Hi guys I'm back . Sorry about the time between.
In this chapter SG1 are all reunited and are introduced to some aspects of life in The Institute (dun dun dun!)
I do feel kinda bad about forcing Daniel to be the comic relief a lot 'cause I'm not a Daniel hater and he is really smart. If anybody is a serious Daniel lover and it's bugging you let me know :D
Also I dunno if I've mentioned this before but the ideas for the institute are taken from "The Supernaturalists" by Eoin Colfer. They are NOT mine, I'm just borrowing. And all Stargate SG1 characters, places etc. still don't belong to me (I'm saving up)
Anyhoo on with the story...
Enjoy!
Chapter 6 – Welcome To The Institute.
As the sound of the lock echoed ominously, Jack called through the glass panel. "Thanks for the clothes n wash guys. We'll just... show ourselves out."
He turned around and his mouth fell open. Wow! "Big room."
'Big' didn't do the size of the room they were stood in justice. It looked to be about 400 yards long and about 70 wide. The ceiling was high and Daniel got the impression this place had once been a factory floor. There were two doors in the wall. One of which they had just come through. The real eye-opener however was what hung about 50 feet from the ground spanning half of the room.
"Jack look." Daniel pointed...and Jack looked, despite his reluctance to be impressed by anything these assholes had built the contraption above his head was ...big ...and strange. In rows and columns and layered up to the ceiling was a vast collection of pipes. Each pipe was a section about 6 feet long and all aligned the same way, connected to pipes on either side by strong wires and all forming an enormous grid network.
Ladders joined each ladder to the one in the layer above it and the top layer hung from the ceiling on thick chains.
"It's like a city." Daniel seemed thoroughly awestruck. Jack closed his mouth and turned to the gaping archaeologist with a very forced smile on his face.
"OK Daniel, any idea as to what it is?"
"Um, no not really I mean it could be anything." Daniels blatant admiring of the swell collection of tunnels couldn't fail to irritate Jack, especially since when Daniel was admiring something, he did little else useful. It had lead to the rest of SG1 being very embarrassed on several occasions when a semi drunk Daniel got to admiring somebody in a bar. It tended to make him him spill his drink, a lot. Jack forced himself to remain patient. "Well Daniel, stop gawking and give us some guesses as to what it might be.
Daniel to his credit looked slightly ashamed and shook his head to get his brain in order. "Well, it could be something industrial that we've never seen before; it could be an experiment; for all I know it could be art."
"So... they gassed us;locked us in a room; made us change and wash our hands with Carter's left over Jell-o..." He said motioning to their bundles of clothing and blue tinted hands. "...and then they gave us a free pass to the art museum, which though being here with you might drive me and Teal'c crazy, seems to utterly thrill you." Daniel glared at him. Jack had been in an unusually fowl mood since they regained consciousness and he seemed to be doomed to take the brunt of his harsh sarcasm, although he had a sneaking suspicion as to what was causing Jack to be so damn tense...
"I disagree Daniel Jackson."
"Wha--?" Did I say that out loud!
"I believe it is accommodation."
"I—oh, right yeah. Why do you say that?"
"The ladders suggest that it is used regularly and I do not believe that it could be industrial since there does not appear to be any source of power leading to it."
"No. You're probably right Teal'c. I should have thought of that."
Jack let the two men talk it out between them. Given enough time they usually came up with something useful.
"OK, so we're going with beds, yes?"
"We are O'Neill."
"Well, good at least we're getting some--" The second door behind them opened and a large group of people crowded in. There looked to be about 200 people; all adults; all wearing the same blue jumpsuits Jack, Teal'c and Daniel had been forced to change into. The crowded into the room, ushered by more armed, uniformed guards. Once the first noticed the three men stood gaping at them (except Teal'c, obviously, who merely raised an eyebrow) they slowed from their brisk shuffles to a cautious stroll; fanning out into the room until the three men of SG-1 were surrounded on all sides by curious stares. Among the faces, there were those who looked less innocent, more hostile, but most simply regarded them with neutral interest.
Noticing the unusual behavior of the residents, the wardens pushed their way through the crowd to the centre where the three men stood looking nervous, irritated and/or stoic.
"All righty, looks like we've got some new... guests." Jack gave the derisive marshal a glare which left nobody in any doubt as to what he would do with the man were it not for the fact that the marshal was armed and he wasn't. "Be sure to make 'em feel welcome. Ladders up in ten." The crowd around the men of SG1 began to disperse as people split off into small groups; waiting for the marshals to leave before breaking into low chatter.
One short, bald man made his way forward. He stopped nervously in front of them, trying, it seemed, to stand closer to Daniel and further from Teal'c.
"I am Roan." All three waited for him to continue but he simply stood gazing back at them expectantly. Teal'c nudged Daniel.
"Hi' I'm..Daniel Jackson;this is Colonel Jack O'Neill and Teal'c. Roan smiled back up at him and held out his hand to shake Daniel's.
"Welcome." Once again, silence reigned but again Roan said nothing more. This time Jack decided to try communicating.
"Hey Roan, this is a nice place and all but ...what is it?"
"It is the institute." Roan replied mimicking Jack's intonation.
"OK... What does on do in the institute?"
"If you have been sent to the institute ten you are a tester."
"Which is...?"
"Testers are--" A loud siren drowned out the rest of Roan's sentence and at the same time, ladders descended from the ceiling with loud metallic grindings; level with each row of pipes. The small man's eyes went wide and suddenly he found his tongue. " Quickly! The alarm means that in two minutes, the ladders will retract and anybody left on the floor will be stuck.
The crowds rushed to reach the ladders piling up them, pushing the people ahead with such urgency Daniel thought it was incredible that none of them fell. They peeled off at different levels, climbing expertly along the network of pipes and disappearing inside. Jack watched the performance, ignoring Roan's hand tugging on his jumpsuit sleeve. Now most of the pipes were full and faces could be seen peering down on them in cold interest as if watching a football game.
"What's so bad about being stuck on the floor?" He turned back to Roan who was now yanking desperately on his sleeve in a way that reminded Jack of Charlie in a split second of weakness. Roan pointed frantically behind him to the high walls. Jack Daniel and Teal'c looked and saw electric blue sparks spreading down the walls from the top one row of tiles at a time, covering the distance quickly and rushing towards the floor. Teal'c now hoisted Daniel by the collar, lifting him bodily and flinging him onto the nearest ladder.
"O'Neill! The floor of this room will be electric within moments!" Jack heard him and understood easily what Teal'c was shouting at him but movement had caught his eyes. The door at the top of the hall opened again and Jack's stomach lurched, seeing his Major, now in the all too familiar blue uniform, pushed roughly through the door where she slumped, dazed to the floor.
"Carter!" Jack sprinted to her, watching the blue sparks rushing down the wall towards her.
The sound of her CO's voice caused an immediate response within Sam. Since she had first joined his team;desperate to prove herself to her new commander; she has instantly obeyed any command he gave her. Since then, she had earned his respect and she had grown to trust him more and more. Going to the end of the earth if her asked her to, came as naturally to her as breathing and one of her biggest hidden fears was ever letting him down.
Now he was shouting for her attention and despite the exhaustion in her body he was damn well going to get it. Quickly looking up, she saw him at a dead sprint. His eyes were fixed on a point above her head, alarm written clearly on his face. Looking behind her Sam saw blue sparks rushing towards her and followed survival instinct, scrambling to her feet and running as fast as she could away from them. Sprinting down the hall, she heard the crackle of electricity as the blue sparks spread over the floor, nipping at her heels.
Jack met her part way, grabbing her hand and hauling her with him towards the ladders. Teal'c lay wedged across the bottom rung of two ladders as they began their retreat back into the ceiling. He reached his arms downward towards Sam as Jack hoisted her off the ground. She gripped her friends hands and pulled herself up the ladder desperate to free Teal'c's arms so he could help Jack.
Reaching the first level of pipes, she joined Daniel and Roan, watching as Jack swung precariously in Teal'c's grip, the jolting of the rising ladders made it difficult for him to hold on. The group sat for a moment on one of the pipes getting their breath back. Roan eventually lead them to four empty pipes in the far corner of the hall where they were able to lay down, before leaving to find his own. There was a thin foam mattress across the bottom of each "bunk" and Teal'c and Jack's feet hung out of the end of their pipes.
Daniel worried about where to put his glasses and eventually reached up to lay them on top of his pipe. Teal'c simply lay flat on his back with his hands clasped across his chest and his legs sticking significantly out of the end. Jack rolled backwards and forwards a bit trying and failing to get comfortable, the end of the pipe digging into his calves. Once all were as settled as they could be Jack whispered loud enough for Sam to hear him in the pipe opposite "Psst! Carter, what happened to you before you showed up?" Receiving
no reply he rolled over so he could see into her pipe, where she lay with her head on her arms. "Carter?" He stretched across to her pipe, gently tapping her on the head. The three men had to stifle their laughter as she muttered something and rolled onto her back, completely zonked out.
AN I quite like this chapter, tell me what you think.
Bad news I'm afraid I'm going away for a month to a place a LONG way from a computer (and any other home comforts : ( ) so I wont be able to update for at least a month but I'm home quite a lot after that with little to do AND... I may well come back with one or two chapters already written which just need typing up. To sum up: no updates for at least a month, then possibly updating quite quickly, but no promises.
Give me some feedback please – cause it makes me feel loved
AN2 YAY! All my exams are finished. I'm totally a college kid now! Congratulations to anyone else who has just finished exam season!