Author's Note: Sorry to say, Katchi's still in the box. Looks like I'll be moving again in a month, and honestly I'm not sure what box he's in. ^.^
Author's Note2: Katchi would like me to inform you that he thinks I'm a very cruel author. I don't think I'm that bad, I can't help how crazy my life is. Take today for example. As soon as I get this posted I've got to reformat this compy because something went wrong, somewhere, and I can't for the life of me figure out where! Oiy!
Author's Note3: Here's a big hug and thank you to those still reading this monster. Not to mention my patient betas', sealrescuer and dimac99. Whee! This chapter is the first of two info chapters that'll dropping some new info in your laps, go over a bit of old stuff, and confirm things you probably suspected all along. :P Unfortunately, there'll be a couple week wait for the next chapter because, while it's written, one of my beta's just went on vacation for a week or so. Woot!
Author's Note4: It wasn't easy trying to get all the science stuff to come out right. My roomies were always the science geeks, not me, so if it's not 'exactly' correct, I plead insanity and a love for anything scifi! ;)
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When SG1 was finally admitted into Janet Frasier's care, she was ready to cuff them to their beds and throw away the key. All three of them looked completely exhausted, the 'worse for wear' being an understatement. Even Teal'c seemed ragged around the edges. Janet wondered when the jaffa had last had the opportunity to perform kelno'reem, an action just as vital to the jaffa as sleep was to humans.
"Do we have any idea what the goa'uld plans to do?" General Hammond asked as soon as Sam finished her verbal report.
Janet turned from the x-rays of the Major's arm in time to see the expression of pain on Sam's face before she schooled her features back to normal. "No, sir. Originally he tried to send a message to his brother."
"A message which may or may not have gotten out," Hammond guessed.
Then Daniel added from the next bed over, "His name is Sedet. No one we know, but it's been several thousand years, Ra might have killed him a long time ago."
Hammond took all that in, and then with a grim expression stated, "For now, we'll just have to wait and see what turns up."
Janet took her opportunity to step up and firmly added, "In the mean time I highly recommend SG1 be allowed to recuperate." They looked ready to protest so Janet leveled one of her sternest glares at them.
The General nodded in agreement. "We'll fully debrief as soon as you've all had time to rest."
Sam's expression twisted with both pain and worry. "Sir, we might not have time."
"You're no good to anyone in your current state, Major," General Hammond firmly told her, and that was the end of the discussion.
"Yes, sir."
As soon as he left, Janet put her two cents in to reinforce the General's order. "Sam, you've got a fracture under that gash on your arm, you're lucky it didn't shatter." She could only guess how much strain Sam must have been putting on it. While Daniel looked somewhat better than the rest, they all looked like refugees from a war, one fought at ground zero.
The Major looked away in frustration, but then her shoulders sagged in defeat and it was clear any reserves of energy had been completely spent. Now that they were relatively away from prying ears, it was all Janet could do to keep her mouth shut about the discovery she'd made while they were gone. Concern for their health far outweighed any other emotion, but that didn't make it any easier.
It was only four hours later when SG1 emerged from the infirmary, clean again and looking far more rested than before, although what they all needed was a week's leave, but for now the few hours would have to suffice. Before they could go, Janet held them back, quietly telling them with excitement, "There's something I have to show you guys."
She led them to one of the labs, letting them all get settled on any available stool before firmly shutting the door behind her. While Sam's report to the General had mentioned MacGyver, she had referred to him only as a passing civilian, saying nothing about his likeness to Colonel O'Neill. Which meant they were still keeping the secret, and that meant what she was about to show them wasn't something they would want widely known.
"What is it Janet?" Sam asked, shifting the sling to a more comfortable position around her neck. Janet had opted not to put the arm in a hard cast until she was sure the cut wouldn't become infected. Watching Sam fidget, she was now reconsidering the idea.
"All right." Janet pulled out two vials of blood from the fridge. "This, is MacGyver's blood. And this, is the Colonel's. They're exactly the same."
"Do we not already know this?" Teal'c asked.
"We do. But watch this." Janet carefully put the vials in holders, then making two slides with a drop of blood from each vial, carried one across the room to the opposite counter and added a drop of iodine. Firmly screwing the lid back on, Janet put the iodine bottle back into the cupboard above. Then, leaving the slide where it was, she walked back to get the other one.
Janet placed the second slide near the first and stepped back to wait. It took only a few seconds to happen and as they waited in silence, Janet heard the telling thud from inside the cupboard. She could see the door crack open just that barest amount as the liquid formed between it.
"What?" Daniel asked, confused, but a moment later they all saw the drip of iodine fall to the counter, landing directly on the second slide.
"That," Janet stated definitely, and then she repeated the test with a new iodine bottle, this time leaving it on the counter so they could all see it clearly as it spontaneously fell over and leaked over the unaltered slide.
Both Daniel and Sam sat up straight in shock after that, simultaneously exclaiming, "Whoa!"
"And that's not all," Janet told them, grinning now that she'd gotten the response she herself had when it first happened. Since then, she'd gone through quite a few iodine bottles to figure it out. She made two fresh slides of blood and being careful to keep them separate from each other infected one with a virus.
Placing it under the electron microscope, she pulled it up on the computer screen. They watched as the virus took immediate action against the blood's cells. Janet then put the unaffected slide under the scope next to the first where they could see both samples at the same time.
It was hard to make out at first, but soon the second blood sample was also reaming with the virus. "That's just not possible!" Sam exclaimed.
"I know, I had a hard time believing it myself," Janet agreed.
Frowning, Daniel asked, "I thought viruses had to be passed somehow? Are the samples touching?"
Janet shook her head. "No. I must have done it a hundred times. As long as they're not anywhere near each other, they remain different, but as soon as they come close enough, they change on their own until they're exactly the same." She could appreciate their skeptical expressions, and with a grim smile added, "I think I might even have a clue as to why."
Making sure to clean up all the previous slides, Janet made a fresh and uncontaminated one, placing it under the scope and setting the magnification high enough for them to have a close up view of one of the blood cells. "What do you see?" She asked, turning to face them.
Sam was the first to get it, her jaw slowly dropping in shock. "It's completely symmetrical."
"What exactly does that mean?" Daniel questioned.
"It means," Janet answered, "that it's not natural. It's got to be manufactured, if one can put it that way. Of all the times I've had to examine the Colonel's blood I never once noticed, but all of the cells in his body are like this, I'm positive of it."
Awkwardly, Daniel told them, "Well, Jack did tell me he was test tube baby."
But Sam shook her head, his eyes still fixated on the screen. "This is way beyond anything we're currently capable of. Even the first successful infant born after conception in vitro wasn't until 1978. The only plausible way their cells could be so uniform would be if something was affecting them on the quantum level."
"Quantum?"
Janet could see even Teal'c arching his eyebrow in confusion. She herself didn't understand quantum physics too well. Her mind had tried to explain it as a form of some sort of biological robots, like purely organic nanites, but that hadn't made too much sense, either.
The jaffa very pointedly stated, "Colonel O'Neill is not from an alternate reality."
"No, the word quantum doesn't actually refer to alternate universes," Sam said, realizing how the jaffa would come to that assumption. "Quantum mechanics basically deals with the relationship of atoms, molecules and anything else subject to the uncertainty principle. Like the fall of an electron from one energy level to another."
Daniel arched his eyebrow like Teal'c's, which hadn't lowered yet, then raising a hand as if he could grasp understanding from the air, asked, "So…and I know I'm going to regret this…but why do we call the alien device that takes us to alternate realities a quantum mirror?"
Sam actually blushed with embarrassment. "It has to do with the sudden change of state in one system to another." That didn't seem to help anyone, so half pulling her arm from the sling to talk with her hands, Sam tried to explain. "Okay, we know that there are an infinite number of realities for an infinite number of possibilities." They slowly nodded. "Each possibility stems from a different decision made at any given point in time. Up until that point everything should be exactly the same." Again they nodded. "There's still so much about quantum physics we don't understand yet that it's possible that a change on an atomic level actually plays a major role in affecting the outcome of any given situation." They continued to stare at her with blank expressions, so Sam added, "Teal'c, if you could go back to the day you helped us escape from Apophis, would you change your mind?"
"I would not."
"Well in some reality, somewhere, you did, and not because of anything that was different previous to that point."
The jaffa seemed quite disconcerted by the idea. "That would be highly unlikely."
"But possible," Sam insisted.
Janet felt she could understand what Sam was saying, but it did nothing to explain the anomaly on her screen. "How does that relate to what's happening to the Colonel?"
"All I'm saying is it has to be happening on a subatomic level. When you think about it, everything affects everything else. While we know what makes up an atom, who's to say the exact positioning of the electrons and protons doesn't have an effect on everything around them? I mean this is a field of science we've only scratched the surface of."
Daniel's face was pinched together in worry. "If we're only just starting to understand this stuff, how could Jack and Mac possibly get mixed up in it?"
"Might it have been an accident?" Teal'c suggested.
Janet shook her head. "No. This is too deliberate."
"Not necessarily," Sam argued. "But we won't know any more unless we can talk to their parents."
"Ah," Daniel interrupted, "That might not do any good. When Jack and I were trapped in the…" he hedged, like he was reluctant to use a particular word, "box, he told me a few things about where he and Mac come from."
"FamilyView?" Sam guessed. Daniel nodded, but Janet was more concerned about what had happened while they were gone. She'd heard Sam's initial report to the General, but there hadn't been anything in it about a box.
"Jack told me he and Mac were part of an experiment secretly conducted by a guy who worked there. I think he said his name was Ralph Gents. Their parents knew nothing about it."
"What has become of this RalphGents?" Teal'c questioned.
"He's dead," Sam said sounding rather sure but startled at the same time. "That was one of the names of the people who died in the explosion at FamilyView."
"Back when the Colonel and MacGyver were nine and both missing?" Janet guessed.
Sam nodded, her eyes lost in thought. "If the same thing happened then that's happening to them now, it could explain the Colonel's reluctance to let anyone know about his relationship to MacGyver."
"What is happening now?" Daniel finally asked.
Helplessly shrugging, Sam admitted, "I don't know, exactly. It's certainly nothing I can explain, but we do know things are being affected abnormally by their presence." She motioned to the screen still showing one of the Colonel's red blood cells. "By their blood alone."
Janet looked at the screen as well, and fully agreed with Sam as she stated, "We need more information."
*****
"Sir, we have an incoming wormhole," the technician, Sergeant Davis, said as he looked up.
General Hammond nodded. Standing in front of the controls Hammond could easily see both the activating wormhole and what the screen was telling them, but somehow hearing Davis actually say it always made it seem less intimidating. Anything could come through the gate, and while the iris kept out most unwanted objects, it didn't always work. They'd been lucky up this point that only potential allies seemed to have the technology to dismantle their defenses. Yet, just in case, a string of SFs entered the gate room, guns loaded and poised to fire.
"It's a Tok'ra IDC, sir."
"Open the iris," Hammond quickly ordered. He waited till he could actually see who came out of the wormhole before walking down to the gate room himself. General Hammond's arrival and the familiar face on the ramp were good enough for the watching SFs to deem the situation safe. They lowered their guns and courteously backed up out of the way, but still remained watchful until the wormhole actually disengaged.
"Jacob," Hammond greeted with a warm smile and an outstretched hand. "What brings you to our neck of the woods?"
"Hey, George," greeted Jacob Carter, Samantha Carter's father, and recently turned host to the tok'ra, Selmak. He shook Hammond's hand but his smile was grim. "I'm afraid I've come with some bad news."
Hammond sighed. "I wish I could say I wasn't expecting it." Especially after what Major Carter had reported to him. "Let's talk in my office."
Jacob frowned. "You might need to make some plans in a hurry on this one, George."
Hammond nodded, changing his mind as he led Jacob away from the stargate and into the briefing room. Along the way he stopped a passing Airman, ordering him to fetch SG1 from the infirmary.
"Infirmary?" Jacob questioned with a mix of both alarm and concern. "Did something happen?"
"A few things," Hammond ruefully told him.
Doctor Frasier came into the briefing room with SG1, which was fine by the General, he was just happy to see SG1 looking human again. Jacob immediately took note of all their injuries, especially his daughter's as he worriedly questioned, "Sam?"
"I'm fine, Dad," she replied. Hammond was just glad Jacob hadn't seen them when they first got back, or he'd be getting more than just a concerned parent's glare. Then looking around, Jacob asked, "Where's Jack?"
Regret showing in his normally placid voice, Teal'c informed him, "Colonel O'Neill has been taken captive by the goa'uld, Akh."
Jacob looked at the jaffa startled, and then turning to Hammond wryly commented, "When you say a few, you mean a lot, don't you?"
"Why don't you tell us why you're here, Jake," Hammond suggested
"Right." Jacob pulled out a small device and placed it in the center of the table. With the press of a button, a moving hologram projected itself above the device to show them a ship with various words in goa'uld displayed below it. "One of our operatives was doing a routine scan of bases in Baal's territories when this ship passed close enough to be picked up. The energy signature would indicate it's goa'uld technology, but it's not like anything we've seen before. And as far we can tell it's heading directly for Earth."
"I guess that answers the question of 'whether the message got out or not,'" Dr. Jackson dryly commented.
Hammond glanced at him, and then asked Jacob, "How long until it gets here?"
"Not long," Jacob told them. "A day at most. I'm sorry we couldn't warn you sooner, but we were lucky to have even noticed their passing."
Raising a hand to forestall any suggestion of blame, Hammond asked instead, "Do we have any idea why they're coming or how to stop them?"
"It has to be Sedet, responding to Akh's message," Dr. Jackson immediately stated.
Again Jacob frowned in confusion. "I'm not familiar with those goa'ulds."
"I was afraid of that. Apparently, Akh, Sedet, and Ra were all brothers."
"We found Akh buried here on Earth…yesterday?" Major Carter added, furling her brows as she tried to remember what day it was. When this was all over, if they were all still around, the General planned on seeing that SG1 took some solid down time. "We knew he was attempting to send a message to Sedet," Major Carter continued, "but we weren't sure if he was successful."
"This would be a violation of the treaty, so we'll try contacting the Asgard. But if that doesn't work we'll need other options," Hammond told them. In his experience, plan B tended to work better than plan A.
"Would perhaps bargaining Akh to Sedet ensure Earth's safety?" Teal'c suggested.
"Only if we give up the Key with him," Dr. Jackson grimly stated.
"Key?" Jacob curiously inquired.
Teal'c pulled the small white object from the seemingly endless recesses of his pockets and handed it over to Jacob. They watched as Jacob's head briefly dipped and then with glowing eyes he examined the object. "This is made from azerat crystal, only the oldest pieces of goa'uld technology utilize it." It was Selmak's voice coming from Jacob's mouth as the tok'ra spoke.
"Selmak, you're one of the oldest living Tok'ra around, right?" Dr. Jackson questioned.
A small grin graced Jacob's lips as the tok'ra answered, "I generally do not discuss my age, but yes, I am."
"Have you ever heard of the Hereta or the Shaya?"
Frowning, Selmak replied, "The names are familiar, but I do not recall why."
"You don't recall?" Major Carter asked in surprise. "I thought all your memories were passed on genetically?"
"It is not easy, but it is possible for a queen to choose what is passed on to larvae and what is not."
"Do you know where you come from?"
"Like most Tok'ra, from our queen, Egeria."
"No, I mean the goa'uld in general," Major Carter expounded.
Her father's head briefly dipped again and Jacob Carter demanded, "Just what are all these questions really about?" From the tone in his voice, Selmak wasn't very happy.
Major Carter was taken back by her father's reaction so Dr. Jackson quickly interceded. "It's just that we found evidence here to suggest that Akh, Sedet, and Ra were from a goa'uld society that existed previous to the System Lords."
"And we believe that that Key," Major Carter added, "combined with two others, is actually a database of all their technology."
Jacob seemed to look at the crystal with new consideration. "If that's true, then this could be a very effective bargaining chip."
"Not if Akh manages to contact Sedet again. According to him only the Hereta can unlock the keys and he knows we already blew them up."
General Hammond felt only a little better than Jacob looked. While he was sure he had yet to get the full report about everything that happened, he had enough information to realize Major Carter was referring to the mission where the Key was originally found. "So how do you suggest we go about locating the goa'uld, Akh?"
For once, Major Carter looked at a loss for words, and then Teal'c suggested, "Would it not prove easier to locate ColonelO'Neill instead?"
Hammond wasn't sure how that made things easier, but Major Carter's face lit up like it was the best idea in the world. "Yes, you're right Teal'c, it would!"
"I thought you said he was with Akh, how would looking for Jack make things easier?" Jacob asked, voicing the question Hammond himself was considering.
All at once SG1 looked nervous, and then Dr. Frasier spoke for the first time, calling Major Carter's name in such a way that General Hammond suddenly knew they'd all been purposely keeping something from him. Feeling his expression harden, General Hammond sternly questioned, "Does this have anything to do with the break in? And the mysterious phone call we had from the man posing as Colonel O'Neill?"
Their fidgeting was all the confirmation he needed. "It's a little complicated, sir," Major Carter hesitantly told him.
As angry as Hammond was by their deception, thankfully Earth's possible destruction held greater precedence in his mind. "We will discuss this in greater detail later. If you think you have a way of locating the Colonel, then do it. I'll see about contacting the Asgard for help." Hammond sighed. "I have a lot of phone calls to make."
"Yes, sir."
Hammond trusted SG1 to work on giving him a viable solution, as they had so many times before. Without knowing what the approaching goa'uld's intentions really were, it was hard to know what to prepare for, but as Major Carter had told him on the phone early that morning, it was best to prepare for the worst.