Part 10
Disclaimers can be found in Part 0
***
"Okay kids, progress report," said Jack that night.
"I believe that Tatapesaah's people are prepared as well as they can be, O'Neill," said Teal'c.
Jack nodded. "I saw all the work you've done. Good job, Teal'c." Turning to look at Daniel who had come in later than anyone else including Carter from the cavern, he raised his eyebrows in a question.
"Well, without going into too much of the history of this place..."
"Thank God for small favors," interrupted Jack.
"I'll get a lot more done and said if you'll stop interrupting, Jack," said Daniel shooting a dirty look in Jack's direction.
"Go on Daniel. I'm all ears," said Jack with no contrition in his response at all.
"I haven't found out who built the stuff in the cavern. There isn't any real mention of them at all just that they called themselves The Custodians, or more specifically, The Guardians. They do, however, seem to be an old enemy of the Goa'uld and that this world isn't the first that they've taken over guardianship of," explained Daniel.
"I can recall no such adversary of the Goa'uld," said Teal'c.
"I think that I can explain that," said Daniel. "It seems that they are rather new in this battle with the Goa'uld. I don't think that they've been around very long when you consider how long the Goa'uld have been taking other races as hosts. Maybe only a couple of hundred years or so. And it is quite possible that they haven't been noticed by the System Lords we've had contact with."
"But don't all the System Lords kinda keep in touch with each other?" asked Jack. "I mean as far as relaying information about who might be an enemy with an edge or technology that they might want to try and get for themselves?"
"Well, what if some lesser known Goa'uld seeded this world and was totally destroyed by the device here? What if there was no trace of this lesser Goa'uld so that none of the other System Lords knew exactly what happened to him? If he had kept this world a secret from all the rest, and one day had come to visit to take a bunch of the people here and was wiped out, no one else would know about it?" hypothesized Daniel.
"But now someone does ... at least someone knows the world is here," said Carter.
"Yes and if our dreams are a premonition, a warning of some sort, then they'll be back tomorrow night," said Daniel.
"And that just means that we need to work a little faster," said Jack. "So Daniel, continue. Did you find out how to work this Goa'uld buster thing?"
"Whoever these Guardians are, they've done the same thing as Thor and have taken on the personae of some of the gods from the beliefs of the Lacotia and they couched their device in those legends. That's why the Ghost Dance. It's an integral part in the activation of this thing. I haven't gotten it all done yet, but there needs to be another Ghost Dance and this one has to be performed inside the cavern."
"Another one?" Jack shuddered. "The last time all the women passed out."
"I think that was just another reminder or instruction kind of thing," explained Daniel. "In case the legend is forgotten, the instructions as it were, and the Ghost Dance isn't done where and when it is supposed to be, someone has to get the message to tell people where to go and what to do to make it work properly."
"Okay, so we all do another one of those Ghost Dance things tomorrow. When? After the Goa'uld come through the Gate or before?" asked Jack. "And what if we try it and it doesn't work?"
"I think it has to be done just after they get here," answered Daniel. "And if it doesn't work the way it's supposed to, Teal'c took a page from the Bursar. We could all hide in the cavern until they leave. Then I guess we could have them bury the Gate after we leave and hope they don't come in ships."
"Hide? Daniel if we're all inside there beating on drums, dancing and chanting, with a fire going sending off smoke signals that we're there, how do you consider that hiding? Eyes and ears, Daniel, eyes and ears. The Jaffa have them."
"We set up a couple of guards - like you have now. If the Jaffa make it to the village and the device isn't working, they come and warn us. Then we just put out the fires and shut up," suggested Daniel.
"And if it works? What about those guards? Are they going to be protected if they are outside the cavern?"
"Supposedly, from what I've been able to read so far, the device recognizes anyone wearing specific items with specific symbols on them. It is part of the legend of the Ghost Dance. Everyone has to wear clothing made especially for it," said Daniel. "Anyone not wearing this is swallowed up."
Jack shook his head. He wasn't quite ready to believe that all this was going to work.
"Sir," said Carter who had remained quiet throughout all of the discussion. "It's worth a shot and if it works these people have a way to protect themselves if any of the System Lords try anything after this without having to bury the Gate."
"And if they come in ships next time?"
"I'm sorry, Sir. I can't answer that one. But even if we just bury the Gate tomorrow, they could still come in ships next time."
"Daniel are you sure about this?" asked Jack.
Daniel nodded. "As sure as I can be without taking a couple of weeks going through all of those murals in there."
"Alright then. We'll try it and hope to God it works."
***
Jack's heart was pounding as he turned to the rest of his team. He could see that they were, like him, wondering if this was the end ... the day they would die.
The river raged at their feet, tearing away bits and pieces of the ledge that they were standing on. Their final hope of escape had minutes ago been torn from the ledge and washed away downstream in the raging torrent that had at once been a peaceful river bringing food
and water to the people of the village they had made contact with on this world.
A quick memory of how it had started ran through Jack's mind as he watched his team prepare for battle with whatever had chased them all to this ledge.
As night had descended and a full moon had risen above this beautiful landscape, the terror had begun. The people of the village had retreated to their homes leaving SG-1 to themselves in the darkness. They had set up a camp on the outskirts of the village and had just finished eating when they felt a presence. Jack had noticed it first and had picked up his MP9 and walked to the edge of their encampment.
"Colonel, what is it?" Carter had asked.
Before he could answer her, Teal'c had risen from where he had been sitting, Staff Weapon making a slow arc around the camp. Then Carter and Daniel had felt the first prickling of fear run up the backs of their necks and they armed themselves as well. All four now stood,
back to back, facing whatever it was that was slowly making itself felt.
In the light of the full moon, none of them could discern any form or shape ... nothing that would indicate that someone was there besides themselves. However, the feeling that there was someone or something was strong. Jack squinted his eyes staring into the darkness, willing
something to appear. Nothing did and then a dark cloud had overtaken the moon, blocking its light and making the darkness complete.
Noise erupted as the people from the village ran from their homes in panic. SG-1 turned to the sound and saw the villagers running towards them ... adults and children alike. Screams of fear rent the air, making it a living thing. Buffeting against SG-1 and causing them to cringe at the pure force of it.
The villagers passed SG-1, pushing and shoving until the team were separated from each other and lost in the panic stricken horde rushing for the river and the bridge that spanned its length. Forced to run along with them, they kept trying to turn ... to see what was chasing them, but it was to no avail. Soon they found themselves with the rest of the villagers at the river's edge fighting with them to get onto the bridge and across to the other side of the river.
They were all thwarted as the river suddenly turned into a raging torrent pulling the bridge from its moorings on both sides taking with it those that had made it onto its surface.
Managing to get back together again, SG-1 watched in horror as several families had jumped into the water rather than face what followed. Turning away from that scene, they saw Witashaun at the furthest edge of the crowd vanish from sight into a swatch of blackness so
complete that in the natural darkness of night it's edges were visible.
Suddenly a searing arc of light came from the opposite side of the river and one of the warriors caught it full in the chest. He was dead before his body hit the ground. Jack turned and saw what would be their doom if the horror that was slowly taking villager after villager did not get them first. Fifty or more Jaffa stood on the embankment, aiming their Staff Weapons at the helpless crowd on the opposite bank. Jack took aim with his rifle and saw that Carter was as well. Tracer bullets from the two arced across the river towards the Jaffa as blasts from their Staff Weapons homed in on them. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Teal'c firing his Staff Weapon into the approaching darkness. Daniel, armed with a .45 pistol, was also firing. His shots following Teal'c's into the pitch black maw.
A staff blast hit the ground at Jack's feet, knocking him onto his knees. He continued to fire from that position until his mag ran dry. Ejecting that one, he grabbed another one from his belt, knocked it on the stock of his rifle, and then inserted it. Firing again, he was rewarded with seeing two Jaffa warriors go down.
He heard a lone, scream of rage from his right which drew his attention away from the Jaffa. As he turned, he felt the heat from a staff blast sear across his chest. He fell back, dazed and in shock, his eyes open to the sky. He stared at the stars and wondered at their brightness. As his vision started to blur at the edges, he knew he was drifting into unconsciousness. Drawing on what little strength he had left, he sent a silent apology to all the people he hadn't been able to save and to Sara for holding back the love he felt for her each and every day.
***
Continued in Part 11
Disclaimers can be found in Part 0
***
"Okay kids, progress report," said Jack that night.
"I believe that Tatapesaah's people are prepared as well as they can be, O'Neill," said Teal'c.
Jack nodded. "I saw all the work you've done. Good job, Teal'c." Turning to look at Daniel who had come in later than anyone else including Carter from the cavern, he raised his eyebrows in a question.
"Well, without going into too much of the history of this place..."
"Thank God for small favors," interrupted Jack.
"I'll get a lot more done and said if you'll stop interrupting, Jack," said Daniel shooting a dirty look in Jack's direction.
"Go on Daniel. I'm all ears," said Jack with no contrition in his response at all.
"I haven't found out who built the stuff in the cavern. There isn't any real mention of them at all just that they called themselves The Custodians, or more specifically, The Guardians. They do, however, seem to be an old enemy of the Goa'uld and that this world isn't the first that they've taken over guardianship of," explained Daniel.
"I can recall no such adversary of the Goa'uld," said Teal'c.
"I think that I can explain that," said Daniel. "It seems that they are rather new in this battle with the Goa'uld. I don't think that they've been around very long when you consider how long the Goa'uld have been taking other races as hosts. Maybe only a couple of hundred years or so. And it is quite possible that they haven't been noticed by the System Lords we've had contact with."
"But don't all the System Lords kinda keep in touch with each other?" asked Jack. "I mean as far as relaying information about who might be an enemy with an edge or technology that they might want to try and get for themselves?"
"Well, what if some lesser known Goa'uld seeded this world and was totally destroyed by the device here? What if there was no trace of this lesser Goa'uld so that none of the other System Lords knew exactly what happened to him? If he had kept this world a secret from all the rest, and one day had come to visit to take a bunch of the people here and was wiped out, no one else would know about it?" hypothesized Daniel.
"But now someone does ... at least someone knows the world is here," said Carter.
"Yes and if our dreams are a premonition, a warning of some sort, then they'll be back tomorrow night," said Daniel.
"And that just means that we need to work a little faster," said Jack. "So Daniel, continue. Did you find out how to work this Goa'uld buster thing?"
"Whoever these Guardians are, they've done the same thing as Thor and have taken on the personae of some of the gods from the beliefs of the Lacotia and they couched their device in those legends. That's why the Ghost Dance. It's an integral part in the activation of this thing. I haven't gotten it all done yet, but there needs to be another Ghost Dance and this one has to be performed inside the cavern."
"Another one?" Jack shuddered. "The last time all the women passed out."
"I think that was just another reminder or instruction kind of thing," explained Daniel. "In case the legend is forgotten, the instructions as it were, and the Ghost Dance isn't done where and when it is supposed to be, someone has to get the message to tell people where to go and what to do to make it work properly."
"Okay, so we all do another one of those Ghost Dance things tomorrow. When? After the Goa'uld come through the Gate or before?" asked Jack. "And what if we try it and it doesn't work?"
"I think it has to be done just after they get here," answered Daniel. "And if it doesn't work the way it's supposed to, Teal'c took a page from the Bursar. We could all hide in the cavern until they leave. Then I guess we could have them bury the Gate after we leave and hope they don't come in ships."
"Hide? Daniel if we're all inside there beating on drums, dancing and chanting, with a fire going sending off smoke signals that we're there, how do you consider that hiding? Eyes and ears, Daniel, eyes and ears. The Jaffa have them."
"We set up a couple of guards - like you have now. If the Jaffa make it to the village and the device isn't working, they come and warn us. Then we just put out the fires and shut up," suggested Daniel.
"And if it works? What about those guards? Are they going to be protected if they are outside the cavern?"
"Supposedly, from what I've been able to read so far, the device recognizes anyone wearing specific items with specific symbols on them. It is part of the legend of the Ghost Dance. Everyone has to wear clothing made especially for it," said Daniel. "Anyone not wearing this is swallowed up."
Jack shook his head. He wasn't quite ready to believe that all this was going to work.
"Sir," said Carter who had remained quiet throughout all of the discussion. "It's worth a shot and if it works these people have a way to protect themselves if any of the System Lords try anything after this without having to bury the Gate."
"And if they come in ships next time?"
"I'm sorry, Sir. I can't answer that one. But even if we just bury the Gate tomorrow, they could still come in ships next time."
"Daniel are you sure about this?" asked Jack.
Daniel nodded. "As sure as I can be without taking a couple of weeks going through all of those murals in there."
"Alright then. We'll try it and hope to God it works."
***
Jack's heart was pounding as he turned to the rest of his team. He could see that they were, like him, wondering if this was the end ... the day they would die.
The river raged at their feet, tearing away bits and pieces of the ledge that they were standing on. Their final hope of escape had minutes ago been torn from the ledge and washed away downstream in the raging torrent that had at once been a peaceful river bringing food
and water to the people of the village they had made contact with on this world.
A quick memory of how it had started ran through Jack's mind as he watched his team prepare for battle with whatever had chased them all to this ledge.
As night had descended and a full moon had risen above this beautiful landscape, the terror had begun. The people of the village had retreated to their homes leaving SG-1 to themselves in the darkness. They had set up a camp on the outskirts of the village and had just finished eating when they felt a presence. Jack had noticed it first and had picked up his MP9 and walked to the edge of their encampment.
"Colonel, what is it?" Carter had asked.
Before he could answer her, Teal'c had risen from where he had been sitting, Staff Weapon making a slow arc around the camp. Then Carter and Daniel had felt the first prickling of fear run up the backs of their necks and they armed themselves as well. All four now stood,
back to back, facing whatever it was that was slowly making itself felt.
In the light of the full moon, none of them could discern any form or shape ... nothing that would indicate that someone was there besides themselves. However, the feeling that there was someone or something was strong. Jack squinted his eyes staring into the darkness, willing
something to appear. Nothing did and then a dark cloud had overtaken the moon, blocking its light and making the darkness complete.
Noise erupted as the people from the village ran from their homes in panic. SG-1 turned to the sound and saw the villagers running towards them ... adults and children alike. Screams of fear rent the air, making it a living thing. Buffeting against SG-1 and causing them to cringe at the pure force of it.
The villagers passed SG-1, pushing and shoving until the team were separated from each other and lost in the panic stricken horde rushing for the river and the bridge that spanned its length. Forced to run along with them, they kept trying to turn ... to see what was chasing them, but it was to no avail. Soon they found themselves with the rest of the villagers at the river's edge fighting with them to get onto the bridge and across to the other side of the river.
They were all thwarted as the river suddenly turned into a raging torrent pulling the bridge from its moorings on both sides taking with it those that had made it onto its surface.
Managing to get back together again, SG-1 watched in horror as several families had jumped into the water rather than face what followed. Turning away from that scene, they saw Witashaun at the furthest edge of the crowd vanish from sight into a swatch of blackness so
complete that in the natural darkness of night it's edges were visible.
Suddenly a searing arc of light came from the opposite side of the river and one of the warriors caught it full in the chest. He was dead before his body hit the ground. Jack turned and saw what would be their doom if the horror that was slowly taking villager after villager did not get them first. Fifty or more Jaffa stood on the embankment, aiming their Staff Weapons at the helpless crowd on the opposite bank. Jack took aim with his rifle and saw that Carter was as well. Tracer bullets from the two arced across the river towards the Jaffa as blasts from their Staff Weapons homed in on them. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Teal'c firing his Staff Weapon into the approaching darkness. Daniel, armed with a .45 pistol, was also firing. His shots following Teal'c's into the pitch black maw.
A staff blast hit the ground at Jack's feet, knocking him onto his knees. He continued to fire from that position until his mag ran dry. Ejecting that one, he grabbed another one from his belt, knocked it on the stock of his rifle, and then inserted it. Firing again, he was rewarded with seeing two Jaffa warriors go down.
He heard a lone, scream of rage from his right which drew his attention away from the Jaffa. As he turned, he felt the heat from a staff blast sear across his chest. He fell back, dazed and in shock, his eyes open to the sky. He stared at the stars and wondered at their brightness. As his vision started to blur at the edges, he knew he was drifting into unconsciousness. Drawing on what little strength he had left, he sent a silent apology to all the people he hadn't been able to save and to Sara for holding back the love he felt for her each and every day.
***
Continued in Part 11