Harm was surrounded by light. Blinding light. It pierced his eyes and
bounded around inside his skull. Were it not for the incredible pain, not
only from the light but from his fall, he might have thought he was dead.
He realised he was standing upright, and that despite his bloodloss, he was not dizzy any more. As soon as he realised this, he began to feel light- headed.
"Powerful thing, suggestion."
"Who said that?" Harm spun around looking for the source of the voice. He nearly fell over. "Who said that?!"
"I did."
A man appeared before him. There was something familiar about him, but Harm couldn't put a finger on what it was. His presence was comforting, though.
"Who are you? What's going on?"
"You're unconscious on the floor of an alien base that's about to blow up as a result of your own actions."
"That's not really very helpful."
"No, I didn't think it would be."
Harm waited for the man to explain that statement. He didn't. "Are you going to tell me anything that is helpful?"
"No. For the moment, we are just killing time here."
"The base is about to blow up. I don't see how killing time would be a good thing."
"I was speaking figuratively. Time is relative, you know."
"So I've been told. But if time is relative, why do we need to kill it?"
"Ever the lawyer's mind. Sit down, now that the thought of dizziness is in your mind, you should do something about it."
Harm sat, seeing no particular reason not to. "What is this place?"
"Ah, that is a good question. One which must go unanswered for the time being."
Harm glared at him, but the man appeared not to notice.
He had been sitting for what could have been an eternity, or could have been only a few seconds, when he felt a warm weight press down upon his shoulder. He put his hand up to it, and encountered a powerful green paw, vibrating with the force of its owner's purr.
"Now we can get started."
Harm snapped his attention back to the man. "Okay. What's going on?"
"That is a long story."
"I don't appear to be going anywhere."
"Very well."
"The Goa'uld are not the only alien race to have spent time on your planet. My kind spent many many years there, though our sphere of influence was much smaller than that of the Goa'uld. We confined ourselves to the southern area of the island of Albion, an island with raw power in its very soil. Few of the great devices my people built for the benefit of yours, to harness that power, remain, but it was mainly the smaller ones which were lost. The true tragedy is that your people do not even understand them any more.
"You are familiar with the legends of the lost continent of Atlantis. Most people of your culture and education are at least passingly aware of them. They tell of a continent of incredibly advances people, lost to some sort of natural disaster, untraceable beneath the waves of one of the great oceans of your planet.
"The myths lead the mind away from the true realities of Atlantis. Atlantis was not physically lost. As such, it never physically existed. Atlantis was Albion under my people, and it endured longer than your historians would ever believe. Only with the passing of the one you call Arturus, Rex Quondam, Rexque Futurus, did Atlantis as my kind knew it sink between the waves. Most of us left, with only a few remaining to keep the blood of the Furlings alive on Earth.
"An ancestor of your in the direct paternal line was one of them. Dilute though it is, the blood of the Furlings runs in your veins. That is why your friend there was drawn to the woman you love; he smelled you on her, and a threat to her became a threat to the blood of the Furlings. That Latin prophecy of hers has deeper meanings than you can possibly imagine.
"We have taken a great deal of interest in you throughout your life. We knew the Furling blood was due to reassert itself soon, and when the SGC was formed we knew the time had come, and set the events in motion that would eventually steer you towards your destiny. You were correct about Sergei truly believing he is your brother; we arranged that it would be so. Your mutual belief that you were brothers was greatly instrumental in your transfer to the SGC, a transfer which we deemed necessary. We knew something big was going to happen; we have something of an ability to sense upcoming events which will radically alter future history, and have no desire to see Anubis ruling the galaxy, or extending his dominion even further. What you have done here today may well achieve what we desire, but we cannot be certain until the bomb detonates."
Harm stared at him, not even attempting to keep his jaw shut. As he did so, he realised where he had seen the man before.
"You were in my vision. You were the old man. Merlin."
"I was. Romanticised legend calls me a Wizard, when I was in truth the last of the true Druids. The Druids recalled by history were those taught by the Furlings, and they were wiped out at Mona by the Romans, but only the Furling Druids truly wielded the power ascribed to Druids by the common man."
"Okay. You've told me the background. What's going on at the moment?"
"You fell, short of the doors. We transported your consciousness here to explain things to you, and to give your friend a chance to catch up with you."
"So that?"
"You'll see," said Merlin, with a small smile.
Then he vanished.
He realised he was standing upright, and that despite his bloodloss, he was not dizzy any more. As soon as he realised this, he began to feel light- headed.
"Powerful thing, suggestion."
"Who said that?" Harm spun around looking for the source of the voice. He nearly fell over. "Who said that?!"
"I did."
A man appeared before him. There was something familiar about him, but Harm couldn't put a finger on what it was. His presence was comforting, though.
"Who are you? What's going on?"
"You're unconscious on the floor of an alien base that's about to blow up as a result of your own actions."
"That's not really very helpful."
"No, I didn't think it would be."
Harm waited for the man to explain that statement. He didn't. "Are you going to tell me anything that is helpful?"
"No. For the moment, we are just killing time here."
"The base is about to blow up. I don't see how killing time would be a good thing."
"I was speaking figuratively. Time is relative, you know."
"So I've been told. But if time is relative, why do we need to kill it?"
"Ever the lawyer's mind. Sit down, now that the thought of dizziness is in your mind, you should do something about it."
Harm sat, seeing no particular reason not to. "What is this place?"
"Ah, that is a good question. One which must go unanswered for the time being."
Harm glared at him, but the man appeared not to notice.
He had been sitting for what could have been an eternity, or could have been only a few seconds, when he felt a warm weight press down upon his shoulder. He put his hand up to it, and encountered a powerful green paw, vibrating with the force of its owner's purr.
"Now we can get started."
Harm snapped his attention back to the man. "Okay. What's going on?"
"That is a long story."
"I don't appear to be going anywhere."
"Very well."
"The Goa'uld are not the only alien race to have spent time on your planet. My kind spent many many years there, though our sphere of influence was much smaller than that of the Goa'uld. We confined ourselves to the southern area of the island of Albion, an island with raw power in its very soil. Few of the great devices my people built for the benefit of yours, to harness that power, remain, but it was mainly the smaller ones which were lost. The true tragedy is that your people do not even understand them any more.
"You are familiar with the legends of the lost continent of Atlantis. Most people of your culture and education are at least passingly aware of them. They tell of a continent of incredibly advances people, lost to some sort of natural disaster, untraceable beneath the waves of one of the great oceans of your planet.
"The myths lead the mind away from the true realities of Atlantis. Atlantis was not physically lost. As such, it never physically existed. Atlantis was Albion under my people, and it endured longer than your historians would ever believe. Only with the passing of the one you call Arturus, Rex Quondam, Rexque Futurus, did Atlantis as my kind knew it sink between the waves. Most of us left, with only a few remaining to keep the blood of the Furlings alive on Earth.
"An ancestor of your in the direct paternal line was one of them. Dilute though it is, the blood of the Furlings runs in your veins. That is why your friend there was drawn to the woman you love; he smelled you on her, and a threat to her became a threat to the blood of the Furlings. That Latin prophecy of hers has deeper meanings than you can possibly imagine.
"We have taken a great deal of interest in you throughout your life. We knew the Furling blood was due to reassert itself soon, and when the SGC was formed we knew the time had come, and set the events in motion that would eventually steer you towards your destiny. You were correct about Sergei truly believing he is your brother; we arranged that it would be so. Your mutual belief that you were brothers was greatly instrumental in your transfer to the SGC, a transfer which we deemed necessary. We knew something big was going to happen; we have something of an ability to sense upcoming events which will radically alter future history, and have no desire to see Anubis ruling the galaxy, or extending his dominion even further. What you have done here today may well achieve what we desire, but we cannot be certain until the bomb detonates."
Harm stared at him, not even attempting to keep his jaw shut. As he did so, he realised where he had seen the man before.
"You were in my vision. You were the old man. Merlin."
"I was. Romanticised legend calls me a Wizard, when I was in truth the last of the true Druids. The Druids recalled by history were those taught by the Furlings, and they were wiped out at Mona by the Romans, but only the Furling Druids truly wielded the power ascribed to Druids by the common man."
"Okay. You've told me the background. What's going on at the moment?"
"You fell, short of the doors. We transported your consciousness here to explain things to you, and to give your friend a chance to catch up with you."
"So that?"
"You'll see," said Merlin, with a small smile.
Then he vanished.