Realizations Dawning
Natalie was silent for several moments following Dr. Jackson's pronouncement, unsure of what to think.
"Infiltration? But ..." she began at last, and Dr. Jackson looked back up at her. She struggled with her thoughts for a few more moments, then continued. "You don't think that means ... here do you?" she asked, looking at him imploringly. He sighed heavily.
"I honestly don't know, this is a very obscure dialect, I'm having trouble deciphering it," he admitted. He ran a hand through his hair absently, lost in thought again. Natalie was still trying to pull her thoughts together coherently.
"Daniel ..." she said slowly, and he looked up yet again. She paused for a moment, gathering her words. "How would I have known this?" she asked, indicating the paper. "I only just found out about the Stargate a few days ago." Her comments were edged with a sort of pained curiosity. Daniel gazed at her for a moment, and she could see that the same question was present in his mind. Finally, he sighed and looked away again.
"I don't know," he said simply. Natalie absentmindedly fingered the pendant at her throat, as she did often when she was thinking. Dr. Jackson suddenly gave a great sigh and stopped his thoughtful pacing. "I have to get this down to my lab and cross-reference a few things to finish the translation," he stated, indicating the symbols on the page. "Don't ... don't mention this to anyone just yet, okay?" he added, looking a bit strained. Natalie nodded understandingly. If there really was some sort of an incursion at Stargate Command, how would they know who to trust? Daniel smiled and made for the door.
"Daniel ..." Natalie said suddenly, causing him to stop and turn to face her again. She gave a sheepish smile. "Thanks for taking me seriously," she finished, flushing slightly. He gave a warm smile.
"No problem. No problem at all." He closed the door behind him as he exited, and Natalie sighed heavily. Why was she having these strange visions? She wasn't left alone to her thoughts for very long, however; a few minutes after Dr. Jackson had left, Natalie was startled out of her musings by a knock at the door.
"Natalie? You in there?" came Carter's concerned voice. Natalie composed herself enough to answer.
"Yeah, come in," was her somewhat nervous reply. The door opened and Carter's weary smile greeted her.
"I just thought I'd come check on you before I left," she explained. Natalie forced a smile, still unsure of what to think about everything.
"I'm alright, I suppose," she said truthfully. "This whole thing is just a little ... weird," she confessed. Carter gave an understanding smile and sat down on the edge of the bed. Her clear blue eyes searched Natalie's soft brown ones, and Natalie fought the heat that threatened to rise to her face. Only a few moments passed, however, before Carter at last looked away.
"What do you think about all this?" she asked nonchalantly. Natalie's vocal cords felt oddly constricted. She shrugged noncommittally. Carter looked at her again, and Natalie looked away. "No ideas?" Carter asked. Natalie shrugged again.
"I don't know, it's all still pretty new, you know?" she replied vaguely. Carter scrutinized her for another moment, then stood.
"Well, I'd better get going, I've got a lot to do before I officially come back for work," she said with a slightly quirky smile. Natalie couldn't help smiling back. Carter pulled her into a warm embrace, then left again without another word. Natalie gave a great sigh. This was all too confusing. She massaged her temples anxiously, and her stomach gave a loud, protesting rumble. Had she eaten today? She didn't think she had, and without further thought, she stood and left the room, intending to find the mess hall.
When she still hadn't found it twenty minutes later and frustration threatened to overwhelm her, she rounded a corner and nearly collided with a young lieutenant she'd seen around.
"Oh! Sorry 'bout that, ma'am," he offered in a sweet-sounding Southern drawl. She smiled awkwardly.
"It's not a problem, really, I was just ... I was looking for ..." she stammered, struggling, "Could you show me where the mess hall is?" she asked finally. He gave a hearty grin and nodded, gesturing in the correct direction and leading her.
When they reached the mess hall, she thanked him profusely before entering and selecting several decent-looking items. Just shortly after sitting down, a warm voice greeted her.
"Miss White, might I offer you some company?"
Natalie looked up into the solemn face of Teal'c and smiled. "Why, certainly! I could use some company," she replied, gesturing to the empty seat across from her. Teal'c inclined his head in acknowledgment and took it, setting his own tray of food before him. Natalie studied him curiously for a moment. "Do you live on the base?" she asked at last. Teal'c gave his deep nod.
"Indeed, but perhaps, someday, I will not be required to," he answered, and Natalie noticed a bit of wistfulness in his tone. Her eyes flicked to the golden emblem on his forehead.
"Is it because you're from another world?" she asked unashamedly. Teal'c nodded again, and the pair of them entered into a lively conversation about life on the base, traveling to other worlds, life among his people, and anything else they could think of, spending most of the afternoon engaged this way.
Several hours had passed when Dr. Jackson suddenly appeared at their side.
"There you are! Listen ... can I talk to you for a minute?" he asked, indicating Natalie and sending an apologetic look to Teal'c. Teal'c inclined his head obligingly and Natalie stood and followed Dr. Jackson from the room.
"Well?" she asked eagerly, glancing over her shoulder cautiously. Dr. Jackson pulled the paper she'd written on from his pocket, though now it was crammed with scribbled notes in Dr. Jackson's handwriting.
"Well, I've finished translating this text, and the good news is that I don't think the infiltration is here," he began, and Natalie gave an audible sigh of relief.
"Well, that is good news," she said, pausing slightly as a thought occurred to her. "But, if there's 'good news', that implies that there is also 'bad news.'" she observed, and Dr. Jackson nodded.
"It's incomplete. It says here," - he stopped and spread the paper out, pointing - "'Beware the infiltration,' et cetera, et cetera ... ahm, 'they have come from ...'" He stopped, looking up at her. She looked back expectantly.
"From ... where?" she asked after a few moments. Dr. Jackson sighed.
"I don't know, that's where it ends," he said, and Natalie could tell there was something else on his mind.
"But ... how do we get the rest?" she asked, thinking she already knew the answer. Dr. Jackson snatched up the paper and stuffed it back in his pocket, resuming his walking.
"I have a theory on that, but let's go somewhere less ... public," he answered, leading her back to her room. They entered and he shut the door behind them. He brought the paper back out of his pocket and turned it over, leaving it and a pen on the table and turning towards her. "For some reason, these ... visions, or whatever you want to call them, seem to be triggered by proximity to me," he explained, stepping closer, "And I'm going to try and trigger one, and hopefully we'll be able to get the rest of the message," He stopped, as though asking her permission. She nodded, steeling herself as he closed the gap between them. The pounding in her head was resuming, just as it had the last time, and as he touched her arm, the blinding whiteness engulfed her once again.
