Touched By An Ancient
By Ann3
Writer's Note: I must admit this chapter has proven really hard to write, since I wanted to explain why the Ancients have given Carson this very special tribute. Then I watched Hide and Seek ( purely for research, of course... oh okay, yes, and the balcony scene just may have swayed me too !) and had this idea for what, I hope, will be a viable reason for Carson's continued development of the gene therapy.
As always, I hope you enjoy ! And for victoriaely, thanks so much for the last review, I'm so glad you've enjoyed the character of Alex Beckett. I'm afraid this is the last chapter to feature him officially... but don't worry, he will be back... ;o)
Chapter Eighteen
Credit. Appreciation. Gestures of approval he'd often silently yearned for, but rarely, if ever, heard. Now dozens of Ascended Ancients who'd already achieved immortality had stood in line to greet him. Little wonder, then, that a humble, human doctor was feeling more than slightly out of his depth.
As they moved through a final flurry of nods and handshakes, Carson glanced almost helplessly at his father.
"I – I don't understand…" he said at last, wishing he could make sense of this incredible tribute. "I – I mean, don't think me ungrateful, dad… all this, it – it's lovely, but… well… it's just that…"
"You're wonderin' what you've done to deserve it…?" his father supplied with a helpful smile – leaving it to Melia to explain as he steered his son back onto the path leading to the Pap's summit.
"Just like your father, Carson, you were born to a unique calling. You were chosen to protect our kind. For millions of years, we have struggled to protect ourselves, and the worlds we have come to inhabit. But as you have learned, at painful cost, our attempts to do so have not always been successful. Even with our advanced knowledge, losses against so many powerful enemies have been high…"
Glancing once more at his father, for both reassurance and guidance, Carson just nodded in return – his eyes, already wide in puzzled wonder, growing to the size of dinner plates at what she said next.
"Through your own loss, Carson, your own quest for survival, you have safeguarded the lives of millions…"
"I – I have…?" Carson frowned at her, still utterly lost, before a chink of realisation finally dawned. "You – You mean the therapy…? The process I developed, to – to give others the Ancient gene…?"
"Yes, Carson, that is correct…" Melia smiled back at him, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze. "Through its discovery, you have safeguarded not only your life, but also those of countless others. Thanks to your resourcefulness and courage, the destiny of the Ancients has been forever changed. Because of you, a whole generation of ordinary mortals now share the powers of the Chosen. They will now help you to fight the Wraith, and all enemies of our kind, until they are defeated. So you see, Carson, you have made a difference… in more ways than you could ever imagine…"
"And you're no longer alone, son…" his father chipped in, hugging Carson gently closer to him. "Ye won't need to tear yourself apart, or let yoursel' be forced to do things that pain ye so deeply… leave the fighting to them now, son, and get yoursel' back to what ye do best… bein' a doctor…"
With so much to take in, to still try and understand, Carson simply nodded in distracted agreement – right until one of those last, quietly spoken words brought its significance crashing down on him.
"B - Back...?" he whispered, finding it suddenly impossible to meet his father's gently sympathising eyes. Instead he turned to stare behind them, tears of realisation already sliding, unchecked, down his face.
It was over. This incredible journey of discovery and understanding was finally, and inevitably, over.
From the moment his father had joined him on it, Carson Beckett had been dreading this moment. Now it had come. And it was proving every bit as painful, every bit as difficult, as he'd feared. His only comfort was that his father was now fighting to put on a brave face as much as he was.
"Aye, son… aye, it's time for ye to go back home now… back where ye belong…" he said at last – forestalling the inevitable, stricken protest with as much firmness as his own emotions could allow. "Ye have to go back now, Carsie… the battle isn't over yet, son… you're still needed to fight it…"
Too overcome to reply, Carson just nodded, allowing his father to steer him, very gently, forwards. On the Stargate ahead of them, the final chevron that would take him home now locked into place – the spectacular beauty of its active wormhole for once unadmired by eyes too flooded to see it.
Melia's comforting hug, her soft words of reassuring encouragement almost passed unnoticed too.
"We will still be beside you in that battle, Carson… both of us will be fighting it alongside you…"
Too distraught to speak, Carson just nodded, allowing himself to be held in another gentle embrace – one he returned just as tightly, almost ferociously, as his father made him a soft, heartfelt promise.
"It's alright, Carsie, I'm here… I'll be here, son… always, to keep ye safe... I'll always be here…"
He'd last said those words to a terrified little boy, soothing him to sleep after he'd woken, screaming, from yet another nightmare. They were the last things Carson Beckett heard before a tide of crushing tiredness rushed through him. Then everything went silent and dark, taking with it the sound of that little boy's uncontrollable tears.