Rising from the Ashes of Ascension
Chapter 22
Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. If I did, I wouldn't be working in the public schools system. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for awhile, but they might end up a bit scuffed.
Warnings: Potty language, violence, and occasional sexual references
Danil, unable to stop himself, screamed in pain and terror as the snake entered his body. The agony was worse than anything he had ever experienced in his long life. It was worse than any form of torture he had experienced personally or had done to someone. He couldn't believe that Shar'ae, Skar'ra, and countless others had been forced to endure such agony. His mind and body felt like they were on fire, as if every nerve was being jolted.
The parasite wormed its way into his neck and began to wrap itself around the base of his spine to begin the process of taking over the host. It attached itself to the cord and the brain stem, slithering into place; its next goal was to take over the brain.
The unwilling host, Danil, was helpless, unable to do anything about this invasion of his body. Trussed up as he was, he could barely squirm in protest of this violation of his body and free will. He could only scream in pain as the Goa'uld burrowed into his neck and proceeded to wrap itself around his spinal cord.
Kali, looking on in fascination and glee as her beloved Shiva began the process of taking over a new host. Her red eyes danced with the prospect of having Shiva by her side and having access to the knowledge of the Ancients, thus beginning her domination and eventual destruction of the other System Lords.
"Cut him down," she ordered her Jaffa, not wanting her beloved to experience the sensation of being trapped. She wanted him free when he fully took control of the host.
Danil was released from his manacles and fell to the floor of the cell, landing on all fours, screaming in protest and pain.
As Kali looked on, something unexpected began to happen.
Danil's Quickening recognized the parasite as a foreign body and attacked. The blue-white energy that filled him, that made him Immortal, lashed out at the snake. The lightning struck the Goa'uld causing the parasite to abruptly release its hold on Danil's spinal cord as it seized and writhed as the energy attacked it.
Shiva, unable to help it, screamed and looked for the quickest way out of the host, desperate to escape the lightening that was attacking him. He had never encountered anything like this before with any of his previous hosts. Something was horribly wrong and he had to get out now!
The Goa'uld, getting struck by the painful, burning energy, burrowed its way out through the soft tissue in the back of Danil's mouth, desperate to get away from what he knew to be sure death.
Danil gagged and coughed as the Goa'uld wormed its way out of his body. Its swimmerets tore tissue; his tonsils, epiglottis, and tongue taking the brunt of the damage. He heaved violently as a dark grayish-green snake like creature, complete with four red eyes was spat out of his mouth and hit the floor with combination of a thump and a squish.
Shiva's body, though intact, was covered in electrical burns, charring the flesh, muscle, and vital organs. Death was inevitable, but how it would be delivered was not up to Fate.
Danil, ignoring Kali screaming at the top of her lungs for her beloved Shiva, snarled something incomprehensible in a language that had long ago been forgotten by just about everyone but him. He was pissed, more pissed than he had been when his student had betrayed him, more than his walk on the dark side in the Black Hills, more than any moment of his periods of insanity. His body had been violated in such a horrible way, by a parasitic monster. Only his Immortality had kept the creature from turning him into a mindless host.
While he knew that the monster would die, with or without his intervention, Danil wanted a sense of personal satisfaction at seeing Shiva dead by his own hands; he wanted to see the horror on Kali's face. From his position on his hands and knees, Danil reached out to grab the squirming creature that was flopping on the stone floor near its head. With his other hand, he grabbed the Goa'uld further on down its body and pulled with all of his might, literally ripping Shiva to pieces. With this action, by wrecking the body of the Goa'uld to the point where not even a sarcophagus could repair the damage, no one would ever be forced into being a host against their will; at least with Shiva in this case.
"No!" Kali screamed.
"Yes!" Danil snarled looking at the false-goddess from his position on the floor. "Your boy toy is dead," he taunted her, panting slightly. He's been through a lot: captured, chained up like an animal, snaked, his Quickening had just booted Shiva, and had just killed the snake in question with his bare hands. He was allowed to be a bit tired.
With a snarl, she grabbed a staff weapon from one of the Jaffa and fired it point-blank at the human, killing him instantly.
Smoke curled up from Danil's crumpled form. Burnt flesh was seen through his shredded t-shirt. His neck, no longer bleeding since he was technically dead, was damaged from where the Goa'uld entered his body. Blood was splattered across his face. Overall, he looked gory and very much dead.
With that, after she had gently picked up the remains of Shiva, Kali whirled out of the chamber, disappearing into the temple to contemplate how else she could gain some sort of satisfaction out of the death of Doctor Daniel Jackson.
Luckily, she failed to see the traces of blue-white lightening begin to heal the broken archeologist's body.
A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what you think.
It's short, I know. I could only drag out snaking and killing Daniel for so long. Next chapter will deal with an angry Danil, a drooling Methos, and a certain false goddess. I hope to have it out next week before I go on vacation. Reviews always help to motivate me and they also feed the plot bunnies. FEED THE PLOT BUNNIES!
I want to give a special thank you and promise of non-chocolate cookies to Lorilei. Thank you for the help with the ending and all of your helpful suggestions. I couldn't do it without you.