Ashes Crushed and Tossed Away

by QueenH

With the Wraith on the way to Atlantis, Jack O'Neill is forced to make a choice and the repercussions are felt by everyone. Crossover with Stargate Atlantis. Complete.

1. Confessions

Title: Ashes Crushed and Tossed Away

Author: QueenH

Feedback: Please, I live for it.

Summary: With the Wraith on their way to Atlantis, Jack O'Neill has to make a choice, and the repercussions are felt by everyone.

Crossover: SG-1/Atlantis

Pairing: none

Rating/Content Level: 13+

Genre: Action/Adventure

Warnings: Just a few curse words and some mild violence.

Spoilers: There are many for Reckoning part 1 and 2 as well as Threads of SG-1 Season 8. Also for the last half of the Atlantis season 1.

Disclaimer: No I don't own any of the characters expect for the ones I created myself. If I owned them I certainly wouldn't be writing about them.

Notes: Thanks go out to Jolene for being patient and sticking with me as I wrote this. You are a wonderful beta reader, and your assistance has been tremendous. I know I wouldn't have finished this if you hadn't been there to help. Also want to thank Lynette for helping me out at the beginning.

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Chapter 1 Confessions

"Sir, you should take a look at this." Carter's voice echoed through the phone line, and General O'Neill sighed heavily and put his hand on his head as he nodded. "Sir, the information the Atlantis team sent back is definitely…"

He cut her off with a loud groan. "Listen, Carter. I'll be there in a few minutes. Right now I've gotta finish this amazing memo to the commissary about their new budget."

"Right, sir."

With that Jack hung up the phone and went back to his memo. His concentration was broken though, and he silently hung his head, as he slowly felt his world begin to crumble around him. He spent the next few hours avoiding Colonel Carter and her new findings from the Atlantis team's message.

As he sat quietly in his office he began to feel a familiar presence surround him. With a groan he ground his fists together and then reached a hand beneath the desk and pressed a button to turn off the camera monitoring his office.

"What do you want?" He called out, waiting for the presence to show itself.

The room lit up brightly for a moment; then a dark haired woman stepped forward and took a seat across from Jack. "You shouldn't greet a friend that way."

Jack gritted his teeth as he responded. "You aren't my friend anymore. Now what do you want?"

"Though it is against my better judgment, I have come to give you a warning. You should tell your team the truth. The fate of this world may depend on it."

With a sarcastic laugh Jack leaned back in his chair. "Are you insane? What the hell are you talking about?"

"The Wraith are close to finding their way here. Earth is not prepared to stop an attack such as that which the Wraith are capable of. Their hunger is great, and they will destroy this world and all who stand in their way." The woman lowered her head solemnly, and Jack couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in confusion.

"How do you know this?"

"I still keep in touch with the other Outcasts that remain in the Pegasus Galaxy. One of them has recently met with the team from Atlantis. The Wraith have awoken in full."

With a heavy sigh Jack shook his head. "What do you expect me to do? Meddling is your affair, not mine."

The woman scowled at Jack's venomous tongue. "Was it not meddling that led to you being here in the first place?"

"As I recall, it was you that got me put here."

She gave him an indignant look and stood up. "I came to warn you, nothing more. I won't stay and listen to your petty attempts at placing blame. The past cannot be undone now."

Before Jack had a chance to respond a bright light swept through the room, and the woman was gone. Stifling a groan Jack buried his head in his hands and closed his eyes. Deep down he knew that he was coming very close to his own moment of truth and he was dreading what he knew would inevitably happen.

> > > >

Back in Carter's office, she and Daniel were going over the data found in the transmission from Atlantis, and working on sorting out the information they had deciphered thus far.

"So these Wraith basically suck the life out their victims?" Daniel asked as Carter sifted through the information on the laptop in front of her.

"That's what I gather from the data Weir's team sent us. There's so much information here though. I haven't even scratched the surface of all the data they sent through. We've had a team sifting through it trying to separate files and determine exactly what is there."

Daniel was about to speak again when there was a knock on the door to the laboratory. They looked up to see an airman standing there with a rather thick set of folders in his hands.

"These are for you ma'am, the latest specs on the updates to the Prometheus. General Hammond wanted you to take a look." Daniel took the files from the airman and set them beside Carter's laptop.

"Thank you Sergeant."

"Yes, ma'am." With that Carter nodded the airman out of her office and he turned on his heel and quickly exited the lab.

"Wow! This is fascinating." Carter looked up from the computer and Daniel was watching her intently. "It looks like the Atlantis team came across a time machine. From the description it sounds like the device on the Ancient ship we found when we went to get Maybourne."

Daniel's eyes widened and he moved closer to get a look at the screen of her laptop. "You're right. It does sound just like it. The schematics look similar as well…Has Jack seen this yet?"

"No, the general said he'd be by later to take a look at what we found."

"Is now appropriate, Carter?" Jack's voice caught them off guard and they both stumbled from their positions in surprise.

"Sir, didn't hear you come in."

"You really should try knocking, Jack."

"Well Daniel. It is MY base. I really don't have to." Jack quipped as he stepped forward a few more steps so that he was right next to both Daniel and Carter.

"How…adult of you, Jack." Daniel rolled his eyes and then turned his attention back to the screen. "These are some rather interesting findings Weir's team made."

Jack put on his best 'I'm truly fascinated' look and motioned for them to go on. "Wonderful, you two. Fill me in."

Carter was the first to speak, prattling on about the information in the Atlantis transmission, and Daniel chimed in a few times to add his own opinion about things. Finally, Jack had had enough and he put his hand up to stop them.

"Alright, alright. Sounds like you need some more time to go over things. Do that and give me your reports in the morning. I'm going back up to my office."

Daniel and Carter nodded, and Jack stood to leave. He waved good-bye with a wide smile before pushing himself out the door and slowly making his way down the corridor towards the elevator. Once he reached his office he slumped down in his seat and brought his left hand to his forehead. He closed his eyes and ran his thumb and forefinger down the bridge of his nose as he sighed.

He paid enough attention to his friend's prattling, and with his few glances at the laptop screen he knew that the Atlantis team was in grave danger. As he looked up from his hands he stared blankly at the wall in front of him, wondering just how he was going to get some help to his people without causing any problems for himself. Sadly, he knew there wasn't a chance in Hell he'd actually be able to succeed in that.

The next morning there were two carefully written reports on his desk and he began to flip through them before he'd even sat down. In less than an hour he'd read them both, and his worse fears were realized. Sighing he picked up the phone and began to dial.

"Walter, I want SG-1 in my office now." Not waiting for a response he merely hung up and began to tap his fingers rapidly across the top of his oak desk.

A few minutes later the three members of the SGC's flagship team entered the eerily quiet office and took their seats across from the general.

"Alright, I read your reports. From what I can tell it looks like Weir and her team are facing a pretty serious threat with these Wraiths. The last report Weir sent said the bad guys'd be knocking on their door in less than a week. I'd rather not see that happen if it can be avoided. Anyone got any ideas?" Jack's comment surprised his team, since they'd only left the reports on his desk an hour before. They were puzzled as to how he could have read the rather lengthy and detailed reports in such a short time.

Daniel stared wide-eyed at the general and opened his mouth to comment, but Carter spoke up first.

"I was thinking, sir. General Hammond sent me the specs for the modifications to the Prometheus, and I talked to the leader of the team working on the ship. They're saying the ship will be operational in a few weeks. The updates are taking a little longer than they anticipated."

Jack shook his head at the colonel. "That doesn't really help us, Carter. Weir and her team need help sooner than that."

"Well, sir. The Prometheus can't get there in time, but the prototype Daedalus can."

"The new hyperspace, ZPM powered experimental ship?" Jack asked, not holding back his skepticism.

"Yes. The research team has been working around the clock on it since Prometheus was damaged during its last mission to Pegasus. Everything is ready; they just haven't tested her in space yet. If all goes well the ship can make it there in about four days."

Jack turned to look at Daniel and Teal'c who were sitting quietly as Carter continued telling them about the Daedalus's capabilities and specifications.

"Okay, Carter I'm sold. Unless either of you has another option?" Both Daniel and Teal'c shook their heads, and Jack continued. "Alright, you work on that Carter. Daniel, I know you have to have something to add."

"Well, the Daedalus is the best chance we have to help Weir and her team. Who exactly are you thinking of sending? With Anubis on his way here can we really spare the troops?"

"Daniel Jackson considering not helping someone? I think Hell just froze over."

Daniel rolled his eyes at Jack's remark "That's not what I meant. It's just I can't see the President okaying you sending anyone to help Dr. Weir if we're in danger ourselves. As it is we have no idea when Anubis will be here."

"DanielJackson is correct. Anyone sent to aid the Atlantis team, would be one less that would be needed here if Anubis were to attack in the interim."

Jack sighed heavily, and nodded in agreement. "I don't think Hayes will drop the mission, but he may cap the number of people we can send though. I'll talk to Hammond about it. He should be here by noon. I want the three of you there for the briefing."

They all nodded and he dismissed them from his office. As they started to leave he waved Teal'c back into the office.

"Was there something more you wished to say, O'Neill?"

"2100 hours tonight, I want you to bring the team to my house. Don't tell them why, just make sure they're there."

Teal'c could read the grave expression on his friend's face and he nodded. "You feel they are ready then?"

"Not completely, T. If I'm right though, things are only gonna get worse from here on out, and it'll be easier if I tell them now, rather than have them find out later."

"As you wish. I will make certain they arrive on time." With that Teal'c turned to leave and Jack let out a breath he felt like he'd been holding since they'd entered his office.

The rest of the day went by in a blur. Their briefing with Hammond had gone as expected, and the general had agreed with their suggestion to send the Daedalus to the Pegasus galaxy to assist Weir and her team. It was left to General Hammond to convince the President, and Jack was glad that he wasn't in Hammond's shoes at that moment. Unfortunately, his impending meeting with his team later that evening had begun to weigh on his mind heavily as they day wore on. When he finally left the mountain he was practically speeding home while his heart beat rapidly in his chest.

He pulled into his driveway and dragged himself inside the house, still trying to figure out how he was going to tell his team the truth. His only hope was they would forgive him for what he was sure they would see as a true betrayal of their friendship. Mentally he readied himself for the worst as he changed out of his uniform and into jeans and a t-shirt. As he walked out of his bedroom he felt the same presence he'd felt in his office the day before, and he groaned loudly.

"I don't need this right now. Leave me alone."

Just as quickly as he felt the presence arrive, it was gone and he sighed in relief. A moment later the doorbell rang and he went to answer it.

"Good evening, sir." Carter smiled and Jack stepped aside to let her in.

"Where are Daniel and Teal'c?"

"They were just few minutes behind me. I left the mountain early, otherwise I would have been with them."

Jack closed the door behind her and motioned for her to go into the living room. "Well, make yourself comfortable."

"Sir, can I ask why we're meeting tonight? Teal'c wouldn't say."

With a slightly nervous expression on his face Jack smiled. "You'll find out when the others get here."

As if on cue, the doorbell rang again and Jack hurriedly made his way to answer it. He let Daniel and Teal'c inside and told them to have a seat in the living room, while he disappeared into the kitchen for a moment to gather his courage.

A minute or so later he joined them in the living room and again he felt the familiar presence enter the room with him. He silently cursed it, and kept moving until he reached the couch where his team was seated.

"So what's up, Jack? Teal'c just said you wanted to meet with us. What's this about?"

Jack was about to speak when he felt the presence touch him and he shuddered, cursing out loud as he did so.

"Is everything okay, sir?"

The concern on his teammate's faces was clear and Jack closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them as he tried to speak. "Yes…No…Hell, I need to sit down for this."

"Jack are you sure you're okay?"

The presence touched him again and Jack made a sound the others could only interpret as a growl before he stood up, turned his face towards the ceiling and began to shout.

"Dammit, I told you to leave me alone! Haven't you done enough already!"

"Who are you talking to, Jack?" Daniel asked as Teal'c immediately began to scan the room as though an intruder might be present.

Jack was obviously irate as he turned to the opposite corner of the room and began to speak to someone the others couldn't see. "You just had to be here for this, didn't you? I can't even tell them in private. You just can't stop meddling can you? The least you could do is show yourself, ya know."

"What are you talking about, Jack? There's no one here but the four of us." Daniel waved his arms around to emphasize his point, but Jack scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Show yourself before I make you!" This time Jack's voice was firm, while Daniel and Sam looked at each other in concern for their friend.

"Who do you think is here, sir?" Carter tried to reach her hand out to touch the general's shoulder, but he quickly batted it away.

"You're just enjoying making me look insane aren't you?" With a frustrated sigh Jack closed his eyes and brought his hands together so that his palms were touching and were held just above his waist. "I warned you. The Others may have stopped me from going glowy, but it doesn't mean I don't have some of my powers."

As the words left Jack's mouth Daniel and Carter moved cautiously towards one another, both trying quietly to figure out what was going on. Teal'c stepped between his three Tau'ri comrades, surprising Daniel and Carter as he nodded in O'Neill's direction, with a raised eyebrow, which they took to mean for them to wait and see what happened. In years past they had never doubted the Jaffa's senses, and their only hope was that this time he was as right as he usually was.

The three of them watched as a bright light began to emanate from Jack's hands and they let their shock show, as the light spread outward from his hand and moved straight towards the opposite end of the room. Suddenly, a figure appeared in the corner of room where the light had been moving, they stared blankly at the familiar woman standing before them.

"Oma Desala?" Daniel croaked out the name in confusion and disbelief, and the woman that had helped him ascend two years before stepped a few feet closer to him.

Oma nodded and smiled kindly before turning her attention to the general. "Are you satisfied, they can all see me now?"

Jack snarled at her and crossed his arms over his chest. "Not even close. I wouldn't even be doing this if you hadn't shown up earlier!"

"Why are you shouting? It will solve nothing."

Jack glared angrily at the Ancient woman as he stepped closer to her. "You caused this. Whether you admit it or not, Earth is in this position because you couldn't stop meddling where you didn't belong. The only reason I'm here now is because of you!"

"That is a lie! You were punished for breaking our laws. That was no fault of mine!"

"How can you say that! What I did was trivial compared to what you did by letting Anubis ascend. You had no right to let that happen. You knew what he was, what he would become, and you still helped him." Jack shook his head and turned away from Oma and back towards his team.

"What's going on, Jack?" Daniel was the first to find his tongue, and Jack took a deep breath before answering.

"It's complicated, but I can explain."

"How about explaining what you did just a minute ago when you went all glowworm, to steal one of your own phrases?"

"A very long time ago…I used to be an Ancient. I guess I still am to some degree."

Daniel ran a hand through his hair and raised an eyebrow in Jack's direction as he turned to check on Carter who was still surprisingly quiet. The colonel was still doing a fine impression of a guppy as she waited for Jack to continue.

"See…it started with Oma here trying to help Anubis ascend…"

At the mention of her name, Oma put up her hand to stop him; Jack stopped mid-sentence and groaned loudly at the interruption. "I believe you should start at the beginning if you are going to tell them the whole story."

Jack nodded reluctantly and then continued. "She's right. It started before that…when we were all on Atlantis."

The city of Atlantis over 10,000 years ago…

"We have no choice, Minister. The Wraith will be upon us in a matter of days. They are too many in number for us to defeat. We must move Atlantis to a safer location." Jerron raised his arms as he spoke to the members of the Atlantian council.

It seemed as though he was reaching them for the first time in months. He cast a quick glance to the side, where his friend, Janus, sat quietly waiting, and listening to his words. They gave one another a comforting smile and Jerron nodded to the council and went to take his seat.

A gray-haired council elder stood and turned to Jerron. "We will consider the matter, and will inform you and the others of our decision before the sun has set. You and Janus may go."

With that Jerron and Janus took their leave. They passed through the sliding doors and were surprised when they encountered another of their fellow researchers as they rounded a corner of the city.

"Desa, it's good to see you. How have you been?" Jerron asked as he pulled the small woman into a tight embrace and then slowly pulled away so Janus could do the same.

The woman smiled and nodded gratefully. "I am well, Jerron. You and Janus have been making yourselves scarce as of late."

"We've been busy with our research. There hasn't been much time for socializing with all the fighting going on." Desa sighed heavily at Janus's words and the three companions went silent for a moment.

"I was told you were speaking to the council this morning?"

"Yes. Janus and I have only just left them. I only hope they will take our advice."

Janus shook his head vigorously as he began to speak. "They have to Jerron. Our only chance of surviving the Wraith is to move the city."

"Where would we go, Janus? There is no place in this galaxy where we would be safe. Most of our settlements in this galaxy have already fallen to the Wraith." Desa tried to argue, but Janus was quick to cut her off.

"If we take the city to Theria, we can submerge ourselves in the oceans there while we formulate a plan of attack. The Wraith can't win this war; we have to find a way to stop them. This would at least give us more time."

"What you say is logical, though I would be surprised if the council members agree."

Janus sighed knowing that the woman was correct. "You're probably right, but even they have to know we're running out of options. Soon the Wraith will be here, and if we don't act now there will be nothing left for us to save. All the humans in this galaxy will be doomed if we don't find a way to stop the Wraith."

"You are a true warrior at heart, my friend." Jerron brought a hand up and placed it on Janus's shoulder and the taller man laughed softly.

"This isn't the act of a warrior, it is the act of a protector. I want to protect our people. This is the only way to do so. Everyone on Atlantis knows we'll all die if we don't leave soon."

The two men turned to see that Desa had gone quiet; they could tell by the look on her face that she wanted to say something, but was hesitant to do so.

"What is it, Desa? Do you disagree with us?" Jerron asked as he placed his free hand on her shoulder as well.

"It's just that…well…we could join the others…take our higher form. Then we would be free from all this." Desa waved her arms around, and the other two shook their heads in disagreement.

"That is the coward's way out, doing that will surely doom the others in this galaxy. Besides which, we have no idea what the effects of such an action would be. It's only been successfully tried by a handful of our kind. How can you suggest such a thing?" Janus did his best not to shout, but his pure anger at the suggestion was clear.

"Calm yourself, Janus. She's only stating what many on Atlantis feel. I fear even the council members are considering that as a option at the moment."

With another heavy sigh Janus pulled himself away from his two companions. "I just can't see how leaving the humans to die at the hands of the Wraith is an option, Jerron. We brought them here, abandoning them would just be wrong. If we leave them behind like that, what does it say about us as a people?"

Jerron sighed as he and Desa nodded. "I agree with you, my friend. Unfortunately, there are many that do not share your fervent desire to aid the humans."

"You may be right, Jerron. I only hope we were able to convince the council to act in our favor."

For a moment the three friends stared at one another in silence, each knowing that there was only a slim chance that they had succeeded in that task.

> > > >

"It wasn't right for us to just leave Pegasus and all the people there in the hands of the Wraith. We'd moved ourselves to a relatively safe distance when we were close to being beaten by them, but running wasn't going to solve anything. We still had a good chance of winning the war."

Jack paused in the telling of his story to see the crestfallen expressions on Daniel and Carter's faces. The team looked up at the man they thought they knew and both Daniel and Carter were quick to look away. Jack could see the disbelief and confusion in their eyes and he lowered his head, not sure if he should continue just yet. He knew he was dumping a ton of information on them all at once, and there was still much more for him to tell them. With a soft sigh he stood up from his seat on the couch and moved to the opposite corner of the room away from his friends.

"Maybe we should take a break? You guys look a little…" Jack trailed off as he raised his head and Teal'c was on his feet as well.

"O'Neill is correct, a short break would do us all well." The Jaffa nodded to Jack and waited a moment before Daniel and Carter followed him outside.

"Does this make any sense to you, guys?" Carter asked as she and the other two members of SG-1 stepped out onto Jack's back porch, leaving the general alone with Oma.

"Honestly, Sam this sounds totally insane. I can't believe Jack was an Ancient this whole time, and no one knew." Daniel turned to Teal'c, who had been standing stoically listening to him and Carter speak. "What's your take on this? Don't you feel even a little betrayed?"

"I do not. I have been aware of O'Neill being an Ancient for many years now."

"WHAT?" Carter and Daniel shouted simultaneously, the big Jaffa merely nodded before continuing to explain himself.

"When O'Neill and myself were in possession of one another's bodies after finding Machello, I became aware of what O'Neill truly was. He asked me to maintain his secrecy, and I agreed. At the time he felt you were not ready to know, and I was in agreement. There were too many other issues to consider at the time. He has always intended for you both to know the truth."

"How could you not tell us?" Daniel was obviously upset as he began to pace back and forth on the porch, the color of his cheeks turning almost purple with his rage.

"It was not my secret to tell, DanielJackson."

"That's all you have to say, Teal'c?" Carter spoke up as she stepped between her teammates, the younger of which looked ready to pounce at any moment.

"As I said, it was not for me to tell you. O'Neill swore an oath to me, that he would tell you both of his true nature when the time was right. He has decided that now is the correct time to do so, and I only hope he has not misplaced his trust in you both."

With a loud groan, Daniel slammed his fist down on the wooden railing just beside him. "I don't believe this! You think he was right to lie to us?"

"Those were not my words. In fact, I believe O'Neill was incorrect in allowing you both to remain unaware of his true nature for so long. On several occasions I have told him this, but it was always his decision when you were to be told." Teal'c cocked an eyebrow at his two friends and crossed his arms over his chest. "I had believed you two would accept this knowledge without harboring any anger towards O'Neill. In the past, I have known you both to be too honorable to be so petty. Now I fear I may have been wrong if this is your reaction to this knowledge."

With that the Jaffa turned and walked off the porch and onto the grass of O'Neill's back yard and stood quietly in the moonlight as Daniel and Carter cast confused glances at one another.

> > > >

"They will forgive you for your deception, Janus. They merely need time." Oma Desala smiled a comforting smile and placed a hand on Jack's shoulder, which he reluctantly leaned into.

"Janus died 10,000 years ago, Desa. My name is Jack." The Ancient nodded as she moved her hand from Jack's shoulder. "Daniel and Sam have every right to hate me right now. I've been lying to them for nearly ten years."

Oma sighed as Jack closed his eyes for a moment letting his emotions take over for a brief moment. "You have not misplaced your trust in them. They will come around."

"Why are you still here? Why are you trying to make me feel better?"

"We were friends once…I know you feel I betrayed you, and perhaps on some level I did, but I had hoped that one day we could move past that, and once again be friends. We are both struggling for the same thing after all."

Jack laughed, and there was a hint of sarcasm in his laughter that was not missed by Oma. "Are you sure about that?"

"You want to protect Earth from the Goa'uld do you not?" Jack nodded to her, and she continued. "And do you not wish to prevent the Wraith from coming here as well?"

"Yes! You know I want those things."

"So do I. Together perhaps we can find a way to do that without causing the others to intervene." The confused look on Jack's face made the Ancient woman shake her head slightly before she continued. "I know I was wrong to help Anubis ascend. Even when you and the others warned me of the consequences of such an action, I still did it."

"Why?"

"Because if I was to decree him unworthy for ascension, I would have been playing god. You and I both know that was the last thing we wanted. That was what separated us from the Goa'uld in the first place. I could not place myself in that position and still think myself different from the Goa'uld. Can you not understand that?"

With soft sigh, and a nod Jack took Oma's hand in his. "That I can understand, but you were still wrong. You always had a reason for the things you did, but those reasons don't excuse all the things that happened because of your actions. Can you not see what I'm saying? You never even apologized to me for setting me up."

The words left his mouth as almost a whisper while he shook his head at her. She watched the emotions play across his face, and when the truth of his words hit home to her she felt a tear roll down her cheek.

"You make a valid point. I am sorry for what I did, more than you will ever know. It was my fault for Jerron's death. I should not have told the others of your plans. He might still be alive today if I had kept silent. You were both right to do what you did."

Jack stood quietly for a long moment, taking in what she had said then slowly he nodded, and smiled softly at the woman he once called a friend. "Thank you. I also owe you an apology as well."

"What could you possibly have to apologize to me for?"

"It wasn't your fault that I ended up here. I mean you did set me up so the council could catch me, but everything that happened after that was entirely of my own doing."

"This is true, but you wouldn't have been in that position if it weren't for me."

Jack shook his head and laughed bitterly. "Somehow I don't think so. Jerron and I were already going against the council's orders. There was a high likelihood one of us would have been caught."

Oma locked eyes with Jack and the confusion in her expression was clear. "Why are you saying all this now, when just a short while ago you were blaming me for everything?"

"I've had a few thousand years to think things over. I did blame you in part, but mostly I was angry at you for not sticking by us." Jack paused to take a deep breath before continuing. "When Jerron died it was like losing a part of me. We grew up together. We were best friends, as close as two people can be that aren't actually related by blood. He was my family, and I blamed you for taking him away from me. If he had ascended I doubt I would have been so upset, but when the others didn't allow it…"

"That was my fault." Oma quietly interjected as she lowered her head.

"I know. The council members were all too eager to let me know that your recommendation had been paramount in their decision to stop Jerron from ascending."

"I was trying to follow our laws…" She tried to explain, but Jack was quick to cut her off.

"Please don't explain. I know why you did it. I don't know if I can ever forgive you completely for it, but I do understand."

"Thank you."

"No, thank you. I appreciate your honesty." With a heavy sigh Jack leaned back against the nearby wall, he was about to speak when he cast a glance towards the kitchen and the door to his back porch

Jack could see the silhouettes of his teammates and hear Daniel's raised voice as they continued their discussion outside on the porch. He knew his teammates and friends were upset with him and he somberly lowered his head, not sure how he was going to gain their trust back again.

> > > >

"He lied to us, Sam." Daniel tried to keep his voice down, but it was still raised more so than usual.

"I realize that, Daniel, but he had his reasons. We owe him the chance to finish explaining it to us. All we know so far is that he and Oma were friends and they tried to stop the Ancients from abandoning Atlantis, and Jack was punished for it."

Daniel shook his head furiously. "That doesn't change anything."

"I realize that, but we should hear him out." Carter sighed and lowered her head. "We owe him that much."

"We don't owe him a damn thing!"

With an exasperated groan Carter stepped back a few paces from Daniel. "I get being upset about this, but you're being pretty harsh, Daniel."

"Am I?" Daniel's voice grew louder as he spoke. "He's made fools of us all these years, doesn't that upset you in the slightest?"

"I'm sure that wasn't his intent."

"Maybe not, but that's what he did. Don't you even feel the slightest bit like a fool right now?"

Carter looked up at Daniel and sighed. "Yes, but…I can understand why he didn't tell us. Do you honestly think we would have been receptive to this earlier? We were barely gaining an understanding of the Stargate and the few alien races we'd come across. We had barely scratched the surface of who and what the Ancients were, knowing that Jack was one of them would have only sidetracked us from coming to our own understanding of them and their purpose."

Daniel was quiet for a moment, letting Carter's words sink in, and deep down he knew she was right, but as hurt as he was he wasn't quite ready to fully accept it. "Maybe you're right?"

"Think about it, Daniel?" Carter paused as Daniel took a seat on the top step leading onto the grass and she took a seat beside him. "We first went through the gate and we were trying to find Sha're and Skaara. We were trying to defend ourselves from Apophis and the rest of the Goa'uld as well. From what we know of the Ancients, it was against their rules to interfere in the development of another species. If Jack had told us before now he would have been doing just that."

"How is him telling us now any different though?" For a moment Carter was quiet, contemplating her answer to Daniel's question, and as she looked up she saw that Teal'c had returned to their side.

"We're more ready now. We're at a point where we know about and to some degree understand the Ancients, before we would have expected more from him." Daniel again shook his head, but Carter put her hand up to stop him before he spoke again. "Let's let him explain things a bit more, and then we can decide how we feel about this, as long was he give him a chance. He'd do the same for us."

"I believe ColonelCarter is correct. There is much more for O'Neill to tell you, and I believe it would benefit you both to hear it before passing judgment upon him."

Seeing the logic of their words, Daniel nodded and with a heavy sigh stood to go back inside with his teammates just behind him as he did so. It was a slow walk for all of them, that seemed to last an eternity. As Teal'c closed the door behind them they saw Jack and Oma standing beside one another in the kitchen, and they all took a seat at the nearby table.

Daniel was the first to speak to everyone's surprise. "Alright, Jack. Tell us the rest of your story."

The Antarctica outpost 10,000 years ago…

Despite the council taking Jerron and Janus's suggestion and moving Atlantis to Theria, the Anicents were still no match for the Wraith, and were forced to leave their city behind and return to Earth through the Stargate. The last of the Ancients passed through the Stargate and Janus and Jerron watched as the gate shut down. They shook their heads in sorrow before turning and walking away from the gate and down the nearby corridor leading towards the transport ships.

"Were you able to explain it all to Dr. Weir?" Janus whispered as they took their seats and waited for the ship to take off.

"Yes. It should work as long as she follows the directions I gave her."

Janus nodded and leaned back in his seat. "I only hope we're able to build the new time machine."

"We did it before. I don't see why we can't do it again."

Their conversation ended abruptly as the ship began to takeoff. They remained in silence until the ship reached its destination several hours later.

"So this is to be our new home." Jerron commented as they stepped out of the transport ship and stood facing the settlement still being built to house the few of their people that had returned from Atlantis.

The head of the Atlantian Council caught both men by surprise and they turned in direction. "The humans on this world will know nothing of us. This location will keep us secret from them, so that they can continue to evolve without our interference."

Jerron was quick to nod in agreement with the council elder. "Of course, Minister. It appears quite welcoming."

Janus grabbed Jerron by the arm and quickly pulled him from the minister's sight. They kept moving until they had found the quarters they had been assigned to on the opposite side of the small settlement.

"This new home of ours will do nicely." Janus smiled widely as he scanned their new laboratory. He quickly moved to the first console and turned on the main systems.

> > > >

"Wait a minute." Daniel stopped Jack in the middle of his story. "What does Dr. Weir have to do with this?"

"When she and the rest of the Atlantis expedition went to the Pegasus galaxy they inadvertently stumbled upon the time travel machine that Jerron and I built. She, Major Sheppard, and Dr. Zelenka managed to get the ship away from Atlantis, but it crashed and Weir was the only survivor. They had somehow sent the ship back in time to just after we'd completed the ship. We both got into a lot of trouble because we were supposed to have destroyed all our research regarding the time machine. We had wanted to try it out first, but we hadn't even had a chance to do that before the Wraith attacked Theria. Anyway, when we came back to Earth with the others, Dr. Weir asked to stay behind. The council members refused, but we were able to hide her and gave her instructions on how to freeze herself until she could be revived by her team in the future."

Daniel stared open-mouthed for a moment before saying anything. "That's why you didn't let me go with them?"

"In part, yes. She mentioned that she was glad you hadn't been allowed to go because you probably would have died along with the rest of her team."

Carter and Daniel let out breaths they hadn't realized they were holding and motioned for Jack to continue.

> > > >

After months of work they were close to finishing their new time machine, but a plague had broken out among their people. It was ravaging them, causing many to try and take their higher form in order to escape the trail of death the plague had been leaving throughout their already meager population. Because of this, Janus and Jerron were forced to slow their efforts so that they could help in finding a cure for the plague. They had teamed with a small group of scientists lead by a woman named Eshea, and together they were desperately seeking a cure for this mysterious illness. Their efforts seemed to be in vain as the plague continued to do its damage in the interim.

"You cannot do this! The council will never allow it." She cried out as she watched her two friends working feverishly to finish their project.

"Desa, you know we're right. The council members were willing to return to Earth and leave the humans in the Pegasus Galaxy to certain doom. They were wrong to do so. Jerron and I are only trying to protect them. Can you honestly say that this is wrong?"

Desa stared blankly at Janus, not sure what to say in response. Jerron's voice was the next to speak, causing the other two to turn in his direction.

"If you can think of another way to stop the massacre that will occur when we leave, tell us Desa. Otherwise, this is our only choice."

A tear rolled down her cheek and she shook her head. "I would have done so if I knew another way, but to go against the council is dangerous. I don't want to see either of you hurt."

Janus and Jerron stopped their work and moved closer to Desa. They each placed a hand on one of her shoulders and Janus reached his free hand up to wipe away the tears that were freely running down her face.

"We're being as careful as we can. The council knows nothing of this new machine. As far as they are concerned the time machine and all the research pertaining to it have been destroyed. We won't be caught."

Desa's eyes were focused on Jerron, and she wanted desperately to believe him, but something inside her knew that things were only going to get worse.

"I wish I could believe that."

"Trust us, Desa. This is the best chance the humans have." Jerron's voice was calm and soothing to her and she smiled weakly in return.

"I do trust you, both of you, but this seems too risky even for the two of you."

Janus sighed and shook his head in agreement. "You may be right, but we have to do this. It's just not fair to leave them unprotected."

Desa shook her head. "What about the problems we are facing here? The plague has devastated us. Already, many have chosen to ascend, and more are attempting to do so each day."

"That's just it. Perhaps by using the time machine, we can go back and find the source of this damned disease. We can save ourselves as well as the humans." Jerron placed a hand on Desa's shoulder and the younger woman brought a hand up to wipe away her tears.

"You're considering it yourself, aren't you?" Janus asked as he cocked his head in Desa's direction. "Can you not see that Ascension isn't necessarily a way out? There's no guarantee that it will even work."

"Aren't you afraid the plague could kill you?" The question left her throat as barely a whisper and both men's eyes were downcast.

"All our people fear it. I'd be a fool if I didn't, but Janus and I are trying to find a way to stop it. This machine may be the only way to do that."

Desa turned away, wrapping her arms around herself at Jerron's words as another tear rolled down her cheek.

> > > >

"What exactly was the plague that the Ancients couldn't cure?" Carter asked, interrupting as well as surprising the general. "Was it the same sickness that we all got when we thawed out that Ancient, Ayiana a couple years ago?"

Jack shook his head. "No, the plague that nearly wiped us out didn't affect humans, unless they had the gene."

"It attacked the immune system first. It seemed almost like a common cold; headaches, high fever, stuff like that. Once those symptoms went away it was like the whole body began to deteriorate. The virus mutated the blood cells somehow causing them to basically starting eating away at each other. An infected person's system would simply shut down. It was a long process though. My people managed to set up quarantine areas, but every time we thought we had a handle on it, more people would get sick…more people would die"

Carter and Daniel cast a glance at one another, having both seen the sorrowful look in Jack's eyes as he paused and turned away from them for a moment. Through the years they had seen the man they knew as Jack O'Neill show his emotions in front of them, but only on rare occasions. The emotion on their leader's face now wrenched the two scientists to the core. Slowly, Daniel reached a hand out and touched Jack's shoulder. He gave his friend a comforting smile and waited for him to go on with his story.

> > > >

Nearly a year went by as Janus and Jerron continued to work towards finding a cure for the mysterious plague as well as trying to build their new time machine. Working in secret had made the process slower than anticipated, but they were finally putting the finishing touches to the time machine.

"We've been at this for months, Jerron. Our people are dying. This has to work."

"It will, my friend. It will."

Jerron put an arm around Janus and the other man leaned into the touch. "I just don't want to lose anyone else. There are only a handful of our people left now."

"I know, but this will change all that. We'll make it right."

Janus smiled weakly and then the two went back to their work. Within a few hours the machine was ready for the first trial, and both men turned to stare at one another, silently asking each other the same question.

"We can't both go, Jerron." Janus was the first to speak his thoughts out loud, and Jerron nodded.

"I should be the one to go. You will be needed here to help find the cure if things…" Jerron let the sentence hang, not wanting to jinx things by suggesting it might not work. "Eshea will need you to help her continue working on a cure, and someone has to talk some sense into Desa before she actually helps that filthy creature to ascend."

Janus sighed and reluctantly nodded. "Are you sure? I don't want to leave you alone."

"I'll be fine. You are too important. You have to remain here."

"If the others catch you…"

"They won't. The only ones who know about this are the two of us and Desa." Jerron took a deep breath and then spoke again. "If she were going to say anything she would have done so by now."

"I suppose you're right. It just seems wrong to let you go alone."

"Do not worry, Janus. I will be alright. Trust me in this."

Janus smiled half-heartedly. "We'd better get ready then. The sooner we do this the better."

Jerron nodded in agreement as both men set to work with their last minute preparations before Jerron could set off. Within a few hours they were ready. Janus put in the proper coordinates to send the time machine back, and then walked down the ramp off the ship where Jerron was waiting for him. Both men embraced one last time before Jerron turned, went back into the ship, and closed the door. The thud of metal on metal rang in Janus's ears as he walked away

"Good luck, Jerron." Janus spoke through the radio in his hand, as he watched the ship cloak itself and take off from its secluded spot in the forest beside the settlement.

"I'll see you soon, my friend."

> > > >

"Jerron made it back a few weeks later only to die in my arms." There was a sadness in Jack's voice that none of his teammates had heard before. He looked up to see them silently and intently waiting to hear him say more. "He had been caught by the Wraith before he could get back. He'd been able to get away before they drained too much of his life, but by the time he made it home he was already dying. I hid the time machine but the council found us right after. Jerron died while we were being held by the council, leaving me to be punished for our interference. They forced me to remain on Earth as an observer of sorts. I was made to stay in human form, aging every so often, watching as one thing after another happened to the people here. They'd stripped me of my powers so there was no way I could interfere."

"How exactly is that possible?" Carter asked the question they all wanted an answer to. "You made Oma appear earlier, how could they have made you powerless?"

With a heavy sigh Jack answered. "They placed a gene suppression device inside me that…well, basically it suppresses my Ancient abilities. It's kinda hard to explain. It works similarly to nano-technology; it's a microscopic chip that tells the Ancient cells in my body to stay dormant."

"Wouldn't something like that be noticeable during a medical exam?" Jack smirked at Carter's question, and the colonel seemed less than amused by his response.

"Sorry, but no. The device is so small that none of the technology on Earth would be able to detect it."

To everyone's surprise Daniel slammed his fist against the desk as he curled his lips and gave them all a knowing look, as though pieces of the puzzle were all coming together in his mind.

"What about the Asgard? They know about you don't they?"

Jack chuckled softly and nodded. "Didn't think you'd get it that quickly, but yes Daniel, they know. They have ever since I had Ancient's knowledge downloaded into my head the first time."

"That's something I was wondering about, sir. Didn't you already have that knowledge in your mind to begin with? You had to know what that device was? Why didn't you let Daniel or I take it?"

"You wouldn't have been able to handle the download. The device the others put inside me, for all intents and purposes, makes me human, but it was the Ancient gene that made it possible for me to handle the download. My brain is still basically wired like that of an Ancient. You would have died from that kind of overload. Oddly enough I think taking those two downloads is what's given me some of my power back. I think it's drained the battery on the gene suppressor inside me to some degree."

Carter and Daniel shared a curious glance at one another and turned back to Jack.

"This is all a little surreal, Jack." Daniel began, and put his hand up to stop Jack when the older man opened his mouth to speak. "This story is pretty fascinating, but something that doesn't make sense to me is why you would be given such a harsh punishment. Oma's an Outcast and her powers were never taken away. Even the Outcast in the Atlantis team's reports still maintained hers. Why were you treated differently?"

"My favorite genius." Jack gave them all a half-hearted smile to match the dry tone of his voice. "As I already said, our time traveling wasn't just to help the humans that were left in the Pegasus galaxy."

Before Jack could explain further, Oma broke her silence and began to speak causing everyone to turned in her direction. "Almost instantly on our return from Atlantis, many of our people began to get sick. It had been centuries since there had been any illness that could affect us like this one. We realized quickly we had no cure for the plague, and despite our best efforts we couldn't find one. Jack came close but no one seemed to be listening to him, since Jerron and Jack had been completely disgraced for building the time machine. Eventually all those that could do so, attempted to ascend. It seemed like the only logical option considering we couldn't stop the spread of the disease, and had no idea how the illness had even begun. What no one was told was that some of the council members were the cause of the disease that was spreading through our people. Jack found out, and when he tried to go back and prevent it from happening, he was stopped."

"Why would they do that?" Daniel shook his head in confusion as he asked his question. "Why would they want to destroy their own kind?"

"To cover up our mistakes." Jack's simple answer left much to be desired and Carter was the first to speak up.

"What mistakes, sir?"

"Creating the Goa'uld for starters." The stunned expressions on Daniel and Carter's faces made Jack shake his head. "Weren't expecting that one were ya?"

Both nodded and Jack turned to Oma, she quickly took the hint and began to explain. "It was purely by accident that the Goa'uld were allowed to take their first hosts. A group of scientists found the planet that the Goa'uld originated on. They were little more than animals. They were like fish in a pond. The scientists began to study them, and in trying to understand how they communicated with one another, realized that the creatures could inhabit other being's bodies."

Jack jumped in seeing that Oma was going a little too slow for his liking. "Apparently the little snakes had been burrowing themselves into some of the smaller animals that came to drink the water they lived in. They figured that out when one of the animals died, and had a symbiote wrapped around its spinal cord. Needless to say they were intrigued. The scientists decided to experiment a little. There was a tribe of Unas that lived nearby; one of them came too close to the scientist's camp. They 'convinced' him to agree to let them use him for one of their experiments."

Daniel gasped. "That's insane. How could they do that?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "You'd be surprised what some people would do as long as they knew no one was looking."

Oma nodded her head in agreement, and picked up the story where Jack left off. "As Jack was saying, the Unas were used for these experiments. Unfortunately no one foresaw what happened next. The planet that they had been conducting experiments on was also heavily involved in the processing and mining of naquadah. There was an explosion in one of the mines near the water and the heat from the explosion had turned the naquadah to liquid, which contaminated the water. Most of the scientists died in the explosion and the few that did survive, abandoned their research and the planet all together."

"This was the same planet where I met Chaka?" Daniel asked as he brought his index finger up and adjusted his glasses on his face.

"Yes."

Carter, who had been shaking her head throughout the story, finally responded when she saw that Oma had reached an end. "So the Goa'uld were able to develop there, and then eventually took humans as hosts?"

"Essentially, yes. We didn't know until we returned to this galaxy, what kind of creatures the Goa'uld had become."

"Why didn't the Ancients try to stop them when they realized the Goa'uld had became such a threat?" Daniel asked as he raised his arms in the air for emphasis.

"Pride." Jack was quick to respond, and then began to explain a bit when Daniel gave him a look that clearly meant he wanted more than a one word answer. "The scientists that did the experiments knew they weren't allowed to, and admitting that they had gone against the rules would have only made them look bad."

Daniel brought his right hand up to adjust his glasses that were now wobbling precariously on the bridge of his nose. He wrinkled his brow, giving Jack a curious expression before he opened his mouth to speak.

"So getting back to my original question, they punished you so harshly because you tried to expose their plans?"

Jack stretched his long fingers across his chin and sighed as he shook his head. "Not exactly…"

> > > >

The walls of the holding cell seemed as though they were getting smaller by the moment. He groaned loudly as he leaned back against the wall furthest from the door. His eyes darted back and forth as he watched the tiny flecks of lights dance across the ceiling, as they entered the room through the small window in the door.

He could feel the others as they began to approach, and he shifted his body so that he was sitting cross-legged beside the bed. As the door opened he felt the rage begin to build inside him as two members of the Atlantian council entered.

The first man that spoke was named Boreas. He had shoulder length blond hair and an abnormally long pointy nose, which made one wonder just how he was able to see past it in order walk. He seemed to sashay forward, his robes making a swishing sound as he stepped closer to Janus. "Did you really think you could stop us?"

"The thought had crossed my mind."

The two council members began to laugh as they closed the door behind them.

"The time machine may not have been found, but the recording device that Jerron brought back with him has been destroyed." This time it was the second council member, a short dark-haired man, that looked rather like a raccoon with his beady eyes.

"You know Deygan, I've always wanted to ask…does it ever get painful having to stay so low to the ground all the time so you can lick Bore's boots?"

Deygan snarled at Janus and clenched his fists as though he was about to strike, but Boreas stepped between then and shook his head while he rolled his eyes at the man still sitting on the floor in front of him.

"You never were all that bright for all the work you did with Jerron. It wasn't all that hard to find." Boreas reached into his robe, pulled out a battered piece of metal, and tossed it to Janus. "Here's what's left of the recorder. I guess you and Jerron will never know what it's like to go to the next plane of existence. That's just too bad, now isn't it?"

Janus made a sound close to a growl as he took the beat-up device and gripped it tightly in his left hand. He stayed quiet as he scanned it, and tried to hide the shock on his face as he realized that they were telling the truth.

"How do you know I didn't copy the video feed?" He tried to sound confident, despite the despair he was feeling.

"If you had, the council would have seen it by now." Boreas squatted down, reached a hand out, rested it on Janus's shoulder, and grinned triumphantly at him. "The council agrees with me. Ascension is the best thing for our people; we have no need to deal in corporeal matters when there is so much more out there for us."

"Even if it means many of us have to die in the process?" Janus turned his head away in disgust as the two men shrugged their shoulders at him. "I guess you think it's worth it since we leave behind all our mistakes as well, right?"

"Some sacrifices must be made, Janus. Those that were lost did not do so in vain. It was for the greater good of all Lantians."

Janus shook Boreas' hand from his shoulder and clenched his fists in rage. "You won't get away with this!"

Boreas and Deygan began to laugh as they stood up. Deygan snatched the broken recorder from Janus's hand and the duo made for the door. Boreas turned back around as soon as Deygan had exited, and smiled once more at Janus.

"The council will begin your trial in one hour."

Without another word Boreas exited and Janus was left alone again. His thoughts began to wander and he cursed himself for having been caught, and for trusting Desa with his and Jerron's secret. The hour went by faster than he'd anticipated and a pair of guards came to escort him to the trial.

He was led out of the cell and down a long corridor. The corridor was softly lit as he walked through it. He saw several familiar faces through the windows of the chambers as he passed them by. The rooms were used for those Ancients that were attempting to ascend. Those attempting the Ascension were joined by another already ascended Ancient, whose purpose was to guide the unascended through the process. Janus could see that many of them were in various stages of attempting to ascend. His heart sank low in his chest knowing that many of them would not be successful, and that none of this had to happen.

Without the recording device he had no proof that the plague had been caused by Boreas and Deygan. As he slowly made his way down to the end of the corridor the urge to scream out in frustration was strong. Never before had he felt like such a failure. He'd always made it a habit to have a backup plan, but this time he had none. He was marching to certain death in front of the council, and he could do nothing but accept it.

The guards led him into the hall where his trial was to begin, and he took a deep breath as he eyed his surroundings carefully. He noticed there were very few people in the hall as he was led to the front of the room where the council members were waiting. Boreas and Deygan glared mockingly at him, as he was ordered to take a seat on the small bench in the center of the room. In front of him, forming a semi-circle, were all twelve council members. To his left were Desa along with Jerron's wife, sisters and mother, all glaring at him in confusion. To his right were four ascended beings in their glowing, tentacled form. They were to be the impartial judges.

The head of the council motioned for everyone to be silent and then began to speak once Janus had seated himself. "You have been accused of breaking the laws of our people, Janus. This trial will determine whether these accusations hold merit. Do you understand what I have said?"

Janus nodded as he answered. "Yes, I understand."

"Very well. Let us begin."

And so the trial began. Janus watched the council members as they periodically conferred with one another as the trial went on. He answered all their questions as best he could, and tried hard not to look in the direction of Desa or Jerron's family. The few times he did, his anger swelled as he saw Desa with tears in her traitorous eyes.

One of the council members was about to speak when Janus felt the soft hum of one of the Ascended using their telepathic ability to speak to everyone in the room. "What was your purpose in using this time machine?"

The question caught Janus and the council members off guard, as the Ascended had been rather quite since the trial began. Slowly, he turned towards them to respond.

"We…Jerron and I, wanted to help the humans that were left in the Pegasus Galaxy, and to see if we could go back to when the plague first broke out to find a cure. We truly meant no harm. Our intentions were true."

The ascended being seemed to glow a deep shade of blue and Janus couldn't help but think that the ascended one believed him.

The voice of one of the council members made Janus turn around. The woman stared daggers at him as she spoke. "Your intentions are not in question. It is your actions that we disagree with. All here agree that wanting to save our people and those in the Pegasus Galaxy is indeed honorable, but you defied the council by building that time machine."

"Were you able to find what you sought?" The Ascended one asked, causing the council members to gasp in surprise.

"Jerron did find information that could have helped us, but it was destroyed." Janus caught Boreas's arrogant smile at his words, and he bit back a curse and turned his attention back to the group of ascended beings.

"Can you tell us where this machine is?" One of the other ascended beings asked.

"I cannot."

"Cannot or will not?" The head of the council practically snarled the question at him, and Janus lowered his head before answering.

"I will not tell you where it is, because this council will see it destroyed just as you did the machine we built on Atlantis. I would rather face whatever punishment you see fit to give me then allow Jerron's and my work to be destroyed. This council knows we were right to do what we did. You may refuse to accept it, but that is the truth." Janus stared squarely at the head of the council as he raised his voice. "This trial is over. I will say no more. Do what you will with me."

Boreas stood to his feet and waved a finger in Janus's direction. "This trial is over when we deem it to be so. You do not make the rules here!"

"You decided I was guilty before I set foot in this room. They may be here as impartial judges," Janus pointed to the four ascended beings and then turned back to the council. "But this council is far from impartial. I will say nothing more to any of you."

Several other council members stood but were stopped in their tracks by one of the Ascended, the same one that had glowed a deep blue a few moments earlier. It moved himself between Janus and the council, allowing its energy to envelope the circular area between both parties as it began to speak.

"He is correct. This trial is concluded. We have heard all we need to hear."

"We should allow him to die like he allowed Jerron to!" Boreas shouted as the ascended being started to move back to his original place to Janus's left.

Hearing these words Janus's temper flared and he lunged forward, crossing the space between himself and the council members. He reached out with his hands and felt energy surge through him as he tried to grab at Boreas. To his surprise the Ancient not only backed away, but also pulled Deygan in front of him. The smaller man never had a chance. A light enveloped them both and the council watched in horror as Deygan's body burned and then exploded into ashes that scattered across the room.

Before anyone could react, the ascended beings moved forward and surrounded Janus with their own energy field, and the stunned man looked down at his own hands and screamed.

> > > >

"You killed him?" The confusion in Daniel's voice was clear as he shook his head at Jack.

"I really don't know what came over me, but yes. I killed him."

"How, sir? I thought only one of the Ascended had the power to do something like that." Carter too, sounded confused, and Jack sighed heavily trying to decide how to answer.

To everyone's surprise Oma replied to the colonel's question. "Even in corporeal form, an Ancient's powers can be quite strong. That was why Ascension seemed like such a viable option when the plague struck us. Before we ascended many of our people had the ability to move objects with our minds, to heal others, and in some cases to kill with merely a thought."

"I remember when Jack had the second download, he healed Bra'tak. I guess it only makes sense that that power could work in reverse." Daniel ran his hand over his chin and then pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose.

"I couldn't even believe I'd done it." Jack's voice caught them by surprise and all of them turned in his direction. "It was almost like someone else was in control of my body. When I saw that it was Deygan I'd killed, I just started screaming. The council thought I'd lost my mind."

"What about the Ascended beings that were there? Why didn't they try and stop you?" Jack shrugged his shoulders at Carter and sighed.

"They said that in order for me to have done…what I did… I mean I literally disintegrated Deygan. They said that to do something that completely, I had put myself into a state somewhere between Ascended and corporeal. Had they intervened, neither of us would have survived."

"How is that possible?" Daniel's puzzled expression mirrored Carter's. "I may not remember much about being Ascended, but I was sure that you needed help from another Ascended being to do so."

"That is essentially true." Oma responded, seeing that Jack wasn't quite sure how to answer. "However, there are a select few that do not need assistance. Jack is one of those few, and that in part is why they chose to use the gene suppression device to strip him of his ability as part of his punishment."

Jack laughed bitterly at Oma's words. "They didn't wanna risk me actually Ascending, not that I ever wanted to in the first place."

"This goes against everything we've ever thought was true about the Ancients."

Oma nodded at Carter's comment. "We were a great race technologically speaking, but there were still many of us that were as narrow-minded and, for lack of a better word, primitive as the Tau'ri are now."

"It sounds like they were." Daniel sighed as he leaned back against the chair, and then turned to Jack with a curious expression on his face. "Why didn't you want to Ascend?"

"Well, to be perfectly honest, I didn't think my people had a right to Ascend."

"I'm not sure I follow you, Jack."

Jack curled his lips and brought his hand up to chin. "When the Ancients first realized it was even possible to move to a higher plane of existence, it was an amazing concept. It was probably the single most fascinating thing we'd ever discovered, except for building the Stargate. I admit even I was intrigued by it, but we jumped into it without trying to find out what all the ramifications would be. No one knew if it was permanent, or what the effects would be if someone chose to return to their corporeal form. It wasn't until people started dying because they weren't able to complete the process that we decided to study it further."

"So the Ancients used Ascension as a means to cheat death?"

Oma and Jack smiled at how quickly the archeologist picked things up and they nodded in agreement with him.

"We feared death as much as anyone else. Ascension seemed like the perfect answer, except that not everyone was capable. Even with help, not everyone made it."

"And some got stuck in limbo, like Anubis." Jack's expression turned cold at the mention of the Goa'uld's name, and Oma lowered her head.

"Yeah, but that's only happened to a few."

Jack shook his head and sat back in his chair. "That's why those that had already ascended decided to make rules on who could and couldn't Ascend."

"But others like Oma went against those rules and helped others ?" The two Ancients nodded at Daniel, and he continued on. "So until Anubis tried, everyone that had already ascended was someone that had been helped by another to do so?"

"Yeah, pretty much. Like Desa and I said, our people were looking for anything to avoid dying, even if it meant that some of the less worthy individuals were able to ascend in the process."

"You said that there were others like Anubis that were stuck in limbo? Did anything ever happen with them?" The question seemed to catch both Jack and Oma unawares and they turned to each other with surprised looks on their faces.

Oma was the first to respond, getting a curious headshake from Jack. "Those that the others deemed worthy were allowed to fully Ascend. The rest were either kept in that state or simply sent back to the corporeal world."

There was silence for a moment and then Daniel asked the question that was burning in both his and Carter's mind. "Why wasn't Anubis sent back?"

The rest of SG-1 watched as their CO's face turned red with anger, and Oma lowered her head looking as though she were guilty of some heinous crime. Everyone in the room stayed silent waiting for a response, and just when they thought that none was forthcoming, Jack turned to Oma and spoke, the barely controlled rage clear in his voice.

"I think this one's directed at you, Desa."

"That was my fault. Anubis came to me and asked for help in Ascending…" She let her words trail off, and for a moment it seemed as though she was going to say no more, but slowly she began to speak again. "I was foolish enough to believe him, despite many warnings from Jack and others."

> > > >

It had been two days since Deygan's death. The whole of the Ancient city had yet to quit speaking of it. They were set to sentence Janus for his crime in less than an hour. Desa had managed to convince the guards to allow her a few minutes with the prisoner before that sentencing, and she was desperate for her friend's guidance. As she entered the holding cell she was surprised to see how calm Janus looked.

"What can I do for you, Desa? Surely you've done enough damage already." Janus waved her inside and nonchalantly flopped himself down on the cot and bent his arms behind his head.

"I only told the council of your plans because I feared for your and Jerron's life."

"Do you really think I want to hear your excuses! All that matters is that you betrayed us. Jerron and I trusted you and you let us down."

"You don't understand." Desa raised her arms, pleading with Janus to let her speak, but he was quick to cut her off.

"And I don't want to." Angrily Janus sat up and shook his head at the woman he once called friend. "If that's all you came for you can leave."

Desa turned to leave but stopped just before her hand reached the door. "I helped the creature ascend."

The words had barely left her lips and Janus was on his feet. He moved faster than she'd seen him move before and he was looming over her as she backed herself against the wall. He seemed to simply stare at her for a moment before moving his hand forward, as if trying to touch her, only to find that his hand passed through her as though she weren't there at all.

"You're a coward, Desa. You're just like the others. You have no idea what you've done, do you?"

"I know exactly what I've done."

Janus groaned in disgust as he brought his fist down across the wall, his hand passing through her insubstantial body as he brought it back to his side.

"I'll just bet you do." He snarled at her and turned away. "Get out."

"Janus…"

"GET OUT!" He shouted as loud as he could, suddenly the door opened, and two guards were standing ready to approach if necessary.

Desa looked over at Janus and sighed. She closed her eyes and let her corporeal form slip away. She watched Janus stand firmly with his back to her, and she slowly moved out of the room, leaving him alone.

She took herself far away, back into her new plane of existence and she screamed into the nothingness around her. Anubis had asked her to help him, and despite all the warnings from the others as well as from Janus and Jerron she had still gone ahead with it. Deep down she knew the others would never allow him to remain ascended, and she would probably be punished for aiding a creature such as that, but it didn't matter. She'd done what she thought was right, even if something about it seemed wrong.

> > > >

"So you knew you were wrong?" Oma nodded solemnly at Daniel's question as she brought her hand to rest on her chin.

"At the time, Anubis had presented himself to me as a pure and good soul. Jack and Jerron were not the first to tell me that he was lying to me, but I refused to listen. I suppose it was my own naïveté that allowed me to trust Anubis as I did."

Jack lowered his head and looked out towards the window while Daniel and Oma continued to talk. He hadn't noticed that both Carter and Teal'c were watching him closely as he waited for the archeologist and the Ascended woman to finish their discussion.

"If the other Ascended knew that Anubis was evil, I still don't understand why they didn't just send him back." Daniel sighed heavily as he looked back and forth between Oma and Jack.

The two Ancients shared a quiet glance before Oma began to speak. "He was not the first I helped to ascend, but after my mistake with Anubis, the Others decided it was best to set rules on who could and couldn't ascend. Unfortunately, allowing Anubis to remain in his current state was my punishment."

Jack, upon seeing the pained expression on Oma's face, reached a hand out and laced his fingers between hers. She nodded at the gentle touch. "She was supposed to be an example to anyone that interfered the way she had."

"How could they do that? Especially seeing what he's done to countless beings across the galaxy. That makes no sense." Carter's voice was raised as she sat straight up in her chair.

Daniel nodded in agreement with her. "Don't they care that Anubis is destroying everything in this galaxy? They have the power to stop him."

"That they do Dannyboy, but they won't…" The anger was clearly written on Jack's face as he paused to take a breath, obviously trying to gain control of his emotions.

"Jack is correct. The Others will not stop him. This is all part of my punishment."

"But this is more than just punishing you. They're allowing everyone in our galaxy to be punished along with you." Carter shook her head trying to understand what Oma and Jack were saying, but is was apparent that she didn't.

There was a pregnant silence in the room before Daniel attempted to speak up. He looked as though a light had burst in his mind as he opened his mouth and then closed it, repeating the action a few times before any sound came out.

"So you're punishment was to watch while Anubis roamed free. Being powerless to stop the destruction, and knowing that if you hadn't interfered none of it would have happened."

Oma nodded a silent reply and looked away from the group.

"That's just cruel. How could they do that?" Carter barely managed to keep her voice below a shout as she looked from Jack to Oma and back, wanting a response.

"They were doing what they felt was right. My people…" Oma barely had the words out of her mouth when Jack groaned and pushed himself back from the table in disgust.

"Our people were wrong! What they did to you was petty and cruel!"

Oma winced at his words and shook her head. "That is not true. It's not as though they allowed Anubis to do anything he pleased. There are limits to what he can and cannot do."

"What limits are those?" Daniel asked, jumping into the conversation before Jack had a chance to say anything.

"Anubis can only do things that he would have been able to do as a Goa'uld. He's not allowed to use any knowledge he's gained through his attempt at Ascension." Jack growled at her answer, stood up and walked to the window. "I know you disapprove of what the Others did, but I accepted my punishment because I believed it to be just."

"Then you're more of a fool than I thought. They let that bastard run around destroying most of this galaxy, just to make you suffer. If you think that's just, then you have no concept of what that word means. Making you suffer is just another way for the Others to show how cowardly they really are."

"How can you say that, Janus!" Jack spun around at the use of his real name, and his eyes flared with anger.

"For this superior race that the Ancients were supposed to be, we never were able to accept responsibility for our own mistakes. They made you pay for their own mistake of allowing anyone to Ascend. The Others forced you to suffer for 10,000 years, because they couldn't admit that they were wrong to use Ascension as an escape. Others like you and I have been forced to pay for their mistakes because we didn't want to turn tail and run, like our so called 'enlightened' people did."

"Our people truly meant no harm in choosing to leave the corporeal world behind…" Jack cut her off with an icy glare and Daniel and the others watched in silent surprise as their CO stood and shook his head vehemently at Oma.

"Whether it was intentional or not, we were responsible for countless disasters that had been occurring for centuries. The council members thought that if they took our people out of the equation that things would correct themselves and that some natural order of the universe would balance things out. From their higher plane of existence they could monitor things and step in only if necessary as long as no species development was interfered with in any way." Carter and Daniel raised their eyebrows in tandem at Jack's explanation, neither quite sure what to say.

"How could they think that disappearing would be an accurate response?" Oma and Jack both shook their heads at Daniel and the younger man sighed.

"That really makes no sense. They thought running away was going to fix it all?" Carter looked ready to pull her hair out as she and Daniel both tried to make sense of what Jack and Oma were telling them.

Jack lowered his head, the look of disgust clear on his face. "My people weren't the great beings you think they were. They were really no different than humans are now, except that they'd become more technologically and I suppose biologically advanced."

Another few hours passed, and night gave way to day. The sunlight crept through the kitchen window as Jack looked over at the clock on the far wall. He sighed heavily not realizing that so much time had passed. He and Oma had spent the rest of the night trying to explain things to Daniel and the others. They'd gone on to explain about the Wraith, and the real danger they posed to Earth. Finally, his team had asked all the questions they could think of and he and Oma had answered them the best they could. With a relieved sigh he stood up and stretched his legs out and the others followed suit.

Oma left them shortly after and Jack was alone with his three teammates. Not surprising Daniel and Carter were hastily trying to leave.

"Are we okay, guys?" Jack asked trying to hide the nervous twitch of his mouth as he spoke.

"Jack, this was all a big surprise…" Daniel started to speak as he reached a hand out to his friend. "I'll admit I was less than thrilled to find out you'd lied to us all these years, but we're going to be just fine."

The archeologist looked at Carter and the colonel nodded in agreement. "We just need a little time to digest all this information, sir."

"So you two don't hate me?" He hated sounding like so weak, but the bond between Jack and his team had been what had kept him sane these last few years and he couldn't stand the thought of it being ruined in any way.

"Never Jack." Daniel squeezed Jack's arm and smiled softly. "You've done too much for us to ever hate you. We may be a little irked that you kept us in the dark, but we'll get over that eventually."

"What Daniel said, sir." Carter added, as she too reached out a hand and touched Jack's shoulder reassuring her CO with a smile of her own.

tbc...