Journey to the Fantasy Planet
Chapter Three
Night on Kelowna Goa'uld Mothership Xalty'ac
Sekhmet prowled the corridors of her ship. A tattooed hand clutched her head as the intense pain heralding a vision knifed through her brain. Her Mind's Eye snapped open, allowing light to flood in. Visions came unbidden. SG-1's dramatic rescue. Anubis' fiery death at her hands. Kelowna's liberation. The news that she was pregnant. She'd name her daughter Samantha, after her friend Sam. Training her daughter to use her increasingly powerful magical abilities. As a Jaffa rounded the corner, Janet shut her Mind's Eye. She surrendered herself to Sekhmet's control.
The Federation starship Voyager
Janeway left Sickbay and sleepily dragged herself to her quarters. She removed her commbadge at the door. Yawning, she walked to the bed and sat down on the corner. Boots came off then it was under the sheets. Janeway was so tired that she hadn't bothered to take off her uniform or put on a nightgown. No sooner had she put her head down on the pillow did she fall asleep. In her dreams she saw Dr. Fraiser. The young woman held up her tunic to expose her back. Another young warrior woman skillfully wielded a needle dipped in woad. Intricate designs were being tattooed into her soft supple young skin. The needle pricked but she didn't seem to feel it. During this process the two women conversed in a strange tongue. Seated beside her in front of the fire a second young woman had rolled up the tunic's sleeve. Janet's eyes never opened the entire time. Janeway wondered how she could sleep and trust that her fellow warriors did a good job. If someone was tattooing her body like this, she'd definitely stay awake. Abruptly the scene shifted. The next day the Picts attacked the enemy army. A freshly tattooed warrior woman wielding a sword led the assault. Over the space of the next four hours, the two armies slaughtered each other. When it finally ended the battlefield was littered with bodies. The Picts had defeated their enemy at an enormous cost. Janet looked out at the enemy dead with an almost malevolent smile on her woad- etched face. Scene changed again. This time she was being suited up in armor. A young squire handed her a helmet. She smoothed her closely- cropped hair with a mail clad hand before donning it. Gauntlets were pulled on over the mail gloves. Another squire boosted her up into the saddle. She grabbed a hold of the reigns and rode off to join her knights. Five hours later, the remaining knights rode back to the castle. Janet now carried the standard since the young flag bearer had been killed. Her armor was covered in dried silver blood; mercifully none of it came from her veins. Once back inside she removed her blood splattered armor and stripped off her chain mail tunic. She indulged in a hot bath to wash away the grime of battle. For the next seven hours, Janeway saw all of Janet's immortal existence in her dreams. She woke up in the morning wanting to ask her the next time they talked just what language she'd been speaking.
Carter joined a group of senior officers for breakfast in the mess hall. O'Neill approached the table bearing a plate of buttermilk pancakes dripping in syrup and an icy glass of orange juice. "Hey, campers, how's it going," he asked those assembled as he took his assigned seat. "Great. Guess who I met last night," Janeway said before she took a sip of her coffee. "Who," Carter asked, curiosity aroused. "Dr. Janet Fraiser."
"What," O'Neill said, almost spewing out his orange juice. "You heard me, Jack. I saw her but it wasn't really her."
"How is that possible," Carter, ever the scientist, asked. "She's a hologram. Our Doctor must have conjured her up," Janeway replied, taking a bite of her toast. She took a drink of her coffee before speaking again. "Tell me about Janet, Jack. I want to know who I'm dealing with."
"She's an Elf. Not only that she's a Mage. Very old, very powerful. She's the daughter of a powerful Elven king. When she was just a teen she led armies into battle. Everyone thought of her as an Elven Joan of Arc. Mortal men flocked to her banner. She became queen after her parents stepped down from the throne. Janet loves weapons and needles. Hypodermic syringe needles. It's perverse; at least we think it is. The infirmary staff freaks out at the thought of their CMO's collection. All different sizes, some really short, some are pretty long. Biggest one is half as long as my arm. Don't let her come anywhere near you with one of those things. She'll inject you will some drug you've never even heard of that has strange side effects. Aside from the slight needle fetish, Doctor Fraiser is one of the sanest people you'll ever meet. She doesn't rely too heavily on modern medical technology. She prefers magic as it's more reliable. Janet isn't just a doctor; she's also the best damn warrior I've ever seen. Give her a mace and she'll crack a few skulls." "How long have you known Dr. Fraiser, Sam? When did you meet her?"
"Before we joined the Air Force. Her hair was so much longer then, well, so was mine. We met in college biology class as freshmen. I did pretty well in that class but Janet was the science whiz. Told me she was going to enroll in med school after graduation and become a doctor, may be join the Air Force's medical corps. After class, we ate lunch together, got to talking. Janet told me her story as I listened, fascinated. Turned out she wasn't the daughter of doctors, as I'd imagined her to be. Her parents had been Elven royalty and she was a princess. Not only that, she had lived through many centuries of human history, making her over a thousand years old. Janet then gave me a small sampling of her considerable magical abilities. I quickly found myself warming up to her. We met for lunch everyday for the next four years until we graduated and she moved away to attend med school. During the time we're apart, we keep up over e-mail, just to say hi. When we finally meet up again, it's at the opening of the SGC. Janet has not grown any older but then again neither have I. The only change to her appearance is her hair, once long, now boyishly short. We laugh at the sight of ourselves with our uniforms and short-cropped hair. Later, we go topside to a quiet little café to catch up on old times. It was great fun. In response to your question of how long I've known her, I'd say fifteen years." "Well, it's been nice but I got to go to Sickbay. If I don't get there soon, the Doctor will have my hide. See you later," Paris said as he placed his breakfast items back on his tray and rose to leave. Carter watched him walk away then exit out the doors after putting his tray in the recycler.
Paris walked into Sickbay just before his shift was to start. He looked around the main room searching for the Doctor. When he didn't see the Doctor, he headed back towards the doors. Just as he was about to walk out, a voice riveted him to the spot. "The Doctor's in his office," the woman said and made to walk away. Paris grabbed the woman by the arm before she could take a step. "Don't go. You haven't told me your name."
"Doctor Janet Fraiser."
"Lieutenant Tom Paris. I've heard a lot about you." He released his hold on her arm, freeing it to let it hang by her side. "Hope my friends didn't say anything bad about me."
"No. Only good things." The Doctor walked out of his office to see the two young people talking animatedly. He stood by patiently at first but soon he began to grow irate. The medic was supposed to be working, not chatting up his pretty assistant. Fraiser had just met the Lieutenant and was trying to fight back anger at this intrusion. Paris noticed a change come over the Elf's face. Her smile vanished and the warmth died in her eyes. Demonic fury contorted her delicate features into a sinister expression. Fraiser whirled on the Doctor then raked his face with her nails. If he'd been flesh and blood there would be scars on his face. But he wasn't, he was a hologram. Her nails didn't draw blood much less leave a mark. When she realized that they weren't doing any damage, she pulled away. Paris sent the Doctor back to his office with a stern warning not to interrupt until they were finished talking. "You know, you're the first Elf I've ever seen. Most, including me, think you're just a myth." "No, we're real. We keep to ourselves and don't venture into the outside world much. Over the centuries, though, Man was slowly beginning to encroach upon our territories. As queen, I led armies against our mortal neighbors. After many years of bloody conflict, we finally succeeded in repulsing Man. I've even fought orcs and trolls who invaded my kingdom. Dwarves raided our settlements; Gnomes desecrated our sacred places of worship. My men and I would slaughter them, down to the last man!" "Why don't you like us?" "Never said that we don't like Man, we're just wary of them. Dwarves and Gnomes were a perpetual thorn in the side. Can't tell you how many of the Little People I've cleaved in two with my battleaxe. Killed quite a few of your kind," Fraiser said the last with a spark of hatred in a cinnamon brown eye. "What else did you do besides fight?"
"I acted in plays at the Globe as one of Lord Chamberlain's Men. My first role as a young "man" was Hamlet. Got to act next to Shakespeare, which was exciting. Went to med school. Joined the Air Force, over my family's protests. You name it; I've probably done it. When you've lived as long as I have, you get to do things Mortals only dream of." "How about we continue this conversation later? Everything you've told me is interesting and I want to hear more. I feel like we've kept the Doctor too long."
"All right, Lieutenant. I'll see you later. I enjoyed meeting you."
"See you this evening." Paris walked into the Doctor's office; Fraiser went to join Kes, the Ocampan nurse. The shift proceeded uneventfully and Paris left to begin his shift on the Bridge.
Later the same day Early evening Voyager's Sickbay
Paris entered Sickbay dressed in civilian clothes. Fraiser still wore her uniform but had taken off the lab coat. She had seated herself on one of the bio beds and he hopped up next to her. Now that he was this close, he could get a better look at her. Every line of the tattoos on her face and neck were now seen in clear detail. The young woman's eyebrows were upswept, pencil-thin. Her ears came to a slender point and three holes for earrings were to be seen in the lobes. She wasn't drop dead gorgeous but Paris had to admit that she was kinda cute. Fraiser unbuttoned her sleeves, rolling them up to the elbow. Muscle and tattoos greeted his gaze. Her last act was to untuck her shirt and open the top button. "So, what do you want to know, Tom," she asked once she'd made herself more comfortable. Paris thought about it for a second before replying. "Could you teach me your language?" The Elf smiled, flashing perfect pearly white teeth. "Yes and we start lessons tomorrow. Is that all you wanted to ask me?" "No, there's something else I wanted to know. How does one so old stay looking so young?" Fraiser laughed softly. "Magic, Tom, magic. I would show you but my holographic form prevents me. Sometime in the not-so distant future, I'm sure you will meet the real Dr. Janet Fraiser. She will show you." "Real magic? The only I've ever seen is that performed at magic shows when I was a little boy." "Yes, real magic. Not illusions or parlour tricks." "How old were you when your powers began to manifest themselves?" "My parents always told me that I've had them since the cradle. I would say, my first birthday. Everyone looked at me as I manipulated objects with my mind. Torches would extinguish and then relight. Objects flew about the room. Both of my parents looked on in horror while I stood there grinning. They wondered if I had this ability at one, they dreaded what abilities I would possess by four or five. From that point on, my powers slowly began to reveal themselves to me." "Janet, one more thing. Could you tell me the history of your race?" "It's a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?"
"Yes, the night is young. I have plenty of time." Fraiser cleared her throat before beginning her tale. She wasn't kidding when she said it was long, Paris thought at some point during the narrative. It was so long that when she'd finished he would only have time to snatch a few hours of sleep. As he watched she rolled down her sleeves and buttoned them back. Long, nimble fingers tucked the white shirt into the skirt. Fraiser gracefully descended from her perch. Paris slid down the other side of the bed. "Guess I'll see you later, Janet." "See you later, Tom." He walked out of Sickbay yawning loudly.
Night on Kelowna Goa'uld Mothership Xalty'ac
Sekhmet prowled the corridors of her ship. A tattooed hand clutched her head as the intense pain heralding a vision knifed through her brain. Her Mind's Eye snapped open, allowing light to flood in. Visions came unbidden. SG-1's dramatic rescue. Anubis' fiery death at her hands. Kelowna's liberation. The news that she was pregnant. She'd name her daughter Samantha, after her friend Sam. Training her daughter to use her increasingly powerful magical abilities. As a Jaffa rounded the corner, Janet shut her Mind's Eye. She surrendered herself to Sekhmet's control.
The Federation starship Voyager
Janeway left Sickbay and sleepily dragged herself to her quarters. She removed her commbadge at the door. Yawning, she walked to the bed and sat down on the corner. Boots came off then it was under the sheets. Janeway was so tired that she hadn't bothered to take off her uniform or put on a nightgown. No sooner had she put her head down on the pillow did she fall asleep. In her dreams she saw Dr. Fraiser. The young woman held up her tunic to expose her back. Another young warrior woman skillfully wielded a needle dipped in woad. Intricate designs were being tattooed into her soft supple young skin. The needle pricked but she didn't seem to feel it. During this process the two women conversed in a strange tongue. Seated beside her in front of the fire a second young woman had rolled up the tunic's sleeve. Janet's eyes never opened the entire time. Janeway wondered how she could sleep and trust that her fellow warriors did a good job. If someone was tattooing her body like this, she'd definitely stay awake. Abruptly the scene shifted. The next day the Picts attacked the enemy army. A freshly tattooed warrior woman wielding a sword led the assault. Over the space of the next four hours, the two armies slaughtered each other. When it finally ended the battlefield was littered with bodies. The Picts had defeated their enemy at an enormous cost. Janet looked out at the enemy dead with an almost malevolent smile on her woad- etched face. Scene changed again. This time she was being suited up in armor. A young squire handed her a helmet. She smoothed her closely- cropped hair with a mail clad hand before donning it. Gauntlets were pulled on over the mail gloves. Another squire boosted her up into the saddle. She grabbed a hold of the reigns and rode off to join her knights. Five hours later, the remaining knights rode back to the castle. Janet now carried the standard since the young flag bearer had been killed. Her armor was covered in dried silver blood; mercifully none of it came from her veins. Once back inside she removed her blood splattered armor and stripped off her chain mail tunic. She indulged in a hot bath to wash away the grime of battle. For the next seven hours, Janeway saw all of Janet's immortal existence in her dreams. She woke up in the morning wanting to ask her the next time they talked just what language she'd been speaking.
Carter joined a group of senior officers for breakfast in the mess hall. O'Neill approached the table bearing a plate of buttermilk pancakes dripping in syrup and an icy glass of orange juice. "Hey, campers, how's it going," he asked those assembled as he took his assigned seat. "Great. Guess who I met last night," Janeway said before she took a sip of her coffee. "Who," Carter asked, curiosity aroused. "Dr. Janet Fraiser."
"What," O'Neill said, almost spewing out his orange juice. "You heard me, Jack. I saw her but it wasn't really her."
"How is that possible," Carter, ever the scientist, asked. "She's a hologram. Our Doctor must have conjured her up," Janeway replied, taking a bite of her toast. She took a drink of her coffee before speaking again. "Tell me about Janet, Jack. I want to know who I'm dealing with."
"She's an Elf. Not only that she's a Mage. Very old, very powerful. She's the daughter of a powerful Elven king. When she was just a teen she led armies into battle. Everyone thought of her as an Elven Joan of Arc. Mortal men flocked to her banner. She became queen after her parents stepped down from the throne. Janet loves weapons and needles. Hypodermic syringe needles. It's perverse; at least we think it is. The infirmary staff freaks out at the thought of their CMO's collection. All different sizes, some really short, some are pretty long. Biggest one is half as long as my arm. Don't let her come anywhere near you with one of those things. She'll inject you will some drug you've never even heard of that has strange side effects. Aside from the slight needle fetish, Doctor Fraiser is one of the sanest people you'll ever meet. She doesn't rely too heavily on modern medical technology. She prefers magic as it's more reliable. Janet isn't just a doctor; she's also the best damn warrior I've ever seen. Give her a mace and she'll crack a few skulls." "How long have you known Dr. Fraiser, Sam? When did you meet her?"
"Before we joined the Air Force. Her hair was so much longer then, well, so was mine. We met in college biology class as freshmen. I did pretty well in that class but Janet was the science whiz. Told me she was going to enroll in med school after graduation and become a doctor, may be join the Air Force's medical corps. After class, we ate lunch together, got to talking. Janet told me her story as I listened, fascinated. Turned out she wasn't the daughter of doctors, as I'd imagined her to be. Her parents had been Elven royalty and she was a princess. Not only that, she had lived through many centuries of human history, making her over a thousand years old. Janet then gave me a small sampling of her considerable magical abilities. I quickly found myself warming up to her. We met for lunch everyday for the next four years until we graduated and she moved away to attend med school. During the time we're apart, we keep up over e-mail, just to say hi. When we finally meet up again, it's at the opening of the SGC. Janet has not grown any older but then again neither have I. The only change to her appearance is her hair, once long, now boyishly short. We laugh at the sight of ourselves with our uniforms and short-cropped hair. Later, we go topside to a quiet little café to catch up on old times. It was great fun. In response to your question of how long I've known her, I'd say fifteen years." "Well, it's been nice but I got to go to Sickbay. If I don't get there soon, the Doctor will have my hide. See you later," Paris said as he placed his breakfast items back on his tray and rose to leave. Carter watched him walk away then exit out the doors after putting his tray in the recycler.
Paris walked into Sickbay just before his shift was to start. He looked around the main room searching for the Doctor. When he didn't see the Doctor, he headed back towards the doors. Just as he was about to walk out, a voice riveted him to the spot. "The Doctor's in his office," the woman said and made to walk away. Paris grabbed the woman by the arm before she could take a step. "Don't go. You haven't told me your name."
"Doctor Janet Fraiser."
"Lieutenant Tom Paris. I've heard a lot about you." He released his hold on her arm, freeing it to let it hang by her side. "Hope my friends didn't say anything bad about me."
"No. Only good things." The Doctor walked out of his office to see the two young people talking animatedly. He stood by patiently at first but soon he began to grow irate. The medic was supposed to be working, not chatting up his pretty assistant. Fraiser had just met the Lieutenant and was trying to fight back anger at this intrusion. Paris noticed a change come over the Elf's face. Her smile vanished and the warmth died in her eyes. Demonic fury contorted her delicate features into a sinister expression. Fraiser whirled on the Doctor then raked his face with her nails. If he'd been flesh and blood there would be scars on his face. But he wasn't, he was a hologram. Her nails didn't draw blood much less leave a mark. When she realized that they weren't doing any damage, she pulled away. Paris sent the Doctor back to his office with a stern warning not to interrupt until they were finished talking. "You know, you're the first Elf I've ever seen. Most, including me, think you're just a myth." "No, we're real. We keep to ourselves and don't venture into the outside world much. Over the centuries, though, Man was slowly beginning to encroach upon our territories. As queen, I led armies against our mortal neighbors. After many years of bloody conflict, we finally succeeded in repulsing Man. I've even fought orcs and trolls who invaded my kingdom. Dwarves raided our settlements; Gnomes desecrated our sacred places of worship. My men and I would slaughter them, down to the last man!" "Why don't you like us?" "Never said that we don't like Man, we're just wary of them. Dwarves and Gnomes were a perpetual thorn in the side. Can't tell you how many of the Little People I've cleaved in two with my battleaxe. Killed quite a few of your kind," Fraiser said the last with a spark of hatred in a cinnamon brown eye. "What else did you do besides fight?"
"I acted in plays at the Globe as one of Lord Chamberlain's Men. My first role as a young "man" was Hamlet. Got to act next to Shakespeare, which was exciting. Went to med school. Joined the Air Force, over my family's protests. You name it; I've probably done it. When you've lived as long as I have, you get to do things Mortals only dream of." "How about we continue this conversation later? Everything you've told me is interesting and I want to hear more. I feel like we've kept the Doctor too long."
"All right, Lieutenant. I'll see you later. I enjoyed meeting you."
"See you this evening." Paris walked into the Doctor's office; Fraiser went to join Kes, the Ocampan nurse. The shift proceeded uneventfully and Paris left to begin his shift on the Bridge.
Later the same day Early evening Voyager's Sickbay
Paris entered Sickbay dressed in civilian clothes. Fraiser still wore her uniform but had taken off the lab coat. She had seated herself on one of the bio beds and he hopped up next to her. Now that he was this close, he could get a better look at her. Every line of the tattoos on her face and neck were now seen in clear detail. The young woman's eyebrows were upswept, pencil-thin. Her ears came to a slender point and three holes for earrings were to be seen in the lobes. She wasn't drop dead gorgeous but Paris had to admit that she was kinda cute. Fraiser unbuttoned her sleeves, rolling them up to the elbow. Muscle and tattoos greeted his gaze. Her last act was to untuck her shirt and open the top button. "So, what do you want to know, Tom," she asked once she'd made herself more comfortable. Paris thought about it for a second before replying. "Could you teach me your language?" The Elf smiled, flashing perfect pearly white teeth. "Yes and we start lessons tomorrow. Is that all you wanted to ask me?" "No, there's something else I wanted to know. How does one so old stay looking so young?" Fraiser laughed softly. "Magic, Tom, magic. I would show you but my holographic form prevents me. Sometime in the not-so distant future, I'm sure you will meet the real Dr. Janet Fraiser. She will show you." "Real magic? The only I've ever seen is that performed at magic shows when I was a little boy." "Yes, real magic. Not illusions or parlour tricks." "How old were you when your powers began to manifest themselves?" "My parents always told me that I've had them since the cradle. I would say, my first birthday. Everyone looked at me as I manipulated objects with my mind. Torches would extinguish and then relight. Objects flew about the room. Both of my parents looked on in horror while I stood there grinning. They wondered if I had this ability at one, they dreaded what abilities I would possess by four or five. From that point on, my powers slowly began to reveal themselves to me." "Janet, one more thing. Could you tell me the history of your race?" "It's a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?"
"Yes, the night is young. I have plenty of time." Fraiser cleared her throat before beginning her tale. She wasn't kidding when she said it was long, Paris thought at some point during the narrative. It was so long that when she'd finished he would only have time to snatch a few hours of sleep. As he watched she rolled down her sleeves and buttoned them back. Long, nimble fingers tucked the white shirt into the skirt. Fraiser gracefully descended from her perch. Paris slid down the other side of the bed. "Guess I'll see you later, Janet." "See you later, Tom." He walked out of Sickbay yawning loudly.