Galactica Exterior
In a Puddle Jumper stationed outside the damaged hull of the Galactica, McKay and a pilot worked to extend the force field behind the PJ to cover the affected compartment dangling in space by a mere thread to the hull. Having done this procedure when McKay was stranded in a sunken Jumper, they knew how to proceed. McKay adjusted the cloak and force field energy to form a bubble extending outward from the PJ to the affected Galactica compartment. Once the bubble stabilized, the PJ could open its rear hatch so someone could EVA to the outside of the doomed compartment.
Since they were in the vacuum of space without gravity, it would be relatively simple to load the bodies on the PJ with just three people. It helped that Chief Tyrol was a husky man. He was still onboard to assist the Atlantis personnel. Not knowing if there would be sufficient air in the bubble or in the compartment, the pilot and the two medics donned EVA (space) suits just in case something went wrong.
McKay stayed to man the controls since he too had the ATA gene therapy necessary to operate the PJ. It helped that McKay had flown PJs many times. Still, he had to concentrate to maintain the craft in position and the force field at the correct strength in the designated direction.
"Okay, McKay, lower the hatch. We are taking a walk to the door lock," the Pilot ordered.
McKay sealed the passenger compartment so he would be in an airtight area. The team managed to open the hatch with some C4. Inside, the air was thick. Five bodies protruded under bulkhead pieces. The sixth was a blonde woman in GI BDUs. The medic went to her first. He nodded that she was still alive.
"McKay, we found the Colonel. However, it's bad. The medics secured her head in case of neck trauma. We are loading her in the AF quarantine unit to stabilize her. Three of the others are still alive. Two are dead."
The AF quarantine unit looked like a coffin with a window. Carter's head could be seen with the oxygen mask attached. In it she could be transported safely.
"Copy that," McKay answered. "McKay to Galactica bridge."
"Galactica actual, Tigh here Dr. McKay. What did you find?"
"Four out of six are alive with severe injuries. The air was nearly gone. We are loading them now."
"And Colonel Carter?"
"Alive, barely, but it's not good, she might not…" McKay choked.
"Doctor, General O'Neill is here healing people. He is performing miracles. Land in the Flight Deck where you left."
"What?" McKay looked at the others. "Did he take another Ancient download?" Everyone shrugged. Chief Tyrol looked at them without understanding. "McKay to General O'Neill."
"O'Neill."
"We found her but it's not good. You didn't happen to go Ancient when no one was looking, did you? Because we could use that healing voodoo thing you do."
Negative. I've worn out a hand healing doohickey… or maybe I'm just too tired. Landry is arranging the sarcophagus with the Jaffa. Get her back to Earth, ASAP!"
"Dr. McKay, you are clear to land in the Flight Deck." Tigh put a call through to Adama, letting him know. But in that time, McKay took the Jumper through the Gate to Atlantis and on to Earth.
Galactia Interior
Adama and Jack left the triage compartment with Doc Cottle to check through the other wounded unable to be moved from other compartments on different decks. As they proceed through the corridors, more and more people stared. Some made religious signs on themselves. A few were stony faced. More were afraid. But they gathered in the hallways in O'Neill's wake in an almost herd mentality.
The guards with Adama called for reinforcements on every level. The PA system blared commands for everyone to go back to work. Along the route, the crew left what they were doing to get a glimpse of O'Neill. At that time, Tigh sent the toughest Marines he had left to clear a path so O'Neill could get to the wounded in other locations. O'Neill was creeped out. People were trying to touch him, pulling his sleeve as he passed. They called out prayers and implications to him. Adama turned and growled at them to stop being idiots. This was only a new medical tool and to stop over reacting.
Adama called Tigh over the radio a guard had with him. Finally, Tigh had to shut down entire levels to manage the throngs or he would lose containment of the situation. Marines marched into every level breaking up gatherings standing around or praying. With a ruthlessness Tigh used on New Caprica, he regained control of the ship, arresting those who did not obey orders. His action made an impression. Finally Adama got on the PA system and gave them hell for the near mutiny.
He didn't know it was just the beginning.
Arula: Roslin's office
To reassure her people, President Roslin prepared a statement to let the people on the ships know that everything was being handled. The speech described the efforts being made with the assistance of the Atlantis base. To deliver that address, Richard Woolsey made good O'Neill's promise to facilitate contact between the two locations through the Stargate. Woolsey contacted Major Lorne at the Arula Stargate. Lorne opened the Gate and contacted the Beta Site. From there, Mitchell's communication team relayed her transmission to the Galactica and the Fleet. In the CIC, Tigh had no time to deal with her. She was the last person he needed on his neck as he tried to contain the chaos. The communications officer connected her to the Pegasus CIC. She asked the Pegasus communications officer to arrange her broadcast to the Fleet. He did.
While she was waiting for the connection to be established for wide broadcast, someone picked up the hackers' live feed from the Galactica's security cameras in the triage center. As O'Neill worked the wounded on the Galactica, everyone in Roslin's office watched transfixed. On the live feed, O'Neill could be seen and heard. Roslin and everyone else saw Dr. Cottle and the Admiral examine the wounds, showing O'Neill the extent of the injuries. Then they saw O'Neill stretching out his hand over the body. The General appeared to shoot a light out from his palm.
In real time, the wounds closed. People who had been moaning in pain bleeding to death sat up and walked away. Dr. Cottle with the help of the Atlantis doctor set broken limbs then stood back. O'Neill stretched forth his hand. Broken limbs that had dangled at odd angles minutes before, reformed whole again. Then O'Neill stretched forth his hand and the bones knitted together with the skin closing in minutes. That soldier stood up and walked without any evidence of pain or favoritism of the limb. Roslin heard Adama tell the man he had been stunned nothing more and it was another person's blood. The man walked away confused.
"Mr. Woolsey," Roslin choked not finding the words. "It's all true isn't it?"
"What is, ma'am?"
"O'Neill is an immortal."
"Hardly, Madame President," Woolsey answered with vehemence. "He's using a medical tool, that's all. The General is using an alien device which can help heal certain injuries, though not all. He can use it because…"
But she wasn't listening. No one in the office was. Everyone stared as O'Neill went to work on a man after Dr. Cottle removed a piece of bulkhead from the thigh. No one heard a word Woolsey said.
On the Rising Star
"Zarek is coming," a young man ran in breathlessly to the small living area where the computer hackers were handling the transmissions. They were hastily re-routing network connections and passing notes through the various servers to scramble their identities. Someone was trying to trace them, but they had to stay ahead of the search.
"They shut down the security cameras on those decks. We're blind."
"Okay, wrap it up and shut us down."
At that moment, Tom Zarek, Vice President of the Colonials stomped in. it was so crowded in the compartment, standing up was useless. Zarek shoved one fellow out of the way to get closer to the terminals.
"Re-run it from the beginning," he ordered. Once the recording restarted, the tech got up to give his seat to Zarek. At a few points Zarek had them re-run the segment to be sure he saw it or had them clear up the conversations.
Zarek's intelligent face clouded as he watched and listened. He was a clever man with keen political instincts. On those recordings, he saw a way to solidify his position as the power behind the throne, indefinitely. And that's where he had decided long ago was the place for the most power with the least accountability.
"Give me a copy of that and a player." He took both and sent a minion ahead to the flight deck to ready a Raptor Shuttle and a Marine escort. Losing no time, he made it down to the Beta Site Planet. Once there he had the picket dial Arula and stepped through. There ground transportation took him directly to the dig site. Exiting the vehicle, Zarek knew that as Vice President of the Colonies, he was entitled to inspect the site. By then Roslin's troops had arrived. They saluted and admitted him, joining the escort.
Since O'Neill had left Atlantis abruptly to help on the Galactica, Sheppard became the ranking officer on the base. As such he had to direct traffic at Atlantis for the rescue efforts. As luck would have it, delays impeded the Jumper crews leaving with medical teams for the Beta Site. Then he had to assemble the extra troops to the returning Jumpers and send them to secure the Arula positions. Sheppard worked as swiftly as possible to put in action plans to reinforce the Ancient Chair site and the Stargate. Then he coordinated with Major Lorne's team on Arula in case an evacuation of Atlantis personnel still there became necessary. Then he had to wait until Lorne arrived to relieve him as base commander. So, Sheppard was the last to arrive on Arula. Once there he proceeded to collect Dr. Jackson, per O'Neill's instructions.
Zarek got there first.
Sgt. Bates halted the Colonial delegation. He had been instructed by Major Lorne not to admit any Colonials to the underground facility. Zarek was not amused.
"Sergeant, are you forbidding the Vice President of the Twelve Colonies access to an area on his own planet?" Zarek's chief of security asked in a surly threatening manner. Many of the other guards and retainers murmured in agitation.
"Sorry, I have my orders."
"Then call whatever lame assed excuse for a superior you have and get your orders changed. NOW!"
"Bates," he commed to Lt. Cadman. "We have company. The man says he's the Vice President. He's requesting permission to enter." Bates listened on his head set. "Sir, may I ask your name?"
"Zarek, Vice President Tom Zarek." Lt. Cadman heard as well. She directed Bates to contact Major Lorne who was the ranking officer on the planet.
"Yes, ma'am," Bates commed Major Lorne. "Sorry, ma'am," he said softly, "but Major Lorne went back to Atlantis to relieve Colonel Sheppard. It's your call."
"Dr. Jackson says, we have no choice. Let him in. I'm sending Captain Thrace to meet him."
"Sir, Captain Thrace is on her way to meet your party. You may proceed when she arrives, sir."
"Thank you, Sergeant."
Zarek didn't need to throw his weight around to a nobody. He could afford to be professional. However, the Colonial guards made a point of shoving him with their shoulders as they passed to the dig entrance as an expression of their indignation. They weren't waiting at the gate.
Starbuck and Daniel climbed the stairs to the tomb's entrance. Daniel was not happy to be admitting more people.
"Please, make sure he doesn't touch, okay?"
"I think we all got that, Dr. Jackson. I said I was sorry. I'm not going to grovel."
"No one asked you to grovel. I just wish you would believe us when we tell you something. The Colonials all act as if we are some sort of bad guys. Well, it gets old."
"Jury is still out on that one, Dr. Jackson."
Reaching the top, Starbuck came to attention and saluted. She hated Zarek's guts on a personal level, but he was the legitimate Vice President.
"Captain Thrace, sir."
"Captain," Zarek saluted back. "Dr. Jackson, I'm here to see this device."
"Um, sir, I want to caution you not to touch anything. And please, the fewer people in here the safer." Daniel threw a meaningful look at the entourage.
"So I've heard." Zarek gestured to the guards to separate and two to follow him in. Daniel let him enter first. Starbuck took up the next position. The Security Chief left his second to secure the entrance and came up behind her.
Once down in the lowest chamber, Atlantis guards stood by the doorway. Lt. Cadman waited in the ante chamber. It was a little crowded, so two of the guards were asked to stand on the landing of the first flight of stairs.
"Captain Thrace, report."
Starbuck gave him an abbreviated version of events but included her mistake. Zarek nodded, walking to the Chair and around it examining it without touching it.
"Show me what you touched."
She walked to the wall with the inscription and pointed. Then she went to the chair and pointed. "And sir, I sat in it, so my body touched most of it."
"Thank you for your honesty, Captain. But for the record, show me exactly what you did." He gestured to the chair.
"Um, Mr. Vice President, as I have said, it's not a good idea to touch anything." Daniel moved between him, Starbuck, and the chair.
"Then, you tell me. How does it work?"
"We don't actually know how it works. But, she if she touches it again she could accidentally activate the controls again and launch more missiles."
"You don't know?" Zarek looked at the chair to examine it again. "I don't see any controls."
"That's just it. The controls are all over the chair. We aren't sure exactly where they all are. So, don't touch it. Let our scientists make that evaluation." Daniel folded his arms across his chest with a little hunch hoping the man would not insist.
"I understand that you have seen such a device before. Is that true?"
"Yes, we have. That's why we know not to touch it."
"Hmmm, and you didn't think to tell us about this thing."
"We just found it a few hours ago."
"And now the Fleet is elsewhere. The Galactica is out of commission. And the population is in an uproar."
"Well, by now, hasn't your media explained it was an accident?"
"Was it? Was it an accident, Dr. Jackson?"
"What are you saying that we made Captain Thrace launch missiles at the Fleet?"
"You've lured us here to this planet so you could fire upon us. That's what the people are saying out there. They are enraged, Dr. Jackson."
"Well, once Captain Thrace and the President explain, they'll understand. Or… don't you want them to understand?"
"I want you to understand how serious this matter is, Dr. Jackson." Zarek had his Security Chief bring the video player. "I want you to watch something everyone in the fleet just saw."
He played the recording of O'Neill operating the Goa'uld hand healing device. Jackson's reaction was telling. The man knew what was happening. But Starbuck's reaction was priceless. She was awed and confused. She had heard all the rumors and dismissed them. Standing here with Dr. Jackson for a few hours made her certain the rumors were ridiculous. But she understood that something profound had happened on the Galactica.
"So, how did the General do it?" Zarek demanded with deceptive calm.
"He used an alien medical device."
"And this device does what?"
"It heals people on a very limited basis."
"Limited, is that what you call it? I call it a godsdamned miracle." Zarek grinned his fox in the hen house grin. "I don't see any device. Tell me, how can such a small device heal a belly wound or a broken leg?"
"Well, it's complicated."
"And…?"
"Well, it's alien technology. We don't really know how it works."
"Just like you don't know how this thing," he pointed to the Chair, "works? Oh, come now Doctor. You must know something or how else could you know how to work it? I mean just look. General O'Neill certainly knows what he is doing with that device." Zarek peered at the picture again. "Which I still can't see. And why is the General of all people doing it? He's a general. That's what medics are for."
"Well, that's because Jack is the only one who can besides Colonel Carter." Daniel looked perplexed. "Where is Colonel Carter?"
Zarek paused. He knew that Daniel was good friends with both O'Neill and Carter. Frowning and lowering his voice, he answered regretfully.
"She's missing. I'm sorry. She was on the decks blown up by the missile." Zarek had the decency to be sorry. He had nothing against the woman. "We have rescue teams searching. No one has found the body yet."
Daniel felt as though he had been kicked in the stomach. He turned away to control himself. He couldn't. After all these years, she couldn't die like this. A gasp escaped him. Maybe it was the stress over what happened that morning. Maybe it was the many threats made to him. Maybe it was the guilt that somehow he could have, should have somehow prevented this tragedy. But Daniel's emotions flowed over him. Anyone but Sam and he would have dealt with it. But it was Sam, after all these years, after all those missions and after all those near misses. The thought that he had terribly misjudged the situation was eating him alive.
"Dr. Jackson, I'm sure if we find the body General O'Neill can use this thing to revive her."
Daniel turned in his grief. "It doesn't work that way. If she's dead, then it can't help her. I told you. It's very limited." Daniel turned away again to compose himself. "Can you tell them to take her back to Atlantis as soon as they find her?"
"I'm sure General O'Neill will do that. He's still there… I'm sorry." Zarek assumed a more tactful approach. Daniel's grief was overwhelming him. "Doctor Jackson, you say it's limited. Then if it is limited is there something that is more un-limited that could help?"
Daniel sighed heavily, getting back control of himself. "Yes, but we don't have one."
"One what?"
Daniel shook his head. "It doesn't matter. If we do not find her very soon it will be too late anyway. She will have been dead too long."
"I don't understand. Is it… like this hand device, just more what, powerful?"
"Yes, same idea but it can raise the dead."
"Then you have used it?"
"Yes, many, many times. But then you heard the stories. I know what they are saying."
Starbuck and Zarek paused. It was an admission they were afraid to hear.
"Because you were dead?"
"Yes or dying."
And General O'Neill, he's used it too?"
"Yes."
"Because he was…dead?"
"Yes."
"He died? You don't mean died as in clinically scientifically dead?"
"Yes. Pretty much…dead." Daniel stared upward. "He's been dead more times than anyone can imagine. But, he's here now." Daniel smiled ruefully through his grief. "There, now you know. It's what you wanted to know anyway."
Zarek swallowed hard. Starbuck was conflicted. It was on her face. She knew Jackson a bit now. He did not seem to be a man to exaggerate. Nevertheless, these claims were fantastic. She could not help asking.
"So what's it like to be …dead?"
"Um, different, it's not the same every time."
The other two had a strange look on their faces. The discussion was surreal.
"Different how?"
"Um, well, sometimes you knew you were dead. And sometimes you, well, you wouldn't understand."
Zarek coughed, looking very disconcerted. "And this other thing revived you each time?"
Sadness welled up in Daniel, but he was in better control. "For Jack yes."
"Something else worked for you?"
"Yeah."
"So it's true you ascended to a higher plane of existence," Starbuck asked reverently?
"Oh, you heard about that, too." Daniel coughed to cover his emotions. Starbuck and Zarek exchanged glances.
"Can't you help Colonel Carter ascend?"
"No, I can't, not anymore," Daniel said regretfully. "I'm here now. If I were there," he looked up, "then maybe I could. It depends. It's complicated."
"Do the other gods have to give you permission or something?"
"Or something," Daniel choked and coughed again.
Zarek looked at the chair with a little more respect.
"You've met them?" Starbuck asked in disbelief.
"Who?"
"The other gods."
"Um, I don't remember much about it when I come back." He sure as hell wasn't going to explain it better to these two. This last time he returned he did remember, not that they needed to know.
"When you come back?" Starbuck was starting to freak out. "How many times did you come back?"
"Couple of times, like I said, it's complicated.
"Has anyone else around here died and come back?"
"Besides Jack and me...? Colonel Carter and Teal'c and a few others, yeah."
"Is that why he can use this hand device?"
"No."
"What then?"
"You have to have something in your blood to activate it. Trust me, you don't want it."
"Why not?"
"You don't that's all." Daniel looked at the ceiling so they wouldn't see his frustration and grief.
"So, does Starbuck have it? Is that how she used this weapon?"
"No." He coughed again.
"So you do know how this thing works."
"No, how to use it. The science is beyond us." Daniel paused becoming overwhelmed with grief again.
"Can you do it?"
"No, but Jack can."
"It sounds like General O'Neill is a very special man …and Colonel Carter, too. I'm sorry, really. I mean that." Zarek did sound sorry. Starbuck shot him a quick look, not believing she heard him tell the truth. But he looked sorry. "Then Captain Thrace can too apparently?"
"Apparently," Daniel got his control back and turned to Zarek.
"Why are you people doing all this? That is what no one can understand. There has to be more to this if you have powers only the gods have. What could we possibly have that you want?"
"Look, we are trying to help. What's so hard to understand about that? Jack went to help your people because he's a good man. It was the right thing to do."
"Oh we're grateful. We just don't know for what. Are we supposed to be grateful you destroyed one of our capital ships or because you started riots all over the Fleet or because our people are dead because of these devices? Or because we are supposedly living with the gods themselves?"
"What?" Daniel got confused by the switch in attitude.
"What I want Dr. Jackson is for you to tell me exactly how this works."
"I think you need to talk to Jack. I'm done." Calling the guards, Daniel had them escorted out.
Once outside, Zarek called Starbuck over.
"Captain, we just learned a big secret."
"Everyone knows about the resurrections, sir."
"No, Starbuck. We learned that you can activate that weapon." He raised his eyebrows to her to wait for her to get it. She thought about it and gave a short nod.
"Yes, sir."
"I want you here. Don't leave. I'm going back to the Galactica to talk this over with the Admiral. I want you prepared to sit in it again."
"But…"
"Captain, I thought you were a great card player. In Triad you if you don't have full colors, you had better bluff big and raise the stakes."
"That depends on what's in the pot to win, sir."
Zarek leaned into whisper, "You don't know? And here I thought you were smart not just a smart ass." He shook his head and turned to leave.
"I get it, Mr. Zarek."
"Good."
&&&&&&&&