skaara coaxed.
"Alright," Jack said as he sniffed Skaara's moonshine. He took a drink, then after a second spit it out. "WHOA!"
Everyone that was watching burst out laughing at Jack.
"Smooth, Very smooth," Jack said to Danielle, his voice hoarse.
"Moonshine!" Skaara shouted happily.
"Our little soldiers are all grown up, Colonel." Kawalsky joked
"Yeah, I'm so proud. Whoa." Jack said. His voice was still hoarse from the effects of the moonshine.
"O'Neill." Skaara said as he reached into his pocket. "Your lighter."
"No, it's yours." Jack shook his head. "I gave that to you to keep. Remember?"
"Thank you." Skaara said, feeling a little choked up as he turned and makes his way through the crowd.
"You know, he's never let that out of his sight the whole time you were gone." Danielle told him.
"Yeah?" Jack asked
"Yeah, so this - this man who looked like Ra, he must have come through another Gate." Danielle asked.
"What other Gate?" Carter asked.
"A Stargate?" Jack asked. Wasn't there supposed to be only be two stargates?
"The Stargate only goes here." Carter pointed out.
"I think you're wrong about that," Danielle denied.
"I - I was there. We ran hundreds of permutations." Carter explained.
"But you didn't have what you needed." Danielle replied.
"Dani, what are you talking about?" Jack asked.
Skaara pushes through the crowd again. "Dani, the storm has passed."
"I'll show you." Danielle said as she stood up "Sha're. Ben ra qui Jack to see the
vili tao an." (Sha're, I'm taking Jack to see the tomb we fond.)
"Bonni wai?" Sha're asked. (Should I come as well?)
"It's okay. I won't be long." Danielle promised.
Sha're kissed Danielle on the forehead, and then Danielle pulled her lips to his for a deeper, more passionate kiss.
Jack looked surprised and then amused, as the group erupted in good-natured hooting and laughter until Sha're finally broke the kiss, leaving Danielle slightly dazed.
"Goodbye, my Danielle." Sha're said as he kissed her again briefly.
"Bye," Danielle said, finally snapping out of it.
Jack got up, follow Carter and Kawalsky.
"Hold the fort." Kawalsky instructed Ferretti.
"Yes, sir," Ferretti said, not getting up.
They left the pyramid, walking into the stark brightness of the desert, and donned sunglasses to shield their eyes.
"Boy, I can't say I missed this place.," Kawalsky said as he looked out into the seemingly endless desert.
"Come on," Danielle said as she led them further into the desert, followed by O'Neill and Kawalsky.
"This is just incredible," Carter said as she looked out at the desert scenery.
"So, I - I figured that there had to be more to this place, so I started exploring, um, this area around the town and the pyramid at first. And after about a month, I found this place. Uh, Captain Doctor, you're going to love this." Danielle said as she walked further into the tomb.
Carter shined her flashlight around the chamber. It was huge, lined by bird-headed statues alternating with cartouches of hieroglyphics. At the far end of the room there was a gleaming symbol - the Eye of Ra.
"Oh my God." Carter exclaimed. "This is amazing. This is the archaeological find of the century."
Carter shined the light on the nearest section of hieroglyphics, moving to get a closer look, as O'Neill and Danielle followed.
"Danielle, have you had a chance to translate this yet?" Carter asked.
"I think so," Danielle replied.
"What's it say?" Jack asked.
"Well, uh, it - it doesn't say anything. Actually, it's sort of a chart, more of a map." Danielle replied.
"Of?" Jack asked.
"Well, I haven't been able to analyze all of it. I mean..." Danielle said as she gestured around the chamber "look at it. It would take my whole life."
"Well Dani, we don't have that long. What's it a map of?" Jack asked
"Well... the cartouches seem to be separated clearly into groupings. Each grouping is attached to the others by a series of lines, and each grouping contains seven symbols, so you can see where
this is going, of course." Danielle explained.
"Tell us anyway." Jack said, still not understanding.
"All of the symbols are on the Stargate in the Abydos chamber. I've also managed to chart some of them in the Abydos sky, or at least pretty close. Jack, I think this is a map of a vast network of Stargates, Stargates that are - are all over the galaxy." Danielle answered.
"Uh, I don't think that can be, Doctor." Sam denied.
"Why not?" Danielle asked.
"Well, because after Colonel O'Neill and his team came back, my team tried hundreds of symbol permutations using Earth as the point of origin, and it never worked." Carter explained.
"Well, I tried the same here and it didn't work either. But I figured the destinations I tried are either destroyed or... buried, but some of them somewhere must still exist." Danielle replied.
"I don't think so." Carter shook her head.
"Then where did your Ra lookalike come from?" Danielle asked leaving Carter speechless. "I - I don't pretend to know anything about astrophysics, but couldn't the planets change? I mean, uh... drift apart or something like that to throw this map off?"
"I knew I'd like you." Carter smiled.
"You mean I'm right?" Danielle asked, mildly surprised.
"According to the expanding universe model, all bodies in the universe are constantly moving apart." Carter explained.
"So in the thousands of years since the Stargate was built –" Danielle started.
"All the coordinates could have changed." Carter finished.
"But why does it still work between Abydos and Earth?" Danielle asked.
"Abydos is probably the closest planet in the network to Earth. I mean, the closer they are, the less the difference in relative position due to expansion. The further away, the greater the difference. In a few thousand more years, it won't work between Earth and Abydos either." Carter explained.
"Unless you can adjust for the displacement." Danielle added.
"Right." Carter agreed. "Now with this map as a base, that should be easy. All we have to do is correct for Doppler shift."
Standing apart from the two of them, Kawalsky and O'Neill look on, unable to comprehend the technobabble.
"Then I should be able to arrive at a computer model that will predict the adjustments necessary to get the Gate working again." Carter continued.
"Okay. So what did we just figure out?" Kawalsky asked, wondering if they were finished.
"Any civilization advanced enough to build this Gate network would be able to compensate for 50,000 years of stellar drift." Carter said.
"So... the Stargate can go other places." Jack said as he looked up at the cartouches.
"The aliens could have come from anywhere," Carter said as she realized the enormity of their task.
Inside the Abydos Gate pyramid, the remaining soldiers and natives were grouped around the cooking fire directly in front of the gate, relaxing and enjoying themselves.
Sha're sat with Skaara and another boy, all of whom were laughing. He playfully shoved away Skaara before getting to his feet and walking away. Ferretti and another soldier watch him go with admiration.
"Man, you've got to give him credit, Danielle's one beautiful woman."
The other officer nodded, but suddenly the Gate activated. The chevrons started to lock in. as the soldiers jumped to their feet in alarm.
"We've got company, boys!" One of the soldiers shouted.
The natives scattered as the soldiers grabbed their weapons, as panic erupted through the crowd.
"Move! Move! Take cover!" The soldier shouted.
The natives crouched behind the columns lining the room, terrified. Children were crying as the unarmed people took cover as best they could. The soldiers took up positions behind the columns, aiming their weapons at the Gate.
The wormhole activated, and two Serpent Guards stepped out, randomly firing their staff weapons.
Three Abydonian children tried to run to the exit. Two of them were felled by staff blasts, but the third made it around the corner, and flattened himself against the wall before heading out of the pyramid.
Inside, the soldiers opened fire on the Serpent Guards. Predictably, their bullets bounced off the guards armor.
A guard fired on one of the soldiers, the blast knocking him to the floor.
Skaara was among those firing at the intruders, and was lucky enough to dodge the blasts fired at him, but was forced to fall back behind a column.
Another of the Abydonians fired on the guards but was felled by a staff blast as Ferretti tried to get a lucky shot in, but a staff blast came too close for comfort, and he fell.
More Serpent Guards flood into the room, as they continue to fire, a final armored figure steps
from the Gate, with a golden sheen to his armor - Apophis, of course. Helmet up, he surveyed the room as another Abydonian is hit by a staff blast.
The barrage of energy blasts soon had the entire defense force either dead, unconscious, or dazed.
Seeing this, Sha're darted behind the columns, fearing for his friends, but he knew there wasn't anything he could do.
Skaara somehow managed to go unscathed, and got to his feet, firing at the intruders from behind a column.
"Sha're! Shim rota! Shim rota!" Skaara shouted. (Quickly, go get the others)
Sha're made a break for it, but the Serpent Guard was quicker, tackling him to the floor.
"No!" Sha're shouted. He had to get the others, and make sure his wife was alright.
Apophis and another guard approached Skaara, who tried to fire again, but discovered that he was out of ammunition.
The serpent guard lowered his staff weapon to fire, but Apophis stopped him.
With a howl, Skaara lunged at the guard, but the guard simply caught him by the throat. His helmet retracted to reveal his face, Teal'c, the first prime of Apophis.
"This is not your weapon. Where did you get it?" Teal'c demanded.
Skaara spit in his face in answer to his question. Teal'c turned him to face Apophis, who retracted his helmet, looking Skaara up and down.
"Good choice, Teal'c. A perfect specimen." Apophis commended.
Apophis opened his hand, shining the ribbon device into Skaara's eyes. Almost immediately, Skaara went limp in Teal'c's arms. Sha're growled angrily and struggled madly as the guard carries him over to Apophis.
Apophis grabbed his chin, brushing his hair from his face and inspecting his teeth. His eyes glow briefly.
"You may be the one." Apophis commented.
He lifted the ribbon device, shining it into his eyes until he, too, went limp. Apophis turned to the dial-home-device, punching in the glyphs for their return.
None of the guards noticed Ferretti regaining consciousness nearby, blood streaming from his left eye and mouth.
Apophis' retracted his helmet as he finished dialing and activates the Gate. The wormhole opened, and Apophis went through, followed by the seven Serpent Guards and their captives.
Once they all went through, the wormhole shut off, leaving the once-cheerful chamber silent.
A second passed, and then the surviving Abydonians emerged from their hiding places, checking to see who was all right.
Danielle entered at a dead run, looking around in panic. "Sha're! Sha're!" She called out frantically, but there was no reply.
She checked in the makeshift sleeping tent by the entrance before rushing to the side of a boy lying nearby. "Bolah!"
"There were so many... so many of them." Bolah said, still in shock.
Carter and O'Neill crouched down beside Ferretti.
"What happened?" Carter asked.
"It's all right. Just tell me what happened." Danielle pleaded as she focused on Bolah.
"It was Ra." Bolah answered.
O'Neill came over to Danielle. "What's going on?"
"Ra is dead. Tau'pa Ra!" Danielle said insistently, ignoring Jack.
"No... Ra... I saw... He took Sha're. He took Skaara into the chaapa'ai." Bolah insisted.
Horrified at this news, Jack jumped up, but Danielle remained with Bolah as tears began to form in her eyes.
"Did you see? Did you see?" Danielle asked, hoping that Bolah remembered the gate address.
Bolah's eyes rolled back in his head, his eyelids closing as his head lolled limply backwards.
Danielle knelt there, stunned, cradling the dead boy's head in her hands as she cried in grief.
Jack put his hands on Danielle's shoulder. "What's going on, Danielle? Could there be another Ra?" Jack asked.
"How should I know? I should have left the barricade up. This is my fault." Danielle said sadly.
"Colonel, Ferretti needs medical attention now!" Carter said, getting Jack's attention.
"Go! Help him! I can send you back." Danielle said as she knelt beside another of the Abydonians.
"You're coming with us this time, Danielle. I've got orders." Jack said, hating that he had to do it.
"I don't care about your orders, Colonel. My husband is out there. So is Skaara." Danielle said as she wiped the tears from her eyes angrily.
"And the only way we're gonna get 'em back is if you come home with us. Ferretti might have seen those coordinates. Captain, do you have the video?" He asked Carter.
"I got everything I need." Carter said as she held up the video recorder.
Danielle looked around the room at the dead and dying Abydonians. Still others were mourning, others look defeated. Finally, Danielle turned, striding into the center of the room. "Leaa. Leaa" She said in a loud voice.
The natives not tending to the dead and wounded gathered around her as Danielle continued.
"After we go through the chaapa'ai, you have to bury it like we did before and then leave this place," She instructed them.
"You come back?" One of the children asked,
"No." Danielle said sadly. "I can't. Nobody can, that's what I'm telling you. Not for a... long time. Now as soon as we're gone, I want you to close it. Bury it. Put a... big heavy cover stone over it. Nothing good could ever come through this Gate, do you understand me?"
"You came through it, Dani." The boy pointed out, causing Danielle to hesitate.
"Do you remember the story I told you?" Danielle asked them. "How the ancient Egyptians on Earth cut themselves off from Ra? Well, that is exactly what you have to do. Then in one year, one year from this day you take the cover stone away. I will try to bring Sha're home with me on that day, but if I don't make it back..." she said nearly in tears "if I don't... if I don't return
then you must bury the Gate again forever. Cho'qua?" She asked them
The boy nodded in understanding as Danielle was left in tears at this point.
"You tell Sha're's father... one year." She told the boy.
At that, the boy hugged her tightly. The others follow suit, most of them reaching out to touch Danielle's hair in a gesture of friendship. After a moment, Danielle pulled away and sadly walked over to the DHD.
The chevrons on the Earth Stargate lit up as they begin to lock and the Gate started to spin.
"Stand by for arrival! Stand by for arrival!" A voice sounded over the intercom.
The security door below the control room slid down as soldiers dashed back and forth, preparing for whatever might come out.
"Incoming traveler!" The voice over the intercom said.
At that moment, the last chevron locked and the wormhole activated. Immediately, O'Neill, Carter, Kawalsky and Daniel barged through, dragging the wounded through the gate.
The left bay door opened, and Samuels rushed in, radio in hand as on e of the soldiers shouted. "Medic! Medic!"
"Close the iris! Close the iris!" Samuels said into the radio.
Jack looked down the ramp to see the metal "iris" suddenly slide across the wormhole, contracting much like the iris of a human eye.
O'Neill, Carter, and Daniel stopped and stareed as the iris closed completely sealing the Stargate.
"Iris locked." They heard over the intercom.
The security door slid up, and O'Neill turned to see General Hammond, who had entered and was standing at the base of the ramp as the wormhole closed.
"Wormhole disengaged." Someone said through the intercom.
"What the hell is that, sir?" Jack asked.
"That's our insurance against any more surprises." General Hammond said as the iris
slid back. "It's pure titanium - hopefully impenetrable."
Hammond's attention turned back to the ramp, where Kawalsky, Carter, and the others were getting Ferretti onto a stretcher.
"Get the gauze on him! We gotta stop the bleeding from his leg!" The lead medic said.
"What happened, Colonel?" Hammond asked.
"Base camp was hit while we were on recon, sir." Jack explained.
"Same hostiles who attacked us?" Hammond asked.
"That's a fair guess," Jack confirmed.
Kawalsky and another soldier carried the stretcher off, leaving Carter standing there.
"Dani's husband and one of our kids were kidnapped," Jack let Hammond know what was going on.
"Your kids?" Hammond questioned.
"From the previous mission, sir." Jack explained.
Danielle came up to them, extending a hand. "General, hi. Danielle Jackson. I'd... like to be on the team that goes after them." She asked.
"You're not in any position to make demands, Jackson." Hammond said angrily.
Inside a large dungeon in Apophis' citadel a group of confused and scared humans were huddled.
Two doors at one side of the room slide apart to admit a group of men - two armed Jaffa without
helmets, two unarmed men in turbans, and three helmeted Serpent Guards.
The humans gathered there - Sha're and Skaara among them - warily got to their feet and backed away from the Serpent Guard in charge, who surveyed the group for a moment.
Teal'c pointed at Sha're. "Chal'nok." (him)
The turbaned men moved towards Sha're. Enraged, Sha're launched himself at the guards, trying to take them down, but they easily stopped by them.
"Sha're! Sha're! No!" Skaara screamed as his brother was taken away.
Skaara tried to get up, but froze as the two secondary Serpent Guards switched on their staff weapons, pointing them at him.
The unarmed Jaffa grabbed Sha're by the arms. The head guard, Teal'c stepped forward, retracting his helmet.
"Your death cannot help him" Teal'c told Skaara.
"I am not afraid of you!" Sha're yelled as he was taken off.
The three Serpent Guards remained, two of them still pointing their staff weapons at Skaara. As Sha're was dragged out the door.
Teal'c activated his helmet and turned away. The other Serpent Guards followed him out the doors.
Skaara tries to follow but the others held him back. When he finally broke free, and dashed for the doors they slide closed just as he reached them.
Skaara clutched the bars for a moment before angrily striking the door and turning away, slumping down to the floor in defeat.
In the SGC infirmary O'Neill entered to find Kawalsky sitting beside Ferretti's bed, with a newspaper in his lap and a cup of coffee in one hand.
"Doc says he's gonna make it." Jack said.
"Guess so." Kawalsky replied.
"You gonna stay here all night?" Jack asked.
"Yes, sir." Kawalsky responded.
O'Neill nodded and left. As he starts to round a bend in the hallway, he hesitated, spotting something up ahead. Dani was leaning against the wall, staring into space.
"Hey." Jack said as he stood beside her.
Danielle nodded, but didn't say anything for a moment.
"They don't know what to do with me... and I don't know what to do with myself." Danielle finally said.
O'Neill pulled her in for a hug. "Come on. Let's get out of here." He said as he put his arm around her waist and led her out of the base.
Jack took Dani to his house. He pulled two bottles of beer out of the fridge, and then took them into the living room. Danielle was standing by the fireplace, and O'Neill came in as Danielle was blowing her nose.
"Here," Jack said as he handed her a beer.
"Jack I'm only twenty." Danielle said as she held the beer bottle in her hand. "I'm not allowed to drink this."
"It didn't stop you from making moonshine." Jack pointed out with a grin.
"That was different," Danielle pointed out. "There were no laws about drinking on Abydos."
"Dani, after everything that's just happened, I think you're allowed to have a beer." Jack pointed out.
Danielle hesitated for a moment before she uncapped the beer bottle.
"So... you were saying." Jack said.
"Anyway, um... as soon as you were gone and they realized they were free, Abydos was - was their world for the taking..." Danielle said as Jack sat down on the couch, uncapping his beer.
"Had a little party, did you?" Jack asked.
"Oh, yeah. You know, big, big, big party. They treated me like their savior, it was, um... embarrassing."
"It's amazing you turned out so normal." Jack said as he took a sip of his beer.
"Well, if it wasn't for Sha're, I'd probably—" Danielle trailed off as she exchanged looks with Jack.
After a pause, Danielle sat down on the chair beside Jack.
"He was the complete opposite of everyone else. He practically fell on the floor laughing every time I tried to do some chore they all took for granted, like grinding yuffeta flour. I mean, have you ever tried to grind your own flour?" Danielle asked as she reminisced about her husband.
"I'm trying to kick the flour thing." Jack replied.
Danielle laughed, "This is going straight to my head." She said as she took another sip. "What time is it, anyway? I must have Gate lag or something."
"Danielle, for crying out loud, you've had one beer. You're a cheaper date than my wife was. That moonshine you showed the Abydonians how to make must have put you out for the count." Jack replied.
"Well, I never really drank that much." Danielle replied. "I just showed them how to make it. By the way when am I going to meet your wife?"
"Oh, probably, uh, never… After I came back from Abydos the first time, she'd already left." Jack explained.
"I'm sorry." Danielle said
"Yeah, so was I. I think in her heart she forgave me for what happened to our kid, she just... couldn't forget."
"And what about you?" Danielle asked.
"I'm the opposite. I'll never forgive myself. But sometimes I can forget. Sometimes." Jack said as he took another sip of beer.
Danielle didn't say anything as she rested her head on Jack's shoulder, and the two of them sat there in silence.
The next day at Cheyenne Mountain Complex, O'Neill, Carter, Danielle, Kawalsky, and two other soldiers were gathered.
General Hammond entered the office and sat down at the head of the table as the others took their seats.
"People, what's spoken of in this room is classified as SCI top secret. Colonel, what do we know about these... hostiles... that we didn't yesterday?" Hammond asked.
"Not a hell of a whole lot, General. The Abydon boys who survived the attack on the base camp thought it was Ra." Jack said as he sat down.
"I thought he was dead, which is it?" Hammond asked.
"Oh, he's dead, he's definitely dead. I mean, the bomb... " Danielle said as she looked at Jack.
"I mean, he's got to be dead, right?"
"Then who's coming through the Stargate?" Hammond asked.
"Gods," Danielle muttered to herself, but just loud enough for the others to hear.
O'Neill and Carter turned to stare at Daniel, while Hammond looked confused.
"What?" Hammond asked as Kawalsky and the other officers give Daniel skeptical looks as well.
"Not as in... "God" god. Ra played a god, the sun god. He - borrowed the religion and culture of the ancient Egyptians he brought through the Gate, and then he used it to enslave them. You see, he wanted the people of Abydos to believe that he was the only one." Danielle explained.
"So you're saying... Ra's not the last of his race after all?" Carter asked.
"Maybe he's got a brother Ray." Kawalsky joked, getting a chuckle out of some of the officers.
"That's what we need." Jack said sarcastically.
"Wait a minute. The legend goes... Ra's race was dying. He survived by taking over the body of his human host, an Egyptian boy. But who's to say more of his kind couldn't do the same thing? I mean, uh, this - it could happen any time, anywhere there's a Gate, I mean... this could be happening right now." Danielle theorized.
"Colonel, you've had the most experience in fighting this hostile. Assuming you'd have to defend yourself in the field, are you up to it?" Hammond asked.
"We beat 'em once," Jack replied.
"I'll take that as a "maybe." Captain Carter, you're confident that the Stargate will take us where we want to go with this new information?" Hammond asked.
"Well, they're feeding the revised coordinates into the targeting computer right now. Uh, it'll take time to calculate, but it should spit out two or three destinations a month." Carter answered.
"People, let's not fool ourselves here. This thing is both fast and dangerous, and we are in so far over our heads we can barely see daylight. We would all be much better off if the Stargate had been left in the ground." Hammond addressed everyone.
"With respect, sir, we can't bury our heads in the sand, but I mean, think of how much we could learn. Think of what we could bring back." Carter defended the use of the Stargate.
"What you could bring back is precisely what I'm afraid of, Captain. However, the President of the United States happens to agree with you." Hammond said as the officers exchange startled looks. "In the event your theories pan out, he has ordered the formation of nine teams, whose duties will be to perform reconnaissance, determine threats and if possible, to make peaceful contact with the peoples of these worlds.
Now, these teams will operate on a covert, top-secret basis. No one will know of their existence except the President and the Joint Chiefs.
Colonel O'Neill?"
"Sir?" Jack asked.
"Your team will be designated SG-1. The team will consist of yourself, Captain Carter-" Hammond began to say.
"And me?" Danielle asked, not meeting the general's eyes.
"Dr. Jackson you are twenty years old. Quite frankly I have no idea why you were even allowed to go through the gate the first time, you don't have any kind of military training, and we need more here, to work as a consultant with the other SG teams from here. Your expertise in ancient cultures and languages are far too valuable to—"
"No." Danielle said as she looked up, composes himself. "Look, uh... I mean, I know this is your decision, but I just, I - I really have to be on their team. My husband is out there, General, I need to go."
"Major Kawalsky, you will head SG-2" Hammond said, ignoring Danielle's comment for the moment.
"I will?" Kawalsky asked, surprised.
"Colonel O'Neill keeps telling me it's about time you had a command," Hammond smiled.
Kawalsky stared at O'Neill in surprise.
"I had a moment of weakness," Jack answered.
Kawalsky grinned triumphantly, giving O'Neill a thumbs-up as a guard handed Samuels a note.
Samuels unfolds it and reads it silently before turning to Hammond. "Ferretti's conscious, sir."
Without waiting to be excused, O'Neill immediately got to his feet and headed for the door.
"Dismissed," Hammond said to the rest of the people in the office.
Danielle stayed, hoping to talk to the general herself.
"Was there something else Dr. Jackson?" General Hammond asked.
"What will it take for me to join SG-1?" Danielle asked. This was the only way that she could find her husband.
"As I said before Dr. Jackson, you're too young and inexperienced for this kind of mission, or any kind of mission frankly. It would be irresponsible of me to let you go, and even more irresponsible that you were allowed to go the first time." Hammond pointed out.
"I need to find him, please" Danielle pleaded.
"I realize this is important to you Dr. Jackson," Hammond said compassionately. "But this is a very dangerous mission, I can't guarantee you're safety, and neither can any of my people."
"No sir, I don't think you realize how important this is to me." Danielle said. "Sha're is all I have, without him I might as well be dead." She said sadly.
"…Alright," Hammond said finally. "You can go on THIS mission. I can't promise anything beyond that." He offered.
"Thank you sir," Danielle said with a smile.
Carter, Kawalsky and O'Neill walked into the SGC infirmary with Jack in the lead.
When they walked in they noticed a technician was standing beside Ferretti's bedside, setting up a laptop beside the bed so that he can reach the keys."
"I'll take over. Thanks." Carter said as she set up the computer
The technician moved out of the way as Carter took his place, squeezing Ferretti's free hand reassuringly.
O'Neill joined Carter beside his bed, while Kawalsky stood behind the laptop.
"Hey, Ferretti," Carter said reassuringly.
"Ferretti. I know you're probably not feeling so hot, but we need something from you." Jack asked.
Ferretti couldn't reply; his head and his bad eye were wrapped in gauze, and he had a feeding tube is in his mouth, but he reached for the laptop, touching the screen so that the image of a cross-section of the Stargate came into focus.
On the side of the screen, he'd already identified five of the seven glyphs.
"Looks like he's way ahead of you, Colonel," Carter pointed out.
O'Neill moved around Kawalsky to stand where he could see the screen as Ferretti continues to type with his free hand, identifying a sixth glyph, and finally the seventh.
"You saw all seven symbols?" Jack asked. "This is where they went?"
Ferretti opened his good eye wider, trying to nod.
"You're sure?" Jack asked.
In the corridor outside the Gate embarkation room SG-1 and SG-2 were suited up and headed for the Gate room, with Samuels in the lead.
"Colonel, I'd like to remind you that rescuing Dr. Jackson's husband is a secondary objective. In the event you fail to notify base camp within 24 hours," He said as he pulled out a transmitter and started to calibrate it, SG-2 will scrub the mission and return without you.
"Understood," Jack replied.
"Not gonna happen, Colonel. SG-2 won't leave without you." Kawalsky promised.
"All right, let's confirm transmitter codes. Remember, only the right code will open the iris, and if you lose your transmitter, you cannot get home." Samuels said as he pretended not hear what Kawalsky just said.
"Understood sir," Carter said.
They entered the Gate room just as the final chevron locked and the Stargate wormhole activated.
Hammond was standing in the control room, speaking through a microphone. "SG-1 and SG-2, if you do not return within 24 hours, your remote transmitter codes will be locked out and the iris will be sealed permanently. At that point, there will be no return. Is that understood?"
Jack saluted "Yes, sir." "Let's move out." He addressed the SG teams.
Carter and Danielle headed up the ramp, followed by Kawalsky.
Samuels moved alongside him."Kind of wish I was going with you."
"Yeah. I'm kind of glad you're staying behind." Kawalsky replied as he headed up the ramp, as Samuels stopped, watching them go.
The trip ended as a team member literally fell out of the Gate on the other side, rolling down a few stone steps before tumbling to a stop.
The next two soldiers came through much the same way, groaning and getting to their feet.
Danielle was still sitting down, propped against the DHD as Kawalsky and another soldier slowly straighten up, recovering from the effects of Gate travel.
"Dammit, it's cold," Kawalsky said as he noticed a sudden drop in the temperature.
Carter stood up, scanning the area for any threats. O'Neill was already taking in the scenery – there was no one to be seen.
"Okay, people, let's get the lead out! Let's move!" He said as he addressed both teams.
Jack and Carter turned away from the Gate, as Danielle finally straightened up.
Inside Apophis's citadel Teal'c returned to the dungeon where the candidates for Apophis's new hosts were sitting. He scanned the room, past the group of young men huddled together in the center of the chamber until he spotted Sha're. He was sitting apart from the rest, his back turned to him.
"You" Teal'c said as he pointed to Sha're. At his command two serpent guards grabbed Sha're by the arms and started to drag him off.
"No! NO!" Sha're said as he struggled against them as the other men watched as Sha're was dragged away.
Danielle was standing in front of the DHD as she looked around the position of the Gate, which
sat on a slightly raised stone dais as O'Neill climbed up to join her.
"It must be some sort of ceremonial place. The Gate has to be a part of their spiritual culture. I'd say this place was built for worshippers." Danielle explained.
Well, let's just try to be out of here before the worshipees show up, huh? You figured out yet how to align this Gate to get back home?" O'Neill asked, coming up beside her.
"Yeah," Danielle said as she looked down at the DHD. The device is the same as on Abydos she said as she pointing at a glyph. This symbol represents the—"
"You brief Kawalsky's team yet?" Jack asked.
"Yes. This symbol represents the—" Danielle continued.
"Good job." Jack said as he patted her on the back. He really didn't want to hear the long drawn out explanation. With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Danielle slightly irritated.
O'Neill joined Kawalsky, who was standing near the edge of the circle of stones.
"We'll have to set camp where there's better cover, Colonel." Kawalsky said.
"Sir, I found what looks like a trail in the mountains, looks like it hasn't seen traffic in a couple of days." Warren said as he came up to them.
Carter came towards them as well as she unspooled a cable across the campsite.
"Thank you, Airman." Jack dismissed Warren. As the soldier left Jack called out "Carter?" Wondering what she was doing.
"We could set up a line of claymores along that ridge at ten-meter intervals." Carter explained.
"Sound about right, Kawalsky?" Jack asked, wanting to get his opinion as well.
"Yeah, that'll work." Kawalsky replied.
Inside Apophis's implantation chamber the two serpent guards brought Sha're in, holding him by the arms and shoulders. He struggled madly and unsuccessfully to free herself.
"No!" Sha're said as Apophis entered from another doorway, guarded by Serpent Guards.
"Come." Apophis ordered.
At his command, Sha're's captors dragged him across the room towards him.
Sha're slammed his shoulder into the arm of one of his captors as they reached Apophis as he laughed. "This one has spirit."
Apophis activated the ribbon device, passing his hand in front of Sha're's face. Sha're's struggles ceased, and his eyes went blank. The turbaned men picked him up and set his unresisting body on the table, flat on his back.
Sha're begun to regain awareness, watching with terror as the Goa'uld emerges partially from inside Apophis's host body.
"You will be my new host." Apophis said as the symbiote stretching as far as possible from Apophis's body before it slid completely free to land on Sha're's neck. Sha're gasped in fear, unable to move as the Goa'uld slithered up his neck, its head hovering inches from his face before it retreated slightly.
It struck, at the side of her neck. Sha're screamed as the symbiote penetrated, its tail disappearing as it entered completely. He screamed again, then again, as Teal'c watched, not pleased with what just happened.
To Be Continued…
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