"Did you get any sleep last night?" Daniel asked as Adrienne came around the corner, her step indicating that she was somewhere between asleep and highly caffeinated. The longer they were friends the more it seemed that the tables were turned, Daniel making sure that Adrienne had gotten the needed rest.
"Meh," she grumbled, reaching to steal his coffee, "enough where if Sam wants us to leave after the briefing we can but if she pushes it back or we have to wait a few hours I'm gonna go crash."
"I have an energy shake, if you need it," he offered, his assistant nodding in thanks.
"Let's hope it doesn't get that far, God only knows what your definition of an energy shake is," she teased playfully. Deciding not to note that it was actually something Carolyn had suggested to, health-wise, cut down on his caffeine consumption. Daniel just stepped back, allowing Adrienne to enter the briefing room before him.
"Just don't over do it Ad, ok?" he added as they walked to the table, the Cajun shrugging.
"Gotta keep it going, ya know? No rest for the weary."
Daniel sighed in agreement.
The folders were already at their places, manila and stamped with the familiar bright red 'Classified.' As if anyone would have any idea what they were reading. Daniel laughed internally, taking his seat as his assistant joined him, leaning over and resting her head on her arms.
He really needed to talk to her. As much as he appreciated her work ethic, Adrienne was gonna kill herself.
"We're going old-school, as Jack would say," Sam started as Vala scooted in, the last one for once. Adrienne was usually the last one, with a well-crafted excuse as always, but Daniel was doing the best he could to keep her from running on Cajun time 24/7.
"Old-school how?" Cameron asked, opening the folder as Sam simply smiled.
"We're gonna send you guys through. Simple read-outs. Just like we used to go. Meet people, not worry so much about who might be after us or what. Just explore."
"Sam, do you think that's a good idea?" Adrienne spoke, a chill running down her spine. Daniel cut his eyes over at her, not in disapproval, but in agreement. Given everything lately and what they had been encountering on various worlds, the archaeologist wasn't sure this was a good idea at all...
That, and with Kasuf's "visit" a few weeks ago, nearly everyone on base had been on edge; especially Jack and Sam.
"Yes Addy, it'll be fine," Sam countered back smiling, "We had success for many years going about it. And I think, if anything, exploring will give us a better idea as to how far certain old friends have gotten…"
"In other words, we're snooping and rushing to be overly cautious in order to avoid outside intervention or ulterior motives," Daniel whispered to Adrienne, whose eyes cut over at him, still worried he could tell.
"One could say that," the general said with a grin, indicating that they open the information that they had.
"Okay so any ideas as to exactly where we are going?" Cam asked, Sam smiling.
"Actually, I'm a little jealous that I won't be able to join you myself," she answered, clicking on the smartboard over her shoulder. "Because I was starting to think that we would never encounter a civilization like this…"
An image appeared, a woman, dressed in a Sari on an elephant.
The type of civilization was unmistakable.
"No shit? We really get to be Indy and Short Round!?" Adrienne chuckled, tapping Daniel's knee, "You have to call me Short Round this ENTIRE mission."
Daniel shook his head, catching the reference, equally as excited about this find.
"Where did you find this? I thought we had determined that the Goa'uld hadn't taken an interest in the Indus Valley, with only a few exceptions," he asked, knowing it hadn't come from any of the files he and Adrienne had been working on.
"Old lists," Sam answered, tapping the file folder. "Jack said if we are dealing with, well, possibly Anubis, that it was best we start backtracking, even if it means hitting a few planets that we never got the chance to visit."
"All the fun stuff you did before I came aboard..." Vala added, her folder actually open for once.
"Depends on your definition of fun," Daniel muttered, only his assistant catching his meaning.
He could truly be awful sometimes.
"No rush. I wanna get a few more teams out today. So go ahead and read over the prelims. Do what you need to do to get ready. You leave first thing in the morning. 0800," Sam announced as Daniel peered over at Adrienne.
"Hear that Ad?" he said with a grin. "Gateroom by 6."
"Shut up, ass," she muttered as she stood, planning to do what she had told Daniel she would do if this very thing happened. She turned to grab him, tell him she was gonna catch a few hours on base and then come down and pick up wherever she left off, or wherever he needed her, but, he was talking to Teal'c and she didn't wanna be rude. Shrugging, she grabbed her phone from her pocket and shot him a text saying the same, face at the screen as she headed out of the briefing room.
"Didya tell him?" Vala was at her side faster than lightning, faster than she had been all week, with the same question that Adrienne had heard since Monday.
"Sure did," the Cajun said, peering up smirking, "And would you believe it? He got down on one knee and proposed right there!"
"He would," Vala sneered, taking a moment to peek behind, "Well, more likely he would bumble and stumble until you shut him up, but it'd have the same message."
Adrienne laughed, shaking her head as she headed to the elevators.
"I don't see what the hold up is," her friend continued, following, seeming to have no intention of heading to the intelligence office, "and you didn't even tell me what happened when he picked you up. We didn't hear a peep out of either of you all day Sunday and the two of you have been holed up in the lab all week."
"Yes, working, that thing we get a paycheck for," Adrienne answered, stepping into the elevator and tapping the button for her floor.
"Fine, whatever, I know that your geek knows no bounds, but you didn't tell me about Sunday. This is the second time Addy, the second that I expected a call, and you don't because YOU'RE with HIM," Vala added, hopping in right behind her.
Adrienne just wanted to go to bed.
"Second time?" the Cajun asked as the doors closed, "What do you mean "second time ``?''
"After your date with Dex," Vala clarified, "After that you were supposed to call me. And you didn't. You went to Daniel's. Don't think Ronon didn't know that's exactly what happened."
"Vala I ALWAYS go to Daniel's," Adrienne moaned, rubbing her face, "he's my BEST friend."
"That you just happen to be in love with."
The Cajun glared at her, clearly angry.
"I told you I was drunk."
"Oh we definitely could tell that," Vala countered, "And you're a crappy actress sober. Was alcohol supposed to make you not?"
Adrienne didn't reply, looking up as the floors ticked by.
"And we all know that alcohol is the serum of truth…."
"Dammit!" the archaeologist shouted, slamming the emergency stop, "Fine ya wanna know about my love life?! What details do ya want?! Yes, I am in love with Daniel, more than anything. Yes, I'm pretty sure he feels the same way. No, we can't do anything about it even if we were to fess up because of reasons that I'm not gettin' into it with you in this elevator. And Sunday? Sunday I woke up with Daniel bringing me hot tea because I had the hang-over from hell and we hung out and watched TV and did nothing because nothing can happen!"
"And where did you sleep? Where did he sleep?"
Eyes rolling, Adrienne slammed the button, crossing her arms.
"Don't think we haven't noticed, not just what you told me, but on missions. Seriously, you're worried about whatever happens if you two date when you practically are anyway."
Adrienne continued to ignore her.
"It's not fair to Dex," Vala added as the elevator came to a stop, Adrienne glaring over her.
"And since when do you care about Ronon's feelings?" the Cajun shot back, "We've talked and we're fine. In fact you seem to be the only one that has a problem with any of this…"
But her friend wouldn't answer, remaining in the elevator as Adrienne got out of the cage and turned around, still frowning.
"You're all worried about my personal life but is there something you need to be telling me?" Adrienne asked, curious, as there was something in Vala's tone that wasn't the typical jealousy and nosiness.
"Don't be a wimp," she said, slamming the button, the doors closing before Adrienne could catch them.
"Whatever," she muttered, reaching into her pocket to see if her text had been answered. It did have a message, a Daniel text simply reading: Get some sleep. I'll come get you if I need you.
Feeling bad about leaving him to work alone, but exhausted from staying up until nearly four in the morning trying to get a huge section done in the database, Adrienne trudged off to her quarters.
He hadn't heard from Adrienne all morning after a text message back saying "Thanks" and not to let her sleep too long but considering the amount of work he found sitting on his desk finished and how far she had gotten ahead in their schedule he decided she could sleep all day prior to leaving in the morning. He went to lunch, joining some of his friends and comrades for a jovial discussion about sporting events that he didn't watch, excusing himself early to head back down to the lab take a look at the file folder and see if there was anything he would need to wake Adrienne up for to discuss.
His fearless Robin, however, had beat him there.
Deciding that he should never doubt her work ethic, or obsession, ever again, Daniel walked into his lab, his assistant bent over the center table, over a basket of what looked to be small building blocks.
"You're up already," he said as he entered, Adrienne not answering at first.
"Yeah my goddamn body clock's screwed up ta 'ell," she finally mumbled, noncommittally, not even looking up at him. He paused, setting down his coffee cup and walking over to her desk where her face was nearly shoved into the basket.
"Why are you playing with toys?" he had to ask, completely clueless as to what she was doing.
"I tried to go through the mission folda," she muttered, her accent thick as if she hadn't slept, "but I couldn't focus and I need ta bring my mind back ta focus."
Frowning, she shifted around some more.
"You use Legos to focus?" Daniel questioned, yet again, this being another piece of new information about his assistant. In the past he may have made fun of her, but in light of recent personal realizations, now, he found it rather endearing.
"Sorta," she said quickly, "I couldn't sleep so I went down to the Wal-Mart, and…"
"That's some Star Warsy ship," he interrupted, as she smiled brightly.
"Yes Daniel, it's a Star Warsy ship. It's an Imperial Star Destroyer."
"To build?" It was a rhetorical question, but it slipped out of his mouth nonetheless.
"Yeah…" her tone was sarcastic, her frown even worse.
"You build children's toys? A lot?" He couldn't resist; he wanted more than anything to scrap mission prep for now and go to her apartment to dig through and find all of these little toy treasures she apparently used to destress. Hell, he slept over there multiple times a week now and had never seen a single one.
This was too good.
"I don't just build children's toys ya coo yon, it's stress relief. I didn't feel like watching a movie because that would require me to sit down and I wanted to stand up and do something. Yes, I should be doing yoga, some breathing, and meditation. But, I wanted to buy a 12 year old's starship and put it together. Sue me."
And with that, she kept digging.
"Sorry I offended you," he said, baffled by her attitude. She had been fine this morning. Finally she sighed out, walking over and shutting the door.
"Indy, I'm sorry I snapped at you. I'm just real nervous," she paused, a look in her eyes that he didn't understand.
"Hopefully not over this mission," he ventured carefully, "This really is how we used to do things, we've just been extra careful and Sam's been saving us for more administrative stuff. This'll be just like those old days, you know, nerdy floppy hat me with zinc on my nose, your favorite old pictures."
Adrienne laughed, remembering those pictures, shrugging and turning to lean against the table.
"I dunno. Ever since the scare, and they almost let me go, I feel like I have to be the top performer in this entire department just to stay around. One small screw up and they'll send me out of here."
Daniel laughed. For as wild and crazy as Adrienne was, professional was her middle name, and the fear of losing her job was her utmost concern.
"Trust me that was a temporary witch hunt. You put them on something that'll occupy them for a while. Just remember, this has been my life for my entire career here. You're fine and I won't let anything happen to you…" he trailed, realizing what he just said and how it sounded, and she smiled, reaching out for his hand.
"I sure do hope so," she said, turning and sifting through a little bit more, "I'll be good in a second; just let me clear my head. If I finish this I feel like I've accomplished something."
"Ok. Well, I'm gonna get started on the back research, Short Round," he teased, remembering her request from this morning, "Let me know when you're ready to join me."
"Dammit!" she swore, Daniel hiding his smile.
Work ethic, worked every time...
"Or you can come look this over with me…"
"Not yet," she fussed, frowning up at him, "I can't find the damn pieces. I only have six."
Or not…
"Adrienne, come on," Daniel set the folder aside, throwing up his hands, "This isn't like you! What's going on?"
The Cajun frowned, pushing the pieces away.
"First, this planet is like Ancient India and for some reason I will never be able to explain, I could not pass a single test on those people in undergrad to save my life. Second, I can't sleep at all this week, which is making me grouchy…"
Daniel stopped what he was doing. That was odd, Adrienne could always sleep.
"And thirdly," she was ranting now, her accent starting to slip, "Vala won't let up since I told her that I lo-"
She paused, turning back to dig in the basket.
Wait, did she just almost say what I think she said?
I need to talk to Vala.
Now.
No, stop, be an adult and just stay your ass right here.
"Told her what?" Daniel pushed a little, debating whether or not he should walk over to her or continue to stand here and have a small panic attack.
"Nothing," Adrienne grumbled, shaking her head, "I need another one of those pieces."
"Pieces?"
"Those pieces," she clarified, pointing to the diagram, "in step 18. Skip ahead and pull those pieces for me."
Daniel didn't even try to suppress a laugh.
Whatever, he told himself, you love her, she's stressed out and might have spilled her guts to Vala who will never let her live it down.
Just placate her.
And stop thinking about what she said to Vala.
"Step 18?"
"Yep, I'm gonna put step 17 together, the thrusters, if you could," she paused, "you think I'm crazy don't you?"
"I don't think," he responded, "I know. Step 18?"
Adrienne flushed.
"Please."
"At least you can't sleep so you can work on prep later," he noted, digging into the basket, "Since now you're gonna make me build a battleship-"
"Star Destroyer," she corrected, bumping his hip with her own.
"Same difference," he joked, pushing his glasses up his face and carrying on.
He offered for her to crash in his room, which was code for "I can hold you so you can sleep" but she just felt so stupid even considering it. She'd lied to him about why she couldn't sleep, lied to him about a week's worth of conversations with Vala, in fact, the only thing she hadn't lied to him about was her lack of knowledge in the ancient civilizations of the Indian Peninsula, which was her weakest area.
Truth of the matter was she could read about Ancient India, actually in a sick twist of irony the few images and info sent from the MALP looked JUST like her stupid Indiana Jones movie, and Adrienne had always been able to work on the fly, even if she preferred to prepare things in advance. What had been bothering her all week was her idiotic admittance, how weak she had become, all because of this man who was still texting her at this very moment.
"Might as well keep lying Addy," she grumbled to herself, beginning her reply, "Then try to spend tomorrow realizing why in the hell you are sitting here in DC and it sure as 'ell ain't because of some man."
Starting to wear a bit. Gonna crash. Remember, I have to be in the gateroom at 5 ;)
"That should do it," she said, leaning back in her bed to pull up some language dictionaries.
Starting to wear a bit. Gonna crash. Remember, I have to be in the gateroom at 5 ;)
"She's even a bad liar on text," he muttered to himself as he set the phone on his dresser, knowing exactly what she was doing. Dr. Adrienne Rowan was going to be studying, the sparse mission folder, pulling out any books that she had, running so many tabs on the computer that the browser might explode, anything but sleep.
He loved that woman so much.
Despite that, however, she needed to sleep because he was well aware of the fact that she hadn't gotten a good rest all week. At first he thought that she had just overdone it on Saturday, since Sunday she had just huddled into his bed not moving, but it was her quietness that bothered him. Not that Adrienne was overly chatty, they had their moments but she could also be very quiet and pensive. He was just used to more of a mix, a blending of the two.
And what she was talking about in the lab, which Daniel could not get out of his head.
What exactly did she accidentally tell Vala?
He knew what he wanted it to be, more than anything, but he pushed the thought, the hope, aside his other concern screaming equally as loudly in his head.
The one thing that was bothering Daniel the most was the underlying purpose of this mission and why Sam was sending them out so fast. Adrienne's close call with unemployment had been closer than he thought she was admitting to herself, and he knew that their department needed to produce something else and soon. It felt lately, as if every senior staff meeting that he attended led to a conversation of cost/benefit of the program and a friendly little reminder of what the Destiny project had cost taxpayers.
Nevermind what it cost in lives, or what it had cost Daniel emotionally. He still felt the urge to vomit every time he thought about it.
If this went well it was going to be like this more often, go, go, go, to find those things that kept the senate oversight committee happy. What exactly they wanted he was never entirely sure, but revelations about Earth origins were not high on that list. Sam, on the other hand, had different motives, motives that they had discussed over late coffee in her office this week. She was concerned about Kasuf's revelation, as was Jack, and they were starting to put together the pieces of what had been happening lately. Alone, each incident had little meaning, an infiltration that could have happened at any time, strange shards of pottery, little things coming back in reports, encounters with Ori soldiers. Together, however, Daniel and Sam were starting to paint a picture, one that they hoped was all in their heads. She had decided, with her husband in full agreement, that there needed to be a new secondary mission: figure out where in the hell Anubis had gone.
That was a mission Daniel really wished he could ignore.
Shedding his clothes to the floor and kicking them in the corner, screw straightening, he was worn out, Daniel grabbed his phone, crawling into bed and shutting off the light. He started to message her back, trying one more time to see if she would come down, if not for any other reason than to try to get her to talk. Their entire relationship was so frustrating to him now. In the past, not that he had much real relationship experience, it was more a mish mash of unexpected circumstances, and in that situation he would just ask her to dinner like a normal person. But there were rules now, especially since they were team members, and while he might be able to talk his way out of that part, maybe, there was just something else that made it difficult to tell her how he felt. It was a cruel irony, what he had really always wanted in a partner and, in his dreams, a lover, was just down the hall, studying and preparing for a mission and he couldn't say a word to her.
Because she deserved better than to be brought into his train wreck of a life, no matter how much he wanted her to be.
Grumbling, he looked at her last message.
"I could just say that I wanted to go over the language, or any possible language we might encounter…" he said aloud, starting to type and stopping, his head falling back against the headboard.
"Or I could stop sounding like a desperate idiot," he added, tossing the phone aside, "And let go of this fantasy."
"You've lost focus," he self-chastised as he rolled onto his side and hunkered down into the bed, "The focus is on your work. On discovery. On keeping the program alive and keeping the planet, hell, the galaxy safe. It's NOT a damn woman."
Forcing his eyes closed, and his mind to focus, Daniel tried to get some sleep.
P4S-732 was nothing like Dr. Adrienne Rowan could've imagined.
It was better.
They stepped through the gate right into the thick of things, the first time in a long time that they didn't have to hike miles and miles to their destination. The gate was situated in the city center itself, the archaeologist turning around and taking in the sights and amazement. They were in sort of an open to air temple that appeared to be a combination of ancient Greek and ancient Indian architectures, the gate carefully positioned in the middle of this structure. She couldn't be sure, though, from any of the early images whether or not the inhabitants knew what the gate was and were coming to greet the visitors as Daniel said happened so very often, or if they just assumed it was a relic of the gods and built their religious temple around it. No one came though, and the team proceeded onward, Daniel already starting to dig for his camera.
The colors of the clothes worn by the men and the women as they rushed past were like ones that Adrienne had only seen in a storybook or on some of her limited travels through graduate school. She had always known that the ancient world was far more colorful than most people believed, far more, and each and every trip through the Stargate just confirmed things from dig sites that she had always hoped were true.
"Jaw up, Robin," Daniel joked, cocking his head as Cam led the rest of their team to the main entrance.
"Says the man with the camcorder," she laughed, tapping his favorite toy with her knuckle.
"To the woman with the iPad," he joked as she was digging that very object out of her pack. She blushed.
"Which is why we're friends," he added with a raise of his eyebrows, beginning to record.
"Come on people, get the lead out. Let's go make some friends!" Cam declared as he pointed forward, Teal'c and Vala already walking slowly through the throng of people. For a moment the Cajun was concerned, the team no longer appearing to be ignored, as a few gawkers were gathering at the base of the steps to the temple, some pointing and whispering.
"Should…" she started to ask, Daniel shaking his head without even needing to hear the rest of her question.
"This is what we do Ad."
Appearing nervous, grabbing his arm and pulling him closer to her and away from their friends, "You mean this is what you USED to do…"
"More or less," Daniel answered with a shrug, pausing his record, "Although we usually figure out who is in charge fairly quickly. Typically we weren't popped down in the center of the temple, but in those types of cases we just walk around and figure it out."
"And yet you harassed me over the apple incident," Adrienne noted as she frowned, "It seems that before I got here your entire career was apple incident after apple incident. I was just the new target."
Daniel shrugged, "I was only trying to pass on some well thought out experience before my assistant became a fruit salad," he said laughing powering forward, Adrienne grumbling, but laughing, as she brought up the rear.
They exited the front of the temple area into a bustling marketplace that smelled like the east, rich and deep and intoxicating. It reminded Adrienne of some of the markets in DC she liked to go on those rare days when she was free and could explore the city, one of her favorite things to do alone before she had made the friends she had in this program, one friend in particular. There was a strong smell of incense that made her sneeze, the Cajun reaching into her pocket for a tissue. She liked incense; she burned a lot of it in her apartment, so much so that Daniel teased her endlessly, but the smell here was so very strong.
"I think it's Cedar," Daniel whispered, jogging to Adrienne's side having evidently lagged behind to film.
Adrienne sniffed again, nodding, "Nice call shug. Your talents never cease to amaze me."
Daniel was pretty sure he blushed, a crazy thought in his head about buying her perfume, but he pushed it aside, continuing to film.
Oddly enough while there were stares, and no one in the immediate area of the temple seemed particularly alarmed by their presence in the least.
"Anyone look like they're going to speak," Daniel asked, Cameron slowing his pace and peering back.
"I guess they get a lot of visitors from the gods," Cam suggested with a shrug, cocking his head back at the gate.
"Either that or they realize they're not gods and that's a temple to money. It seems that since the Goa'uld fell we're finding a lot more of those kinds of places than not," Daniel added, remembering quite a few of those types of civilizations in the past couple of months that were using the Stargate for that very reason.
"That at least gets us a ticket back," the colonel noted, "The IOA thinks they've found money or trading partners and that's a free trip for you and Addy to come back and dig up holes."
"I bet they'd love that," Vala said with a smirk, "Place even smells like her apartment. Maybe you two can to get a canopy bed like hers and then make it a romantic getaway."
Flushing, Adrienne ignored her, hoping Daniel would do the same.
There was a motion ahead, the crowd parting slightly but not so much as if royalty was going to pass, for a small girl dodging and weaving before breaking through and coming to a stop in front of them.
"I'm to bring you to the palace," the child explained, "The maharajah has heard of your arrival and requested you come with me."
"The maharajah?" Adrienne muttered, both excited and worried, flashing a look to Daniel who just smiled as if he was expecting something like that.
"Yes," the girl said as she shook her head emphatically, "He would like to meet with you at once and see what brings you to our world."
"Told you," Cameron interjected, "They're used to this and Mr. Maha-whatever is getting rich off of it. Some things never change."
Sighing out, Daniel shook his head indicating that they follow.
"We must be aware of the danger," Teal'c noted, "When they realize that we are not gods."
"Some of us," Vala corrected, "Some of us are not gods. Some of us were in fact, a god."
"You were never a god," Adrienne shot back, still upset at her friend's earlier remark, "You had a worm sack and some cool gadgets, that was it. I could go do the same damn thing."
Cameron couldn't help but laugh, shoving his hands in front of his face, "You see Addy that's why you're wasted on Jackson," he joked, "Stuck down in the damn lab when I could be using you to do some real damage."
Rolling his eyes, Daniel carried on, not wanting to hear what other smart remarks Vala might make regarding he and Adrienne in retaliation as his team made their way to the modest palace.
"My name is Lakshmi. Welcome," a caramel-skinned man said, a host for once smiling brightly. Years of experience made Daniel wary, trying to look over at Cam without startling his already nervous assistant.
"Thanks for the welcome," the colonel replied cautiously, the man guiding them into a large area with sofas and lounges.
"Certainly," the Lakshmi continued, "The gate watchers informed me that there was a Jaffa among you, and the Jaffa are always welcome here."
The team was confused; that was definitely something they had never heard before.
"Do not fear," their host assured, "although I feel we need to explain this far too often."
Daniel frowned, for once wishing their new system was in place rather for this mission than the old…
"We have known the truth about the gods for some time although it does feel strange to call them anything else. We are also aware that they have been gone, or at least those who would have been the greatest concern. Long ago, when we first came to question the motives of the gods, we noted that their Jaffa were not simply programmed beings, but those that had been mistreated and confused, often executed for disagreeing or not meeting expectations. That was not our way, had not been long before the gods had shown themselves…"
"You weren't seeded by the Goa'uld?" Adrienne couldn't help but ask, her iPad still out and ready to take notes.
"No, our creators are far older," Lakshmi answered before carrying on, "The Jaffa, however, have been coming here for centuries. At first we believed they were holy beings and that the gods, such as they were, were blessing us with an abundance. We did not experience the violence that others did, others that came through the Chappa'ai to trade claimed they did. We did not understand, when we found that the Jaffa here were not coming at the command of their masters. They were choosing to hide from the gods for fear of execution."
An expression of shock on his face, Teal'c shook his head, "So it does exist?" he asked, "We searched and we searched when we brought the Goa'uld down but…"
"What are you talking about?" Daniel interrupted, bewildered, "What exists?"
Shock spread across his face, Teal'c paused for a moment eyeing their host who seemed to read his mind, a kind smile across his face.
"There were stories, I heard them long before I was first prime. If a child was born deformed, less desirable or a Jaffa did something to anger the gods it was said that there was a paradise that those worthy could escape too. It was called Param Dhama. We searched the galaxy for years. Apophis…" Teal'c trailed, cutting his eyes away.
"We understand. It was what you had to do to survive. Were you to need to truly find the way, you would have found the path. Do not feel as if you need to explain," the kind man bowed his head lightly.
"You do not understand…" Teal'c argued, though Lakshmi was not to be deterred.
"You would have destroyed us all, as you were ordered. We are the most fortunate, then, that you did not discover us until now."
No one spoke for a moment, as really, for once, not a one of them knew what to say, Teal'c still standing among them in shock, disbelief and what was clearly remorse.
"Come," Lakshmi continued, "and join us and we will show you of the paradise that no one ever really believed existed." He thrust his hand into the air, snapping his fingers, a set of large doors opening behind him.
Though he would never mention it to anyone, Daniel thought he saw a tear streak down his old friend's face, Teal'c practically running behind their host.
Daniel wanted to look around and explore himself especially given that he didn't have any preliminaries as he did for so many other worlds. As he and Adrienne had talked about yesterday, neither of them knew very much about ancient Indian-like or Hindu cultures but he just couldn't stop and take any more video and make notes as their host rapidly moved them through the back of the settlement. He listened as Teal'c told stories of Jaffa being smuggled away by chewing on flowers, which Daniel learned as he listened, were some sort of lotus flower that would put the Jaffa to be rescued into a coma and allow them to be smuggled away. "Dead" Jaffa were placed in certain locations, but as Teal'c spoke with the man this was all believed to be myth or rumor, and when bodies were mysteriously removed, this was also chalked up to relatives or friends doing so to keep up the facade. This was done, Lakshmi explained, in order to keep the location of this place secret. Only a very few Jaffa knew how to find it and they took that secret to the grave if needed, in order to make this sanctuary always a safe place to be.
It was all so shocking to him, not only the revelation of this place's existence, but the look on Teal'c's face as he raced around like a child, interrupting explanations only to ask more questions.
"It was said that if a Jaffa were to ever attempt to wield the power of the gods…" the large warrior began as Lakshmi led the group over to a small building, one that appeared to be a laboratory of sorts.
"That they would combust," he finished, guiding the group inside, "That was an invention of Tras'kul, I am sure you are familiar with the name. It was code, and he was able to teach many after he left our protection how to achieve such combustion to make their own escapes."
The Jaffa shook his head, Vala peeking around curiously.
"What about the worms?" she asked, smacking Teal'c's stomach, "Unless you are using Tretonin, the Jaffa need worms."
"Smugglers," Lakshmi answered, "We were first visited by the Jaffa in Ishkur on their quest for Kheb. They showed us how to be a true sanctuary."
"The Sodan…" Cam muttered, Adrienne pulling up more files on her iPad as Teal'c stood there, heartbroken, elated, Daniel wasn't sure, but, what he was certain of was the torrent of emotions raging through his friend. The archaeologist didn't say a word. He even started to reach out and do what his assistant always said was appropriate; that southern thing she was doing this very moment herself, reaching her arm around their friend's waist. Teal'c didn't move at her touch, still standing there with that strange expression on his face.
It was hard to keep quiet, Daniel wondering how many of Teal'c's friends and family had just been killed or discarded because they were not needed when they could've been taken here, because this place existed all along…
Or how many had been taken and survived, but Teal'c never knew.
"We are now free," Teal'c's words broke Daniel's thoughts as Lakshmi came to a stop.
"So it is true that the gods have truly fallen and they will not return…"
"They will not," Daniel answered for his friend, shaking his head. Although, as he gave that very answer he had a sinking feeling; remembering a warning, another reason he was standing here, but he pushed it away.
"I serve on the Jaffa counsel," Teal'c continued. "We have organized and created our own government. I would be honored to tell-" the warrior paused, at a loss for words; though he never really spoke that much anyway.
Lakshmi, however, simply continued smiling. "We would love for you to tell us of the Jaffa council. Please, come. There is much, much more."
Trailing behind a beaming Teal'c, an equally curious Cam and Vala, and his eager assistant, her camera at the ready, Daniel followed along to see the secret warrior's paradise.
Adrienne Rowan couldn't help herself. She just kept holding up her iPad and taking pictures, excited, babbling to herself and elbowing Daniel to keep taking more video.
"This is amazing shug," she started to ramble, "It looks like they're stuck in early Vedic Indian civilization based on the architecture and dress but unless I am missing something it appears they never took the time to develop a caste system then again we could be looking at another situation like with Okulo…"
"Perhaps they didn't need it. The caste system is believed to have originated after the tribes of Southern India invaded and there was a concern about intermarriage and pure blood. Here, if they didn't have a similar upheaval, there would be no need to create a system. And, given their desire to save the Jaffa, another species, the idea of isolationism based on race seems to have completely missed them," Daniel explained, pulling out his video camera again and filming.
"I thought you didn't know much about the history of the Indian Peninsula?" his assistant, curious, asked as Daniel grinned.
"Remember when you decided to crash and not come down to my room?" he asked, still smiling, "I used that time NOT watching bad horror movies to read up."
"You're worse than me," Adrienne said, cutting her eyes at her best friend; the person she loved more than anyone else in the world, noting there was something else in his expression right now, but, she blew it off.
"Prove it," he said with a smile, still filming where Lakshmi was pointing; though she chose not to point that out.
"Most of our Jaffa now live in the city, but for some it has been an adjustment. They have created a kind of city of their own, within our walls…" their host was explaining, unable to hear Daniel and Adrienne's side conversation.
"Sam's told me the truth. About everything. Anything you've left out," she answered, sneaking a quick picture of a market stall. "And that, apparently, I'm just like you. Which considering how close we are is just creepy…"
"We are creepy," he answered without missing a beat. A wiggle in his gut made him realize why exactly they were, "We also need to take into account that this place is a sanctuary to one type of people. The people that were taken to Earth not only had more than planet average Goa'uld interference, just like they did with everyone else, but those on Earth also had to interact with other cultures. Maybe this society here, without having faced those particular challenges, were allowed to develop without negative influence. Or maybe they're just really good people."
Lakshmi was continuing the tour, "Ahead you will see their training facility. Though we are people of peace, the Jaffa hold self-defense classes that our citizens can take. And these classes are open throughout the city…"
"That would be nice for a change," the Cajun replied, reading his thoughts and grabbing his arm.
Daniel nodded in agreement, "We can dream..."
There was grunting. Adrienne looked up to see two Jaffa training as Lakshmi had pointed out, fighting in the style that Teal'c would train her. A collection of mixed-race warriors observed from the sides, kneeling, again, in that same respectful way that Teal'c had taught Adrienne, Ronon and Cameron to kneel as he trained them.
"We have hidden Jaffa here for various offenses against the Goa'uld, offenses such as supreme intellect. Among their kind, they even have great scholars, architects, artists and scientists, some of whom have been pivotal in the development of our more recent enhancements in infrastructure…"
"You have said that they leave?" Teal'c asked, though his eyes were more on the movement of his people all around him; most of whom were bowing their heads in greeting and respect.
"Yes, they have always come and departed as they needed. The Jaffa here now are free to come or to go at any time," their host answered, "Some did, as the battles were raging, those that believed that they could be a help to the Tau'ri."
"Was Se'lac here? Among your people?" Teal'c now asked.
"The politician?" Lakshmi confirmed with a smile. "He was, for quite some time. He was brought here injured, near death. The people that brought him here said he was trying to save a family from being assassinated. Natural leader he was, but left our company to aid his people. Not long after, he was able to care for himself again."
The Jaffa stopped, bowing his head in sadness.
"What's wrong T?" Cam asked, finally speaking.
"We called him a coward," Teal'c explained. "He disappeared one day and we thought he was gone. After the fall of the Goa'uld, he came back; spouting outrageous ideas and hoping to lead the council. We thought he had hidden, like a coward, and we did not listen."
"If he didn't tell you," Vala said, reaching her hand to his arm, "Then you couldn't have known."
"And we ask that they do not," their host added, "For fear of losing all that we have."
"Then why allow us here?" Daniel now asked, letting the camera drop slightly. "If Se'lac couldn't even explain himself, why show us all of this now? There are other threats, there have been other threats besides the Goa'uld. Isn't this a risk to all that you have built?"
Good question, Adrienne thought, stopping her own photography to hear the reply.
"I have met many travelers at the waters of the Chappa'ai, for many years," Lakshmi explained, stopping to face them, "I am not a young man, and have learned, sometimes, a very hard lesson," he held up his hand to reveal that is was half gone. A clever contraption made it appear as though he had a full palm and all of his fingers, "But, I know goodness when I see it, and I knew as I watched you cross through the portal with a Jaffa that you did not own, but rather, that was treated as a friend."
"But you weren't there…" Daniel tried to interrupt as the man smiled.
"And as I watched you make your way across the city," he continued, waving his hand and summoning holographic panels around them.
The team stood in shock.
"Our city is not as large and wealthy as it appears," he continued, tapping a few things, and the more grander building in the distance disappeared, "We have what we need. Not much more. But, it was suggested to keep out Goa'uld, so that we may hide the Jaffa that we would need to maintain a strong appearance," he paused again, looking to Teal'c, "Another invention by a great member of your race," he said, waving the outer city back into existence, "It seems there was a lot to be learned by a mere slave; if one was just to pay attention."
"Indeed," Teal'c agreed, as he thought back to his own experiences.
"And I invite you all," Lakshmi continued, "to dinner this evening. I apologize that it will not be a formal feast, but I would like to arrange for a traditional gathering afterwards to celebrate your arrival!"
"This is why you like this job," Adrienne teased, bumping Daniel with her hip, "You always get fed."
"I resent that insinuation…" Daniel laughed, walking backwards to keep filming.
"Sure ya do," she laughed, winking before running on to catch up with Vala, who had wandered off to a dressmaker's stall, at present wrapped in a pink silk dress. He watched her escape, that curious look in her eyes she got when she was learning something new, making him pause.
He'd almost asked her to stay Sunday, in his room, to stay the week with him. He hadn't, and after they had planned their calendar for the week she'd gone back to her room, though she lingered in her embrace good-bye as she thanked him yet again.
He could still feel the touch of her lips to his cheek, so soft, making him want to turn his head and press his own against hers, telling her that he would always be there for her.
"Buy it," Vala was insisting as Adrienne held a gorgeous deep orange sari to her body. Daniel started to approach, negotiate for her, buy it for her, tell her how spectacular it would accent her curvy hips and dark Cajun eyes when he stopped.
Not here, he told himself, not like this. After everything that had happened in his life, and from what he knew of hers, if he was going to allow his heart to even entertain this, he needed to proceed with caution.
Or not proceed at all, as he had been trying to convince himself to do last night.
"Indy!" he heard her shouting, waving him over, her attention now on some art work with writing.
"Coming!" he yelled back, jogging to catch up.
The entire time Daniel and Adrienne walked around the compound, interviewing Jaffa, making notes, reading to the best of their ability various stories written on walls, their host continued to explain as he led them past house after house of free Jaffa, Jaffa free long before the Goa'uld had even fallen. While this place had remained a secret for so many years the longer they walked the more and more Teal'c discovered that so many leaders in the modern Jaffa movement had spent time here, time they had refused to explain was missing from their personal histories. Daniel knew that if his old friend could, he would have summoned Bra'tac in an instant so he could share in the revelations.
Despite Adrienne's teasing, and her insistence that they were going to be served snakes and monkey brains, dinner was simple, flatbreads and a hummus type substance that seemed to serve as the protein. Daniel made a few jokes and called her Short Round as requested, but the Cajun seemed more enthralled by the stories of Teal'c and their host than the food or Daniel's bleak knowledge of Indiana Jones. There was a strong tea served, and a beverage, Soma, which given the extraordinary circumstances, even Teal'c was enjoying. Daniel was certain that he had heard of it somewhere on Earth, possibly in his readings from the night before, but he didn't dig out his journal or his assistant's iPad for the answer, instead trying to take time to enjoy this dinner and the company of some of the people he cared most about in his life.
He just felt safe here.
As the sun began to dip down into the horizons a fire was lit, again simple, yet elegant. Jaffa and the Atharvas, as they called themselves, cleared the tables, pulling out instruments and beginning a dance. The music was moving, tribal, creating a mood that was only enhanced by the Soma that was now being poured. Normally, Daniel would have been cautious about accepting an intoxicating substance, but he felt safe here, so he drank, letting himself relax on a mat.
Never one to sit for long, his assistant was on her feet, with Teal'c at first, the Jaffa dancing her around the fire in celebration. He too was acting in a way that Daniel had never experienced before. Hand in hand his assistant and their friend danced around, Adrienne pulling Vala to her feet to join them. The women danced around for a while and he watched her dance with Teal'c and Vala, only pulling her fingers from their own only to clap her hands to the music, laughing that beautiful laugh of hers. Her dark, Cajun eyes sparkled in the fire light, delighted, and it brought back a memory of when he had seen her dance like this before, and how he knew in his heart then that she was the most wonderful person he had ever met. Teal'c had been right about this place at dinner, and the name said as much.
This was true paradise.
Tired, but radiant, completely and utterly radiant, Adrienne plopped down beside him, falling slightly into his shoulder.
"Pass me my wata shug please," she requested, Daniel handing over the bottle. She drank, finishing the container, shoving the empty in her pack.
"This place is amazing," she said, readjusting.
"It is," her best friend replied as he took another sip of the strong alcoholic brew, flinching as he had forgotten the taste, "and it explains how the Jaffa were able to hide their intellectuals and scholars. That's something that's always bothered me, so many, popping out of the woodwork so to speak, ready to help and lead, seemingly out of nowhere. They were here the entire time, and rejoined their people when they were needed."
"And kept the place a secret, to protect them. That's a noble thing to do," Adrienne added. Daniel nodded in agreement.
"It's a special place. I'm glad we found it."
"Makes up for the other worlds? Lately at least?" Adrienne ventured watching him smile, taking another sip, before offering her some. She took it with a soft smile.
"It does actually."
"There's no money here," the Cajun noted as she drank, "I mean there's some tech, but it's stuff we've seen before or similar."
"Nope."
"Won't the IOA wanna come in? Do an analysis? If we mark them as allies they're gonna wanna know what we can get outta it. You know how they are," she continued as Daniel continued to smile.
"Yep."
"I mean, should we…" Adrienne trailed as she passed Daniel his cup, her mind already on how she needed to word the report to preserve the greatness and wonder of this place.
Daniel, however, had made his decision mere moments before she joined him.
"We're not gonna do anything but tell Sam the truth and send Bra'tac the coordinates," Daniel declared, sipping and setting his cup aside to lean back on his hands.
"Can we do that?" she asked, both confused and relieved that they might be able to continue unscathed.
"We're going to do that," he stressed, carefully, smiling over at her.
"I thought you didn't lie," she teased as she nudged him with her shoulder.
"I said I do when I need to," Daniel clarified, "This place... This is paradise. Nothing matters but making sure that they are allowed to continue to do what they do, without interference. They may no longer have Jaffa to save, but I get the feeling that more than just the Jaffa are welcome. That's what really matters; not trading partners or spy bases. And we need to keep them safe..."
Reading his face, as she had gotten so good at doing, Adrienne knew there was something more, something still bothering him…
"What's wrong shug," she asked, Daniel reaching for his cup again and sighing, "I thought you said we were safe here, that everything is ok?"
"It is," he took a sip, peering over at her, "But we lied to these people. Not all the gods are gone."
Adrienne reached over her hand to his, "Anubis…"
Daniel nodded slowly, "Yeah."
"Daniel, we don't even know where he is or what's happening," but Daniel was shaking his head as she spoke.
"Ad, you don't understand."
"Then tell me," she whispered softly, "help me understand."
Daniel paused, looking up at their friends and the bonfire, to see that they were no longer dancing but still drinking and eating and chatting, leaving the two archaeologists completely alone.
For a moment he was tempted to pull her into his arms, to tell her how much he loved her and how to truly understand what he feared about Anubis and about a possibility of them meant to understand what it was to be a target. Still reading him, Adrienne scooted closer to him, so close that he might as well have been holding her.
"Tell me…"
"Anubis has a special hate for me in particular, and if he regains any semblance of power…" Daniel paused, "It could be far worse than you could imagine."
Unable to control herself, Adrienne slipped her arm around his waist, holding him close to her, "I promised I'd never let anything happen to you."
Oh my God, did I just say that to him?
What's he gonna think?
I love him so much; I will never let anyone hurt him again.
"Thanks," he whispered quietly, his nerves driving him crazy as he started to jump to internal conclusions at her words. He forced himself to sip again from his cup, pulling it together in an effort to redirect the conversation, "Unfortunately you just can't punch Anubis out."
Adrienne laughed lightly, leaning over and resting her head on his shoulder.
"Lucky for you I have decades of experience watching SciFi and Fantasy TV and film, so I'm sure I can come up with something clever if needed."
Without a word, Daniel laughed and shook his head, slipping his arm around her, not really caring about anything else other than the way he felt right now.
Clearing her throat, Vala leaned over to Cam, cocking her head in the direction of the archaeologists.
"See?" she whispered, "Together."
"I'm not discussing this with you again," the colonel muttered. He wondered if Teal'c would ever rejoin them, as the Jaffa was laughing and talking and chugging Soma on the other side of the fire.
"Fine," she pouted, sitting back,"But, you'll see that I'm right."
"Ok, but until you are, don't keep saying things I might have to report."
"Wait?" she asked, "Report? For what? They're civilians. They can if they want…"
"They're teammates," Cam clarified.
"So, Daniel and I were…"
The colonel frowned at her, "Wanna take a wild guess as to when that rule came into play?"
Vala grumbled, leaning back.
"About five minutes after you punched him out in the cafeteria."
"He deserved it," Vala shot back, "He said I needed to stop being so desperate."
"And here we are at yet another topic I don't wanna discuss…"
"Shutting up," she muttered, doing so more for her love sick friend than Daniel.
Cam stood at Adrienne's desk, the next mission file on the corner untouched.
"I told you, it'll be done by the briefing," she muttered, annoyed as her friend played with her phone.
"You two need to find another bonfire planet," the colonel noted as he flicked around, "that place was great."
"No, that place was barren and abandoned, a total waste of our time and we even made camp JUST to make sure we weren't being duped," Daniel clarified from his own desk, pointing to the cameras.
"We're good, I told Walter to edit heavily for a few days, just in case," Cam replied, hitting play. He grinned as Van Halen's 'Right Now' began to stream from the Cajun's speakers, masking any conversation that Walter may forget to filter, "Damn Addy, I had no idea you actually had real music on this thing."
"It's Van Halen," Adrienne said, rolling her eyes as she scrolled through the images on her iPad, trying to send photos of Param Dharma to her private cloud, "Who doesn't have Van Halen?"
"You," Daniel said, walking behind her and peering over her shoulder, "And don't do that here. I'm close to being to a point where we can make an excuse to have to go to your place and work; you can upload and wipe there."
"Whatta ya mean me?" she countered, arguing his first point but shutting her iPad at his second, "Indy, shug, who's phone is hooked up to the speaker?"
"Oh it's your phone, but not your song," Daniel clarified, closing the lid of his laptop and walking over to his locker.
"What are you talking about?" she asked as she started to pack up her things herself, Cam playing air guitar in the corner as he waited for the faked file.
"I downloaded that," Daniel clarified, grabbing his jacket, "Last week."
"What?"
"Last week," he continued, indicating that she kept packing up her things, "You were trapped with Rodney for a few hours, you left your phone, I wanted to listen to music. You have nothing on there a normal person would listen to so I downloaded it."
Cam stopped his fake strumming, peering up at the pair in amazement.
"You downloaded music onto MY phone!?" Adrienne spat, hands on her hips.
"Yeah," Daniel answered, turning to hand a folder to Cameron.
"You're kidding me right?"
"You have more pre-paid music credits in your account than I have dollars in my checking," the lead archaeologist countered.
"I do not," she said with a frown as Cam scanned the contents of the folder on Param Dharma, the version of the planet that was their own creation, "But let's get back to the fact that you downloaded something on MY phone when I wasn't there."
"Sorry?" Daniel answered, shrugging.
"How'd you get past my passwords?" she asked, going back to packing up, but still frowning.
"Ummmm…" Daniel muttered, shutting out the light as Adrienne shouldered her bag, "They're all Alexander Skarsgard references, which, given your IQ, I find very disappointing."
"Hey, lovebirds?" Cam shouted as they left him in the dark, "I'm still in here!"
"I'm changing my passwords…" Adrienne grumbled, ignoring the colonel's shouts.
"I already did," Daniel said with a smile as he headed to the elevators, Cameron standing outside the lab with the fake report in his hands, Vala sauntering up, grinning.
"DON'T say it…"
"Say what?" she laughed with a shrug, "I'm just heading down to the gym to workout with Dex since Teal'c decided to stay behind in case there "was a trap" on Param Dharma…"
"Bra'tac and Ry'ac head over there?" he asked, watching the archaeologists board the elevator, completely oblivious to the world around them.
"Yeah, they are," she confirmed, Cameron tapping the folder in his open palm.
"Ok, I'll head this up to Sam…"
"Because Daniel and Addy are…" she trailed, smirking.
"Leaving, like I am right now," Cam answered, headed to Sam's office refusing to discuss it any further.
Vala stood there for a moment, as Cameron headed down the hall and Daniel & Adrienne's elevator door closed, whisking the two away.
"I don't even need reality TV anymore," she said to herself, "Work drama is getting way better."
Laughing, she turned on her heels, continuing her trek to the gym.