Dear friends, please accept my apologies for taking so long to post. Literally the day after posting the first chapter of this segment work, kids school, life got extremely busy and I had so little time to write. It was difficult since I did not have this chapter written or this story so clearly in my head. I can only think to continue writting and hope that it will make sense in the end. Your words and even if you don't leave words but your Story alerts keep me motiviated to keep going. I am just sorry it is taking me so long as I want the story to be worth it to you. I have to say that this chapter is set up and back ground, a chapter or two before any real action but I have some ideas. Thank you so much for your patience and for reading. I hope I responded to your reviews if you left one..I tried to do so promptly. If I did not I thank you for taking the time to send them...in many respects they were like a lifeline as I try to sort out where I am going with this.

Chapter 2

The Order of the Pegasi

Tristan looked out of the cave across the ocean. It would be good to return to Quidari. The land there was green as it was here. It was why they had chosen this piece of Terra, or rather why he had chosen this land. The others went along because they would follow him anywhere since he had made the greatest sacrifice of all of them. The other Pegasi had been young, as he had been, but he had left a family-left them out of duty, hoping to return to them. He sighed as the cool air touched his face. It had been his choice but he was also of the Order, hand picked by Evander for missions others could not do. When Evander took Roharin to Earth, Tristan knew the plan was the last hope they had. His family understood this, his men understood this, but many had sacrificed.

"I hope you are the king," Tristan said to the one flying toward him. "I hope we can go home. I swore to Evander I would protect you." He and the other Pegasi followed the line of Evander and that line had led to one named Sheppard. Tristan laughed. Yes that was an appropriate name for the grandson of Evander. He held the stone in his hand and looked out toward the ocean a moment longer. It had been no difficulty hiding from the humans here and watching the line of Evander reach fruition, but he was ready to battle the Wraith. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned.

"All is prepared, Tristan."

"Thank you Titus. He should be here soon if he comes on the ship Evander had left for him. And he may be pleased to see what further tools we have for him."

"Aye," Titus said with a smile. "We have had plenty of time to work on them."

Tristan stood. "Well, I hope you are packed, my friend. We will be going home soon." He would miss this land, but it was the home world of the king so they would return.

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"We are approaching the Milky Way Galaxy, my lord," Lear said looking up from his instruments.

Sheppard had been dozing. It was a much shorter trip but still a long one. He stood and stretched his arms. "Okay. Put us in stealth mode. Wouldn't want Earth trying to shoot us down or anything."

"Where are we going by the way?" Lorne asked. "It is a big planet, after all."

Sheppard sat down. "Ireland."

"How do you know you will find what you are looking for?" Ronon asked coming up to the cockpit. He was chewing on a sandwich. Sheppard gave him a bemused look.

"Because I just do, okay? I hope they have stocks of food before we head back. I doubt we have anything left."

Ronon shrugged. "I didn't get breakfast. You didn't give much warning."

Sheppard shook his head then looked out the window. He watched the various planets fly by until they finally reached Earth. He never got tired of space and, in particular, his own galaxy. He actually didn't get to see it much so these rare occasions were a special treat. "Set the Scabuer into high orbit, General. I don't want to be bumping into the space station, space junk, or anything that would give them cause to wonder what the heck is up here."

"I thought we were going to Ireland?" Ronon said with muffled voice as he took another bite.

"We are," Sheppard said looking out the window, "but it's still day. It's not populated where we are going but even with the cloak I don't want to fly around in broad daylight."

Lear placed the ship in orbit and watched the small planet, mesmerized. So this was Terra. Where Evander had gone with his young son and built the line from which the present king had come. To Lear, Terra had only been a childhood legend and an unreachable mystical place where hope rested for their own galaxy. He exchanged a glance with Sheppard. He had sensed the king looking at him.

"Yes, it's real," Sheppard said quietly and with a smile. He had to remember sometimes that the Armentarian people had built their lives around what Earth could bring them. "And soon we will figure out who has called us here."

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They had landed near the entrance of the cave. Lorne was not sure how Sheppard knew that it was this particular one-must have been one of those imperial powers he had. They entered slowly under cover of darkness and night vision goggles and walked for what seemed like nearly an hour. Ronon bumped into Lorne when the major stopped suddenly. He resisted the urge to knock the major in the head but he sensed something—then, there it was.

Sheppard pulled off the night vision goggles when he caught sight of the stone. He really didn't need them as his mind could guide him, but he didn't want to be completely different from his own men. He sensed that they were surrounded and in the center was one stone. He sighed. Always the stone when something big was going to happen…always the pain and misery.

"I have come," he said simply.

There was a pause for some time and Sheppard felt as if eyes he could not see were evaluating him.

"Are you Evander's Heir?" a deep voice in Ancient asked.

"I am," he replied in similar.

A tall man stepped forward. Yes, he resembled Qui-Gon-tall, blue eyes, hair pulled back in a pony-tail. He seemed familiar, maybe because he had seen this man in his dreams on occasion since becoming king. The tall man looked him over with a measuring eye and Sheppard could feel him trying to touch his thoughts.

Sheppard sighed. "You are of the Order of the Pegasi."

"Aye."

Sheppard smiled at that. He never figured he would be in some secret cave in Ireland meeting a real Ancient-and he had no doubt the person in front of him was an Ancient. Yet "aye" was not the response he was expecting.

"I suppose I have to pick up the stone and have my brains fried before we can move forward."

Tristan smiled almost sadly. "Yes. I am sorry, but it is the only way we can know. It is the last gift Evander left for his heir."

Sheppard almost snorted at the word gift. That was all in the eye of the beholder. "The wrapping is never fun," he finally said.

Tristan laughed this time and Sheppard could hear snickers in the shadows. "That is true," Tristan said stepping closer to Sheppard, "But before one can be powerful, one must be weak. The ability to heal and control the physics of the world requires changes." Tristan closed his eyes a moment. "You have already been to the brink of death, between ascension and this world. This will help you now. Only the ascended and some of us of the Order will have the abilities that you have or will have. Yet you have even more as you have been given the knowledge of the Wraith."

Sheppard shifted his weight slightly. "The power to heal."

"Yes."

"Why would the ascended Ancients allow me that-or you for that matter?"

Tristan shrugged. "Evander left them no choice."

Sheppard resisted the urge to roll his eyes. His mind wandered as he thought what a great reality show his life would be. Wraith would probably be too scary though…too much reality for people. His life had become some unbelievable epic adventure. He frowned a moment. Merlin was an ancient too, wasn't he? He would have to ask General O'Neill.

Tristan sensed Sheppard's thoughts. "Well, King Arthur," the tall Ancient quipped, "Shall you remove the stone?"

Sheppard grimaced slightly and looked at the stone with a worried expression. "The last one, you say."

Tristan nodded sympathetically. He had sensed the suffering of Sheppard and he also knew the suffering Evander had undergone to provide his heir with every possible advantage. "The last." But Tristan knew this was just the beginning.

Sheppard took a deep breath and approached the stone. He eyed it curiously a moment then picked it up. He felt it grow warmer in his hands.

For a moment, he was not sure anything was actually happening and almost allowed himself to grin, but the relief was short lived. He felt the warmth spread across his hands, then up his arms to his shoulders and then to his head. It encompassed every part of him and felt just like a warm blanket for a few seconds. Then, of course, the pain…there was always that. It seared through every fiber in his body as if he was being taken apart and then put back together. At least there were no Wraith and no Erebus. No violent images. He fell to the ground with a cry as pain shot all at once from head to toe. It is the last one. Last time. I can take this.

Ronon, Lorne, and Lear watched along with the Pegasi. Tristan was kneeling next to Sheppard saying a few words in Ancient. He looked toward the three helpless men. "He will be fine," Tristan said quietly then turned sympathetically back to Sheppard. "It will pass soon, young heir of Evander. It shall pass." Sheppard was unaware of Tristan and grunted as his muscles tensed and spasmed.

Sheppard closed his eyes as the pain in his head spiked. He hissed in furious misery. He could hear the voice of Evander but he could not focus on what his ancestor was saying. It was calming and peaceful and he tried to direct his mind away form the pain and toward the voice. He felt his muscles start to relax and he was better able to hear Evander. The Ancient king must have known that his heir would not have been able to focus because Sheppard was aware that the loop had started itself again. "You will have the ability to heal and to move objects but be aware that these all require energy…your energy. It will require restraint, but no doubt you have learned this already because of the abilities you have already acquired. The process of unlocking what has been embedded in your genetic code is now complete. Tristan and the order of the Pegasi along with the son of Capys will be by your side…" Sheppard ignored the rest. He knew he could access it later. It would be in his mind—sometimes he found that he would just know something without knowing why. The warmth began to subside as well and he lay there for a moment. He could feel the trickle from his nose. A cloth was placed in his hand, and he used it to wipe the blood from his nose. Tristan was kneeling next to him and looking down with bright blue eyes that were warm and sympathetic. Sheppard heard the leather in the Ancient's uniform creak as Tristan stood and joined the rest of the Pegasi standing at attention nearby. Feeling shaky, Sheppard tried his best to look unruffled as he stood. He looked at the 20 men lined up behind Tristan. He touched each of their minds then spoke crisply in Ancient. "I am the heir of Evander. I ask your allegiance as you gave my ancestor."

Lorne watched at the surreal scene. The Pegasi all kneeled and placed their heads to the ground in a deep bow. "We pledge our lives and allegiance, our lord. May we succeed in defeating the enemies of your worlds," Tristan answered in Ancient for them, head still to the ground.

Lorne watched Sheppard gaze on them a moment. Finally, the king spoke in clear Sheppard English-"That's great…Thanks." With that, Sheppard crumpled to the ground and would have fallen hard if Ronon had not been close enough to catch him. One of the Pegasi was there in an instant helping with Sheppard's legs. Tristan smiled at Ronon knowingly but said nothing, then guided them down the hall into a chamber. "Let him rest here. We will tend to him."

"We can do it," Ronon said almost angrily. He still wasn't sure who these people were and whether or not they could be trusted. Tristan bowed slightly. "Of course you can; we only offer our assistance. Please remain if you wish. Milinus will tend to him and I will return shortly. I must begin preparations for our departure." He looked back toward Lear and Lorne. "He will be fine here. If you wish you can accompany me to see what we have been working on for all this time. I think His Majesty will be pleased."

Lorne looked at Ronon and they exchanged glances. Ronon nodded slightly as he sat next to Sheppard on the bed. Sheppard mumbled something and seemed restless. Ronon put a steadying hand on his friend's shoulder. "I hope this is it, Sheppard." He wanted to say more, but he was not sure what he wanted to say exactly. Ronon thought of Teyla. Since he was unable to contact her before he left, Sheppard had left word with Samsus as to where he was going. Is this what their life would be like? His friends deserved more…to be happy, to not have to worry about each other as they fought the Wraith. But no one could have this peace until the Wraith were defeated.

Sheppard's eyes opened and were glassy. Though he stared at Ronon they were unrecognizing. "Capys fili,…Capys fili…" Milinus spoke comfortingly to Sheppard but did not seem concerned. Ronon had to admit he was not concerned either compared to what Sheppard had been through before. "It's okay buddy. Just hang in there." The Satedan turned to Millinus and looked him over. The man was obviously a warrior. Well built, with a fierce but compassionate look in his eyes. He sat quietly opposite of Ronon. His leather armor creaked with the slightest movement. It reminded Ronon of some of the movies he had seen about Earth warriors. He looked at the man curiously, wondering if he was related to anyone back on the Armentarian worlds. These Ancients were all tall, at least six feet or more. Tristan was actually slightly taller then Ronon. Ronon was not one to strike up a conversation but he was curious.

"You have lived here all this time waiting for him?" Ronon asked despite knowing the answer.

"Yes. We have followed the line of Evander for all these centuries. It was easy when the world was small to keep track and wait. Our goal was to ensure he would come to fruition. There are some who do not agree with what Evander has done."

Ronon considered the implications of that but said nothing. Sheppard groaned again and looked to be in pain. "What is happening to him?"

"This is the final sequencing to unlock the secrets within the king's DNA and to provide full use of his mental capacity. The sequencing had to be done in increments. He will in essence be more like us than like you." Milinus spoke matter of factly and there was no malice-but Ronon was troubled.

"What do you mean? He is human."

Milinus took out an instrument and scanned Sheppard. "Aye. He is human but he is also part of us. The genetic code passed down from Evander remained strong within his line, never diluted or weakened, only dormant to an extent. It did not become activated until he took hold of the Eye of the Armentarii."

"Yeah, that was rough."

Milinus looked sad. "Yes. Evander feared this, but we had so little time."

Ronon said nothing for a while. "He has been through a lot-the second stone, the dagger. I hope this really is the last thing like this."

Milinus looked at Ronon curiously. "What dagger?"

Ronon said nothing. He had already said too much…not like him at all.

"Please…what dagger?"

Ronon continued to hesitate as his mind flashed back to holding Sheppard. Saying good-bye. "I said too much already…"

"Please Ronon…what dagger? Evander did not speak of such. If you would allow me I could read your thoughts."

Ronon sighed. "Maybe Sheppard should tell you."

"Ronon, we are the protectors of His Majesty. His Pegasi. We knew there would be three stones but no knife. It is important for us to know if other information has been transferred to him."

Ronon was not sure. Who were these people and could he trust them? Sheppard seemed to have no reservation, and they did not seem to pose any harm, but it was hard to trust. He sighed. He knew Sheppard trusted these people. "Okay."

Milinus closed his eyes, then reached out and touched Ronon's mind. It did not take very long before Milinus opened his eyes. He looked at Ronon incredulously. "His Majesty can take life…with his thoughts?"

"Yeah. He doesn't talk about it. He only did it when he was in danger."

"Yes. He has been through much, as you have said. We did not know Erebus had done this. He was a rival of Evander and of all our people. Greedy and corrupted. Evander had stopped Erebus on many occasions; that his heir defeated Erebus is amazing."

Ronon was quiet. He did not want to remember that time. Milinus watched the Satedan. "…Though not without cost to many, including yourself. He has to suppress and conquer a deep darkness."

"He has. Now, is what happened with the dagger going to hurt him along with this new ability?"

Milinus ran an instrument over Sheppard. "No…I do not think so. It is troubling that he could so easily take life, and now also give it."

"This is the Wraith. They do this."

Milinus nodded. "Yes. Evander wanted him to have every advantage. We knew he would need it. The Wraith hibernate for so long, gaining no significant advances and this has given us time to improve our weapons and our strategy." Milinus was going to continue when Sheppard stirred. He did not dare touch the mind of the king without permission, but the idea that he could take their lives with a mere thought terrified him. They were trusting him blindly. What if his mind had been negatively touched by Erebus?

Ronon could not read minds but he knew what Milinus was thinking. He had felt that way before. "Sheppard would never hurt any of us…or lose control. He would die before that…almost did." Ronon knew he had almost killed Sheppard while his friend had the power all along to harm him.

Milinus smiled. "Forgive me, Ronon. It is unexpected. It is not an ability which we have. We are used to being, quite frankly, in control of the world around us. But none of us had the ability to defeat the Wraith, because we could not think like them. Evander was wise in what he did, but I only hope the price will not be too high for His Majesty."

"He doesn't like to use his abilities…the kind that overpower others…he's gotten used to it, but he doesn't like it."

"No, I suppose he doesn't, and that is admittedly a relief. He is very much like Evander. However, to defeat his enemies, he may have to do what he does not wish to do. There is no one like him. Erebus has given him more abilities than even Evander had imagined."

Ronon was going to say something when Sheppard moaned and his muscles looked tense. Milinus checked him and placed a steady hand on Sheppard's shoulder, then spoke to the king in Ancient. He wiped the small trickle of blood from Sheppard's nose. After a few moments, Sheppard seemed to relax.

Milinus smiled. "The process is nearly complete."

"He doesn't seem to have as many problems as before. No major convulsions or blood everywhere."

"It had to be done in increments. With the exception of the dagger, all was planned. Of course, Erebus had corrupted the stone on Kildar, then the dagger, but the first stone was the most difficult as it was the first to unlock his genetic memory and ability. He will feel ill and weak, but the stress on his mind is much less this time."

"Well, that is good-I mean, at least the 'less stress' thing. But he doesn't like to feel sick."

Milinus laughed. "Who does? It should not last long, however-perhaps 24 hours. And the surprise Master Tristan has for him should make him feel considerably better.

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Lorne looked into the deep cavern at the small fleet of the most beautiful looking ships he had ever seen. There were 30 of them.

"Wow, colonel Sheppard is going to freak." He was still in the habit of calling him colonel Sheppard. Lorne was still active duty and on assignment to Sheppard. The Air Force did not want to lose ties with Sheppard, and the IOA was scrambling with what to do after LaPierre's stunt so, for now, all was quiet and they were giving Sheppard a wide birth and the SGC some free reign.

Tristan laughed at Lorne's comments. "Well, we do hope he will be pleased. We have managed to utilize both our own and Wraith technology as well as some technology Thor had passed on to us."

"Thor?" Lorne had read the briefings of SG-1, yet he did not expect to hear Thor's name.

"Yes. He visited us quite often. We attempted to help his people, but it was not possible. We miss him very much. He helped your people even when we were forbidden by the laws of our ascended to do so. He helped you through your SG-1 in particular." Tristan walked over toward one end of the vast cavern. Lorne wanted to ask how they had kept this hidden all of these years, but it didn't matter. They were here and they had been busy.

"Thor asked us to reserve this one for the son of Capys."

It took a moment for Lorne to register that last comment. Then he turned in realization to Tristan. "You mean General O'Neill?"

Tristan smiled. "Yes. Thor seemed to have a special kinship with him." The Ancient could sense Lorne's questions.

"We also followed the line of Capys. He and Evander were kin and closely fought together. Just as the two were linked so should their heirs be. It had been planned from the beginning though we could never be sure how it would turn out."

"Does General O'Neill know all of this?"

Tristan shrugged. "He must, to some extent. He is with the King even now, but he does not know his own history."

"Are all these ships gene activated?" He asked Tristan.

The Ancient looked confused a moment then realized what Lorne had asked. "Yes, if you mean that they can be used only by those with the blood of the Ancients, as you call them. It is like most of our technology-a protection against use by our enemies."

Lorne was quiet a moment as he watched Tristan checking the systems of one of the ships. "Do they have a hyper-drive?"

Tristan smiled. "Yes. They did not originally, but we have had 10,000 years to work on them. It took us quite some time but we were able to add cloaking as well. It should make it quite easy to leave this system though we have had some…fun trying the systems."

Lorne smiled. "UFOs. Nice."

Tristan shrugged. "Things can become tedious after 10,000 years." He made some changes on the computer and continued speaking. "And it really wasn't until the last few hundred years that the technology of your world helped us move things along. We were afraid we would not be ready." Lorne watched for a while longer. He wanted to ask why they had gone through all this trouble and how could they have been this diligent for this long…remain loyal to someone who did not exist until recently.

Tristan smiled as he sensed Lorne's questions but did not intrude on his thoughts. Humans would ask when they were willing and most had not learned how to manage to keep their thoughts to themselves-at least telepathically. "Well," Tristan said finally, "I think we are, as you all say, 'ready to hit the road'."

Lorne laughed. "You must have all sorts of collections of sayings throughout the ages."

Tristan patted Lorne on the shoulder. "Indeed, my boy, indeed. They are all basically the same with accommodations for the language of the time."

Lorne heard footsteps behind him and turned. The Pegasi bowed to each of them. "Tristan. His Majesty is awake."

"Thank you, Titus. Please continue to show Lear all of our capabilities. Come, Major Lorne. Let us see how the King fares."

Lorne shook his head. One big, scary fairytale. "You wouldn't have any brothers named Grimm here, would you?"

"No, my dear boy. No." Tristan said with a laugh.

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Sheppard was sitting up in bed and did not look very good. Tristan nevertheless was upbeat. He bowed deeply. "You look well, my lord."

Sheppard grimaced as he looked at the tall Ancient. "You're a poor liar. I feel like crap. My body hurts, like I have the flu."

"Ramus has made a healing broth. You should feel better soon."

Sheppard shivered. He didn't even want to know why he was sick. It had to be something to do with that damn stone. Gift my ass, he thought. At least he wasn't rattling his teeth with seizures or ruining more linens with gushing bloody noses; but he hated being sick. "I hope so. I get cranky when I'm sick."

Ronon snorted and Sheppard shot him a glare. He really did feel crummy and not really like eating. He closed his eyes. He wanted to be alone because he did not like feeling this way in front of people. He should have become accustomed to it by now, but he wasn't completely. He groaned as his body shivered.

"We should let the king rest," Tristan said quietly. Ronon hesitated but Sheppard nodded to him. "Ronon, you must be hungry," he said quietly. "Go and eat. I can be miserable on my own. Really." The Satedan stood and began walking out the door. He trusted Milinus enough.

"He eats a lot," a weak voiced called out after them.

Ronon sighed and looked back toward his friend. "You're going to need your strength soon Your Majesty." Sheppard smiled but said nothing more.

Milinus reached forward and wiped the slight trickle of red from Sheppard's nose.

"I'm relieved my nose isn't bleeding as much. Not like before, the first time." His voice was quiet.

"The first stone, The Eye of the Armentarii, was the first key to unlock your genetic code. It was the most difficult part of the transformation that your brain would have to endure. It also contained the vileness of the Wraith. The stone on Kildar, though corrupted by Erebus, was merely to provide further keys, so to speak, to help you utilize what was in that original code."

"Well what the hell was in it this time to make me feel so sick?"

"You have been inoculated against any virus that we encountered in the Pegasus galaxy; and the ability to heal others requires energy so your cellular structure is undergoing that change." Sheppard did not like sound of 'cellular structure change' but Carson would be fascinated.

"Oh great. No, it just couldn't be a crystal from the planet Krypton with everything I need to know. "

Milinus laughed. "I am sorry, Your Majesty. Evander did not have time to make it so simple."

Sheppard closed his eyes. "Well, he did a whole helluva lot for not having much time."

Milinus grabbed the bowl Ramus had left. "Have some of this. It will help you feel better sooner."

"How does it taste? My stomach is not too happy right now," Sheppard answered.

"Ramus is a good cook and it will help with that, too."

Sheppard sighed. He was willing to do anything to not feel as lousy as he was feeling.

Sheppard sipped the broth. It was good and he did start to feel better. "By the way. Does that surprise Tristan talked about…fly?"

Milinus smiled. "It does indeed."

Sheppard finished the broth and drifted off to sleep. He hoped to wake feeling well enough to see what new toy he had to work with.