NOTES: The chapter contains non-graphic mention of the sexual abuse of a minor. Please read with caution.
All mythological reference taken from Barbara G. Walker's "The Women's Encyclopedia of Myths and Legends", though any animosity between Maat and Hathor is purely fictional. Thanks so much to the lovely ladies of jackslashdaniel, alphagate and gateway for the encouragement!
As always, feedback would leave me gravely in your debt.
One Familiar Face 3/?
by Meredith Bronwen
They had a rapport, Jack thought-- not for the first time-- as Daniel continued outlining what he knew and could infer about the natives belonging to his latest artifact. Jack watched with a carefully bemused expression as the archaeologist moved his slim hands, nodding on occasion and pausing to ask Daniel fairly obvious questions just when the younger man became sure he wasn't listening. Daniel's voice was expressive and sure, genuinely eager to impart the knowledge he'd just acquired, and--though parts of Jack's mind might detour on a random thought or question-- part of him was always listening to Daniel. In any other life, the man would have been a story teller; Jack tried to snort at his own romanticism, but he remembered the eyes of the Abydonians, watching Daniel, listening, because when Daniel talked he did so with his whole self.
"So what are we talking about here?" Jack asked as they picked up their trays in the commissary. "Furry samurai?"
Daniel rolled his eyes, "Armor fashioned to go over heavy furs. The harsh climate of PX-762 affected even their style of warfare. While Tokugawa Japan offers the closest equivalent to the ridged social and militia hierarchy of the people on PX-762, it evolved to that point under a totally different set of circumstances. For example, it was perfectly socially acceptable-- even expected-- for people to eat the dead."
"Daniel," Jack laughed a little. "We're about to eat. Spare me."
"It was just an example," the younger man said, head turned down to hide his smile. "The natives believed that, should a woman consume the flesh of one of the warriors of the tribe, his soul would be reborn in her next child. The practical side, of course, is that they waste absolutely nothing. It's interesting to see how the more Asian reverence for the elderly reconciled with the Northern Arctic understanding that the old and infirm slowed the rest of the tribe."
"Alright," Jack said, sliding into his seat. "I'm so not going to PX-cannibal-town--"
"PX-762."
"--whatever-- any time soon," he gestured vaguely at his graying hair. "And how do you and Carter remember all those numbers anyway? Say 'Land of Light'-- I know what you're talking about. Say 'Tollana', and I remember perfectly. But if you mention PX-," he made up a number, "645, I have no clue."
"Maybe that's because you never went to PX-645," Daniel pointed out. At Jack's blank look, he added, "That was SG-3-- the primarily insectile rather than mammalian evolutionary track."
"Giant bugs? I would have remembered..." The Colonel fixed Daniel with a sharp look, and got an endearing quirk of lips in return.
Daniel's eyes twinkled. "Gotcha."
Shaking his head, Jack spent the next few minutes rebelliously focusing on his food. Lunch consisted of chicken strips, barely-mashed potatoes, and-- for Daniel-- blue Jell-O.
"Don't tell me Carter has you hooked on that stuff, too," Jack said, eyeing Daniel's tray dubiously.
"Sort of," Daniel ducked his head, "it's better than what they pass off as yogurt, here, anyway." They sat closely on one of the benches, Jack aware of Daniel's closed eyes and considering expression as the younger man bit into his chicken. "What?" Daniel asked when he caught the glance, "I like chicken."
"You think everything tastes like chicken," O'Neill emphasized his point with a wave of his spoon. "Don't you dare tell me that blue Jell-O tastes like---"
No matter how many times the gate alarm sounded, Jack imagined it would always assault his ears-- by design, it wasn't a sound one got used too. He remembered the outpost in Iraq; how the sound of far off mines exploding-- whether by intent or simple weather changes-- brought every soldier to attention. Daniel flinched, dropping his chicken strip.
"Headache?" Jack asked sympathetically.
"Low blood-sugar," Daniel flinched again, "Shouldn't have missed lunch." Jack nodded, turning his attention to Sgt. Davis' voice as it warbled over the loudspeaker.
"Unauthorized gate activation!" There was a near-breathless pause, "Receiving Tok'ra IDC."
"That'd be us," Jack nodded towards the door, reaching over towards Daniel's tray as the archaeologist began to walk away. "Here," he pushed a chicken strip into Daniel's hand, grinning. "To go."
"You're insane." The younger man shook his head, taking a bite all the same. Jack put his hand on the small of Daniel's back, ready to lead him away.
"Nope. Just think where you'd be without me around to--"
(Sense memory. Full immersion, like the first swim of the summer, the water so deliciously chill.
"Just think where we'd be without each other, Danny--" he brushed the fine hair away from his friend's face. He was young, and the sun was coming up over a lake Daniel had never even seen. The younger boy just smiled, biting into a strawberry as he dangled his legs off the dock. Jack leaned in and )
the smell of strawberries was overwhelming, and he was forced to finish lamely, "help ya." Daniel looked at him with concern as they stepped under the buzzing elevator lights, but Jack just shifted uncomfortably and watched the other man quickly finish off his pilfered snack.
"Hello, trouble," Jack commented dryly as he and Daniel entered the briefing room, gracing Anise with his most apathetic glance. She blinked at him, brown eyes uncomprehending, as he took a seat next to General Hammond, passing the pot of coffee on down to Daniel, who gratefully filled his mug. Down the table a ways, Jacob Carter was greeting his daughter, and Jack nodded his hello.
"So," he said when everyone was settled and exchanging vaguely wary looks. "What can we do for you, this time, Jake? World you need saved? Goa'uld you need killed? Or just guinea pigs for another experiment?"
"Colonel," General Hammond scolded, though it lacked heat. He switched his gaze to his old friend. "As nice as it is to see you, Jacob, I think it's safe to assume this is not a social call."
"No," Jacob shook his head, hiding a smile when Jack eyed Anise significantly, elbowed Daniel and muttered, 'Thank God'. "Though I dare say this mission is as much in your best interest as it is for the Tok'ra. Perhaps more so." Jack and Daniel exchanged glances, while Teal'c's face remained, as always, impassive and calm.
"Go on, Dad," Carter said when her father took a breath and looked at those assembled.
"It is... difficult to explain," Anise offered, making an abortive motion with her hands.
Jack's smile was just a show of teeth, "Try."
"Over the ages, the Tok'ra have... lost... a lot of things," Jacob picked up, "quick evacuations, attacks, sabotage and so on. With the necessity of secrecy and limited knowledge, we were not aware of the gravity of this situation until recently."
Anise nodded, "One of the greatest Tok'ra, Maat..."
"Daniel?" Jack asked, raising an eyebrow. General Hammond nodded as well, and Daniel bit his lip before speaking.
"Maat is the Egyptian goddess of Truth and Justice."
Jack smirked, "And the American way?"
"She was also mistress of the underworld," Daniel said, eyeing his friend with bemused disapproval. "In earlier Egyptian mythology, she weighted the souls of the dead against a feather to ensure their purity of heart. She was also known as Tiamat, further East. Her mercy and council could be sought even when other goddesses would turn their backs." He glanced up at Anise, "It's not surprising that she would be a Tok'ra, considering she was supposed to be the embodiment of righteous thought and the only one qualified to judge others. Doesn't exactly sound like the Goa'uld, huh?"
"Indeed it does not, DanielJackson," Teal'c nodded, before addressing Jacob. "However, it is known to all Jaffa that Maat was driven off Earth by the efforts of Ra, Hathor and Osiris. By all reports, she later died trying to protect her newly-born clutch of larval Tok'ra." Dark, determined eyes met with O'Neill's, "It is told as a parable of the 'gods' inescapable power."
Jack grimaced, "How warm and fuzzy."
"This much is true," Anise confirmed. "Maat died in vain, and her children were slaughtered in the thousands. It was not until one of the lesser goddesses, Egregia--"
"Fountains and childbirth, right?" Jack asked, amused. Daniel nodded and rolled his eyes.
"-- rebelled," Anise raised her voice a little, "that the Tok'ra had a chance for any long-term survival."
"Legends also say that Maat died protecting the location of a secret chamber in which she had hidden a very powerful device," Jacob paused, "one that had taken her five thousand years to perfect."
"What sort of device was this?" Carter asked, her posture betraying some of her interest.
"It is not known," Anise demurred. "All we know is that the machine was very powerful, and a threat to the kingdoms of all Goa'uld. Ra, Maat's father, sent her sister Hathor, along with Osiris, to retrieve Maat and the device. Hathor's orders were to bring her older sister back to Earth alive for questioning, yet by all reports, Hathor forced Maat to watch the vicious slaughter of her children, before murdering Maat herself and-- so the stories say-- eating her heart."
"That Hathor's a gem, alright," Jack grimaced.
"Recently, an unidentified tracking beacon-- one of the few to survive the our long struggle-- began to emit an energy signature once more."
"Took us a month to figure out what it was for," Jacob said with dark humor, "but, as best we can tell, the beacon was smuggled back to Egregia on Earth by Maat's remaining followers. Should Maat's secret chamber ever be opened, the beacon would alert the Tok'ra that the machine's sanctuary had been breached."
"Someone has indeed found the chamber," Teal'c said in a voice that was anything that but questioning.
"And now they have access to a powerful new technology," Carter raked a hand through her short hair.
"You have no idea what this device is used for?" Hammond asked, frowning at Jacob's answering shake of his head.
"You know," Jack said, conversationally, "how come these people always hide devices of 'great power'. How come they never destroy them? We're always running after this ancient deadly machine, that mysterious weapon. They should clean up their own mess."
"Well, we would be out of a job," Daniel pointed out, before turning back to the elder Carter. "Is it possible that the chamber was breached by accident?"
Jacob bowed his head briefly, eyes flashing gold. "It is unlikely," Selmac said. "We have traced the beacon to a planet on the very edge of Goa'uld territories. It has long since been stripped of all resources that would interest the System Lords. Only a few of them would know of Maat's old haunts, or lend any credence to stories of her machine. Ra--"
"Dead," Jack said, smile more than a little triumphant.
"Osiris--"
"A possibility," Hammond considered.
"Ba'al--"
"Who's attention is currently focused on a border dispute with Kali," Anise put in. "And..."
Daniel muttered, so softly only Jack seemed to hear, "Oh, no."
"And Hathor," Selmac finished, folding his hands.
"She's dead, too," Jack said quickly, looking in askance at the rest of his team. "Right? She's a popsicle. I saw it."
"It is possible that you only managed to kill the host body," Anise said. "If one of her Jaffa had retrieved the human shell in time, the Goa'uld itself could have been saved, provided a new host was acquired quickly enough."
"That's a pretty big if," Jack said, aware of the sudden rigidity of Daniel's posture. Reflected in the gateroom window, Daniel's face seemed only a little pale, expression betraying nothing, but Jack felt a prickle of sympathy along his skin, none the less. Hathor's name could only bring images of flames and Daniel's vacant gaze, ready to display mockingly, should Jack close his eyes. Daniel, numb, listlessly drinking soup in Jack's kitchen, sleeping fitfully and screaming for the next three nights. Later still, shivering from the false cryogenic suspension, eyes unfocused and endless, unable to believe that Jack was alive. Very gently, Jack moved his knee so that it touched briefly against Daniel's. Only the other man's quick glance told him that the small offer of comfort had been received.
"We have sent Tok'ra operatives to the planet," Selmac informed them. "Their preliminary report showed Jaffa of various origins, including several who's System Lords have given them standing orders to shoot the other party on sight."
General Hammond coughed into his hand, "We've all seen Hathor's ability to... procure... an army." He turned to Jacob, who's eyes still glimmered with Selmac's age. "How long until your scouts report back?"
"Not for another two days. We need details of the area around the chamber, as well as any intelligence on what Hathor's plans might be. Currently, the System Lords consider her deceased. Now is the perfect time for her to rally forces without attracting suspicion."
"Wonderful," Jack said distastefully.
"In the mean time," Anise drew herself up regally, "I have brought with me all the information the Tok'ra currently possess regarding Maat, be it known fact or simple legend. This includes some of Maat's notes, written in code-- I'm afraid they are incomplete and frequently interrupted. I would like to collaborate with Dr. Jackson to see if we can't garner more information about what Hathor may currently have in her arsenal."
Daniel blinked. "Sure..."
"MajorCarter may offer her technical assistance as well, should we come upon actual plans. I very much doubt, however, that we will be so lucky."
"In exchange for...?" Jack drawled.
"Your full assistance in an all-out attack on the chamber." Jacob's voice, soothed back into it's regular cadence, sounded just slightly apologetic. "The Tok'ra are willing to share research when the machine is secured."
"For now, I'll authorize Dr. Jackson and Anise to collaborate on the Maat findings," General Hammond conceded. "We really don't know what we're dealing with here, people. In two days time, when the Tok'ra have more tactical information-- and if Dr. Jackson's research indicates such action-- we'll talk about an actual assault." The older man sat back, nodding to himself, and then to Jacob. "Dismissed."
Awake, John lay without moving. He'd heard the telltale hiss of food being delivered, could even smell the faint tang of whatever provided his sustenance, but his limbs were long and heavy despite his recent sleep. His body was tired in a way that came purely from being caged, like the bored, menacing flick of the captured tiger's tail. In the voiceless, empty dark, it was hard to believe in color, in all the things he'd heedlessly ignored, speeding away from school and into summer's high heat. His mind was quick and awake in ways his body was not-- it was like the low sort of sleep you get in the morning, aware of the alarm but unable to translate thought to action.
('Keeping looking for a way out,' his father's voice urged. 'Come on, Johnny. No time to laze about.')
John's sleep had been fruitless and shallow-- it couldn't have been more than an hour or so since Danny had been taken. But then, his perceptions were skewed, helplessly entangled in the dark and the fearsome clawing of his own mind. They had to bring Danny back-- they had to, because who knew what that bitch was doing to him, out in the bright world where everything was real. They'd bring him back, and he and John would lay on their sides of the vent, talking, poking fingers through. Maybe Danny'd have a chance to see more of the hieroglyphs, or to catch some clue as to what was going on. Danny was a smart kid-- he'd get the intelligence, and then John would know what to do with it. He would know because it wasn't just his sanity riding on this anymore.
"One hot night," he sang suddenly in a loud, bored voice, "while we were all in bed, Missus O'Leary left the lantern in the shed. When the cow tipped it over, he winked his eye and said," John fairly shouted, "it's gonna be a hot time in the ol' town, tonight." The cell was empty, but too small to give any sort of satisfying echo, and John gave up with a disgusted snort. He was about to finally pull his limbs to motion, when the hissing sound of fresh air made him go completely still. Nearby, the vent lit dimly with borrowed light, and he heard footsteps stumble close. Darkness swallowed everything once more, but John inched quietly towards where the luminance had been, breathing faint with disbelief.
"John?" Danny's voice was a small, careful treasure.
The older boy's throat was dry, "God, Danny." He touched the tip of Danny's finger with his own, alarmed by how much even that single digit was shaking. "Are you alright?"
"She took a 'sample'," Danny said, as if he was in a high tower and only watching the frantic movements of the small figures bellow.
"She didn't...?"
"No," said with apathy. "She gave me this stuff. It made me... well, think of when you have to hold your textbooks over, um..."
"Yeah, I get you," John said, trying to force a laugh. "S'what math books are for, you know."
"It wouldn't stop," Danny went on listlessly, as if he hadn't heard. "It made me dizzy and nauseous, but she wouldn't stop touching me. She says she's harvesting my 'code of life'."
"She's being abusive," John said harshly. "I don't care where or what year it is." He forced his voice to gentle, knowing his anger could only touch Daniel, not the woman who so callously used him. "God, Danny..." But there weren't any words, just Danny's labored, uneven breathing.
"It's gone now, at least," the younger boy said at last. "But I still feel sick."
"Just lay down," John advised. "Think of someplace nice."
Danny snorted, "Where?"
"How 'bout.. your house in Egypt?"
"We had an apartment," Danny said. "We went on a lot of digs."
"Cool. I live in an apartment, too. Most the year. Did you like it, in Egypt?"
"Yes," dreamily, "everyone was so alive, there. The past was real. And our house... there were so many books... the kitchen always smelled like strong, Egyptian tea. I would lay where the sun came in onto the floor-- it was really warm."
"Sunning, like a reptile?" John asked, voice wry.
"Hmmm..." Danny clung to the shifting edges of the memory. "My stomach hurts."
"The stuff she gave you, what did it--"
For a moment, John didn't even register the stabbing column of light as it fell across the floor of his cell. All he could think of was that sound, the 'whoosh' of the door, and Danny, curled in on himself.
'They can't take him again,' John thought wildly, before the brightness finally forced his eyes to close. Rubbing harshly at them, he looked up at the bulky shadows in the threshold. 'Don't say anything. Don't let them know that you and Danny can communicate.' He was pulled to his feet, hauled under the armpits away from his dark corner, feet dangling off the ground. The guard's expressions were vacant and maybe a little desperate.
'Eyes front, kiddo,' he told himself, forcing his eyes to take in every detail. 'Now's your chance.'
They carried him out into the sterile, jaundiced light.