"Greetings to all", the new arrival greeted to all those in the room.
"Who are you?" Trip, the twenty one year old engineer and aviation expert, managed to ask. Most of the rest in attendance were in shock due to the appearance of the newcomer, and how much he looked like one of the people in the room. Jet however, held the look of someone who was extremely bored.
"My name is Jorran, and I am hear to give you the answers to your questions, some of which you do not even know yet".
"Finally!" That, however, came out as a duet, as both Dr Radek Zelenka and Luka, one of the Dragons in the room, answered. Amused glances were shared between the surrounding people.
"Please do not interrupt," Jorran asked. "Some answers are just for one group, others are for both, so forgive me if your question is not answered straight away". He turned slightly so that he was standing with his back to a wall, and so that his gaze easily included both groups.
"When your group," he nodded slightly to Jet, "went through the gate, you travelled back through time. However, to make sure you could live in this time without the possible future occurrence of entropic cascade failure, you had to be transported to an Atlantis where you wouldn't exist.
Your group was transported to an alternate version of this timeline, where the expedition from Earth was never sent. If you had been transported to this time and reality directly, you all would have been crushed by the shield."
Jorran turned slightly to face Major Sheppard's side of the room. "The reason they appeared to come through the shield was because even though the shield was raised in your reality, and they walked into another reality, you have all been given the ability to see what is happening in the other dimension".
Ford leaned over to his left slightly to ask Major Sheppard if he had understood any of that. He didn't get a response.
Jorran continued, "As soon as they were all through, the two different universes began to be melded together. That's why you," he glanced at Jet's group, "are all starting to hear voices and see figures of mist. It is part of the melding process".
"Where are your pointy ears?" came the softly spoken, but no less acerbic, characteristically witty reply that many of the people in the room had come to rely upon from Rodney McKay.
Even though he had been sharply elbowed by Elizabeth, ("Oww!" had been his reply to that), after the quick glance he'd dared at the group facing him; the pain just seemed to leave.
The harsh grimaces and dark looks had lifted momentarily, and smiles and chuckles were seen and heard from the group across the way. It made them all look years younger. Another thought crossed his mind, 'They actually understood the joke?'
Jorran continued as though the interruption had never occurred.
"The ability that this group," here he gestured to Jet's side of the room, "has to meld with this reality is based on their ability to manipulate and utilise their ATA gene. The most powerful have already fully integrated with this reality".
Here, everyone from Major Sheppard's side of the room cast Jet and Shadow speculative glances, as though from looking at them they could judge how powerful they really were. Shadow blushed slightly at the sudden attention, but Jet just grinned and waved a hand, sarcastically. Most of John's group were struck by the familiarity of that action, but couldn't explain why it was familiar.
Daemon suddenly asked, "Why are we here exactly? Are we meant to change something?" All heads that had turned towards him turned back towards Jorran.
"Yes. All the information you need is in the journals, your computers, and in your own heads. Hex, make sure to install it as soon as possible".
Hex, at this point, had been close to falling asleep, but at his phrase, had jerked wide awake. Looks were directed to her from both groups and Jet mouthed "Them?" to her. She shook her head slightly, and nodded her head towards the Ancient.
And all of you, tell them who you really are. You deserve it. We failed. But you will succeed." These were Jorran's last words as he transformed back into the energy form he had arrived in.
As raised eyebrows were directed at them from the other group, Jet, Hex, and Shadow looked at each other, then at the opposing group, then back at each other.
One singular thought crossed their minds.
Show time.