Origin

Briar Elwood

Chapter XXII

Power, Death & Knowledge

Only a couple days later, Orionus pulled the necklace out again to look at.

"Vala Mal Doran…" he whispered, letting the name that was becoming more and more familiar flow from his lips. There was a love in this emerald, he could tell. A strong, passionate love…

Orionus closed his eyes, clutching the jewel in his fist. Picturing the emerald in his mind, Orionus imagined the green aura seeping out of the jewel and into the furnace of his own power. Opening his eyes, he saw the emerald had lost its stunning color and looked like simple glass with a crack down the middle. He turned to the mirror and was slightly startled to see his eyes were no longer a clear blue…They were now gemed, hard and sparkly, and had stolen the beautiful green color of the emerald. He let the shock pass and reached around his neck to clasp on the necklace.

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"I'm glad Vala isn't here," Sam whispered to Jack as the large group stood stock-still, deep past the stone entrance.

Before them, incased in ice, was a weathered ancient Daniel…or, they supposed, Orionus. His hair was white and long, accompanied by a tangled white bushel of hair on his face. His skin was worn and incredibly wrinkled…but despite the age, his features were obviously Daniel's.

"So…is he dead?" Q asked. "Cuz, if he's incased in ice…"

"You tell me," Cam said, hand brushing the wall beside the ice. "Same language from before is over here."

Q scurried to his side, shining her flashlight on the script. "Starts off the same: 'Here lies Orionus Desalo, Founder of Origin' but then it's different. Shorter."

"How long will it take?" John asked. Q shook her head.

"Not half as long as last time."

A Little Later…

"Jack!" Sam called from where she and Rodney were bent over their computers. Jack, Cam and John glanced over and walked to them. Sam turned the computer screen to face them.

"We think—"

"We're practically positive," Rodney corrected, his voice still gruff from the harsh news John had given him.

"That the power's coming from Orionus himself," Sam finished.

"Like, the power of the Ori?" Jack asked. Sam shrugged.

"I guess."

"Can we use it?" Cam questioned. Rodney scoffed.

"No. I'm impressed it's even there still, especially if he's dead. His power must've been incredibly strong if it's still there."

"So we can't channel it out of his body?" John pushed. Sam shook her head.

"We don't even know if he is dead or not," she pointed out.

"Okay, if you though the monument was weird, listen to this," Q called. Everyone perked up to listen. "'I remember. I'm sorry. I love you.'"

It was silent for a moment before a single syllable cracked through.

"What?!" Cam demanded.

"I told you it was weird," Q defended.

"Was that Daniel?" Jack asked. Q shrugged.

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Can't you check for vital signs?' Teyla asked Sam and Rodney. Sam looked mildly surprised that she hadn't thought of that before.

"Yeah, kinda. Here…" She pressed a few buttons on the keyboard, eyes scanning the screen quickly. She picked up the laptop and walked up to the ice wall. Slowly, she shook her head.

"Nothing. He's dead."

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Orionus sighed, staring at the large stone before him. He had come back alone, secretly, for he knew past friends from the future would find this place. He glanced down at the chisel in his hand, stepped closer and began to write.

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Vala had decided she was eternally in debt to Carolyn. The doctor had offered to watch Rose for a few days and probably would've taken Vala's son as well if he wasn't still nursing. Now he was currently napping (again) and Vala was on the couch, reading the Book of Origin she had brought home with her.

"Where is he, Mother?" an irritated voice demanded. Vala's head jerked up to see Adria standing in her living room. She stood suddenly, the book falling from her lap to the floor with a clatter.

"Adria! What are you doing here?"

"Where is Daniel, Mother?" Adria asked, eyes squinting angrily. "Did he die?"

Vala stared into her daughter's eyes calmly. "No. He's still alive."

"Then where is he? I cannot find him!"

Vala continued staring, ignoring Adria's enraged confusion. "Did you know he was Orionus?" she asked finally. Adria blinked, taken off guard.

"Orionus Desalo? Founder of Origin?"

Vala nodded. "His picture' in the Book of Origin for that very purpose."

"But it was not there before…" Adria argued. Vala rolled her eyes, exasperated.

"Do you even read the book, Adria? There's an entire story of how Orionus gave up his friends and family, that'd include me, and there's a quote by him that accompanies his picture…heck, Orionus is even the reason Ettan's not allowed to dream! Remember that?"

"I have no reason to read the Book of Origin, Mother. The Ori have filled my head with knowledge so vast—"

"But obviously they haven't given you everything," Vala interrupted. "Because Daniel is Orionus. I was there." She paused. Can you imagine that? You've been trying to kill your founder."

Adria stared at her mother silently for a moment.

"So…that's where he is. In the past."

Vala rolled her eyes. "You aren't still going to try to kill him, are you?"

Adria took a second to reply. "It is not like you would care much, would you, Mother? He hurt you. It's funny, though. I always thought he'd be harder to turn to the truth than you."

Vala didn't answer, for she would've had to push pass the large lump in her throat. So she watched wordlessly as Adria shook her head, an amused smile on her lips, and disappeared. Once her daughter was gone, Vala sank back to the couch, grabbing the Book of Origin. She found her place and began reading again, trying to ignore the large teardrops messing with her vision.

A/N: (sniffle) Poor Vala. Good heavens.

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