Title: Ad Infinitum – Chapter 4/10
Chapter Summary: The team decides to look for a possible Ancient base in Egypt; Cam realizes something's up.
Chapter Rating: PG-13
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Chapter 4/10
Alex's POV
We were in a briefing room for the second time since our 'arrival' eight days ago. Jacob and I sat next to each other at the end of the table, opposite to General Landry's seat and Teal'c had taken a leave of absence to go witness the birth of his first grandchild. I was wearing my father's extra pair of glasses since the contacts I arrived with were quickly disposed of and were unusable and I told them that if I was to help with research, I'd need a pair of glasses. I was lucky my father's current prescription was the same as mine. I also noticed my godfather was also seated at the table next to my godmother.
The lights had been dimmed as my father started a small slideshow on the back wall of the room. "Alexandria, founded by Alexander the Great. Although the city today lies within the borders of Egypt, the city used to be part of the Greek Hellenistic empire, a Greek Center with Egyptian roots. The myths start as early as when the city was being founded. Legend says that the city's foundation was threatened by sea-monsters," an alien-esque picture of sea-monsters flashed against the wall, "but their attack was stopped by Alexander himself who, descended in a glass box and proceeded to raise monuments to keep the monsters away. It is said that the philosophers of that age realized the need to preserve all the knowledge that the human race had at the time and decided to build an archive, a library to store it all. Next to the library a colossal lighthouse was built," several pictorial representations of the lighthouse were shown, "and the beacon could be seen for miles and miles... it is also said that the beam of light projected from that lighthouse kept enemies at bay, lighting up ships hundreds of miles away."
"So what you're saying is that the lighthouse was some sort of alien device?" General Landry spoke up.
Dad turned the slideshow off and turned the lights back on. "I believe so, sir. And the Library of Alexandria is always described as holding so much knowledge that no human mind could ever read it all even if they spent a lifetime there. Some accounts even said that the library was powered by electricity, millennia be-- before Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Edison. If the library hadn't been destroyed by earthquakes and fires in the 14th century, there's no telling how far mankind would've advanced today, sir."
"But you don't think a light bulb is all we're going to find there, do you Daniel?" Uncle Jack asked sitting back in his seat.
My progenitor shook his head. "I think the Ancients or maybe even the Four built a knowledge repository in Alexandria, similar to the one in Antarctica."
"Just for the record, I am not sticking my head in anything this time." my godfather said.
"Aren't you due back in Washington in four days..." asked Aunt Sam sharing a look with her husband before she quickly added ".. sir?"
"Well, contingent on General Landry's approval of this mission," Jack said, knowing full well that Landry was going to approve this little excursion, "I think I will tag along for the ride. But don't worry, Carter, you and Mitchell will still be commanders of the mission." He teased her with a smile.
"Why would the Ancients build a second repository in Egypt when they had Antarctica outpost already?" Uncle Cam asked, even more handsome than the Cameron Mitchell I grew up with.
"We are not sure... I mean, maybe they built the one in Antarctica and it became hidden so they built the one in Alexandria... or they built one in Egypt and when it was destroyed they built the Antarctica one. Or maybe they served different purposes." Dad elaborated.
"Well, from what we know about the one in Antarctica, it is located where the Magnetic South Pole once was." Aunt Sam offered.
"Was?" Jack asked with a frown. "I mean, last I checked, the South Pole was still the South Pole, right?"
"Not always, sir." the scientist explained. "Currently the North and South Poles are migrating at an accelerating rate. At some point, according to my calculations, the Magnetic South Pole was located exactly where we found the Ancient ruins. Some experts also believe that Africa, at one point or another in the evolution of the planet, was a magnetic pole. There is sand found in the Sahara desert that offers evidence to that theory. And if that's true..."
"You think the Ancients used the Earth's magnetic field as energy to power their facilities." Dad finished his best friend's sentence and she nodded.
"It would explain how the facilities remain active even after so many years."
Jacob stood up from his seat, hands clasped together behind his back. "Permission to join this mission, sir."
My eyes widened at his boldness, he was usually not so bold directing even his mother when we were in the SGC but I also knew that he could be very direct and persuasive when he's right, which is often.
Landry looked at Uncle Jack and then back at the Jacob. "Unfortunately I cannot authorize that, son."
I decided to help Jacob somewhat, suddenly realizing that this was my chance to finally see Alexandria's Ancient repository, before it was discovered. "With all due respect, sir, Ben and I can provide an immense help on this mission. I have been helping Doctor Jackson for the past three days and if we find the Library, we might need help with Ancient technology. Ben has studied that technology for years."
"So has Doctor Carter. I can assure you she's the topmost scientist in this field." Landry defended his initial decision.
"So they work together and you have your answers in half the time. I really think it's important for us to go on this mission, sir." I continued her protest.
"She has provided me with great help, General." Dad softly added from his seat making me beam.
Aunt Sam pitched in as well, "Actually, sir, we still have no idea how to get them back home. If there's anything in that database that could help them, I don't see how it could be detrimental to the mission."
Landry sighed loudly. "Very well." He conceded. "If you will excuse me, I have a call to make to the President, I'm sure we're going to have to pull some strings to get the Egyptian government to authorize entry of military personnel into their territory, especially considering we cannot tell them the truth about this mission." He stood up and three people in the room did the same. "Jack, I trust you to set this mission up and see it through. I'll be in my office if anyone needs me," Landry said frowning, most likely at the thought of the mountain of paperwork he'd be required to file in order to make this mission happen. Being very good at diplomacy when I want to be, I could imagine what that'd take.
Uncle Jack looked around the table. "Daniel, get your things ready. Carter, prepare your toys and whatever else you think we might need to get into an Ancient base. Vala--" He turned to face my other progenitor, "I'm not sure what it is you do exactly but go do it. Mitchell, you're in charge of the kids. We're leaving as soon as we get official authorization from the Egyptian government."
Jacob and I exchanged excited looks as the room emptied around us.
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Jacob's POV
Colonel Cameron Mitchell led us towards the armory. He typed his code in the keypad and the blast doors opened slowly to allow the three of us in.
"Grab 7 packs from over there," he instructed me then turned to Alex, "and you start grabbing some sleeping bags and flashlights."
We worked together in silence, getting the necessary equipment for our little trip.
"Do you know how to use one of these?" Mitchell asked as he checked a few P-90s.
I nodded. "My Dad taught me how to use them last year; I wasn't allowed to touch them before..." I let my sentence end there; I couldn't tell him that because of Charlie my dad kept no guns in the house.
Uncle Cam turned to Alex with the same question in his expression but she shook her head. "No P-90s. Zat guns only and I had to once use a Goa' uld hand device."
"Oh yeah, the doctor did say you guys had some abnormalities on your bloodwork. Former host?" The Air Force Colonel asked with a frown and Alex shook her head.
"No, I just inherited the naquadah in my blood."
Cam smirked like he knew something we didn't and I bit my lip. I was probably just being paranoid. He continued checking the weapons. Five P-90s, 7 Zat guns, radios and enough explosives to shake up the Nile. He turned back to us.
"So, I guess we're not telling your parents the truth, right?" Cameron finally asked us as we finished stuffing the backpacks.
Alex and I stared at each other with some fear. Finally I cleared my throat. "I'm not sure what you mean, sir." I said with as much confidence as I could muster.
Cameron laughed. "Oh come on, I have no idea how no one else noticed. You," he pointed at me, "have your mother's eyes and her smarts and somehow underneath that well-behaved exterior I think you have your father's temper and attitude." His tone was far from disapproving and I knew he worshipped Jack O'Neill. "And you," he turned to Alex, "have your mother's looks AND attitude, plus you did say your father was an archaeologist. And you both seem to be able to operate Goa'uld technology yet you weren't hosts to a symbiote."
We said nothing as we tried to think of something to say that wouldn't mess things up more. Finally Alex broke the silence. "You can't say anything."
"Anything at all," I continued.
"Butterfly effect and all, right?" Uncle Cam asked.
Alex nodded. "You say something, as small as can be, and three years from now, my parents remember to use birth control and I won't be born. So you have to keep it a secret."
"Don't worry, I won't say a word." He reassured us.
Alex and I released the breath we'd been holding, just to be startled as someone cleared his throat behind our group. We turned to see General Landry standing there.
"You can put those P-90s away, colonel. We could not authorize a military excursion into Egypt, but the President got approval for a civilian archaeological expedition. That means no weapons, no uniforms." General Landry pointed to the equipment already set up. "This is a listing of equipment that cannot be brought on this mission, provided to us by the Egyptian government."
Mitchell took the offered paper and quickly read through it. "Uh, sir, Zats aren't listed here…."
"Son, for the purposes of this trip, Zats are simply archaeological artifacts… ensure that no one gets any different idea as to their purpose, will you?" Landry said with a pointed look.
"Certainly, sir."
"Good. Your team will leave at 1400 tomorrow. You will ride in a military aircraft to Greece, where a rental van will be waiting for you. From there you will take a ferry to Alexandria."
Cam nodded. "Anything else, sir?"
Landry shook his head and left.
Alex turned to look at me and the same feeling inside me was reflected in her face… It was going to be a long trip.
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Alex's POV
An airman walked me to my mother's quarters after I was done dressing for the mission. I finally settled on wearing my leather pants and a BDU undershirt which looked like a tank top as it stretched around my growing chest section. I was still developing but if everything worked according to plan, I'd soon be very similar to my mother in build. Hopefully I'd still be able to borrow some of her clothes now which was why I decided to bother her before the mission.
After two knocks, she opened the door and seemed surprised to see me. I looked down at my boots, suddenly unsure of how to proceed. My mother and I have a lot of problems, our relationship is definitely far from perfect. My father and I definitely get along a lot better.
Of course, I realized that this woman in front of me still hadn't said all the awful things my mother back home had said to me... and she hadn't heard all the worse things I'd said either. So in a way, this was a chance to spend some time with her without the past (or the future) hanging between us.
"Uh hi," I said sheepishly with a full-on Jacksonian expression.
"May I help you?" My mother asked as she broke into a small smile.
"Actually you might be able to..." I motioned towards my clothes. "This is all I have to wear and I just wanted to know if you had some clothes I could borrow for the duration of this trip. Not much, just maybe a shirt and some pants. As much as I love these leather pants, I don't think they'll last the whole trip in that desert climate." I started feeling more nervous so I continued to babble, "I would ask Colonel Carter but I think you're closer to my size than she is, and I don't know anyone else on base..."
She looked at me like I had grown a second head then she had one of those rare moments where she makes the conscious decision not to be rude and allowed me into her room. "I apologize, I don't have much. I've only been on Earth for a few months and work keeps me busy so a girl doesn't get a lot of time to shop."
I just gave a small smile in her direction. She opened some drawers in the military-issue dresser and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at the skimpy underwear and moved to the tank tops next to them, grabbing a dark green one. Next I grabbed a pair of dark blue jeans that looked like they'd never been worn and closed the drawers.
She looked at my selection. "Colonel Carter seems to be pretty comfortable wearing those jeans but I never quite got them. These Tau'ri fabrics can be quite uncomfortable, although everyone tells me I just haven't broken them in. Well, you're probably familiar with them," she said realizing I was from the future not from a different planet. "You can try those on, if they fit you, you can keep them."
"Thanks," I said, knowing they'd fit me. The current leather pants I wore had been hers at one time and I knew we wore the same size.
"Those leather pants you're wearing look very familiar, I believe I own a pair just like it."
I tried to give her a smile, "Gee, small galaxy, isn't it?"
My mother nodded then continued to stare at me and I had no idea what was going through her mind.
"So, you and Doctor Jackson seem to work together a lot wherever you came from..." She said after sometime, her eyes trying to read me.
Oh, ew. My mom was jealous of me. Just great. "Yeah, I really look up to him." I said, opening my military-issue backpack and putting the borrowed clothes in it.
"Are you two close?"
I looked away so I could roll my eyes. "Yes, you could say that."
"How close?" She said, moving one step closer to me, trying to intimidate me. Luckily, I'm impervious to her antics.
"Very close." I replied, refusing to back down or tell her the truth. Well, I couldn't and shouldn't tell her the truth, but technically I wasn't lying either. A flash of hurt crossed her face.
"I guess I'm not around in the future then, right? Must've gotten myself killed in action or I'm being held prisoner somewhere... or maybe I'm the queen at some small village," she said in an attempt to cheer herself up and I felt bad for her.
"Actually, you're still around. And don't worry, my relationship with Daniel is not what you think, I'm sorry for making you believe otherwise."
She looked at me as she tried to figure out whether I was telling the truth or not, then tilted her head. "You are far too young for him but there's just this familiarity between the two of you that..." she trailed off.
"Made you jealous?" I asked.
"Pfft... me, jealous? Please. It just made me concerned for the mission. Plus I noticed he's grown quite fond of you and I don't to want to see him hurt when you go back to whenever you came from."
"Uh-huh," I said in disbelief.
She decided to change the subject "So, if you and your friend are from the future, how do you know you're from my future? Or that I'm from your past?"
"Well, we don't know for sure... but if you aren't our past and we're not from your future, that means we'd have to be from an alternate future or you're an alternate past and that thought alone is giving me a migraine. So I'll just say that there are too many similarities between the events that took place in my past and your present and therefore, I assume we're from the same reality."
"Do you know me, in your time?" My always-curious mother inquired.
"You know, we really shouldn't be discussing the future."
She responded with a pout. "Where's the fun in that?" she whined.
A familiar male voice suddenly interrupted, "Are you ready yet?" My father asked my mother without even looking up from his book. Hellenistic Alexandria and Subsequent Periods, the title read.
"Not yet, I was helping your friend here." My mother said with a teasing tone in her voice, making my father look up and finally see me.
"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't even see you there Alex." He apologized, pushing his glasses up his nose from where they'd slid during his walk. Behind us my mother finished her packing.
I smiled. "Don't worry, I'm sure your mind is pre-occupied."
He returned the smile until my mother dropped her pack onto his shoulder, making him nearly fall on his side. "What the hell are you bringing with you? A whole ship?"
"Come on, Daniel, I don't get the chance to explore Earth very often, I need to be prepared for anything." She argued as she started walking out the door, leaving the two of us to follow.
"Seriously, what is in these bags? Mining equipment? Is that what you think we're going to find down there? And why the hell am I stuck carrying your bags?"
My mother stopped walking and turned around, moving well into my father's personal space and reaching up to pinch his chin. "Come on, come on, Daniel... is that the gentlemanly way to behave? I've been reading up on the Tau'ri culture and I read that polite men offer to carry women's bags as a courtesy."
"The keyword being offer," my father replied. "and if you already read a book on our culture, I don't see you behaving in a very lady-like manner." He argued.
"Stop your whining, Cam and Colonel O'Neill will be upset if we're late." She admonished and turned around to continue walking. "Oh and you should offer to take Alex's pack too." She offered a second later.
He looked at me and I shook my head, indicating there was no need. For a second it was just like being back home.
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