Time Capsule

Chapter 5

Dr. Carson Beckett goggled at the perturbed woman standing before him. As the words left her mouth, she almost immediately looked contrite, and stepped closer. Alarmed, Carson backed away.

The woman reached a hand towards Carson, a smile of apology on her lips.

"I am sorry, lad. It had been so long since I've seen someone, and what do I do? I yell. Some things never change," she added, almost to herself. Carson just stared at the woman, his disbelief apparent in his blue eyes.

"I am Brenna," she said, bowing before him and grasping both his hands in hers. "I am the….historian, I believe you would say in your speech." She smiled, her grin a little crooked. Carson was immediately enchanted, both by her demeanor and the lilt in her voice; was that a Scottish accent?

"I….I'm Dr. Carson Beckett. Of Earth. Scotland, really. Very nice to meet you," he said, wincing at his choice of words. How lame could you get? Her hands were warm and reassuring, and he suppressed the impulse to reach out and caress her cheek. She was real… wasn't she?

"You weren't injured, were you? I tried to tell you to keep the…circlet? Yes, circlet. I tried to tell you to keep it on, that the pain would pass, but I am afraid that I failed. I am sorry," Brenna said, her apology in her gray eyes. Carson only nodded, unable to speak. She had dropped his hands, and stood before him once again, her hands clasped before her.

"Our link is tenuous, Dr. Beckett, so I must get to the point. Tell me - what would you like to know?"

oOo

In the infirmary, the blips began to increase in tempo, and Dr. Amrubi reached down and took Carson's wrist, checking his pulse. Concern lined his dark face as he spoke.

"Something is definitely happening."

"Is he okay, Doctor?" Rodney asked, his voice urgent. Carson appeared to be sleeping peacefully, the small smile on his face replaced with a look of slight bewilderment. Still, there had been no violent convulsing or erratic heartbeats, and his EEG seemed fine, although active. Whatever was happening this time, Carson apparently had more control.

oOo

Carson stared at Brenna, his astonishment apparent on his face. What did he want to know? Know about what? Boy, was he in over his head.

"I'm sorry, lass, but I'm not quite sure as to what you mean. You said you were the historian…I don't know what that is," Carson replied. He watched as Brenna frowned, then replaced her hands on her hips. Her image flickered slightly as she started pacing before him, muttering to herself. Carson only managed to catch some of the words, but apparently they were directed at herself.

"Sometimes, Brenna, you can be the stupidest person! Of course he doesn't know who you are…it's obviously been a very long time. He doesn't even speak your language!" She paused, tossing her hair in exasperation, then turned and focused her attention on Carson.

"I am Brenna, the primary historian of the city of Atlantis. Although I am not actually here. I am a memory, program is what you might call it. Prior to leaving Atlantis, all my memories were stored, only to be accessed by our descendants. When you activated the device, you activated me," the woman explained, her hands waving before her to accent her words. "Does that make sense to you?"

Comprehension flowed across Carson's face, and he nodded excitedly. Then, realization hit. "But…I can touch you. How can I touch a program?" he asked, confused.

Brenna only smiled, then screwed up her face in concentration. "I think this is what you would term…alternate reality? Or virtual reality? So long as you and I are connected by the circlet, we can interact on many levels." Carson clapped his hands together.

"Boy, is Rodney going to be pis…ummm, angry! He would die to be here," Carson added, causing dismay to flood across Brenna's face. "Oh, no, I don't mean that literally! It's just a saying."

"I am sorry, Carson, but we do not have much time. I will explain as much as I can, but our link is very weak," Brenna said. "When you first activated the circlet, I needed to determine if you were friend or enemy. I had to search very hard to find our link, but, thankfully, it is there."

Carson started. "You mean the Ancient gene! Is that what you call our link'?" Carson asked, and Brenna nodded at him.

"Although yours is very faint. For some reason, it was suppressed. But, I fixed that," she added happily. She didn't the look of worry that suddenly crossed Carson's face. "Once I established that you were one of my descendants, then I had to learn your language. That took some time…what is the matter, Dr. Beckett?"

"You said you 'fixed' me? What do you mean by that?" Carson asked as he nervously started to pace before her.

"I only allowed you to access the gene, as you call it, more fully. You were unconsciously controlling it. It was creating a block between us, and I needed to eliminate that barrier. Is this a problem?" Brenna asked, her anguish revealed as she watched him pace in front of her. Once more, her image wavered and faded, some of her words no more than a whisper.

"No. Yes. I don't know," Carson answered truthfully. He ran his hands through his hair, his thoughts mudding together. Suddenly, he felt he needed to leave, to sort his mind out. Besides, he didn't know if speaking to Brenna was having any adverse effects on him. He could be dying as he stood here, talking to a computer program.

"Brenna, how do I…disconnect from you? I need to get back, to talk to Rodney."

At her look of panic, Carson reached out and put a consoling hand on he shoulder. "I need to know that being here isn't hurting me…out there," he explained.

She nodded, understanding. "I am sorry. Yes, you will be very tired when you return. But unharmed. I promise you that."

She turned away and stepped back from him. "To leave, all you must do is think it. The circlet will automatically disconnect us from each other. But Carson….

you will come back? Won't you?" Brenna's voice was tinged with an undercurrent of fear, and Carson felt the need to reassure her.

"Aye, I will lass. If I can," he promised. He stood back, closed his eyes and thought of the infirmary.

oOo

Rodney and Elizabeth both gave a small sigh of relief as Carson's eyes blinked open. He sat still for a moment, then pushed himself into an upright position.

"So….what happened?" Rodney asked, leaning closer in his excitement. Carson looked tired, but okay.

Carson waited a moment, looking at the medical apparatus that was monitoring his vital signs. Apparently satisfied, he turned and gave Rodney a smug smile.

"Her name is Brenna."

TBC