Found - part 19
Guys, I am so so sorry for the long wait. I know it's been over a month since my last update. I've been swamped with essays and illness and the horrors of house-hunting. I hope this chapter can make up for the wait. Thank you for your patience, and please please review!
"Knock knock." Daniel poked his head round the door of Tally's quarters.
"Hey." She greeted him tiredly. "How was the debriefing?"
He came in and shut the door behind him, wincing at the question. "Let's just say I'm glad we have a leader as sympathetic as Dr Weir to argue against what Kinsey would like to do with me."
Tally grimaced in sympathy. "Did you tell them what Dad told you to? That they escaped off of the ship without telling you?"
Daniel gave a half shrug. "Sort of. I said I suspected they would but chose to turn a blind eye to it because I happened to agree with them."
"Ooh, Dad's not gonna be happy with you."
"Neither was the government. However, at present I'm more valuable to them in my job, so they're basically just giving me a slap on the wrist." He told her. He glanced at the cover of the book she was reading.
"Quantum Theory? I thought you were studying contemporary Earth culture?"
"I've been doing that all day. This –" she held up the book, "- is for fun."
Daniel smirked at her. "Your mom would be so proud." He teased, and she gave him a playful shove.
"Actually, some of this stuff is already familiar to me. Mom's been teaching me physics all my life, and she covered a lot of the popular theories. What I'm most worried about at this stage is getting too comfortable with these theories only to discover that the SGC has since blown them out of the water, and just can't tell anyone about it."
He patted her on the shoulder. "I suspect you'll catch on. I can ask one of the scientists to help you if you like."
Immediately Tally's eyes lit up. "Really? Do you think they would mind?"
"I'm sure they'd be happy to take you under their wing. You know, Dr Lee's actually looking for a lab assistant."
"That would be amazing!" She gushed.
"I'll have a word with him." Daniel promised. "How are you settling in?"
Tally shrugged. "Okay, I guess. It's a little weird, everyone keeps staring at me like I've got two heads."
He smiled. "They'll get used to you, just give it a little time."
"Yeah." Daniel looked at her, worried at the despondent tone that had just crept into her voice.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Tally forced a smile. "Yeah, it's just … I'm worried about the others. My entire family is out there somewhere, as well as the boy I love, and I have no way of knowing whether or not they're okay. It's driving me mad. I keep thinking I should be with them."
"That's perfectly natural. To be honest, I'd be worried if you weren't concerned about them. Just remember that your mom and dad used to do this kind of thing for a living, Teal'c still does do this all the time, and Jase is a very capable young man."
She nodded. "I know." She looked carefully at Daniel, noticing for the first time how exhausted he looked. "Hey, is everything okay? You look like you've got the weight of the world on your shoulders."
Daniel gave her a tired smile. "That's exactly what it feels like at times. The Ori have been upping the anti on their crusade while we were gone."
"How bad is it?"
"It's bad. The priors have started talking about a 'day of reckoning', and we think it's going to be soon. What we don't know is what form it will take; at the moment most people think it'll be a final attack with an armada of ships."
Tally looked alarmed. "Is there any way to fight back?"
"That's what we're working on. Our ships are nowhere near powerful enough to take on even one of those things and win, so we're hoping to find something else to fight them with."
"Got any ideas?"
Daniel looked strained. "Nothing concrete. We've been looking for a device which an Ancient called Myrdin, or Merlin, created – the San Graal, which was known on Earth in King Arthur's time as the Holy Grail. It's supposed to be capable of destroying ascended beings."
Tally's eyes widened. "Like the Ori. So I'm guessing you don't know where it is?"
"We've had a few leads but so far they've been fruitless."
She nodded. "You know, if there's anything I can do to help …"
"Thanks, but you need to stay here and study." He patted her books with a smile.
"I'm gonna go nuts here after a while. I'm just saying, if you need another pair of boots on the ground, helping with the search."
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Daniel asked, looking pointedly at her stomach.
She sighed. "Yeah. I guess. It's just … I don't like doing nothing when people I care about are fighting a war."
"You inherited that from your parents." He said, a little fondly. "Don't worry, we've been fighting the galaxy's bad guys for a while, and we're getting good at it."
"You shouldn't have to do it long enough to get good at it." Tally said a little petulantly. "Why can't the Ori just stick to their own galaxy and be happy with it?"
"Cos they're the bad guys." Daniel answered. Tally smiled reluctantly.
"Yeah."
Daniel stood up. "Come on, let's go get some dinner."
Tally nodded and moved her books from the bed to the table, before following the ageing archaeologist out.
Jack, Sam, Teal'c and Jase stepped through the wormhole into a downpour of rain, all four automatically stooping against the sudden barrage of water. They were instantly soaked, not having come prepared for rain, and their clothes stuck to their skin, their hair clinging to their heads in wet tendrils. Jack pulled his cloak tighter around himself and yelled over the noise of the storm.
"Quickly, follow me!"
He set off at a jog down a trail through the grass, not stopping till they'd reached the tree-line and shelter. He could see the trail continued through about 20 yards of woodland before re-emerging in the rain.
"Anyone pack an umbrella?" He quipped when they were all out of the storm.
"I think we're going to have to rely on the kindness of strangers." Sam said. "That path looks well-used – I'm guessing these people use the Stargate quite a bit, probably for trade, and they'll be used to visitors."
"We should not remain here long. The wind is extremely cold – it would not be wise to catch a chill." Teal'c said. Jack raised his eyebrows at him.
"You sound like my grandmother. Alright, let's keep going folks." He headed onwards, again breaking into a jog when they'd cleared the trees.
Breaking into a sprint and easily pulling ahead of the group, Jase banged on the door of the first house they came to. As the others caught up, the door opened. In the doorway stood a middle-aged woman.
"Yes?" She said expectantly.
"Please, we need shelter from the rain. We're visitors, we came through the Stargate." Jase said breathlessly.
As the three others came to a stop behind Jase, the woman took in their soaking appearance with a mouth twisted in annoyance. "Very well, but watch where you go. I don't want water all over my furniture." She acquiesced, opening the door wider for them.
"Thank you." They all entered the house, gratefully accepting the wooden stools the woman provided.
"Sit on these, you can wait here till the storm passes, but then I want you out. My boys will be back soon and I don't need you underfoot while I'm giving them their supper."
"We'll go as soon as the rain eases up." Sam promised her. Jack prodded her in the ribs, and raised his eyebrows at her, silently communicating something.
"Excuse me, Mrs …?"
"My name is Malla." The woman filled in, busying around them with towels.
"Malla, my name's Sam, and this is Jack, Teal'c and Jase. We're actually here looking for someone – mine and Jack's son, Luke."
"I don't know any Luke." Malla told her.
"Maybe not by name." Jase interjected. "He's a little younger than I am, light colored hair, arrived here about eight months ago with a jaffa named Makrum."
Malla gaze fixed on Jase, her eyes narrowing slightly in recognition. "I think I know … yes, I know who you mean. The jaffa and the boy. The jaffa left immediately, but the boy stayed a few months."
"Stayed a few months? You mean he left?" Jack checked.
"Oh yes, left with a trader. Got bored of life on a backwater little planet like ours." The woman answered scathingly. "Ungrateful little runt, after we took him in, fed him, all for nothing …"
Jack exchanged an exasperated look with Sam. "Please, do you have any information that could help us find him?"
Malla stopped tidying and looked him in the eye. "I've told you all I know. When the rain stops, ask Durka instead. The boy was living with him, so he might have something more for you." She eyed the puddles they were making on her floor, and pulled out a mop.
"Here, make yourselves useful."
"I can't believe we've lost the trail again." Sam said, sitting next to Jack with her head on his sodden shoulder. "He felt so close this time."
"We haven't lost the trail. We know he left with a trader, and this Gurkha fella will probably know which one." Jack countered.
"His name was Durka." Jase supplied helpfully, earning himself a scowl from Jack.
"I knew that." The truth was, these days his mispronunciation of names was more due to forgetfulness than wit, and he didn't like to be reminded of it.
"The rain is lessening." Teal'c said, rising from his stool. "We should depart."
The others rose, Jack with determination and Sam a little wearily. Jack rubbed her back.
"Don't worry, we'll find him." He told her quietly.
Outside, the mud had turned to a goopy swamp, and the cold air was biting their skin through their still sodden clothes. Malla had given directions to Durka's home, and they were anxious to get there and out of the wind again.
This time, when they knocked on a door, the answer was from a man of about 50. He looked them up and down in surprise. "Can I help you?"
"Durka?" Teal'c inquired.
"Yes … I'm sorry, do I know you people?"
"No, but we think you knew our son." Jack told him. "Luke O'Neill."
Durka smiled. "Yes, I knew Luke. He stayed here for awhile." Suddenly, the penny dropped. "Wait, you say he's your son? But he told me you were in another galaxy, stranded on a primitive world. How can you be here?"
"We were rescued." Sam answered. "Do you know where we can find Luke?"
Durka frowned. "You'd best come in."
In contrast to Malla, Durka had them sit in large armchairs in front of the fireplace, and brought blankets for them to warm up in.
"Luke was left here after the jaffa he was travelling with abandoned him." Durka told them. "He was going door to door, asking if anyone knew of the Tau'ri, or a way to get to Earth. When he knocked on my door, the poor lad was exhausted and close to despair. I told him to stay with me and we'd ask the traders who pass through if they could help him. Turns out the Tau'ri are quite secretive about their gate address – lots had heard of them, none knew the address. But Luke said that wouldn't have helped much anyway, as their gate is protected by an iris."
"We know, we're from Earth originally ourselves." Sam said.
"Ah, of course, of course, I knew that." Durka said. "You must forgive me, the old memory is not what it once was."
Jack winced in sympathy.
"None of the traders were willing and able to help Luke – to be honest I rather thought that some who might have been able were being scared off by his persistence. He was a little …"
"He doesn't take no for an answer." Jack filled in. "He gets that from me." It wasn't a threat, but it made Durka shift uncomfortably.
"I'm sorry, I don't know how much help I'm going to be. Luke left a long time ago. And with these trader types, you never know where they're going to end up. Often, they don't have homes as such, and they roam from planet to planet by ship."
"Do you have a name? Or any idea where the one Luke left with was going?" Sam asked, sounding almost desperate.
Durka smiled sadly at her. "Luke left with this particular trader, because she claimed to know people who knew the Tau'ri gate address. Personally, I got the impression she was more interested in the leverage Luke could provide if she managed to contact the Tau'ri with him. It's well known the Tau'ri are very particular with who they trade with, and what they trade. A borderline crook like her wouldn't get a look in without having something they wanted badly."
"Do you know where they went?" Jack asked again, feeling impatient.
"I don't know where they went first, or where they are now, but they will certainly have passed through Basaan Rhyn. It's a planet made up almost entirely of traders, and is the largest market I know of in the galaxy. If you go there, it is likely someone will have seen them, and can suggest where they may be now. I'm assuming of course, that they have not reached Earth?"
The four silently conferred. "We would have heard from Daniel Jackson if that were the case." Teal'c said heavily.
"This is the address for Basaan." Durka said, writing the symbols out on a piece of paper. The group stood up, preparing to leave.
"Durka, one more thing, the name of the trader?" Jack asked.
Durka looked at the group intently.
"Her name is Vala Mal Doran."
I know I'm messing with the timeline mercilessly. Just to clear things up, in my timeline, Vala never joined SG1. The Ori are still a real threat, but they've taken a LOT longer in their campaign, which is why the 'Day of Reckoning' and the stuff with the San Graal is only coming up now, fifteen-ish years later. Don't worry about that part too much, I'm not planning on using the Ori for much more than reasons why the SGC drag their feet in helping Sam, Jack and Luke. Anyhoo, thank you for reading, and again I am so sorry for keeping you waiting so long. Hope you enjoyed it!
Beka :-)