So, yeah, it's been a while. But the adventure finally continues.
7.
The'besh
She sees him stiffen a little at the cool breeze winding its way through the open-sided hut. She wants to catch his eye, but he is quiet, mouth set in a hard line while he stares into the sputtering flames, and the words of encouragement she wants so badly to give voice to die on her tongue. Any words she has to offer him about Skaara now seem like false hope, and she knows Jack won't entertain it.
He's had far too much tragedy in his life for that.
Not that she believes that this possible lead is entirely without potential. It's just that she knows that, out of all the Stargate addresses they found on Abydos, the chances are vanishingly small that the dialling programme would throw out a winning number so soon into their, frankly, monumental search.
Daniel, on the other hand, seems to need all the encouragement he can get.
She momentarily drops her gaze to her hands before glancing back over at him. His expression isn't all that different from Jack's, but he at least offers her an attempt at a smile when she successfully catches his eye. It's a half-hearted attempt though, and she knows he's been thinking along similar lines. Her hand finds his shoulder, but he averts his eyes, instead looking down at the empty, earthenware bowl between his fingers. He gives it a careless spin, and it tips over harmlessly, rolling a short distance across the grass matting they sit on.
"I see you have had enough of the tea," Sani says, amusement in his voice.
Both her and Daniel's heads snap up in unison, and she realises the Colonel is already standing, Sani and Anoki beside him. Anoki has what look like waterskins, and small, wrapped parcels, slung over his shoulders.
"Please," Sani says, "we are ready."
He sweeps his arm dramatically in the direction he clearly wants them to go, and Teal'c rises effortlessly, offering her a hand, which she happily takes.
Daniel goes to retrieve the bowl, fumbling it awkwardly, and Sani laughs, stepping towards him. "A student of Amun should not concern himself with such things."
The woman who was preparing the tea earlier is suddenly at Daniel's side, head bowed in silence, and takes the bowl gently from his hand. Sam doesn't miss Daniel's slight frown as he stands and joins her and Teal'c, while Jack remains next to Anoki.
Sani smirks, and turns, descending the low step surrounding the hut. "Come."
Jack turns slightly, his eyes flicking briefly over his team before gesturing with a lift of his chin in Sani's direction and following. Sam narrows her eyes at his seeming detachment, but shrugs it off as Teal'c stretches one large hand out in front of them, silently urging her on.
Sani leads them through the village. Some of the people pause in their tasks and stare as the small procession passes by, but otherwise, the excitement from earlier appears to have dissipated. Like on Abydos, the village is primitive, but the simple buildings betray signs of more complex architecture and wood-work, some more so than others, and Sam wonders if there is some sort of class divide in place. Open-sided huts sheltering women and children busy with what looked like weaving and sewing, mixed with more secluded homes walled with something resembling sheets of paper or light fabric stretched between wooden beams. Again, it strikes Sam how strangely oriental it is, and the strong, inviting smell of cooking rice punctuates it all. She'll admit that she's only ever had a passing interest in ancient history, but she is curious how these people of seemingly Asian descent have come to worship an alien playing the role of an Egyptian god. She thinks she'll ask Daniel about that later.
Daniel walks ahead of her, head swivelling left and right as he also takes in their surroundings. There's a tension in his frame though, and she guesses that he is anxious about what they will find at this temple. She takes a deep breath, forcing herself to relax her own shoulders; she'll admit that she's not all that thrilled at how far they've walked from the gate already – nevermind the fact that the temple is apparently another hour or so from here.
They reach the edge of the village, where soft, almost yellow earth gives way to grass that is finer and more well-trodden than what they walked across earlier on their way into the settlement. It would make sense since, according to Sani, no one had been through the gate in some time. A gentle rise leads them onto what looks like a plateau, and after several minutes of walking Sam looks back to find the village completely obscured, nestled safely in a shallow valley, thin smoke trails from a number of fires the only clue that it was even there. Teal'c, who is just behind her, pauses to follow her gaze and takes a moment to survey the scene himself. His expression is almost serene, betraying only the smallest hint of interest. It's calming, and she offers him a small smile as he inclines his head, prompting her to keep going. Ahead of her, Daniel attempts to pass the Colonel, probably with the intention of walking with Sani, but Jack puts a hand solidly on his shoulder, and with a shake of his head, Daniel falls into step beside him without protest. She thinks she sees a small bit of that vibrating energy evaporate from the archeologist like an exhaled breath.
For a man who appeared to be so impatient in so many ways, the Colonel certainly had an effortless way of reading tension, and reining it in - the mark of an exceptional commanding officer.
Not for the first time, she recalls that morning, weeks ago now, after their confrontation at O'Malley's. They'd been in his truck, and she'd been burning with a question for him that had haunted her for years. His response had floored her: a complete lack of regret about risking his life for her and her crew, and an unwavering resolve to do it again if he had to.
Sam remembers her absolute surety in that moment that she'd follow him to hell and back.
She finds that feeling hasn't lessened at all.
What she isn't quite sure of, though, is why Jack seems to want to keep a little distance between the team and Sani - the man being elderly and an unlikely threat. He was clearly weary of Anoki, and she guesses he wants the boy in his sights at all times. Anoki is just ahead to the right of them, almost jogging to keep pace with Sani. The waterskins and packs he carries seem heavy, but he doesn't approach his elder, or any of the team, for help.
There was always the possibility that they were walking into an ambush - Goa'uld temples tended to go hand in hand with the presence of a Goa'uld, after all.
She pauses then, and scans the horizon in the direction Sani is leading them. Grey skies heavy with cloud sit like a lid on top of red ochre earth that's marbled with streaks of yellow and soft green; it looks so different from the saturated, enveloping greens of their walk to the village.
Teal'c stops next to her, catching her eye for just a second. "Are you well, Doctor Carter?" he asks.
She nods, takes a deep breath of the cool, moist air that promises rain again, and walks on.
She can't shake the feeling that there is something wrong with the land here.
/
/
They walk along the plateau for some time before it gradually begins to descend. Grass recedes, and the terrain becomes dry earth and loosely packed stones. The cool breeze has picked up and changed direction, becoming a strong headwind. Sam suspects it's being channelled from somewhere, and has her suspicions confirmed when the area ahead appears to dip into a wide valley resembling an old riverbed.
Just ahead, Sani raises his arm and calls sharply, "May-im. Be-le!"
Anoki scrambles over, quickly presenting a waterskin to the older man, but Sani gestures in Daniel's direction. They all have their own canteens, but it's clear Daniel doesn't want to cause unnecessary tension by refusing any kind of hospitality, and he takes the skin from Anoki, who bows his head and steps back submissively.
"Thank you," Daniel says, taking a long drink and then handing the skin to Jack, now standing at his shoulder.
"This looks like it was once a river," Sam muses, coming to a stop and taking the opportunity to adjust the straps of her pack.
Sani blinks at her as if he'd forgotten she was there, and nods, turning to Daniel. "Yes. Long before my father and his father, when Amun still walked The'besh with his people, it is said that He gathered a great wind to push back the waters flowing in the very place you now stand.
"So fierce were the waters that, each year when the rains came, many were swept away. But Amun saw the plight of his people, took control of the great waters, and formed the immense barrier that is south of the village.
"And so, Amun not only tamed the waters, but forced them to flood the ground and give rise to our most bountiful crop."
The reverence in the old man's voice is unmistakable, and he gestures then at one of the parcels Anoki carries. Anoki quickly slides a rope which binds two parcels at each end off of his shoulder, and hands them to Sani. As Sani opens one of the parcels, Sam realises that they are filled with rice, and Sani offers some to Daniel, Jack, Teal'c, and then finally her. She glances at Jack, who nods minutely before taking a cautious bite.
For a moment, the only sound is of everyone quietly chewing the offered rice. It's obvious to Sam that the story is about the building of a dam using engineering that was well beyond the capabilities of the people at the time, and so appeared miraculous to them.
But she highly doubts the apparent altruistic motives implied by the tale. Goa'uld were evil, selfish beings, who cared little for the lives of people. They were either slaves, or hosts; bodies taken at their convenience while suppressing the consciousness of another sentient being.
The rice is suddenly dry in Sam's mouth, and she swallows thickly.
A waterskin is pressed suddenly into her hand, and her gaze quickly shifts from the skin to the eyes of the man now standing close to her. His expression is guarded, but something almost sad passes over his features, and Sam suspects that Jack feels a certain amount of pity for these people who have been so thoroughly deceived.
"Thanks," she says, and takes a drink, washing down her desire to start relieving Sani of his delusions along with the starchy taste of the rice.
"How close are we to the temple, Sani?" Jack asks.
"Not far," he responds, pointing towards where the riverbed appeared to get deeper. "The same distance again."
"You mentioned 'The'besh'," Daniel says. "Is that what you call your village, or this, um... area?"
"The'besh is our home, Daniel. It is everything you see around you."
Sam can nearly see the gears turning in Daniel's brain at this point, and clearly so can the Colonel. "I think we're all good to continue," Jack says, in an attempt to get everyone moving again. "We only have... a few hours before nightfall?" He pauses, giving her a quizzical look.
"The data from the M.A.L.P on the initial reconnaissance of P3-575 indicated a similar rotation to Earth..." she offers, and waits for that little crease between his eyebrows to deepen before she continues, "...so, yeah, it's pretty much early afternoon."
He narrows his eyes at her, and she ducks her head to hide her smirk.
He turns back to Sani. "Please, lead on."
"We'd like to get as much time in the temple as possible," Daniel adds.
Sani dips his head in a small bow, and then smoothly plucks the waterskin from her hands before she's even registered the movement.
"Ka, Anoki."
The boy takes the skin back from Sani, repositioning it over his shoulder, and Sani turns on his heel back in the direction they were previously heading.
Teal'c's response is a raised eyebrow, and Daniel offers a shrug.
"C'mon," Jack urges, and bumps his shoulder against hers.
The riverbed does get deeper as they walk on, and walls once smoothed by torrents of water seem to rise and pull in around them like the beginning of a gorge. The ground is compacted here, a mix of pale yellow and red rock, with very little vegetation other than a few tufts of weed-like grasses.
"So, does the name 'The'besh' have any historical significance?" she asks Daniel as he falls into step beside her.
"Not 'The'besh' specifically," he replies, "but it sounds like a variation of Thebes to me.
"Thebes was an ancient Egyptian city that also went by another name, 'niwt-'imn', meaning, guess what..." he pauses for dramatic effect, "..."City of Amun"."
"Mmm... why am I not surprised," she replies, rolling her eyes. "They're not exactly creative, are they?"
"But consistently egotistical," he adds, and she chuckles softly. "The Asian influences are a bit more interesting..."
"You read my mind," she says. "I wanted to ask you about that."
"Umm...well, there were people immigrating to ancient Egypt from areas of Asia for centuries. Mostly West and Southwest Asia, though - these people seem like they would've originally come from much further East," he continues. "Not impossible, but fascinating to see."
"So what's the connection to Thebes?"
Daniel pushes his glasses back up his nose, and tilts his head in thought.
"So, these Asiatics came to be powerful rulers by about the 15th Dynasty, even controlling parts of Egypt. They were called 'Hyksos', meaning "rulers of foreign lands", and there's a lot of scholarly debate about how they came to power, but it was Thebes that was instrumental in taking it back from them and restoring Egyptian rule."
"And Thebes is connected to Amun," she says softly, almost to herself.
"And Amun is connected to Amaunet," he adds.
The words float between them like a bubble - so delicate the most gentle prodding could destroy it.
Sam can't help but prod. "Do you think this may actually be one of Amaunet's territories, Daniel?"
"I know it sounds like a long shot," he says it like he's talking to himself rather than her, "but I have to think that it might be."
She nods slowly and lets her gaze drift down to her feet - unable to look him in the eye. She gets it, she really does: he needs hope.
Probabilities and odds weren't going to help with that.
She reaches over and gives his arm a squeeze; he responds with a crooked smile before looking away again.
"Actually," he says, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully, "I'd love to know when these people were displaced here - the rebellion against Ra and the burying of the gate at Giza would've pre-dated any significant connection between Thebes and the Asiatic people."
It wasn't something she'd given much thought to before. "You think other Goa'uld could've still been active on Earth?"
"It's... certainly possible."
"I get the feeling we're just scratching the surface of what they've been doing," she says, the enormity of the realisation that these creatures could've been meddling, unnoticed, in human affairs for possibly all of written history was almost too much to absorb.
"Incredible, isn't it?" he says, flatly.
"Not exactly the word I'd use," she replies.
/
/
When they first see it, Sam feels like everyone takes a collective breath as they stop in their tracks. It's not grand or imposing like the palace on Chulak, but it is beautiful - even in its current state of disrepair.
It's a baffling mix of stone and wood, arranged into something that was neither entirely Asian or Egyptian - emerging from the tall rocky walls like the Treasury at Petra.
Only there are tiers of faded, wooden pagoda eaves sitting atop stone columns, decorated with delicate carvings that have been chipped and weathered.
One look at Daniel's face says it all; a mixture of delight and utter confusion. Teal'c plants the butt of his staff weapon into the ground and tilts his head back, taking in the strange sight.
Next to her, Jack starts quietly humming the theme tune to Indiana Jones.
Daniel turns towards him, eyes wide and incredulous.
"What?" Jack says with feigned innocence.
She takes the opportunity to jab her elbow into his ribs, and he flinches away. "Easy, Carter." He's meant it to be a warning, but there's a tiny flicker of bemusement across his face, and he blinks.
Sam juts out her chin and smiles sweetly at him - happy to have reminded him that she wasn't military. "Yes, Jack?"
Teal'c's lips curl slightly in a rare grin.
Sani, who is ahead of them, notices that the team has stopped. Delighted by their response to the temple, he calls, "Magnificent, is it not?" He stretches his hands out then, palms up, in a gesture of almost religious obeisance, and they all walk over to join him standing at the entrance.
Sam guesses that Anoki has already entered as orange torch light begins to fill the interior and spill out of the wide doorway, giving the pitted, red surface of the pillars a strange glow in the shadow of the rocky walls.
Jack looks over at Daniel, and lifts his chin in the direction of the entrance.
"With your permission, Sani?" Daniel asks the old priest.
"Of course, Daniel," Sani replies, bringing his hands up to his chest, "but I'm afraid your female companion cannot join you. It is forbidden."
"Um... right," Daniel says carefully. "We understand." He catches Sam's eye over Sani's head and offers an apologetic shrug. She rolls her eyes - it's annoying, but she can't say she's surprised.
Jack touches her arm gently, diverting her attention. "So I get guard duty?" she sighs, trying hard to not let her disappointment colour her tone.
"I'm going to keep Daniel company," he replies, "and you and Teal'c are going to check out the area.
"Believe me," he continues, tilting his head towards Daniel, whose attention is now solely on the temple, "you're getting the better deal."
She breathes a soft laugh, and he shares a mollifying smile with her before awkwardly patting her on the shoulder and walking over to Daniel. She doesn't miss how he subtly shifts his gear so that his MP5 is at the ready, and Daniel lets him take point without protest.
Sam turns to Teal'c, who is still studying the temple's exterior thoughtfully. "I do not know why this temple is here, Doctor Carter," he says. "It is an unusual distance from the settlement, and further still from the Stargate."
"And I'm guessing Goa'uld don't build dams for the benefit of their slaves."
"Indeed," he replies, raising an eyebrow and levelling her with an appraising look.
"So let's find out what they were really doing here, Teal'c."
/
A/N: So I didn't update as I'd hoped, which is a terrible understatement. I can say I'm more motivated to write than I've been for some time. Long may it last! Also, be kind with the artistic license I've applied to historical references – I'm no archaeologist, or historian, but I did do a lot of research to try and add reasonable depth and interest.
As always, thank you so much all followers/favouriters/readers/reviewers!
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of the Stargate franchise. All other characters mentioned in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.