Colonial Raptor; approaching orbit of planet designated P3H-652, 1230 hours.
As the Raptor lifted off from the grass clearing, Racetrack just looked out of the cockpit window at the Earth delegation who were looking at them take off. She then fired her Raptor's thrusters and sped up into the sky. A shocked Major Adama was seated next to Racetrack while Skulls was in his ECO seat at the back along with the Vice-President, and the four Marines who were equally shocked after what they had learned this day. The entire spacecraft was silent, as were the people in the other two Raptors that followed Racetrack's Raptor.
'The Gate to the Stars' thought Racetrack to herself as she glanced at Major Adama who leaned back against his seat as he looked outside to his left; he was just looking at the darkening sky as the ship rose higher and higher, 'Earth is the home of humanity, there are aliens such as parasites that control human bodies… set themselves off as gods so that they could enslave people…. So that they could use humans as hosts and as soldiers.'
Racetrack was taken out of her daydream when Skulls broke the silence and called the female officer from the rear of the Raptor.
"What?" asked Racetrack as she glanced over her shoulder. She only managed to notice Major Adama looking behind his shoulder as well, before looking at Racetrack; and then out the window again.
"FTL's spooled up, we're ready to jump."
"Raptor One to all Raptors" said Racetrack as spoke into her microphone, "jump to preset coordinates in three, two, one… jump!"
Racetrack pressed a red button on the center console before she felt herself being pressed inwards, and then stretched out just for an instant before they arrived at the first jump point.
"Raptor One to Raptor Two and Three" said Racetrack as she looked out the windows at the two ships that were on either side of them, "jump successful, next jump in fifteen minutes."
Racetrack then looked over her shoulder again and told Skulls to spool up the FTL drive. While he was doing just that, Racetrack let go of the controls and leaned back on her seat. She thought back to the Colonial reaction when they were told that the Alterra, who eventually called themselves the Ancients, returned to Earth after having lost a war in another galaxy. Once they return to the place that was their original home, some integrated with the natives while others had left the planet and settled on numerous other worlds. She recalled the outrage half of the Quorum delegation was in, while the Vice-President looked in shock at what Woolsey had said. She recalled that the other three Quorum members remained silent, and thoughtful, about what was being said.
"What you're saying" Racetrack recalled Zarek saying as he stood in outrage, "is that these aliens… these Ancients bred with human beings?"
"Yes" said Woolsey, "they carried a specific gene which was eventually passed down to some modern humans."
"I carry the gene" said General O'Neill while the others looked on shocked while Dr. Burke translated what he was saying.
"What?" said Zarek disgusted as he lay his hands on the table, "if the Colonies were at their former glory, we'd come to Earth and show you…."
"Sir" said Woolsey, "I'm sorry to say this but the Colonies are gone…. Whether you believe us or not, this is the truth of the situation right now. We're offering aid for your people to settle on this lush world, we're not looking for you to be a Colony of Earth."
"If we had the Colonies at full strength" said Zarek, "you would be our Colony, as is our right."
"Easy there" said the General as he looked at Zarek, "let me tell you this, even if you had the Colonies behind you… Earth will never be a Colony of yours. Trust me on that."
"Gentlemen" said Woolsey as he frowned at the General before glancing at Zarek while Major Adama stood up and told him to take his seat, "please. We're telling you the truth so that there will not be any misunderstandings."
Back on the Raptor, Racetrack sighed as she recalled Woolsey telling them that humans from a region they called the Mediterranean, on Earth, were kidnapped by the Goa'uld more than five thousand years ago and taken to a planet as an experiment. Woolsey and the General told them about the details, although she noticed that the Earth delegation never told the Colonials the names of the Goa'uld.
'They had names of their gods on Earth' thought Racetrack to herself as she looked out at the stars, 'maybe Zeus and the other gods came to our aid on Kobol. They freed us from the Goa'uld and lived among us, helping us, protecting us.'
Racetrack knew that the other Colonials were stunned about what they had heard, and she didn't want to speak out of turn while they were still at the meeting. She recalled Dr. Khan saying that while it was true that the early Kobolian's were taken from Earth by the Goa'uld; those particular humans who would form the Colonies evolved on Kobol. Their culture, religion, language, among other things all evolved on Kobol. It was that final part that made some of the Quorum members nod their heads, while the other three just couldn't believe what was being said; they couldn't believe what they were hearing.
Once the meeting had broken up; three of the Quorum members who were not openly hostile with the Earth delegation met with Dr. Khan and one of the other translators. Racetrack was witness to this as they gathered at one corner and talked about what Earth could do to help the Colonial's settle, she then turned around and saw Major Adama talking with the Vice-President in another corner; and it was the same with the remaining Quorum members, particularly Zarek who she noticed was getting increasingly animated while talking with the other two. Looking back at Skulls, she could only frown at the situation they found themselves in.
Back in the Raptor, Racetrack leaned forward and ran diagnostics on her equipment when she thought about what Willow, and Dr. Burke had told her sometime after everyone had broken up for the meeting. Racetrack recalled someone tapping on her shoulder; turning around, she saw that it was the red haired woman that Major Adama said could have been a Cylon.. the one who had been introduced as Major Willow Rosenberg.
"Hi" said Willow as she nodded at Racetrack and Skulls while Dr. Burke translated, "do you mind if we talk to you in private?"
"Ummm" said Racetrack as she looked at Skulls who shrugged his shoulders; she then turned towards Major Adama who was standing with his back to her while talking to the Vice-President.
"We're not going to harm you" said Dr. Burke after Racetrack turned back around towards her, "we'll talk just outside the tent where no one can hear us, but they'll notice if we try anything funny. Your friend here can keep an eye out for you, but what we have to discuss is personal."
Racetrack leaned back onto her seat after she finished diagnostics on the Raptor controls and sighed as she thought about what Dr. Burke and Willow revealed to her an hour ago; that she had the Ancient gene. Willow and Dr. Burke told her that they wanted to tell her this in private because they had seen that the other Colonials could be uneasy about someone having the Ancient gene. Willow assured the worried Racetrack, who looked back at Skulls and smiled, that she didn't have anything to worry about… that the gene doesn't do anything for most people. She also told Racetrack, while Dr. Burke translated, that she had the gene as well but it didn't mean anything.
'It's just there' thought Racetrack to herself, 'that's what she told me; 'it's just there, it doesn't do anything special.'
Looking back at Major Adama, Racetrack shook her head before confirming with Skull on the status of the FTL drive. She didn't know what it meant to have the Ancient gene, but what she knew was that she wasn't going to reveal it to anyone. At least not yet, at least not until the fleet agrees to settle the planet they just left; then she would talk to Commander Adama.
"Drives are spooled up" said Skulls as he broke Racetrack's train of thought.
"Copy" said Racetrack as she reached for the button that activated the jump drive, "Raptors Two and Three…. Jump!"
Briefing Room, SGC, 1300 hours.
General Landry sat behind his desk while waiting for the members of SG-11 to debrief him. It was just before Willow left for Atlantis that she gave the General coordinates for the planet to which she had sent the organic drones of the Furlings. The General then gave the coordinates to Walter and asked him to coordinate with the science teams so that they could extrapolate a gate address for the planet, at least if it really did have a Stargate. Thankfully, the planet did have a Stargate that was located in what seemed to be a large cavern. SG-11 was sent to the planet two hours earlier and then, an hour into their mission, Colonel Martin Edwards contacted Stargate Command and requested his team come back early. The General was there in the control room when the Colonel called in and heard the slight waver in his voice. After ordering the Colonel to return, General Landry ordered Walter to lower the shield and the iris. They looked on as SG-11 returned to the Gateroom with looks of shock on their faces; the same looks of shock that meant that they saw something horrible on that planet. However, when the General walked down to the Gateroom and asked the Colonel what was going on; he told General Landry that everything would be in his preliminary report. Nodding his head, the General told Colonel Edwards to get his post mission check-up done and then report to the briefing room in an hour.
It was an hour later that Walter ran up the stairs from the control room and knocked on the General's office door. Stepping into the General's office, the bald technician told the General he had some updates on the Earth ships in Area 51.
"Good" said the General as Walter stood across his desk after handing him three pieces of paper, "the Odyssey will be ready for her weapons tests in five days, the Excalibur will be ready in a week, and the Avalon will be ready two weeks later."
"Yes, sir" said Walter nodding his head, "Colonel Emerson reported that all of his systems are already green and he's willing to launch today for the weapons test. The ZPM recovered from the planet that Major Rosenberg told us about has been attached to the ship's systems as well, sir."
"Good" said General Landry as he put down the pieces of paper and looked up at Walter, "General O'Neill wants another test of the primary systems before going into the weapons test, so the Colonel will be stuck planet side for a few more days."
"Yes, sir" replied Walter.
"I think the talks with the Colonials should be over by now" said the General as he looked at his wristwatch, "contact Major Rosenberg, tell her that we've received a message from Colonel Carter via Midway Station. They haven't found any information of another way to gain the Sangraal, but they have discovered what could be the prototype weapon she made… the one that creates explosive tumours. It matches the descriptions in her report, and it's being brought back so that it could be placed at the Omega Site."
"Sir?" said Walter, "didn't Major Rosenberg say that all of those devices were destroyed?"
"She did" said the General, "and that's the first question I'll be asking her when she gets back. Oh, and tell her that Colonel Carter needs her to get started on Merlin's phase device…. Without the Sangraal, that could be key to defending this planet."
"Yes, sir" said Walter as he turned and walked towards the door. The General leaned back on his char when he noticed that Walter stopped, and then turned around again and walked towards the General's desk, "sir, about what Shallen told us? About the strange Prior? Do you think they are changing the way they convert people?"
"Probably" said the General and he lay his arms on the table, "they probably figured out that they would be able to get more people into Origin by whitewashing the death and destruction aspects."
"I hate to say this, sir" said Walter as he grimaced slightly, "but do you think that Dr. Jackson gave them intel? Could that be why they've changed their approach. I mean, I know he wouldn't give up any information willingly but if Merlin's really in his mind and…"
"I've thought about that as well, Walter" sighed the General as he leaned back on his seat, "but I have to prepare for any eventuality, even one of the SGC's best turned against us; which is why once we have Colonel Mitchell and the others back on Earth, I'll be assigning SG-1 to investigate this. This is the first time we've heard of such a Prior so I'm willing to bet anything that SG-1 would want to have first crack at him."
"He may lead us to Dr. Jackson, sir" said Walter as he nodded his head.
"Yes" replied the General as he looked at Walter, "in the meantime, let's do our jobs. Send the message to Major Rosenberg; recall her and Faith back to the SGC, and then send a message to the Cylon planet and recall Colonel Mitchell and Teal'c…. but not before ordering SG-10 to suit up in the Kull Armour. I want them to take over from the both of them."
"Yes, Sir" said Walter as he stood up straight before the General asked him to carry on.
Once Walter left his office and headed downstairs, the General heard the voice of Colonel Edwards from down the hallway. Standing up, he walked around his desk and heading to the briefing room right outside his office, just as Colonel Edwards walked in with his second in command and the rest of SG-11. The General motioned for them to take a seat while Captain Rathbone handed everyone a white folder.
"Colonel" said the General as he nodded at the bald man while opening the file, "if you would please start the briefing?"
"Yes, sir" said Colonel Edwards as everyone opened their folders, "as you know, we were sent to P0G-619 to conduct a recon mission; similar to the one that was carried out by SG-3 on the planet known as Caprica."
The General then nodded his head, indication to the Colonel that he could continue his report.
"Upon reaching the cavern" said the Colonel, "we made our way out of a small cave system; it was just one tunnel that led from the cavern to the surface, it was just a five minute walk."
"OK" said the General as he stopped reading the report, closed his eyes and put down the file on the table.
"We found ourselves in a wasteland, sir" said the Colonel as General Landry shook his head, "we found ourselves in what used to be a forest. All the trees were flattened with new plants growing around them."
"It was very eerie, sir" said Captain Menard, "like something out of a creepy movie. The entire area was just quiet, no birds, no animals…. Nothing was moving; at least nothing living."
"We continued to walk, sir" said the Colonel, "we walked for maybe twenty minutes until we reached what could be a small city."
"And everything was destroyed" said the General, "like on Caprica?"
"From what I read of SG-3's reports, sir?" said the Colonel as he shifted in his seat, "no… it was nothing like Caprica. We're talking about total destruction here, sir. The only things that survived to indicate that there were buildings nearby were broken walls in several areas. That's it."
"Sir" said Dr. DeSoto, "I tested some soil samples, and the water I collected from a nearby stream on the way to the city once we returned to the SGC."
"And?" asked the General, even though he already knew the answer.
"Ummm" said Dr. DeSoto as he looked at the other members of SG-11 and the General, "tests show that the soil and water have been contaminated with radiation. Total and utter contamination, Sir. No way anyone will be able to eat or drink anything frown on that planet for a very, very long time."
"Any remains of bodies?" asked the General.
"Not sure, sir" said Colonel Edwards, "we'll need more teams to check out the cities; but from what we saw, it was pretty bad, sir."
"Alright" said General Landry as he nodded his head, "I'll have SG-6, SG-7 and SG-16 report to the Gateroom in two hours. They'll accompany your team back to the planet and search for any remains, and conduct research on why this could have happened."
"Alright, sir" said Colonel Edwards as General Landry stood up. He then dismissed the Colonel and the others before heading back to his office, and closing his door. The General then sat down on his seat as he thought about what could have happened that would have destroyed an entire civilization.
Gateroom, SGC, 0915 hours; four days later.
It was four days since the Colonials first met the Earth officers on the planet the SGC had offered to them to settle, and it was four days after that initial meeting that Racetrack and Skulls had returned by themselves to talk to Dr. Burke who was still stationed there in the event that the Colonials would return. She was told by Racetrack that their revelations had caused massive upheavals in the fleet, and that certain quarters, especially the Sagittaron and the Gemenese were pulling the religious angle; and they were gaining steam among the fundamentalists in the fleet and even among some of the moderates. Racetrack and Skulls told Dr. Burke and Colonel Dixon that the President had called for elections at the end of the month which was only twelve days away; they told the Earth officers that Zarek and Porter were going to run against Roslin.
Both Colonel Dixon and Dr. Burke looked at each other when Racetrack only mentioned Roslin's name. Looking back at the Colonial officers, the both of them asked Racetrack and Skulls what happened to the Vice-President. At that question, Racetrack and Skulls looked at each other and frowned; before looking back at the Earth personnel; the Colonial officers told them that once Major Adama had pulled Baltar to the President and the Commander, he continued his story about the nanites in his system and how they got there. Racetrack told them that she was there when the Vice-President admitted to violating the law in regards to conducting experiments on the nanites; she said that she had never seen the Commander so angry before. Skulls told them that the man was stripped off the Vice-Presidency, and he was now awaiting trial while being held in the brig.
"But it somehow got leaked in regards to what he did" said Racetrack as she shook her head, "Zarek and Porter are using this as ammunition against Roslin."
"She shouldn't have said anything" replied Colonel Dixon as he frowned and crossed his arms over his chest, while Dr. Burke translated, "that was a mistake."
"She believes that the fleet will still side with her" said Skulls, "Zarek and Porter want to continue the journey to Earth, and well…. the President wanted us to tell you that we're following a specific set of signposts left by the Thirteenth Tribe that could lead us to Earth. She wants us to warn you that should Zarek and Porter succeed, they will make their way to your planet."
"General O'Neill has already given your people a warning" said Dr. Burke as she and Colonel Dixon sat across from them in the Mess Tent.
"They don't care" said Racetrack as she took a sip of coffee, "Zarek and Porter are riding on the religious fervour to find Earth, and they'll use that to get into power. The President wants to settle here, on this world… we're so tired.. the President and the Commander are tired as well, but this new development changes everything. It's the tiredness of the fleet from running which the President wants to capitalize on, she wants to remind them that the Cylons… even if they're fewer in number.. are still chasing us. And to hold them off we need to stop and find a home where we could be protected for some time by a more advanced civilization."
"Listen" said Dr. Burke as she reached out for, and held on to Racetrack's hand, "we… we have a source that told us about a planet. A planet where we believe your Thirteenth Tribe may have gone to."
"What?" said Racetrack as she looked at a shocked Skulls, and then at Colonel Dixon and Dr. Burke, "how? I mean… can we speak to your source; look we need proof of this… if you…. hold on a second, I thought you are from Earth."
"All we can tell you" said Dr. Burke as Colonel Dixon whispered to her that he'll go to the Stargate and ask the SGC to send the date over to him. Dr. Burke nodded at the man as he got up and walked out of the tent, "all we can tell you is that, we've uncovered evidence of a planet which was occupied three thousand years ago."
"You said 'was'" replied Racetrack, "you said 'was'."
"I'm sorry" said Dr. Burke, "we used the Gate to the Stars to travel to that location, and… and we found a radioactive wasteland."
"My gods" said Skulls as he looked at Racetrack who looked on in shock at Dr. Burke. Skulls could see that his friend was ready to start crying as he slowly put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. He then looked at Dr. Burke who tightened her hold on Racetrack's hand and asked her if she was sure.
"Four teams went through to the planet" said Dr. Burke, "they found that the ground and water, the soil.. everything was contaminated with radiation. Although there were plants growing, no one could eat or drink anything in the event that they get radiation poisoning. And…."
"And?" said Racetrack as tears flowed down her eyes as Dr. Burke glanced at Skulls, whose eyes were closed while looking away to the side, "Dr. Burke?"
"We found buried bones" said Dr. Burke, "bones under the soil, in collapsed buildings… and…. listen, I need you to understand that we'll be giving you all the data; as well as a device that already has video of the bones being examined dubbed into your language. We've also provided the raw data, and a file to help your medical personnel translate it. But… but… from our examinations of the bones and some other interesting artifacts we found… well, we found disabled nanites in the bones."
"What?" said Skulls as he looked on in shock, "no… that would mean…."
"Every body… every bone tested showed the same thing" said Dr. Burke, "we even took a sample to the Cylons, and they had the same reaction as you…they have no idea of how these people could have nanites in their bones. According to them, their ancestors, the Centurions, were created by the Colonials."
"Yes" said Skulls.
"Ye.. yes" said Racetrack as she wiped some tears.
"We showed them a picture of a metal mask" said Dr. Burke as Racetrack and Skulls continued to look at her shocked, "we showed the picture to the Cylons and they told us that it was a centurion, but a model that they had never seen before. We showed them our data as well, and they are just as surprised as you are."
"This…" said Racetrack as she stood up while Skulls remained seated. The woman officer walked around before looking at Dr. Burke as her hands fell to her sides in defeat, "are… are you saying that.. that the Thirteenth… the Thirteenth tribe were Cylons?"
"That's the only inference we could make as well" lied Dr. Burke since she was briefed by General Landry after the Colonial's had left about Willow's status as a former ascended being. She was told about what she had witnessed by Willow herself after they discovered the planet, and after they had run the tests on the bones to confirm that they were the organic drones. After the briefing was over,Dr. Burke was ordered by General Landry not to reveal the truth about Willow's status as a former ascended being. Now, as Dr. Burke looked at the look on Racetrack's face, her heart broke for the young woman as her face reflected her abject defeat, "based on what you told us about the Thirteenth Tribe and their exodus from Kobol, we think they could have left due to being an early form of Cylons. They arrived on that world and called it Earth…. Maybe they heard about a planet called Earth and thought that the planet they arrived on was Earth. They probably evolved and became organic until...well, until they were basically a form of humanity. We even found evidence that they could sexually reproduce; all that data will be made available to you as well."
"You.. you think they created their own version of Cylons?" said Skulls as Dr. Burke nodded her head.
"And they killed off their masters" said Racetrack as she shook her head, before turning around away from Dr. Burke and Skulls as she ran her hands through her hair, "my gods… my gods.. what do we tell the others…"
"The truth" said Dr. Burke as Colonel Dixon walked in with some files, a metal case, a battery operated cassette player, and a tablet with enough power and some battery packs to last for a few days. The both of them showed the Colonial officers how to run the equipment, and change the batteries in the tablet. Colonel Dixon mentioned that the tablet didn't have anything secure on it, including the spatial coordinates for Earth, but it did have the spatial coordinates for the nuclear wasteland. Dr. Burke went on to mention that the metal case contained soil samples from the wasteland so that they could compare the sample in the case, with the soil on the planet as proof. It was soon after that that Racetrack and Skulls walked back to their Raptor and returned to Galactica; the Colonel and Dr. Burke hoping that the Colonials would believe them and then come back to this planet.
At the same time, back at Stargate Command, Colonel Mitchell and the other members of SG-1 headed into the Gateroom where they were handed their weapons by the waiting airmen. Teal'c took his customary two P-90's, one in each hand, while Faith took the M16 while the others took the usual single P90's. Willow looked at Faith as she checked out the weapon before the brunette looked up and grinned.
"We're dealing with a Prior, Red" said Faith as she looked at Willow, "need firepower."
"Yes" said Willow nodding her head as she grinned at Faith when she noticed movement in the control room. Looking up behind Walter, she saw Dawn running down the stairs into the control room before she ran down the other set of stairs to the Gateroom. She saw the brunette give Faith a small smile as she walked towards the redhead.
"Hey Dawn" said Vala as she gave the brunette a little wave, which Dawn returned before she walked up to Willow and held her hand.
"I need to talk to you" said Dawn as she wiped the smile of her face and looked at Willow seriously, "now."
"Dawnie" said Willow as she looked at SG-1, and then back at the Gate, "how about after I get back, then we could…"
"You'll run away" said Dawn as she pulled her arm, "please."
"Sir, ma'am" said Willow as she looked at Colonel's Mitchell and Carter, "I know it's last minute but could I…?"
"We're leaving in five, Major" said Colonel Mitchell nodding his head, "we're waiting on General Landry, go do what you need to do."
"Thanks" said Dawn as she pulled Willow while the others looked at themselves and then at Faith who shrugged her shoulders.
"Hey" she replied, "don't look at me."
Dawn dragged a quiet Willow as they took a left and walked down the hallway until they reached the end. The brunette stopped, and then turned around with her hands on her hips and stared at Willow who had her hands by her side.
"You've been avoiding me" said Dawn as she took a step forward while Willow tried to avoid her eyes, "Willow, you've been avoiding me."
"I was working on Merlin's device, Dawnie" said Willow as she watched Dawn frown, "I mean yeah, I admit I've been sleeping on base ever since I got back from the meeting with the Colonials. And that the only time I've seen you recently, is when we went to dinner together with Buffy and Xander after you got back from the Omega Site; and I'm sorry about that. But the device is important and…."
"I know you're upset that I'm not Hera" said Dawn softly as Willow looked down on the floor, "the truth is that I don't know if I am or not, I mean… Willow, this is something big that you told me out of the blue. I… I really don't know how to react."
"It was my mistake, Dawnie" said Willow, "I really don't know what I was thinking that day."
"I'm scared too" said Dawn as Willow looked up confused, "I'm scared that if you're right… and that's a big if… and that I'm Hera; the things I did, the things I've said to you… the things I've thought about… Willow, how can I do that if I'm your sister? Do you understand me? How can I look into your eyes and just imagine what I did?"
"I never blamed you for that" said Willow as she walked forward and gave the brunette a tight hug, "I never blamed you for that, it was unfortunate circumstances all around. I may be wrong about you being Hera, Dawnie; but that doesn't mean that I don't love you."
Dawn just nodded her head on Willow's shoulder when Willow's radio went off and Colonel Carter asked Willow to meet them back at the Gateroom, that it was time to go.
"On my way" said Willow into the radio before she looked at Dawn, "hey, Tara and Anya came back a few hours ago with no luck. Anya's a bit upset about being unable to find anything on the Sangaal, can you take the both of them out for lunch.. or something?"
"Yea" said Dawn as she walked towards the Gateroom with Willow, "I'll take them; did Anya tell you about some weird dream she had?"
"No" said Willow, "what dream?"
"She dreamt that Daniel came to her" replied Dawn just before Willow walked into the Gateroom, "said that he was alright, and he'll be coming back soon."
"Hopefully" said Willow as the Stargate activated behind her. Turning around after giving the brunette a smile, Willow nodded at General Landry before following Vala through the Stargate.
Planet Designated PB7-768, 0930 hours.
Upon arriving at the planet that Shallen had told the SGC about a few days ago, SG-1 met with the leader on the village and offered their help in getting rid of the Prior. Tevaris, the leader of the village, was confused while they walked towards the village square while he talked to SG-1, who were in turn left confused when he told them that the Prior hadn't used any threats to force them to convert to Origin. Tevaris told them, while Faith and the other looked at each other confused, that the Prior had talked about salvation, life eternal and the blessing of the Ori. Vala was suspicious about all that and asked the man if the Prior really didn't threaten the village.
"No" said Tevaris as he shook his head and showed them the book of Origin, "he.. he just left us this book to read and consider. He said that he'll be back today."
IT was then that a villager ran to Tevaris saying that the Prior from four days ago had returned and was on the way to the village.
"Listen" said Colonel Mitchell as he tapped on Tevaris' shoulder, causing the man to turn around, "we're not here to tell you what to do, but… no matter what side you fall on, it would be better if the Prior didn't know we were here."
Tevaris saw everyone in SG-1 nodding their heads before he looked to his left and smiled. HE then gathered everyone and pushed them towards a tent to the left where told them that they would be safe. The team stayed in the shadows underneath the tent as they silently watched Tevaris run back to the village square as he approached the Prior. Suddenly, Willow grabbed a hold of Colonel Mitchell's shoulder as the man turned around, and saw Willow's eye's open wide in surprise.
"Major?" said Vala who was standing close by while Faith crouched down and looked out the tent; at the same time Colonel Carter peeked out of the tent's entrance with her head as the Prior lowered down his hood.
"Oh my God" said Willow, Faith and Colonel Carter together, "it's Daniel, he's the Prior."
The Odyssey , Earth Orbit, 2300 hours.
When Dawn had heard along the base grapevine that Daniel was turned into a Prior, and that he was the one that SG-1 had captured on the planet; the Brunette rushed to find Willow to find out if the rumour was true. Dawn ran to Willow's lab which turned out to be empty, before she went to the Mess Hall, the Gym and then the briefing room. She rushed into the briefing room at the tail end of a conversation where Woolsey was telling a very pissed off SG-1 that the IOA recommended that Daniel be put in stasis until some unknown claim could be verified.
"Dawn" said Willow as she stood up and approached the brunette whp stood open mouthed staring at Woolsey who could only give a frown before stepping back and looking at the floor, "Dawn, you're not supposed to be here."
"I.. I…" said Dawn as she looked at Woolsey before looking at Willow.
"Young lady" said General Landry, "can we help you with something?"
"Dr. Jackson's a Prior?" asked Dawn as she looked at everyone in the room.
"Yea" replied Colonel Mitchell who was seated next to Vala, "he said that it's part of a plan that he and Merlin cooked up before he was taken by Adria."
"That's what Willow said" replied Dawn as she looked at the redhead who frowned at her, before telling her that Woolsey didn't trust her.
"I never said that" replied Woolsey.
"You claim that Willow Rosenberg will not be objective in questioning Daniel Jackson" said Teal'c as he looked at Woolsey from his chair, "she can give us a definite answer on the veracity of Daniel Jackson's words."
"Willow?" asked Dawn as she looked confusingly at the redhead.
"Daniel wants us to disengage the Supergate" said Colonel Carter as she leaned forward, "we have the Daedalus ready in Pegasus with a Mark Nine to destroy the gate if we have to; and Daniel assures us that he and Merlin planned to have Adria turn him into a Prior so that he could fly an Ori ship with the completed weapon, and take it to the Ori galaxy where it would be detonated."
"Destroying the Ori" said Dawn as Willow led the brunette to a seat.
"Yep" replied Willow.
"And Major Rosenberg was going to verify his answers" said Vala as she nodded towards Woolsey, "the bald one says that she's too close to Daniel, especially since Merlin's mind is in his body."
"But will her powers work?" asked Dawn, "I mean I'm guessing you have Dr. Jackson under the anti-Prior device so… wont Willow's powers be nullified?"
"I'm used to it, Dawnie" said Willow as she sat next to the brunette, "it won't affect me as badly as it's affecting Daniel. But he'll get over its effect soon. Merlin said that once the weapon has been sent to the Ori galaxy, then he'll… he'll…"
"Die" said Faith as she looked at Willow who nodded her head. The Slayer then looked at Woolsey and told him that the best shot is to have Willow talk to him, however the man still refused.
"How about I talk to him?" asked Dawn as she saw Willow snap her head at the brunette. Dawn glanced at Willow again before looking at Woolsey and the others, "I'm not as close to him as the rest of you guys, and I'm pretty good at telling if someone's lying, And, and I can be objective… I just need to know the questions you want answered."
"I agree" said Willow as everyone looked at the redhead when she figured out what Dawn wanted to do. The redhead glanced at Faith who nodded her head slightly before agreeing as well.
"In the meantime" said Colonel Mitchell, "in the event that Miss Summers isn't successful, may I suggest coming up with an alternate plan?"
"Do it" said General Landry before he looked at General O'Neill who nodded his head.
"I assume that's alright with the good ol' IOA?" asked General O'Neill sarcastically as Woolsey frowned, but nodded his head.
"SG-1" said General Landry, "go think up something crazy; Miss Lehane, please accompany Miss Summers to the Odyssey."
"Sure, Big K" replied Faith as she nodded her head. The both of them then got up and ran down to the control room where they were going to ask Walter to contact the Odyssey, which was asked to return to service a day early, and request a beam up. In the meantime, Willow and the others walked out of the briefing room; leaving General Landry, and O'Neill alone with Woolsey.
"Mr. Woolsey" said General Landry as he walked up to the bald man, "if you ever question the integrity of my officers ever again, I'll have you out of here faster than you can say IOA. Is that clear?"
"Or he can have Miss Maclay turn you into a toad, or something" said General O'Neill as he followed General Landry into his office while Woolsey was rubbing his neck nervously. HE then turned around and asked if they were just kidding about the toad transformation. Woolsey then attempted to follow General O'Neill into General Landry's office, but he fell forward onto the carpeted floor since Willow telekinetically tied his shoe laces together.
It was two minutes later that there was a flash of white light as both Faith and Dawn found themselves on the Odyssey. The two young women walked quietly towards the secure room that Daniel was being held in once Faith had contacted Colonel Emerson and told him that they were aboard. Walking closer to the room, Faith asked Dawn if she was alright.
"I don't know" said Dawn softly as she looked at Faith, "you saw her memories, Faith. IS it true?"
"I know you look just like her" said Faith as she looked at Dawn, "I saw how Hera died, I saw how she lived… I know she loved Athena as much as you love Buffy. I know that Athena died the day Hera died; and then she began living again the day she found out Hera ascended."
"I thought she started living again when she met Sineya" said Dawn as they reached the door to the holding room which was guarded by two SF's. Faith smiled at Dawn and asked her if Buffy had told her everything about Sineya, to which Dawn nodded her head.
"She was happy when she met Sineya, but with Hera she…." said Dawn as they stopped outside the door when Faith changed the subject so that the SF's didn't get suspicious about the real reason Dawn came onboard the ship, "you know the main questions to ask him?"
"Yeah" said Dawn as she looked at Faith and nodded her head before the Slayer showed the SF's her ID and asked them to open the door. As the door opened, Dawn took in a deep breath as she saw Daniel seated on a chair with his arms and feet strapped down, and his eyes closed. Dawn walked into the room alone as the doors closed behind her; she cautiously walked towards Daniel and she soon noticed his pale face, the facial tattoo's, and his grey hair which she knew were common traits among Priors. She then noticed a camera in the upper left, and right, corners of the room that were aimed at Daniel. Walking slowly to the table near the door, Dawn saw the Anti-Prior device as she reached for a seat before turning around to a sound behind her.
"Dawn?" asked a confused Daniel as Dawn stared at his milky white eyes before she closed her own and shook her head.
"Hi, Dr. Jackson" said Dawn as she sat down on a seat and held the piece of paper that contained the questions Woolsey needed answered, "How… how are you?"
"Alright" said Daniel as he waved his strapped hands in frustration, "not much time before we can put the plan into motion so… yeah."
"Anya misses you" said Dawn as she gave a small smile at the man.
"Me too" said Daniel, "but Dawn, I need to get out of here… I'm afraid that it's going to be too late to stop Adria."
"Dr. Jackson" said Dawn, "I just have some questions that Woolsey needs answered and….. and….."
Daniel looked on confused as Dawn looked at the questions on the piece of paper; he furrowed his eyebrows when the brunette folded the paper and placed it into her BDU pockets before she stood up and walked towards Daniel.
"Dr. Jackson…. Daniel" said Dawn nervously, "was everything you told Willow and the others true? I mean about the Supergate and everything? Was everything you and Merlin said true?"
"Yes" said Daniel, "Jack knows I'll never joke about this and…."
"Dr. Jackson" said Dawn, "you know they want to freeze you, right?"
"Oh boy" said Daniel as he shook his head, "let me guess, Woolsey?"
"Yea" said Dawn as she looked at the camera on the left, knowing that Woolsey would be at Stargate Command fuming that she had given that away. Dawn then looked back at Daniel and took another step forward, "will Merlin leave once you're done?"
"He could leave before we're done" said Daniel as Dawn looked on surprised, "we don't have much time left. If I'm not allowed to leave, then I can't use Merlin's knowledge to fly the Ori ship into their galaxy and detonate the weapon."
"Let SG-1 do it" said Dawn, "give then the information, show them what needs to be done, Dr. Jackson… please."
"Dawn" said Daniel, "it's my responsibility, I don't want to put the others in danger and…"
"Dr. Jackson" said Dawn again, "they're your friends… don't you trust them to do what needs to be done?"
"I do, but…." said Daniel as Dawn took a few more steps forward and held on to his hand.
"Maybe you can tell them where the ship's orbiting" said Dawn, "maybe show them how to fly the thing, how to enter hyperspace and all that…. Trust them to do it, Dr. Jackson."
"Do you believe that they are able to do what you are proposing?"
Dawn stepped back as she noticed Daniel's speech and demeanour change as he sat up straight and looked at the brunette with a smile on his face.
"Merlin?" asked Dawn as she looked on in surprise.
"Yes" replied Merlin as he used Daniel's voice.
"I… I…" said Dawn as she closed her eyes and shook her head before she looked back at Daniel, "yes, I know they'll be able to."
"Then very well" said Merlin as Dawn gave a huge smile before she looked at the camera where Woolsey in Stargate Command looked on with his mouth open in surprise at how easy it was for Dawn to get Daniel to agree on having SG-1 complete the mission. General Landry, and General O'Neill then ordered SG-1 to get a plan in place before Colonel Carter and Willow have to meet with Daniel. It was a few seconds later that Woolsey had left the control room in the SGC, and headed to his quarters to write a report.
Back on the ship, Dawn thanked Merlin who nodded his head as she headed back to the door and stopped. Dawn just looked on as the door opened to reveal Faith waiting for her outside. Dawn told Faith to hang on just for a little while longer before taking another deep breath and turning around to face Daniel again.
"Merlin?" asked Dawn as she took a few more steps towards him, "was everything you showed Willow the truth? I mean about her past?"
"I showed Athena what was already in her memories" said Merlin as he gave a small smile to Dawn, "has she told you…"
"Yea" said Dawn as she walked to Daniel, "but I… I don't know if it's true.. I mean. I don't remember anything."
"I do not know why you descended" said Merlin as he looked at Dawn through Daniel's eyes, "but what Athena has told you in the truth. You are my daughter… even if you don't remember who you are… you are still my daughter."
Dawn could only close her eyes and nod her head as she turned around again and walked towards Faith who was giving her a small smile.
"Hera" said Merlin softly as Dawn turned around face some very tired eyes that seemed to get heavier, "I will see you again… before the end."
Dawn watched as Daniel hung his head and closed his eyes while Faith lay a hand on the young woman's shoulder.
"You alright?" asked Faith as she put an arm around Dawn's shoulders.
"Willow was right" said Dawn as she looked at Faith, and then at the camera's before they walked out into the hallway, "but now everyone knows about me being Hera."
"Not really" said Faith as Dawn looked at the Slayer with an eyebrow raised, "after you got the answers we were looking for, I cut the feed before I left to meet up with you outside the door. So… yeah."
"I see" said Dawn softly.
"I thought you'd be glad?" asked Faith, "at least now you know, the truth…"
"But without my memories" said Dawn as she looked at Faith, "it's all so empty, you know… don't get me wrong I love Willow, I love Buffy… but I have memories of Buffy that connects me to her as sisters… but with Willow…"
"The emotional connection's not there" nodded Faith.
"Don't tell Willow?" asked Dawn, "please? At least not yet."
"Alright" replied Faith with a nod of her head, "not yet."
The Odyssey , Earth Orbit, 0000 hours.
Daniel knew that it was time, it was time to make his move as he had already gotten over the effects of the anti-prior device while Woolsey had been telling him about the IOA's justifications for putting him in stasis. As he telekinetically cut all communications from the holding room to the bridge, he also telekinetically pushed away the SF's who were guarding the door to his room as a terrified Woolsey looked at him as the doors closed. He then mentally took off his restraints before standing up from his seat and walked towards Woolsey smiling at the bald man as he was telekinetically lifted him up against the closed doors.
"Wha… what are you going to do to me?" asked Woolsey.
"I don't need you" said Daniel as he turned to a panel on the wall and pressed a few buttons. It was a few seconds later that Woolsey heard some buzzing sounds from outside the door.
"I've beamed the crew to the surface" continued Daniel as he let go of Woolsey and opened the door, "SG-1 should already be on the Ori ship, and on the way to the Supergate.. and if I leave now then the ZPM powered Hyperdrive will make it there in an hour instead of six. So, good bye."
"Wait…." Said Woolsey as he vanished in a flash of light.
Smiling to himself, Daniel walked the short distance to the bridge where he set course for the Supergate, and performed some extra tweaks to the Odyssey's systems. He then sat on the command chair when he noticed a blinking light on the armrest, clicking down on the button that was blinking; Daniel heard a familiar voice coming through the speakers.
"Dr. Jackson, this is Colonel Pendergast from Prometheus Station."
"Sorry, Colonel" said Daniel as he ignored the rest of the Colonel's message. Instead he pressed two buttons which resulted in General O'Neil being beamed up onto the bridge with his hands in his pockets, along with a very surprised Dawn who had fallen backwards on the floor.
"Ow" said Dawn as the General smirked and helped the brunette get onto her feet. She then glared at Daniel and told him that he could have given a warning or something before beaming her up, "I was sitting down on a chair… in your lab…"
"Sorry" said Daniel.
"Daniel" asked the General as he noticed the ship start to move away from the Earth before it raced past Prometheus Station as it started to fire railguns on the ship, "what'cha doin'?"
"Taking the ship, Jack" said Daniel as the Odyssey entered hyperspace and sped towards the Supergate.
On the way to the massive Stargate, Daniel told General O'Neill that although he gave SG-1 the information they needed to find the ship, and finish the job of building the remaining parts of the Sangraal; he still wasn't sure if they could do it without his help.
"Jack" said Daniel, "when the time comes I need you to order the Gate in Pegasus destroyed."
"Daniel" said the General frowning at his best friend.
"You were going to do it for SG-1, Jack" said Daniel, "please… this is our best shot and you know that."
"General" said Dawn softly as she looked at Daniel, "I… I trust him… I trust the both of them."
"Dawn" said General O'Neill, "I trust Daniel too, with my life; but this is something…. Hold on a second, why did Daniel bring you up here in the first place."
"Because after today" said Daniel as he sat up and spoken in a formal tone of voice, "after today I will die; and this is the last time I will see my daughters."
"Wait" said the General as he looked at Daniel and then at Dawn who gave the man a small smile, "you mean…."
"Willow said that she had a sister" replied Dawn, "she told me that I'm Hera, that I'm her sister. Merlin told me the same thing too earlier today and…. and I want to remember, I want my memories back."
"Daniel… Merlin?" said the General as he stood protectively next to Dawn as Daniel slowly stood up.
"I will not harm my own daughter, General" said Merlin as he smiled at General O'Neill.
"General" said Dawn as she squeezed his arm, causing him to look at the young woman, "I need to do this… please."
General O'Neill saw the look of conviction in Dawn's eyes and nodded his head. Stepping back slightly, the General looked on as Dawn walked past him and approached Daniel. The General glanced at the hyperspace corridor before looking back at Daniel as he placed his hands of the sides of Dawn's head when suddenly, the young woman pulled her head back with her hands on her sides rolled into fists.
"Daniel" said the General as he took a step forward.
"General" said Merlin as he closed his eyes, "I assure you that she will be alright. I do not know how long I will have after this. It will take everything I have.. and… and… I will only be able to open the Supergate and fly the ship through once her memories have been restored. I do thank you for looking after my two daughters… please give my thanks to your team as well, and please convey my thanks to the Summers family for looking after Hera."
"Merlin?" said the General as Daniel let go of Dawn head as he stumbled back just as the General rushed behind him and caught the man before he fell onto the floor. After catching Daniel and standing him up, the General looked at Dawn who was rubbing her head with both of her hands before she opened her eyes and smiled at Daniel.
"I.. I remember" said Dawn as General O'Neill looked on in surprise, "I remember everything…. Atlantis, Earth, my ascension, Sunnydale… Athena, Willow….."
"Hera" said Merlin softly as the General slowly helped him to take a seat on the command chair as Dawn walked up behind him. The General moved back as Dawn took his place, crouched down and held on to Daniel's hand.
"Father" said Dawn with tears in her eyes when she remembered what Merlin had told them.. that this would be their final time together, "thank you, thank you for everything."
Ori Vessel, Hyperspace, an hour later; few seconds until arrival at Supergate.
The plan offered to Daniel by Dawn was a success. Willow and Colonel Carter had talked to him and created a program with his help that was used to take over the controls of the Ori ship. Daniel told them the Prior that would usually pilot the ship with the Sangraal on it was preaching down on the planet below. So SG-1 gated to that planet when he was preaching and used a set of rings to beam to the Ori ship. They incapacitated the guards on the level that the bridge and the room where the Sangraal were located, while locking the rings so that the other soldiers of the Ori Army could not reach that level through the rings. The team then split up with Colonel Mitchell, Vala and Willow heading towards the room where the Sangraal lay so that they could follow Daniel's instructions to complete it; and Faith, Teal'c and Colonel Carter headed to the bridge where the Colonel connected the laptop with the program to the ship's computers. It was not long after arriving on the ship that they entered hyperspace and headed towards the Supergate.
It was hours later that Colonel Carter contacted Willow, Colonel Mitchell and Vala through their radio's that they were almost out of hyperspace. Colonel Mitchell acknowledged that they received the message before he turned to the two women and asked them if they were done.
"Yep" said Willow as she put in the final jagged crystal while Vala walked to a side table and took out a round, smooth, red crystal from a small box. Vala carried the crystal gingerly in the palm of her hand before she placed it at the space in between the tops of the four pylons that curved inwards. They saw the red crystal hang in mid-air after Vala released it, and then it started to glow and hum. Willow told them that the device was now ready to be activated. The Colonel noticed that there was one more crystal left over and thought that they had done something wrong; however, Vala reminded him that the crystal activated a five minute delay in the weapon before it detonated.
Willow and Colonel Mitchell then noticed Vala looking around expectantly.
"What's wrong?" asked the Colonel.
"Oh nothing" said Vala as she looked at the device before waving her arms around, "just expected an ascended being to swoop down and take it away from us."
"Maybe they want us doing their dirty work for them" said Willow as she looked at the machine that lay on the molecular assembler.
"Or maybe it won't work" said Colonel Mitchell as Vala and Willow looked at him with their eyebrows raised. It was then that Colonel Carter contacted them again to tell them that they were out of hyperspace, but they had another problem.
"The Supergate's blocked by another Ori ship" said the Colonel, "I'm trying to raise shields but…."
"OH God" said Willow as she leaned on the molecular assembler with her eyes closed and head tilted to one side. She then opened her eyes and reached for her radio, "Colonel! We have a problem…. A very big problem… she's…."
Before Willow could finish what she wanted to say, they group saw Ori soldiers run into the room with weapons aimed at them. At the same time, Willow's radio came to life again as the Colonel told her that she knew what Willow meant, because Adria was in the bridge.
Willow: "Sir, Adria managed to unlock the rings. The other Ori soldiers are on standby on the other floors… we have these guys and I'm sensing a few more on this floor alone."
Mitchell: "Understood. Can you make them sleep? Or something?"
Vala: "Ohh ohh…. I know… Star Wars."
Willow and Mitchell: "Vala!"
Vala: "Come on…. Give it a try… pretty please?"
Willow: "Sir?"
The Colonel could only glance at Willow and Vala while they had their hands up, and sigh. He then nodded his head as Vala grinned at him, and mouthed 'thank you'.
"Guys" said Willow as she put her hands down while the soldiers aimed their weapons at her. She then waved her hand in front of them and said, "we are not the SG team you're looking for."
Vala and the Colonel just saw them staring at Willow before the Colonel turned to Vala and told her that it didn't work.
"Wait for it, sir" said Willow as she gave a small smile when the soldiers put their weapon's down onto the floor.
"You are not the SG team we are looking for" said all six of the Ori soldiers together as Vala high fived Willow.
"Major" said the Colonel as he armed his P90, "incapacitate them, and then let's go take back the bridge."
"Yes, sir" said Willow as she and Vala took out their Zats and shot all six of them as they realized what just happed and bent down to retrieve their weapons.
"Come on" said Colonel Mitchell as he and the others walked over the bodies, and out the door to the hallway outside.
It had taken ten minutes for the three members of SG-1 to kill the Ori soldiers who had tried to stop them from reaching the bridge. As they ran towards the bridge, the team noticed that there were no more soldiers between them and the bridge. The Colonel glanced at Willow as they telepathically communicated with each other where Willow told him that Adria may have told them to hold off. That she could take care of them all by herself.
"Sounds like something she'd do" said Vala softly as they turned around a corner and saw Adria with her back to them as she raised a hand at Faith, Teal'c and Colonel Carter. Willow, Colonel Mitchell and Vala lifted up their P90's and aimed it at Adria.
"Adria!" shouted Vala as Adria glanced over her shoulder and smiled. She then turned around, but not before waving her outstretched hand at Teal'c, Colonel Carter and Faith which made them fly across the bridge of the ship before each of them landed with a thud. It was then that Willow and the others stepped forward and started to fire their P90's, only to have their rounds deflected by her personal force shield.
"Mother" said Adria as she looked at Vala after they stopped firing and put their weapons down before looking at each other concerned, "you should be by my side, Mother. Not with them."
"Adria" said Vala, "it's time to stop. The Ori will be destroyed, it doesn't have to be like this… you are my daughter, and I want you by my side."
"Shhh" said Adria smiling as she looked glanced over her shoulder at Faith who was already standing up by herself before, using her speed as a Slayer, had taken out a combat knife and was almost onto Adria before the Orici telekinetically forced her back; hitting Teal'c on the way who tried to soften the blow. Adria then broke Faith's arm that was holding onto the knife before she turned around to a shocked Willow, "she actually thought that a knife through the shield could have stopped me. Her mental shields were impressive, but against the power of the Ori… they're nothing."
Willow closed her eyes and smiled when she sensed Moros close by. It was then that she heard a buzzing sound coming from the bridge. Adria turned around as a smiling Daniel appeared on the bridge in a flash of white light as Colonel Carter stood behind him and held her P90 up, and aimed it at Adria. Daniel glanced behind over his shoulder as Teal'c helped Faith stand up while she screamed out in pain. HE frowned when he saw bone piercing her skin as tears was coming down her eyes.
"You betrayed me" said Adria outraged as she looked at Daniel.
"Sorry" said Daniel while at the same time he telepathically contacted Willow who nodded her head.
"Sir" said Willow as she glanced at Colonel Mitchell, "Daniel needs you to activate the device."
"But…" said Vala when Willow interrupted her.
"General O'Neill's here in the Odyssey" said Willow, "he'll order the Daedalus to blow up the Stargate in Pegasus so that he could dial the Ori galaxy. Please…. Trust him."
"No!" said Adria when she read Vala's thoughts and turned around with her arms outstretched. Willow saw a ball of fire gather on each of her hands as she fired at a stunned Vala who was pulled away by Colonel Mitchell grabbing onto her vest, while Willow used her telekinetic shield to block the blasts. Outraged that her mother, and Daniel, betrayed her at such a crucial time… Adria took out all her anger at Willow as the streams of red energy resembling fire grew in intensity, "you…. I should have killed you before. You turned my own mother against me!"
"That was you, Adria" said Willow as she got on one knee from the immense pressure that was being created by Adria's power, proving to the redhead that she could only pose a small distraction while Daniel sat on the command chair while Colonel Carter started firing on Adria. She was soon joined by Teal'c who, after helping lean Faith against a wall, started to fire at the Orici with two P90. However, all their work was in vain as her personal shield prevented her from getting harmed. However, it did fuel her rage.
"You" said an outraged Adria as she glared at Willow, "who do you think you are? I am Ori… you are nothing. I will burn you… burn your friends as heretics to Origin… I will lead the subjugation of Earth… I will laugh as your family prostrates to the Ori. I will kill all the Ancients.. this galaxy is ours!"
Willow started to pant as she was down on both knees now while she started to bleed from her nose. Adria had the full knowledge of the Ori and their powers, including how to effectively use them against enemies. Willow looked up and saw the rage in Adria's eyes, she saw her mouth moving but the redhead couldn't hear anything over the sound of her own heart pounding. Willow was using all of her powers to maintain the telekinetic shield… distract Adria and focus all her anger on the redhead while forgetting about Colonel Mitchell and Vala, who Willow hoped had activated the weapon. Willow then felt the pressure increase on her shield as Colonel Carter and Teal'c fired even more weapons. The Redhead smiled when she saw Faith, despite being in immense pain, reach for her sidearm and fire at Adria as well… fuelling the Orici's anger even more, and distracting her from Colonel Mitchell and Vala..
"Athena"
Willow kept on panting when she heard a familiar voice, a voice that broke through the weapons fire and the pounding of her heart. Suddenly, Willow saw everything melt around her as she found herself standing on the East pier of Atlantis and looking out at the horizon as the Lantean sun slowly made its way down.
"What am I doing here?" asked Willow when she smelled the scent of roses, a very familiar scent that made her smile before she slowly turned around to looked at a red haired woman standing a few steps behind her in a white and gold dress.
"Hello, Athena" said Melina as Willow rushed towards the woman and hugged her tightly. Melina felt warm tears falling onto her neck as she ran one hand through Willow's hair and another hand rubbing circles around her back, "shhh, it is alright Athena."
"I.. I missed you so much" said Willow as she held on tightly to Melina, never intending to let go of her mother.
"And I you" said Melina as she kissed the top of Willow's head, "I have so many things to speak off but… but… Athena… I am sorry, I had hoped this never would have happened but…"
"Mother?" said Willow as she looked at Melina who had placed both her hands on the redhead's cheeks.
"You've come to a crossroads" said Melina as she closed her eyes and shook her head before opening them again, "Adria will be a threat if she survives; if she continues to live."
"I'm trying to stop her" said Willow as she started to tear up, "I… I… I don't know what to do… I'm doing everything I can."
"You can keep on trying" said Melina, "but the distraction will be brief as she will win… I can sense you do not have long; you will be unable to hold on to your shield… and I… I cannot do anything to help you."
"I know" said Willow as she held Melina's hands in hers.
"She will kill you" said Melina as her voice broke, "and your friends.. or… or you can take the second choice and ascend."
"But…" said Willow as Melina interrupted her.
"There will be a few seconds, at most, before you achieve full ascension" said Melina, "a few seconds in between mortality and ascension where you can use your full ascended powers without interference from the Others. But they will know you used powers that some among us are forbidden to use.. the powers gained from unintended worship by lower beings. If you ascend, those are the powers you will be using… and their punishment will be harsh. Athena… I… I do not want to see you harmed…. But…"
"Either way I will be" said Willow nodding her head at Melina who caressed her daughter's cheeks.
"This is your choice" said Melina, "if you choose ascension… then you know what you have to do."
"Give up all Earthly wants" said Willow as she nodded her head, "give up Faith, give up my friends and family."
"Give up the constrictions you placed on your powers" said Melina as Willow looked on confused, "you fear the power you could have; you fear going out of control so your subconscious placed locks preventing your access to all of it. You need to give that up as well. Your friend… Carter, she told you that you had enough to achieve wilful ascension….. and the truth is that the fear of you accepting the full power of your abilities is what prevented you from ascending, what held back your powers. It will still be not enough to beat Adria but I need you to let go of that fear. If you truly want to ascend, remember what Adria said she'll do to Earth… what she and the Ori are already doing to this galaxy; you need to accept your powers."
"Mother" said Willow.
"No matter what happens, Athena" said Melina, "no matter what the Others do, Faith will always find you, and you will always find Faith. I have never seen such a string link as between the two of you. Nothing, no matter how great the distance, can break it."
"Mother" said Willow again confused, "what do you mean?"
"You are running out of time, my daughter" said Melina as she hugged Willow again, "I can give you but one gift. But I need you to make your choice… please…. Make your choice."
Back on the ship, Colonel Carter continued to fire on Adria who had her back to her, Teal'c and Faith who were firing as well while the General had the Daedalus deactivate the Gate. She glanced back and saw Daniel concentrate as he dialled the Supergate when she caught a white glow from the corner of her eye coming from Willow's direction. Turning her head, she and the others stopped firing when the glow started getting brighter, and brighter.
"Red" said Faith worryingly as she put her weapon down and stared as Adria stopped firing her blasts at Willow and stepped back, her hands trembling.
All of a sudden, the glow started getting even brighter and brighter as Adria stopped moving and rose into the air. The three of them couldn't see anything clearly because of the glow and the fact that Adria was blocking their view. The three of them looked at each other in shock when Adria gave a bloodcurdling scream as they heard bones breaking throughout Adria's body, before a beam of white light blasted through her chest, and through her back, and hit an area right above the main window on the bridge.
"Red?" said Faith as Adria's now crushed body, with a hole in the chest, was dropped unceremoniously onto the floor.
"Willow Rosenberg" said Teal'c as he took his eyes off the body of Adria and looked at Willow who started to glow even brightly as the three of them covered their eyes. Once the bright glow was gone, Faith and the others opened their eyes as they looked at Willow in the same strapless white dress she used to wear as Athena.
"I'm sorry" said Willow as she looked at Faith, "find me?"
"Willow" said Colonel Carter, "what.. what did you do?"
"I.. I.." said Willow when she gasped and stumbled back while holding onto her chest.
"Willow" said Daniel as he slowly got off the command chair after he ordered the ship to fly through the Supergate, "you ascended. And now… the Others…. They're coming…"
"What?" said Colonel Carter as she looked at Willow, and then at Daniel before looking at Willow once more.
"Major!" shouted Colonel Mitchell and Vala as they rounded the corner and saw the redhead.
"I'm sorry, Vala" said Willow stumbling back again as she suddenly felt thousands of hands reaching into her soul, and pulling on her.
"Red!" shouted Faith as they saw Willow's body breaking up and being pulled into a single point of light.
The last thing Willow saw was Faith running towards her after she dropped her weapon onto the floor of the ship, she reached out with one hand while the other hand was just hanging and swinging like a pendulum. Willow tried to reach for her hand but she felt arms grabbing her from behind and pulling her backwards. She then gave a little scream before she found herself falling through what looked like a blue and white hyperspace tunnel. She saw that her dress melt away, and then replaced by her SGC BDUs and tactical gear.
'At least the others don't want to put me on another planet naked, like Daniel' thought Willow to herself as she felt herself falling before everything turned black, 'and I hope I have my memories, at least my…. Hey… so that's how you create a ZPM.'
Outside Shadow Valley Vineyards, Sunnydale, 2000 hours.
Willow slowly opened her eyes when she felt the damp soil and grass against her cheek. Groaning as she felt the sting from her P90 jutting into her abdomen, she rolled onto her back after lying on her stomach.
'How long was I out?' thought Willow to herself, 'the last thing I remember was…. Was… ZPM… come one… ZPM… oh damn it, whatever knowledge I had is gone. At least I still have my memories of my life and ascension as Athena… so that's a good thing. I guess. But come on, having the knowledge about ZPM's would have been so cool.'
Willow slowly sat up before she rubbed her forehead to take away some of her dizziness. Finding herself next to a tree, Willow slowly got onto her feet as she leaned on the trunk of the tree with one hand. She then pressed her back to the tree as she tried to get the nausea she was feeling out of the way. She then felt around her body with her hands fro any injuries, or broken bones. Finding none, she checked her P90 and found she had only half of a magazine left with another spare in her vest. She still had her combat knife, her sidearm with two spare magazines, and her Zat gun which was on her left thigh. She looked around and found her radio. Checking her vest pockets, she found the two blocks of C-4 that SG-1 always carried with them.
'Now' thought Willow to herself as she stood up straight, 'I need to find the Stargate, dial the Alpha Site and go home.'
As Willow started to walk away from the tree and towards a trail or a small road that would hopefully lead to a village or the Stargate, she turned around to her left when she heard noises. Rushing behind another tree to take some cover in case it was an Ori patrol, she peeked out from behind the trunk as she crouched down with her P90 raised up to fire at any hostile. Not seeing anything around her, Willow ran while staying low to another tree when she suddenly heard footsteps that were running close by.
Looking out from behind this other tree, Willow saw four bald men in red robes carrying knives walking towards a group of girls who looked like they had been in a fight. Willow could see that they looked injured when they stopped and looked at the men. She saw one of them have their arms around the should of another girl while she bled heavily from her arm, while the other four protected the injured. She saw the four men rush the girls as they defended themselves.
'I'm on Earth?' thought Willow to herself as she took out her Zat gun after clipping her P90 to her vest, not wanting to harm the girls in case her weapons fire hits one of them. Breaking cover, Willow ran towards one of the men who pushed one of the injured girls to the ground before he raised his arm, ready to stab her through the heart.
Willow got close before she raised her Zat and made four direct shots at the men who fell onto the ground as the blue electrical energy crackled around them.
"Hey" said Willow as she approached the shocked girls who quickly stepped away from Willow and went into defensive mode as they protected the injured ones, one of whom Willow could tell was Rona.. one of the Potential Slayers of the BPRI.
"Stay back" said a girl that Willow met once before, Amanda, "you're the First… you can't trick us anymore…"
"The First what?" asked Willow confused as she reholstered her Zat and looked behind her, and then she turned and looked from where they had come. She could see a building in the distance as more people started to come out, "Listen, get out of here… go back to the BPRI and…."
"Move it!" shouted a very familiar voice as Willow gave a huge smile.
Willow pushed the potentials aside as she ran over to a injured Faith who suddenly stopped in her tracks when she saw the redhead. She was even more shocked when Willow grabbed her head and kissed her deeply on the lips.
"Mmmmm" said Faith as she pushed Willow away before she pulled a knife from behind her and aimed it at the confused redhead. She then looked at the Potential Slayers who had their mouth's open in shock after what they just saw and ordered them to run back to Buffy's house, "go! Go right now!"
"Ye.. yes" said Amanda as the girls started to run while Willow could only look in shock at Faith, her Faith.
"Faith" said Willow as she stepped back when the Slayer walked towards her with a large knife pointed towards her, "Faith, what's going on? Wait a second, how did you get here…. it should take at least six hours for the Odyssey to get back here from the Supergate, unless you have a ZPM which would make it about an hour or so. Did you gate to another planet, and then gate here? I mean did Walter find me here, and you got caught up in something with the BPRI?"
"You are not Willow" said Faith angrily, "how dare you… you may not be the First… but how dare you use that face to torture us… torture Tara? Buffy?"
"I'll bite" said Willow confused, "who the hell is the First?"
"What kind of Joke are you playing?" asked Faith as Willow heard more footsteps from behind the Slayer.
"Faith!" shouted Buffy, "what are you… oh my God!"
"Buffy?" asked Willow as she looked at the shocked Slayer when she saw more people running towards them. Willow had her eyes open wide and stepped back a little when she saw Xander with his arm around Spike's shoulder.
"Will… Willow?" said Xander as he looked at the redhead through one eye, while the other one was bleeding profusely, "no…. no… you're the First… you're the First… Buffy!. Buffy!"
"No" said a very shocked Spike as he walked closer with Xander in tow as a few more Potentials stopped at where the little group was standing shocked where they looked at Spike, and then at Willow who was extremely confused, "she's alive."
"Spike?" asked Willow, "why wouldn't I be alive? Buffy, you know where I was.. and if Faith got back from the Supergate after taking care of Adria, then you should know. I mean, Buffy?"
"Supergate?" asked Buffy confused, "Willow… ok, whoever you are.. what are you…"
"She's Willow" said Spike as he took a step back in shock, "her scent, I remember it… dogboy can confirm back at the house but it's Willow… my God…"
"Willow?" asked Xander as he reached out his hand and caressed her cheek, "you… you're real?"
"Xander?" said Willow, "of course, I'm real.. I don't understand what's happening and… no.."
Everyone saw Willow step back as she looked at the people in front of her. The redhead couldn't read any of their thoughts, or feel their emotions. She tried to reach out mentally to Faith and to Buffy but she didn't get anything, which could only mean one thing.
"My powers" said Willow as she looked at her hands, "they.. they're gone. They stripped it away."
"Willow" said Spike as he stood in front of Buffy and the others after he asked Faith to help Xander, "look Pet, you're talking nonsense. Your scent is the same, just a bit changed here and there… and the smell of gunpowder from you is.. wow. Lucky these guys don't get to smell that. But I'd thought coming back from the dead would be…"
"Hold on" said Willow as she looked up at Spike and the others in shock, "what do you mean dead?"
"So she's a vampire?" asked Faith as she looked at Willow.
"She's alive" said Spike, "I can hear her heart beating, but her scent's a bit off…. Maybe because of the whole coming back from the dead thing."
"Wait.. wait.. wait" said Willow as she waved her hands about, "who died? And who came back?"
"You" said Xander as Willow looked at the confused looks on the faces of Buffy and the others, "you died a year and a half ago."
"Ummm…. ummm…" said Willow as she reached for her radio, "ummm…. Rosenberg to Prometheus Station? Prometheus Station, please respond? Anyone… hello? Odyssey?"
Spike furrowed his eyebrows and looked at Willow confused before he looked back at Buffy, and the others, and shrugged his shoulders. He then turned around to see Willow back on the radio.
"Colonel Pendergast" said Willow as she looked up, "I don't know if this is a big April Fool's joke but I need a beam out… hello?"
"Beam out?" asked Xander.
"Oh boy" said Willow as she came to a very frightening realization, "when the Others punish.. they really do punish."
"Huh?" said Buffy who looked at Willow with hope that the redhead was real. She walked past Spike with arms at her side as she approached Willow. She then reached for Willow's arm and squeezed, she them reached for and caressed her cheeks before the blonde Slayer smiled and placed a hand over her mouth as tears formed in her eyes, "Will… you came back to us. You came back."
"Buffy" said Willow as she looked at the others behind the Slayer as they walked closer, "guys…. Listen.. this is complicated. I'm not your Willow, I'm from another reality. And I need to get back."
TBC.