Chapter 7 of 8

As he keyed the first symbol etched into the cold obsidian he felt a sudden shock shoot up his arms. Pain exploded in his head even as the jolt sent him flying backwards across the room to smack hard against the opposite wall. He was unaware of the sudden stillness, the lights going out, the panicked cry of the guardian or the blood that pooled beneath his head as the rip in his scalp turned his fair hair rusty brown.

As Daniel drifted deeper into unconsciousness it seemed that hidden memories were allowed their freedom. He found himself drifting through places he had no memory of and yet they were familiar on a level he could not fathom. Glimpses of scenes appeared in his mind's eye – Jack in a cell, body and soul damaged almost beyond help; Jaffa fighting for their lives; his own ascension. Scene after scene played out before him along with the frustration so many of the interactions had caused him; and then the final confrontation between himself and Anubis. Daniel's unconscious body twitched in denial of his defeat, a moan passing softly through half open lips.

The vista changed one more, and Daniel found himself in the garden by the pool; cherry blossom drifted down to float upon the placid water, its scent filling the air.

"You came, Daniel San." The soft voice spoke from behind him.

Daniel span around to find himself face to face with a tiny woman of mature years. Her kimono was a vibrant display of colour and movement, filled with scenes of butterflies and flowers.

He frowned, feeling he should know who she was.

"You do not remember me? Think, Daniel san, you have been here before. Many times you visited me trying to help, but you were called back before I could be freed." She moved closer and laid a hand gently on his arm.

Daniel felt a strange warmth seep into him from her touch, it travelled through every nerve and fibre relaxing him into an almost dream-like state.

"Lady Mariko?" he said finally. Not sure if his memory were true or not. This whole scene was playing out like a very complicated and disorientating dream.

Tears welled in the woman's eyes; she nodded and bowed her head.

"You'll have to help me, Mariko, I don't remember what I was to do." Daniel's voice held all the frustration that he felt. He knew that whatever it was he had promised to do for this woman was important, maybe even life saving in some way and yet still his mind refused to let the necessary memories surface.

"I remember this place, this is P4…."

"No, Daniel san, this is Earth, Japan. This is the garden of my summer home." She indicated the pool with its surrounding flowers, the butterflies that busied themselves in the fragrant setting. "This is where you came to find peace, and where you found me."

The garden was quiet, but not with an unnatural stillness – with the serene quality that had brought him peace a lifetime ago.

"I came here when I was ascended," Daniel said quietly, suddenly sure of that fact if nothing else. He turned to face the woman at his side. "Why?"

Lady Mariko clapped her hands in summons, and from the covered walkway a servant ran with two mats and quickly spread them in front of the pool. Daniel's eyes followed the girl's retreating form, a frown between his eyes. Surely that had been…?

"Come, Daniel san, I will explain as best I may." Lady Mariko gestured to the mats and indicated that he should take his place there.

As Daniel dropped into a cross-legged pose, his hostess sank gracefully to her knees, spreading her kimono around her so as best to display the eye-catching design.

"Do you know what year this is, Daniel san?" Lady Mariko began.

"Yes, it's the fifth of March two thousand and..." He saw the subtle shake of her head. "It's not?"

"No, Daniel san. It is the fourth day of the cherry tree season in the eleventh year of the clan Minamoto. Today is the day I died. You were here, Daniel san, taking refuge in the garden. The souls of my ancestors had come to commune with you." Mariko indicated the butterflies that were even now hovering close to Daniel as though drawn to him. "It was time for me to go home, to fulfil my destiny among the stars. I was sent here for a short time only, but I fell in love with this place and these people; I did not want to leave."

Daniel was still trying to get his mind around the fact that he was in the past. "It's impossible. No, okay, I know it's theoretically possible but … Oh God, what did I do?" He had horrible visions of what had happened when he had confronted Anubis; the outfall of his good intentions had been almost enough to destroy him.

Lady Mariko smiled gently at him. "You did nothing wrong, Daniel san. My family in this life wanted me to stay, even though my time here was at an end. They prayed for my soul to stay with them. When I first became ill they commissioned a local artist to sculpt my likeness; she was placed by my bed in an effort to anchor me here with them. They meant well. You were here to help me ascend, Daniel san but their prayers were so fervent, so desperate I was trapped."

"In the netsuke," he finished grimly. "And I did nothing to get you out." He raked a hand through his hair in frustration, setting the butterflies to dodge away from him.

"You did what you could. You removed me from this time and place to an outpost of my family. You recreated this summerhouse for me there and you went looking for answers. You never came back, until now. It has been a very long wait," she sighed, softly.

Leaning forward, Daniel laid his hand on hers. "I am so sorry. Tell me what I can do."

"There is a panel of black. The answer lies within its depths. Summon the others and they will help."

Daniel had a sudden image of being thrown backward, of pain bursting through him, and shook his head. "I tried to use it, but it's protected."

"The answer is in that room, Daniel san. You need only remember."

The ache at the back of his head had begun to extend its hold, now it was behind his eyes sending slivers of pain to every nerve ending around his skull. He rubbed a hand over his face then pressed fingers to his temple in an effort to relieve the tension building to astronomical proportions. When he looked around again, Lady Mariko was gone, leaving him alone in the garden with only the sound of softly beating butterfly wings.

Forcing himself to rise, he made his way behind the pool to where the chamber door was hidden. It stood ajar, inviting him to enter. Pushing it further open, he entered the stillness. Lamps had been lit, throwing light onto the paintings hanging there. Again the sense of familiarity lodged itself in his brain.

Lady Mariko was standing next to one of the larger paintings. It appeared to be a symbol, but not one that Daniel recognised; Maybe a letter, or sign? Had he learned to write Japanese while ascended? He didn't know.

"You created these pieces, Daniel san. Long ago, when first you found me. They were a key, you said, should you ever forget or you had a chance to send someone to me."

The wistfulness in her voice made Daniel uncomfortable. He looked again at the splashes of colour, one after the other, trying to make sense of them in any way he could. Then one of them seemed to strike a dim memory.

"This one, is this 'home'?" his voice was urgent, the pounding in his head threatened to remove what little concentration he retained.

The old lady's brow puckered into a frown. "Yes, Daniel san. And this is 'journey', this…"

Daniel waved his hand to quieten her as his memories surged forward. "Yes, I see it." His lips twisted in wry comprehension. Turning to his companion he gave an apologetic bow. "Forgive me for being a fool, Lady Mariko. I think I know what I have to do."

Jack waited impatiently for the rest of his team to finish kitting up. One eye on the counter, he mentally ticked off the time left before they could dial out and drag Daniel back. I should have seen this coming, Jack kept thinking to himself. Daniel doesn't give up, and he's too bloody bright for his own good. He sighed and let his gaze go to the Stargate where the event horizon still blazed back at him sure that Daniel was getting himself into all sorts of trouble.

Teal'c and Carter finally arrived; all three of them had made the journey back to the mountain in record time, breaking the speed limit the whole way. Jack could only be thankful Daniel had decided to take off in the middle of the night and not during the rush hour.

The bright blue disc suddenly fizzled out and there was a flurry of activity all around the team.

"Chevron one, encoded."

"Let's move," Jack barked and led the others down to the embarkation room.

"Chevron six, encoded."

A moment later the last chevron lit up and the whoosh of the gate burst into the room. SG1 were up the ramp almost before the event horizon had steadied. Taking the incline at a fast trot, they disappeared from Earth to emerge a few moments later in the serene gardens that had captivated Daniel so short a time before.

"Keeps your eyes open," Jack warned as he and the team jogged toward the wooden structure. None stopped to discard their boots, and the heavy thud of their Air force issue echoed into the still air.

They ran quickly through the main hall's dark interior and out into the sunlit garden beyond. It was as still and quiet as before. Butterflies rose in a cloud from the cherry tree and surrounding plants, and clustered briefly about the team's head as though disoriented by their arrival. Jack ducked as a particularly large specimen seemingly dive-bombed him before the colourful cloud dispersed.

"This place gives me the creeps," Jack muttered under his breath before sending Teal'c and Sam off to inspect every corner of the building. He stood in the sunshine for a moment, letting his eyes scour every possible hiding place, as he glanced down he noted the scuffed gravel around the pool. Easing the safety trigger off his gun, he made his way carefully around the still water.

The door was well hidden, even to his trained eye. It was firmly closed and Jack hesitated for a bare moment before taking hold of the simple latch and lifting it as quietly as he could. The room beyond was in darkness. Jack switched on the torch attached to his gun and scanned the interior as quickly as he could. The walls were covered in paintings, much like those in the main hall. As his beam finished its sweep, it lit up the bloody head and body of Daniel.

"I knew it, I just knew it." Jack activated his radio. "Carter, Teal'c, I've got him."

Jack hovered over the seemingly lifeless body. Daniel had landed against the wall, his neck seemed twisted at an unnatural angle. Jack touched the pulse point in Daniel's neck, picking up a faint echo of his heartbeat. Raising one eyelid, Jack saw the unfocussed eye staring back at him.

He knew enough field medicine to not try and straighten out the twisted body, even though his hands fairly itched to do something to ease Daniel's obvious discomfort. The strange angle of his neck, the shallow fast breathing didn't encourage Jack.

Teal'c was first through the door, and Jack immediately sent him hurrying to the Stargate to get help. "Full med team, fast as you can get them here. Spinal collar, back board…" his voice was already echoing in the void left by the Jaffa's running form.

Carter passed Teal'c on his way out, his grim expression telling her that Daniel was not hale and whole. Her worst fears confirmed as she entered the gloom and saw the colonel standing guard over Daniel's inert form.

"Lights. We need lights," Jack barked out. And Carter dropped her pack to the floor, searching for the large torches that were their standard equipment. She set them around the room, lighting every corner, lifting the darkness. As a beam hit the drawn back hanging, she spotted the control panel glinting darkly back at her.

Approaching it, she reached out a hand.

Jack's voice sliced through the room, his innate sarcasm hiding his concern. "Don't touch it. We don't know what did this to Daniel. You know what he's like for touching things he shouldn't."

For a moment they both remember the mirror that had landed Daniel in another dimension. Sam withdrew her hand and turned back to where Jack still hovered over Daniel's fast fading body.