Here is today's chapter! Things should start picking up soon. That's all I got to say.
Elphie Muse: That was short.
You're point?
Elphie Muse: No point.
Good. And remember, I own nothing.
"How's Sam doing?" Cameron asked. Several days had passed since Sam's most disturbing vision.
"She's secluded herself from us," Fiyero said. "Won't speak to any of us."
"Is Daniel Jackson not with her?" Teal'c inquired.
"No," the archaeologist in question answered. He stepped into the common room and slumped down into a chair. "She won't even talk to me anymore."
Elphaba silently slipped out of the room and made her way to her study. She opened the door and was unsurprised to find Sam sitting at the desk pouring over dozens of books. More books and papers were stacked on the floor near the stool.
"I said leave me alone Daniel," Sam said without looking up.
"Then it's a good thing I'm not him," Elphaba said. Sam looked up and Elphaba saw how tired Sam was. "Are you all right?"
Sam snorted. "Am I all right? I can't even go to sleep now because the visions are getting so bad."
"You have to sleep," Elphaba said gently.
"No I don't," Sam insisted, turning back to the book.
Elphaba saw that the book was the Grimmerie. In one swift movement she slammed the book shut and yanked it away from Sam. "Yes you do," Elphaba said.
"Why the hell did you do that?" Sam demanded angrily. "I need to find a spell!"
"Samantha, you have to rest. If you keep depriving yourself of sleep you'll only make things worse," Elphaba said.
"I don't care! I have to find a spell to stop me!"
"I do care!" Elphaba cried. "You're my daughter! I know what magic does to a person when they're sleep-deprived. After I thought your father had died I didn't sleep for more than a couple of consecutive hours. Every spell I had tried to cast didn't work. Luckily Chistery was there to hide the Grimmerie from me before I did any real damage."
"I'm not you," Sam said curtly.
"I know that," Elphaba said, her voice taking on a hard edge. "But you are my daughter and I'll be damned if I let you do something foolish. You have friends and people who care about you Samantha. Don't shut them out, trust in them."
Sam's lower lip started quivering. "I…I need to be strong…" she whispered.
"You can be strong with support Samantha." Elphaba set the Grimmerie down and enveloped her daughter in a hug. "I can't lose you Sam," she whispered. "Besides," she added, breaking apart from Sam, "someone's going to have to help us when we have a new little one running around."
"Y…you're pregnant?" Sam asked. Elphaba nodded. "Damn," Sam muttered.
Elphaba frowned. "What's the matter?"
"In my visions, you were pregnant when I…you know," Sam said. "We have to find a way to prevent the visions from coming to pass."
"We?" Elphaba asked.
"Yeah. I still got some time left and it might help to have multiple people searching for an answer," Sam said.
"Good. Glinda's gone back to Gillikin to get them to band with the Vinkus. Fiyero and Cameron and Hailey are going to Quadling Country and Munchkinland to get them to join as well," Elphaba said as they made their way out of the study and back down to the common room.
"We need to be careful to make sure no one loyal to Hathor finds out about the uprising," Sam said.
Elphaba nodded. "We know. Chistery and his brethren will start flying around, scouting and spying on any activity the empress is up to." They walked into the common room and sat down with the others, talking about what could be done.
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"Are you worried that we won't find a way to stop the visions?" Daniel asked a few weeks later. They still hadn't heard anything from Glinda. Fiyero and Cameron and Hailey had left earlier that day for Quadling Country.
"Yes," Sam said, sitting at her window. "Though I haven't had one in a while."
"At least you've been able to sleep," he said, stoking the fire.
"Yeah," she agreed softly.
"Speaking of sleep, you need to get some," he ordered. Sam obediently crawled under the blankets and fell asleep immediately. Daniel watched her sleep, finally letting the worry show in his eyes. He sat down in the stuffed chair and closed his eyes.
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Daniel opened his eyes and frowned when he found himself in the Gate Room back at the SGC. He noticed that the light was giving everything a soft glow. He immediately remembered the last time this had happened.
"Hello Daniel Jackson," a voice said.
Daniel turned and smiled at the familiar face. "Oma," he greeted.
Oma Desala rose to her feet and walked down to Daniel. "She needs your help."
"Who? Sam?" he asked. Oma nodded. "How can I help her?"
"The path to help her must be found by you," she said.
"We don't have time for your riddles Oma. We only have a few months left before the visions come true," he said.
"You cannot stop the flow of time," she said.
"I know that," Daniel said. "But while we stand here contemplating the meaning of life and whatnot, Sam gets closer to losing herself."
"Only by conquering one's self will one know the Way," Oma said.
Daniel frowned at her sentence. He began pacing, brow furrowed in deep thought. He suddenly looked up, a revelation on his face. "That's it!" he exclaimed. Oma smiled at him as everything faded to black.
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Sam opened her eyes and looked around in confusion. Destroyed buildings were all around her. Several broken pillars stood close by, a dark doorway behind them. As Sam looked around, she found herself recognizing where she was.
"Samantha," a familiar voice said.
She turned. "O…Orlin…" she said in disbelief. "But how? You helped us with the Ori and were in the body of a child. You said you couldn't re-Ascend."
He smiled, his eyes soft. "The others were sympathetic enough to allow me to Ascend once more. They knew I did what I did to help stop a massacre."
"Why are you here though? Not that I'm not grateful to see you again."
"I'm here to tell you you're not alone," he said.
"Orlin, I saw what I'll do to my friends and loved ones."
"The future is never set in stone Samantha. Time is constantly flowing and changing its path to suit what happens to us."
"What are you saying?"
"The vision can be prevented. You were given the dream to prevent it."
"Given? Given to me by whom?" she demanded.
"By me," he said.
"All the pain I felt in it was because of you?" she asked.
"I am sorry," he said. "But you needed to be aware of what could come to pass."
"So why did you give me the visions? I am assuming you had a reason."
"The Goa'uld are a dangerous enemy with the technology they possess. The one called Hathor also possessing magic," he said.
"How is that possible though?"
"Her host's mother escaped from this world. She then had a child who later became the host of Hathor," Orlin began.
"And when O'Neill threw her into the cryo-chamber, she opened a portal to this world where she's been since," Sam finished.
"And with the Wizard gone from this land, she easily gained power," he said.
"What if I can't stop the vision?" Sam asked.
"I have faith that you will," he said. Everything began to fade away into black.
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Daniel jerked awake, Sam's hand on his shoulder. "You all right?" she asked.
He looked up at her, the conversation with Oma Desala still fresh in his mind. He leapt to his feet and pulled Sam close. "I know how to stop the vision!" he said excitedly.
"You do?" she asked in disbelief.
He nodded. "Oma helped me find it."
"Oma Desala? She spoke to you?" Sam asked. "But we're in another… dimension or something," she said.
"I know, but remember, she's an Ascended being. She can probably go wherever she wants as long as she doesn't interfere too much," Daniel said.
"That would explain my dream then," she murmured.
"Your dream?" he asked.
"Orlin stopped in for a visit," she said.
"Isn't he a kid with no memory of being Ascended now?" he asked.
"The others changed their minds and helped him." Daniel nodded and Sam told him everything Orlin had told her.
"Well that's…nice of them," he finally said. "Though I think it would've been nice of them to not let you feel pain in the vision."
"Doesn't matter to me. All that matters is we stop it from coming to pass. So how do we stop the vision?" Sam asked. Daniel grinned at her.
Hope it was enjoyable. As I said, things should start picking up. And how will the visions be prevented? Stay tuned to find out!