Thanks for yours reviews
Chapter 10: Let the adventure begin
Jack was startled. His hand instinctively reached for his gun and the other made to point the light in the direction of the voice. That was when he saw her, leaning against the door, the door that lead to the room he had just searched. It was Angela. What followed happened so quickly that Jack had no time to react. She rushed him, delivered a swift punch and in the same movement managed to handcuff him to the radiator. A few moments later and he was attached and half assomme. He lifted his hand up to touch his face and nose; he was bleeding heavily. He tried to break free but neither the radiator nor the cuffs were being all too cooperative. He was still kneeling on the floor next to the radiator when he began to look for his gun. He did not know how but somehow she was holding his gun in her hand . In all honesty, most of the last few minutes were a blur to him including how he ended up where he currently was. She was wearing leather jacket with a khaki top which showed off her midriff. Her brown-white hair spilled over her shoulders. She wore an old pair of black jeans and her hands were covered by leather mittens.
"You really ought to sit down properly," Angela said, indicating the couch.
"How did you...?" He did not continue as the blood was still gushing.
"I did say I'd be back for my gun," she said as she played with the weapon she had taken from Jack.
"You broke my nose, you..."
"I hope it's broken," she said, cutting him off in midsentence. She got up to wash her hands which he now saw were covered in blood. She went into the bathroom and handed him what she went to fetch, "here, take this towel and compress." She then got up again to go and get a beer.
"Were you in the cemetery?" Jack said hesitantly.
"Yes," she said as she opened the bottle.
"Why?" he said as he sat down on the sofa while he looked all round the room searching for a solution.
"Don't bother."
"What?" Jack said, clearly surprised.
"Don't bother looking for a way to escape, there's no way out."
"That's what you think, sweetheart," Jack said.
Without warning, she promptly stood up and slapped him across the face.
"What the hell was that for?"
"So you'll stop trying to escape and for calling me 'sweetheart'. I never run away and I don't appreciate people who do. Clearly we don't agree on that score."
"You read it?" Jack asked, again surprised. Clearly she was referring to the message he had left in the book at the cemetery. "I was talking about your feelings. You always run away from them. You can't just keep pretending like they're not there. Ever since the beginning, any time we talk about 'us' you make like it's not happening and retreat into your shell. Maybe you're just afraid of someone getting too close or maybe it's something else, I don't know, but you have to figure that one out for yourself."
"I always do."
"So why are you here, then? If not for your own sake then what?" Jack asked in a serious tone of voice. "I'd really like to know how you got here. Did you follow me back?"
"No, I found your little hideout a while ago," Angela answered.
"?"
"I traced your signal when you logged on to track me after that talk the day before yesterday. It wasn't that hard, really. A kid could have done it", Angela said with a shrug as she took a gulp of the beer she held.
"Why were you at your grave?" Jack asked, trying to buy some time, enough time perhaps to find a way to escape."
"To keep myself company, you know? I take advantage of the fact so I can lay flowers on my own grave: different ones every time. Thank you for the roses by the way. I also go there to meditate and have some me time. I needed to reflect before I made an important decision."
"And that's why you're here?"
"Yes and I was hoping I'd find you alone."
"So, you didn't come here to kill me?"
"Is that what you really think of me?" she said, sounding disappointed, "you think I'm some heartless person who kills with no remorse?" She said as she swigged the last of her beer.
"Well...no," he said, thinking on it more seriously. He had never actually seen her kill anyone, even in anger. She usually took out her enemies with non-fatal means which actually reassured him slightly.
She stood up and jabbed her pistol against the small of his back. She then made her way over to the fridge to get herself another beer.
"You should take it easy with that stuff in your condition," Jack said.
Angela quickly made her way back to the sofa and sat down. There was no expression on her face. It was hard for Jack to carry on speaking.
"Oh, yes, I know all about your condition," stressing 'all'. Seeing she wasn't reacting, he went on, "your old CO and Dr Carter, we spoke about it. How come you never told me about it before?"
"What difference would it have made? Nothing," she said, getting another beer.
"You're wrong," Jack whispered.
Angela raised her head to look him in the eye, as if scrutinising him. "Did she hear me? Was she assuming something about my feelings?", he thought to himself. Angela didn't react to the bait, however. Instead, she found a chair to sit on and started reading the documents and he saw her smile.
"You certainly didn't make it easy for us to find you, Angela."
"Yes, I see that. You didn't have much to go on to be fair."
"Yeah, you definitely saw to that."
"Can you blame me? For all I know you're all trying to find me for a bad reason."
"Yes, a bit like today", Jack said. Suddenly Angela's interest in the conversation piqued, "I don't know what's going on, but we'd have to be crazy to come you for help, unless it's serious."
"Of course," she said, sounding somewhat disappointed.
She brought her attention back to the files and then saw a folder. She got up and focussed on it. She reached into the top of her trousers and took out a dagger. She used it to open the envelope. Seeing that dagger did nothing to assuage his worry. He wondered why daggers were even allowed to be sold. He was sure they actually weren't, but she had clearly got a hold of one anyway. Before his eyes flashed an image of drops of blood coating the blade. The blade was made of sliver, around 4 inches long and 3 thick. It was a folding dagger, which made it look even more menacing. It looked very sharp to his eyes. The envelope was no match for it. When she'd finished, she returned the dagger to its place next to her right leg.
She finally opened the envelope after a brief hesitation. Once open, he could have sworn he saw a tear roll down her cheek as she looked at a photo. She took out the photos and a frame. She took the photo out of the frame and put them all away in her file.
"Where did you get these?" she asked, breaking the silence.
"Colonel Carter found them at your last posting. We thought they might help us, but we never opened them."
"When do they need to go back home?"
"I don't know. They didn't tell me, I didn't want to go with them."
"Because of your cold?"
"Yes. you realise they've brought a shock team to find you?"
"And you're part of that team, I take it?" she said as she flipped through the folder.
"Not just me. Your old friend Bryan too."
That got the reaction he had been looking for. On hearing that name, she lifted her head to see if Jack was playing games. On seeing that he wasn't, she put the folder to one side and again went to sit down in the chair.
"How is he?"
"You'll find out soon enough," seeing that Angela was getting up, he carried on, "he looks pale. He's not been sleeping well and he's very tired."
"I find it hard to sleep as well," she said, for the first time opening up to Jack and talking about her weaknesses.
"Why?"
"It's nothing to do with you. We all have our problems."
"Angela, we've spent quite some time looking for you," he said, changing the subject.
"I know."
"How?"
"I have my sources."
"Ah, yes, you and your famous sources. You always did seem one step ahead."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing. It's just that you always seem to know things you shouldn't."
"Who else came with you?"
"Don't bother, you won't figure it out."
"I've got an idea. I know you set up camp near my work. I followed you one night and spotted it."
"I see," Jack said. Angela was now beginning to get on his nerves, "well, it looks as if you've got it all worked out."
She shot him a look that made him think for a moment she was going to kill him. He dared not look her in the eyes. She, however, did nothing.
"I think John is with you as well," Angela threw in, seeming pleased with herself.
She turned her attention to Bryan's laptop. She got up to go look for it. Jack had forgotten to close several files on it, at which he silently cursed. He wanted to react, but she had already seized on the pc. When she saw the photos, her face lost its colour, whitening instantly.
"Where did you get these?" Angela asked.
Jack had no time to answer, however. There was a sound of a key in the lock. Angela was suddenly on guard, switching off the lights and unplugging the lamps.
Two hours earlier.
The two teams had met up in a small restaurant to report on the day's events. Mitchell never looked up from his cell phone; he was waiting for a call with great interest, an interest Teal'c picked up on. Angela was supposed to have given them her answer today, but as yet there was still nothing. It wasn't like her to miss a meeting. He hadn't even noticed the rest of them had got up to leave. In the car, silence reigned, everyone keeping to themselves. And, just so as to stick with the theme, the rain continued to fall as it had.
The small group went back into the apartment block in total silence. Sam was at point and made her way up the stairs toward the apartment. She looked for the keys and put the one she was looking for in the lock. She turned the doorknob slowly, which for the others seemed to last an eternity. Once open, Sam discovered the place was pitch black. With her right hand she pushed the door and with her left she fumbled for the hallway light switch. The only light on in the place was the lamp next to the sofa. The first thing she saw was Jack's shadow, sitting on the sofa. She was relieved as she entered the room:
"How was your day, Jack?" Sam asked.
No answer.
"What's going on?" Mitchell asked when he was in the room.
"I don't know. The lights aren't working and Jack won't answer," Sam said.
They both drew their guns. Mitchell approached Jack with care while Teal'c searched for the kitchen light switch. Mitchell was a few inches away from Jack. He could see that Jack was bruised and shackled to the radiator.
"He's been tied to the radiator," Mitchell said.
"Is he okay?" John asked, as he tried to see what was around him in the darkness.
"I can't see anything. I need more light so I can unshackle him."
"But who...?" Sam started to ask.
Suddenly the lights came on.
"Is it better with the light on?" came a voice.
Everyone turned towards the direction of the voice in question. Its owner was a young woman standing next to the living room light switch. She sat back down. No-one was quite sure what to say. They looked at her in total surprise.
"You should see the look on your faces. Anyone would think you'd just seen a ghost," that ghost being Angela herself, of course.
Mitchell freed Jack from the cuffs, all the time looking at Angela with more than a hint of mistrust. "Why did she chain Jack up?" As soon as Jack was free, he launched himself at Angela taking everyone by surprise, including her. She tried to avoid the attack but it was too late. The shock was terrible: Jack pushed her against the wall, pinning her there by the shoulders, her breath cut off. Angela reacted when she felt blood drip from her lower lip. The taste of it in her mouth made her act. She hit him with all her strength in order to break free. He retaliated by jabbing her ribs while she got ready to drop kick him, delivering her strike into his stomach. He flew backward, knocked out of the fight. Angela was leaning against the wall, hand on hip where she felt an intense pain. A hot liquid was pouring out over her hand and top: it was blood. During the fight there hadn't been time for anyone to intervene. Now John was helping Jack to get up while Mitchell went to join Angela. She was paralysed by the pain. She was supporting her whole bodyweight against the wall so as not to lose her balance, but let herself fall down so that Mitchell could examine her wound. Everyone was in a heightened state of alert, not completely sure what had just taken place. Sam went to fetch the first aid kit. Jack stood up with difficulty, he was badly shaken up. He looked over at Angela, proud of the result his revenge had had. John helped Jack to sit down and took a look at his nose and injuries. Mitchell and Teal'c picked Angela up and laid her down on the bed in the room next door. It was chaos everywhere. Bryan went up to Angela and gently lifted up her t-shirt. He winced when he saw her wound. It would have been bad had there only been one, but her stomach was covered in barely-healed scars. On seeing Bryan's face, Angela tried to reassure him:
"I just need to rest a little. I'll be right as rain in ten minutes," she said.
"You've always been such an optimist, Angela but it's nice to see you again," Bryan said. He moved aside a few strands of hair that were covering her eyes, while Mitchell and Sam cleaned up her wound.
"In any case, I hope Jack's in a worse state, but I'm going to ... ouch, easy," she said.
"You're not going to do anything. He's part of the team and anyway you started it," Bryan said, trying to calm the fire.
"I think you'll be okay. I think the wound's just opened up again," Sam pronounced. "It's nice to see you again, Angela."
"Likewise, Sam."
"I'm just going to check on our other patient," Bryan said before heading to the other room.
Mitchell sat down where Bryan had been at the end of the bed with Sam sitting opposite. Sam waited a few seconds before asking the question she had been burning to ask.
"If you're here, does that mean you've thought about our offer?"
"Oh yes, I've thought a lot about it, especially after the talk I had with Mitchell and Teal'c. I won't deny it, I am curious and I'd like to know more. From what they said, it sounds quite interesting and intriguing."
"Oh, really?" Sam said, shooting a look at the two men, "I see you've been having some meetings of your own."
The two men didn't seem to know what to do.
"Ah, Angela, she wasn't quite up to speed with that," Mitchell said.
"Well, I had my suspicions, but I had to check to be sure," Angela said smiling.
"Indeed, we did not have sufficient time to discuss the matter," Teal'c explained.
"No time? Come on!" Sam let out with a sigh.
Angela made to get up but Sam made her lie back down on the bed.
"You'd be better off resting a few more minutes. I'll go find you something to eat and then we can talk properly," she said as she made her way to the other room, "oh and by the way, Angela, you're under orders not to leave this room without my authorisation, is that clear?"
"Okay, I promise," Angela said.
Sam left Angela and Mitchell by themselves. Teal'c swiftly followed.
"I don't think she liked the fact that we met you without telling her," Mitchell started.
"I think you're right," Angela said jokingly.
She brought herself up to a sitting position on the edge of the bed. Mitchell, still sat down, looked like he was about to stop her but thought better of it.
"So, have you made your decision?"
"Yes, Mitchell. That doesn't mean I'm going to help you, but I'm going to listen to all your arguments. It's been a long time since I last got in a plane."
"Since the accident?"
"Yes. I don't know how I'm going to react," she said as she clasped her hands. It did not escape his notice.
"What are the gloves for?"
"Ah, them," she said, showing him her hands, "they're made of leather."
"And?"
"They're to protect me; the gloves channel my energy. I can almost live a normal life without worrying if I'm going to create some kind of disaster. They have their limits, though. Sometimes, when I'm really angry, all the gloves do is tone down the strength of my powers."
"Why did you tie Jack up?"
"I don't know. I felt like it. He didn't do anything in particular. But, after what he did to me tonight, I should've been harder on him; his response was completely out of proportion. Our last mission didn't turn out exactly the way I'd hoped," she said as she got up, "but, I'm not here to talk about the past; I'm here to talk about the present. So, what's going to happen now?"
"We'll go back to the US," he saw Angela tense up, "what is it?"
"I'll have to get on a plane?"
"Oh, of course, I hadn't thought about that."
Angela started pacing about the room. Mitchell felt like giving her some words of reassurance, but none were forthcoming.
"When do we leave?" she asked, having finished her pacing in front of the window.
"As soon as possible," he said as he joined her, "but I'll be with you every step of the way. We'll get through this together," he said as he put a reassuring hand on her shoulder and Sam came back into the room.
"I brought what I could find," Sam said. On finding the bed empty, she cast a glance around the room and found the two of them in the corner of the bedroom. The others tried to stop the bleeding from Jack's nose. "I think he might need to go to hospital to stop the haemorrhage."
Daniel came into the bedroom with a few beers in hand.
"Hi, Daniel." Daniel returned the greeting.
"Nice to see you again," Angela said.
Mitchell looked confused. It seemed that Daniel and Angela knew each other pretty well.
"Thanks for the food," Angela said as she opened the window, "but I'm afraid I can't stay. I need to pack my bags and get my dog ready for the trip." With that, she jumped through the window.
No-one could have reacted fast enough to stop her. Mitchell tried to grab her, but she had already leapt. All he could do was watch her land, three floors below them. Moments after reaching the ground, she headed in the direction of the curb, where her black moped was parked. She donned her black helmet and sped off. Back in the room silence reigned. They couldn't understand why Angela reacted the way she did.
"Why did you let her get away?" Jack asked a few minutes later, while holding an ice pack against his cheek.
"It all happened so fast," Daniel said, "what did you expect us to do, jump out after her?"
"What floor are we on now?" John asked, still tending Jack's forehead.
"Third floor," said Bryan.
"That's one hell of a fall," John went on.
"Indeed," Teal'c commented, following which silence fell.
Each one of them kept to themselves in a corner. Bryan finally broke the silence:
"So what do we do now?"
"We'll go looking for her tomorrow morning. I think we could all use some rest," said Sam, looking at Jack in particular.
"She did say she was willing to go with us," Daniel pointed out.
"Maybe, but after what happened tonight, I'd rather not take any chances."
"But she said she was going to pack her bags and get ready for the trip," Daniel argued.
"And you believe her?" Jack was not in a good mood tonight. If the cold wasn't bad enough, he now had a headache to go with it. "I think we should capture her."
"We're not here for a manhunt and I don't think there's any more to discuss."
"Oh, but I don't agree. That's exactly what this is," Jack countered.
"You took a blow to the head, stop talking crap," Bryan said, handing a glass of water and some painkillers.
"No, I know what I'm saying..." Jack went on.
"Calm down," Sam stopped them both, "it won't do any good to get worked up like this. I think we should go look for her but without hurting her." Upon seeing Jack's incredulous look, she carried on, "just to be on the safe side, we'll tranquilise her." She set about searching for a case and opened it. "This is a tranq-gun, the tips are coated in a powerful mix of tranquiliser and anaesthetic. She'll just fall into a deep sleep."
"And you think that'll work, Colonel?" Bryan asked.
"You got any other ideas?"
"I wouldn't be surprised," John said.
"No, I think this will work," Jack said. Everyone then turned to face him, "her reflexes are slower and her wits are duller. Before today, I never would have been able to attack her. I don't know what's wrong with her, but she's definitely weakened. We can take advantage of that and tranquilise her," Jack finished.
"Okay, it's decided. Now, who's going to do it?" Sam asked.
"I will," Jack said.
"I don't think that's such a good idea; she'll know it's a trap right away. I doubt she'll believe you're trying to make friends with her after what happened between you tonight," John said.
They all agreed: Bryan would take care of Angela. Sam showed him how the device worked. It was actually fairly simple to use, they were just darts. They rehearsed the plan so they were all familiar with it. After all, there was no margin for error.
The night was a stressful one and that tension did not lift as morning came. They started getting ready for the mission at around 4 am.
"So what do we do about the dog," Mitchell asked, seemingly worried. He'd forgotten all about that.
"What dog?" Bryan asked him, also with a concerned tone in his voice. He had no desire to take the beast on.
"She has a large dog, extremely thick-set," Teal'c elaborated.
"It's a male Rottweiler," Mitchell added, "and somehow I don't think it's going to sit idly by as we tranquilise its mistress."
"We don't have a choice, we'll have to use the gun on both of them. Given it's such a big dog, using the same dose should work," Sam decided.
"I hope so. In any case we'll have to be quick as we'll be on the campus," Bryan said.
"We should get there early," Jack suggested.
"What? To wake her up? I'd love to see her mood at that time of morning," John said.
"We could go take her a nice cup of coffee and some breakfast," Sam said. She turned to face Teal'c and Mitchell, both of whom had smiles on their lips. They had had the same idea themselves the first time they met her.
"I do not believe that will be necessary. The last time we went to see her, she had already risen," Teal'c clarified.
"Alright. Everyone remember their positions? Okay, let's go," Sam finished.
They all nodded in the affirmative. They went to prepare. Bryan was to meet Angela, engage her in conversation and keep her occupied while one team got itself into position as close as possible to the entrance in the car and the second team would block off all potential escape routes, in case their plan didn't work as they expected. Bryan knew exactly what he was going to say . He made his way over to Angela's room, the tension building within him all the way. He wondered if she would see it as a betrayal or lack of trust in her. "No, I've proven to her plenty of times that I have complete trust in her." He kept going over in his head what he was going to say to her, while he knocked three times on her door. Fear took over suddenly. He was afraid there would be no-one to answer the door and he'd somehow gotten the wrong room. Slowly, the door opened, a little too slowly for his liking, it was as if time was slowing down. The moment he saw Angela, he forgot everything he'd planned to say, the words refused to come out. The only thing he managed to say was a simple:
"Good morning," Bryan said.
Angela returned the greeting and hugged him. Her reaction surprised him to say the least. He didn't dare hug her, and instead stroked her hair with one hand.
"It's great to see you again, me too," he said, answering his own question.
She noticed that they were both in an awkward situation. She broke the unease.
"Well, come in then," she said.
She went over to her bed, where she had put her travel cases. Next to them was the dog.
"Well, as you can probably see, I'm just packing my bags," Angela continued, "I've just realised I've got a lot of belongings, maybe too many for someone who never stays in one place for very long," she said as she zipped up her cases.
"I'm sure you'll settle down some day."
"Oh yeah, and I'll have a handsome husband and loads of kids and live happily ever after. Oh, I almost forgot, you've never been introduced. This is my dog, Voyou," she said as she stroked the dog's massive head. "Isn't he cute?" I found him on the street. He'd just been chasing some robbers when I found him. His owner found him covered in blood and he wanted to get rid of him so there wouldn't be any trouble with the people he attacked. Can you believe he would have ended up with a bullet in the head just for doing what he was trained to do?"
"Life's cruel sometimes," Bryan said. What she had just told him was not in the least bit reassuring.
"Well, enough about me. What did you want to talk to me about?"
"Uh...," he no longer knew what he wanted to say, "nothing, it's fine. It seems like you're doing okay too."
"It depends on the day, but yeah I'm alright for the most part. So, what's new with you? Do you have a girlfriend? A new posting? It's been such a long time since we saw each other last, you must have so much to tell me.
"I did find someone. She's funny, very nice. And what about you since..."
"Since David? No, nothing serious. You know I went to go see him after I left. I know you warned me against it. I met his wife. She's lovely. The kids look like her, except for their eyes; they get them from their father. They were very kind to me except right at the beginning. I think they thought they'd seen a ghost."
"I told you that you and David weren't on the same path in life, I had to keep it secret."
"We talked a lot. I cried a lot as well afterward. Not because I wanted him, but because he'd found happiness. Look, his wife gave me this," she took off her necklace: it had Air Force dog tags on it. Bryan recognised them straight away, "she told me I should have them, that her husband would have wanted me to have them but he didn't have the strength to say it. We kept in touch."
"If it helps at all, he took your death pretty hard. The General told him you were dead. He even tried to commit suicide, he was that devastated," he sat near her on the bed and took her in his arms. He ran his fingers through the white streaks of her hair."I love your new hair colour," he said, attempting to change the subject. She got up brusquely.
"It's not a colour," she said.
"?"
"I don't produce melanin anymore, so all my new hairs come out white, especially at the root," she explained.
She went to a drawer in the small kitchenette from which she took out some tablets from the medicine case which she put in a small bag. Her back was turned to him. He slowly drew out the weapon and tranquilised the dog before it had a chance to react. He was almost about to shoot Angela as well but couldn't stop himself from saying:
"Angela."
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry."
"What for?"
She found herself facing Bryan, surprised to see he had a gun pointed at her. She didn't even realise he'd fired. When she finally did, it was too late; the dart had hit her in her left thigh. But nothing happened. She looked over in the direction of the bed and saw her dog. Now angry, she tore the dart from her thigh and threw it on the floor. sparks were beginning to fly from her fingers, in spite of the leather gloves.
"Let me explain, it's for your own good..." Bryan started to say. He hadn't expected this; she should have been knocked out by now. "It's just a tranquiliser, it'll just put you under."
"How could you...?" she wanted to go and see to her dog to check he was alright, but her head turned.
Her eyes showed the anger that was boiling up inside her. She suddenly felt heavy. Her head went first and banged loudly on the floor. Bryan watched her drop to the ground. Her hands continued to pulsate with energy. As he had planned, he made the sign. He went over to the window and opened it. He whistled. Two minutes later, the whole team was in Angela's room. Teal'c and Mitchell set about moving Angela's body. Bryan took the dog. The others took her cases.
"What took you so long?" asked Jack once they were back in the car.
"The dart didn't affect her straight away," Bryan explained.
"That can't be right. It's a powerful tranquiliser, the best there is," said Sam, clearly surprised.
"It took at least fifteen seconds for it to have any effect," Bryan said.
They drove to the airport where a private army jet was waiting for them. Sam had called General O'Neill to give him the news on the success of their mission. The General had then arranged a private jet to take them directly back to the base, all the while hoping that Angela would not reawaken en route. Speaking of which, Sam was concerned over how long the medication would last. It hadn't taken immediate effect and Angela would no doubt wake up quickly. She spoke about her worries to Mitchell. They decided they would cross that bridge when they came to it. Now that they were all safely onboard the jet, Mitchell decided to stay close to Angela. He wanted to be there if she woke up. Getting a little bored of keeping watch, Mitchell joined Daniel. He had a lot of questions to ask him. He learned that Daniel and Angela had been in a brief relationship. Daniel swore nothing else had happened between them. However, he refused to say anything about the reason for their break-up. When Mitchell saw that he wasn't going to coax anymore information out of Daniel, he turned his efforts to Sam. He didn't learn anything from her that he hadn't known already, however. Daniel was sitting behind the others. He was ensconced in translating some tablets. There were still some misty parts he didn't understand.
"Who was it?" a voice suddenly asked.
Daniel raised his head to twist his neck. The voice was Angela's. She was right in front of him. Daniel looked all around him: nobody else had realised that the young woman was awake.
"What?" Daniel asked, putting his papers in order.
"Who thought it would be a good idea to knock me out?" she said as she put her glove-covered hands on the table. Her powers were begin to show once again.
"It was Sam," not wanting to push things too far he carried on, "we thought it was the best thing for you, so you could sleep during the trip."
"Really? Shame you didn't use something a bit stronger. The leather doesn't stop my powers anymore. I'm controlling them for now, but it won't last forever."
"We have three more hours left until we reach the base, you need to hold on until then. If not, Sam will need to put you out again," Daniel said.
"That might be best for everyone," she said, all the time looking at Jack.
She hadn't forgotten the beating he had given her. Without thinking, she touched her hand to her hip, which Daniel noticed.
"I'd prefer it if we didn't have to knock you out again," Daniel said in a worried tone, "you're sure you're alright?"
"Yes, never better. The plane's making me tense, that's all," Angela said. She then changed her focus to the sheets of paper, "I see you're still translating ancient texts."
"Well, it's kind of my job. " He tried to put the papers away, but he wasn't fast enough. Angela took one of them.
"It's not Ancient Egyptian?"
"Nope," he tried again to take the paper back off her, but Angela insisted on reading it, "it's actually a lot older than that," he stated.
"How much older? Thousand years?" she asked, still looking at the sheets of paper.
The Ancient letters imprinted themselves on her eyes and her mind. She didn't understand them, but something inside her changed when she saw those letters. She didn't even hear Daniel reply. She traced her finger over one letter.
"What is it?" Daniel's question bringing her back into the real world.
"I'm sorry, you were saying?" her eyes had a lost look to them as she looked at the paper anew only to find that the sensation that had consumed her had now disappeared.
"I was saying it's more than 10,000 years old."
These words resonated inside Angela's head. The electricity coursing through her hands began to pick up in intensity. She focussed on the nothingness within her, as she had learned to do previously, in an attempt to calm her powers.
"Oh, you're awake," Mitchell said as he came over to join them, "You okay?"
Angela opened her eyes again and shifted towards the window so Mitchell could sit down next to her.
"Yes," she lied.
But her lies weren't going to convince them. Her hands were pulsating more and more and it did not go unnoticed.
"Daniel was just telling me about the history of these tablets," she said, showing him the pile of papers.
"Oh, yeah, those famous tablets are actually the reason we're here in this plane," Mitchell said.
"Are you going to let me in on this mystery or leave me in the dark?"
"In the dark, all the way," Mitchell joked.
"You're seriously not going to tell me? Do I need to remind you how persuasive I can be?"
"Even if you torture us, we're not gonna tell," Mitchell laughed.
But Angela wasn't in the mood for jokes. She shrunk back at the mention of torture. Daniel noticed this even while Mitchell carried on talking about what he was planning to do for the rest of the day once they got home. Angela heard none of it. Daniel seemed worried at the way she was behaving.
"Where's Voyou?" Angela said, interrupting Mitchell mid-sentence. He realised she hadn't heard anything he'd said.
"At the front of the plane. He's still sleeping," Daniel answered. "Don't worry, he's alright."
But Angela had already started toward the front of the plane. Daniel and Mitchell got up to follow her . When she got there, Angela bent down at her dog's side and stroked him to see if he was alright. She seemed confident that he was and she carried on stroking his fur. The dog reacted to her massage by stirring. He tried to get up, still unsure of his surroundings. When he came around, he leapt up at his mistress. Daniel and Mitchell sat in front of them.
"Why did you knock me out?" Angela asked, "I was going to come with you. So was he," she said, pointing to her dog.
"You would've gotten on the plane?" Mitchell asked.
"I..." she said uneasily, "I don't know."
"And in any case, we didn't want to take the dog with us, but we decided it would be easier for you if you saw him when you woke up. Besides, I don't think you ever would have forgiven us if we'd left him behind," Daniel finished.
"I see."
"We also didn't want him to turn on us. If he'd seen us drugging you, he would have defended you," Mitchell said, referring to the dog who had started paying attention, knowing it was the subject of the conversation.
"Of course he would have, just like I would have defended him."So, what have you been up to since the last time we saw one another?"
"I work for the Air Force as a translator, as you can see," Daniel said simply.
"What he forgot to mention is all the times when we risk our lives and we barely make it out of life and death situations. But whatever, that's just the norm for us. If it wasn't for that, we'd just get bored," Mitchell went on.
"Yes, I know the feeling," Angela shared, laughing.
"What about you?" Daniel asked seriously.
"Oh, it's probably better if you don't know," she said.
"?"
"Otherwise I'd have to kill you."
"Okay. How about telling me how the two of you met. You and Daniel, I mean," Mitchell said, trying to change the subject as he could see that Angela wasn't kidding.
"Well, it's not really such an interesting tale," Angela said.
"Yeah, it's actually pretty boring," Daniel finished.
Mitchell clearly wasn't going to find out the finer details of this story. He almost felt jealous of Daniel, the fact that he had shared such a friendship with Angela. But, he had also had his own intense experiences with her, which he would never forget and would very much like to experience again.
For the last two hours of the journey, they talked about current events, sport, a little of everything. The journey finished without incident. Once they got to the airport, they got ready to leave the plane. Two 4x4's were waiting for them as they got out. Angela picked up two of her bags, while Mitchell took the others. Bryan tried to take one of them himself, but Angela wouldn't let him. The dog trailed behind them at a leisurely pace. Once they got to the car, two airmen greeted them and took their bags. They bid farewell to Bryan who was making his own way from there on. Bryan and Angela shook hands in the guise of saying goodbye.
"Colonel Carter," one of the airmen greeted Sam, "the General apologises for not being able to come himself. You know how it is, Colonel."
Sam was, naturally, disappointed. She would have liked him to be there to congratulate her on a successful mission. Angela must have sensed her disappointment as she arched her head to one side, a gesture she often made. Sam understood that she meant it as a sign of compassion. In return, she smiled back at Angela.
The journey went on in silence. Angela, for her part, spent the time staring at the passing scenery. She felt like she was discovering it again after being away so long. About an hour before, they got to a military airport from which they had to take a helicopter. The only problem they had was Angela's hesitation to get on board and the dog's outright refusal to get inside. After several attempts, the dog finally relented. Once inside, he hid under Angela's legs, shaking like a leaf with chattering teeth. The journey did not take long and once they were back on the ground, Jack, John and Angela were frisked. Their cellphones, as well as all other electronic devices, were confiscated by US airmen. They carefully placed all of the confiscated items in a sealable plastic bag. One of the airmen handed them badges to wear. They put them on their chests. When he got to Angela, he attempted to do the same with her, taking the metal badge with care and coming closer to her when the inevitable happened.
"Ow," the solider yelped, getting away from Angela. Voyou growled.
"You hurt, Sergeant?" Mitchell asked.
"No, Colonel. Just an electric shock," the sergeant answered.
"Don't worry, Sergeant, we'll take care of it," Mitchell said, taking the badge as the airman backed off, feeling better as he got further away from the dog.
"You nearly knocked him out, Angela," John joked. Angela simply shrugged her shoulders.
Mitchell held the badge out to Angela so she could attach it herself. The metal detector was put to one side as it made a noise when Angela got near to it which also set off the alarms.
"Even machines bow down before you, Angela," John said, joking again.
Angela shot him a look. She was not in the mood for humour. She looked about at her surroundings, noticing all the cameras and came across several soldiers. Security was heightened here, with two soldiers following them closely, carrying the new arrivals' bags. Daniel suggested taking Angela on a tour of the base and showing her to her room while Mitchell took care of the two secret agents. Mitchell gave a reassuring look to Angela when they separated. They passed through several corridors that all looked alike. They then came to a dead end with several doors. Daniel made straight for the door to his right and opened it. He went in first, followed by the two airmen who placed the bags on the bed. This would be Angela's new room.
"Did you really need to bring all that?" Daniel asked, pointing at the bags.
"That's everything I own, well some of it. I had to leave the rest behind. Anyway, I had to if I was going to come to this base."
She looked around the room. It was quite spacious and she thought it would suit her nicely.
"This is usually reserved for special occasions," Daniel clarified.
"Really, then I must be a special guest. I take it that's why there are so few cameras in here even though the rest of the base is full of them?"
"It's a high-security installation, but this room much less so. You can open it with this card," Daniel said, handing her a simple card.
"Thanks, but I guess with this card I could get anywhere on this base."
"I guess so. I never thought about it that way," Daniel reflected.
"So, why am I here?" Angela asked, pointing to the bedroom.
"What do you mean?"
"What am I here to do? Steal something? Kill someone?"
"No, you're just here to pilot a ship," Daniel could not understand where all this was coming from, "like we already told you, we need to find weapons on another planet to use against the Ori."
"You brought me here, wanted my help, just because you needed a driver? I thought you'd want me to steal these "weapons" or kill these "Ori", I don't know. I'm just surprised that that's all you want me for; I'm used to going on much more dangerous and, dare I say, interesting missions."
"Saving the world doesn't count as interesting for you?" Daniel asked.
"No, that's not what I meant," she regretted having said that, "it's just that you've placed the bar a little high; saving a country is more my style. I don't know if I can perform at that level."
"Why?"
"I don't know. You don't even know what my skills are."
"We've read some of your files."
"Ah," then she laughed, "so you think everything you needed to know was in those files? From what I know, there's pretty much nothing in there. No, seriously, you chose the wrong person, I'm pretty much used up these days."
"You know, you actually do look pretty used up. Well, I don't think I left anything out, I'll leave you here to get settled. If you need anything, let me know. I already showed you where my room and my office are. Then there are the guards, of course."
"Why the guards?"
"Uh, it's just precaution, I think," Daniel said, not quite knowing how to answer.
"I'm not a dangerous individual," she said, tracing he finger over the table top, the movement causing the dust to fly, "or maybe they're just there to keep an eye on me in case I go walkabout," she said, all the while eyeing the line she'd traced in the dust, avoiding Daniel's gaze.
"Sorry about the dust. It's not often we clean and besides this room barely ever gets used. The guards are there because the General wants to know what you're doing."
"The famous General Jack O'Neill. I've never even met him."
"I'm sure you'll run into him and you'll know it when you do. He's very...direct. He's not a big fan of science jargon and he likes people to be straight with him. His sense of humour is a little strange; it's very particular to him and he's known for it. But he really is good at what he does. You'll soon get used to him, you'll see. He'll probably want to meet you as soon as he can; he'll want to get to know the person whose caused him so much trouble. He'll also want to establish some ground rules with you while you're on the base."
"I'm trouble for him?" Angela asked, "he must have moved heaven and earth to track me down."
"That's not what I meant. It's just that it hasn't been easy to = to convince the representatives of all the countries, especially France. You've been a difficult case and the US didn't want to offend any of the secret services you've worked for."
"Some of them must have been glad to be rid of me, I wasn't the easiest to get along with."
"Maybe, but the General didn't want to lose you. It seems you were an asset."
"I still am. I helped capture most of the terrorists that are sitting in your American secret prisons, even though I'm not proud of it. And I made certain demands"
"Demands?" Daniel asked.
"Yes, I asked that no-one be executed without trial, even if I had my doubts as to whether that would happen. I made those demands so I could put my conscience at ease and look back without regret. And make no mistake, from time to time I check to see that they're still being upheld." Angela smiled at Daniel, "and if they didn't keep their promise, believe me it came back on them."
"?"
"I have diplomatic immunity in fifty countries, so I can risk doing certain things and..."
"I don't need to hear anymore, ...I think I've told you everything you need to know. I'll let you get settled unless there's anything else you want?"
"When will I get my things back?"
"Phones aren't allowed."
"Computers?"
"I'll see what I can do but it will be restricted access and communications are pretty strictly monitored."
"How long will I be here?"
"?"
"So I know if I need to unpack everything," Angela said, looking at her bags.
"I think it's safe to say you'll be here a little while," Daniel said as he left Angela with her travel bags.
Angela then set about putting her belongings away, starting off with her clothes, then her books and other knickknacks, given that her weapons case and electronic devices were still at the front entrance to the base. On the desk she put several photos of her parents, her friends and her dog. She hesitated as she came to the last photo, one showing her with a soldier on a jeep. A tear fell down her cheek. She put the photo next to the others. Looking over her new room, she seemed happy with how everything was put together, the room itself looking brighter. She finished by laying down Voyou's bed next to her own and his two bowls.
When it was time to eat, she laid her bags down on her new bed and headed for the canteen.
On her way there, she saw very few people. When she finally found the canteen, it had only just opened. She took a tray, helped herself to some food and found a table at the back of the room from which she could see everyone. She had gotten into the habit of never having her back turned when eating. She expected to see Daniel or Sam or even Jack or John and was slightly disappointed when no-one came in. She wasn't in the mood to wait for them and, once she finished, took some meat and bread in a napkin and left.
When she got back to her room:
"I'm sorry, I could only get this for you. Next time you can come with me," she said, speaking to her dog. She put the contents of the napkin into his bowl. She noticed there was a note on her desk signed "Mitchell." She read it, smiled and went to sleep, her dog settling next to her.
An hour earlier, Mitchell had joined Daniel in his office. The latter was still engrossed in his translations. He took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, a sign of his resignation and fatigue.
"Did everything go okay with Angela?" Mitchell asked, breaking the silence.
"Oh, it's you," Daniel yawned, "I didn't hear you come in," Daniel said as he put his glasses back on and dove back into his paperwork. "Yeah, she's getting settled in. She noticed the cameras straight away and didn't appreciate the guards."
"Yeah, that's to be expected, I guess."
"Maybe, but I'm surprised she spotted all the cameras."
"Well, she's not a secret agent for nothing," Mitchell joked, "she's a master of her trade."
"She certainly is. It scares me sometimes; I get the impression that she knows everything, like she's reading your thoughts."
"She's had the same effect on me too."
"It's even a bit disturbing," Daniel said as he ordered his papers. "I take it you're heading for food?"
"Yeah, Sam and Teal'c are meeting us there; they still have some stuff to finish," Mitchell said.
"Oh, by the way, how did things go with John and Jack?"
"Yeah, we talked a lot: soccer, basketball, girls."
"I see the tension's boiled down then," Daniel said as they left the office.
"Yeah, I guess you could say that! But a lot must have happened between them first," said Mitchell as he followed Daniel.
"Like with everyone, but that's none of our business."
"Unless it puts the mission in danger," Mitchell remarked, "even Sam said her meeting with Angela was pretty telling. In any case, Sam appreciates her and I'm pretty sure it's mutual."
"Everyone appreciates her, Mitchell."
"Except for Jack and..."
"Yeah, but even in their case, I'm sure they don't hate her as much," Daniel mused.
"Maybe, but it's a good thing she's here." On seeing that Daniel didn't follow where he was going, he added: "it's good that there's another woman on the team now, for Sam."
"She never complains about it."
"Yeah, but when Vala was here, I could tell she felt better on the team. I think she misses that feminine presence sometimes. By the way, have you heard anything from Vala?"
"Not since the last time we saw each other," Daniel yawned, "the same time she stole that priceless talisman of Merlin's. I'm pretty sure she's avoiding us."
"Have you tried talking to her?"
"No, I can't reason with her. She's a thief and a liar and se always will be," Daniel said angrily, "what really worries me is that she's not answering. The General asked me to get in touch with her to tell her about our progress anger in his voice, "he wants her to come with us and I think that would be a big mistake. Long story short, I've used every possible argument and she still won't respond."
"Every argument?"
"Yeah, I told her there might even be treasure involved."
"Maybe that doesn't interest her anymore. Maybe she just wants to hear you apologise."
"I don't see what I have to apologise for," Daniel said, "and I'm sure she's still interested in treasure."
"You're right, people don't just change overnight."
"I'm not so sure about that."
"Are we still talking about Vala?" Mitchell asked.
"No. Just look at Angela, I barely recognise her anymore. There was a time she would've jumped head first into an adventure. Now she's hesitating."
"Maybe you just don't know her well enough. I understand what's wrong with her: she's had her wings clipped," seeing that Daniel didn't understand, Mitchell carried on, "like a bird. When I had my accident, it took me a while before I could get back in the pilot's seat again. You can't understand that, but I do."
"You're right, I don't understand," Daniel conceded.
"But you're right, she has changed. I think she's grown up."
"Well in any case, I think it's too late for Vala to grow up. She's desperate."
"Vala seems to be on your mind a lot lately," Mitchell joked.
"It's just that...I haven't gotten over that business with the talisman."
"Well, I hope she'll rejoin the team."
"Me too, to get the talisman back."
"You never let up, do you Daniel?"
"It's about doing what's right."
"Do I need to remind you that she helped us with this," Mitchell said as they entered the canteen.
Sam and Teal'c were already sitting in a corner. They took their trays and joined them. Sam looked around the room.
"Looking for someone, Sam?" Daniel remarked.
"No...yeah, maybe," returning her attention to her plate, looking somewhat disappointed. "I was hoping Angela might be here," which confirmed to Daniel what Mitchell had said about feeling the lack of a feminine presence on the team since Vala's departure.
"She'll be here," Daniel said.
"Unless she has already eaten," Teal'c commented.
"I passed by her room before I went to find Daniel. She must have been out, because she wasn't there. We're meeting O'Neill at 11:30 tomorrow morning. What about our two agents?" Mitchell asked.
"They ate already. They left about five minutes ago. They seem a little uneasy here, they're definitely out of their comfort zone. I hope they'll agree to join us," Sam said.
"Damn, I was supposed to send them the message about tomorrow."
"So, they're really coming with us?" Sam said, "well we're finally all here. I hope it all goes ahead now that the team is pretty much complete."
"?" everybody looked puzzled.
"Well, we have our Russian, British and French representatives. China should be sending us a volunteer tomorrow," Sam explained.
"Oh yeah, I completely forgot about that," Daniel said.
"Unfortunately, we're not ready to go yet; we still have a lot to do like physicals and psych tests on the new arrivals," Sam sighed.
"And we must ensure the vessel flies," Teal'c added.
"I'm not worried about that; it's in good shape and the lift-off should be pretty routine and easy," Daniel said.
"Easy!" Sam said, "there are so many variables to consider, like..."
"Like Angela," Mitchell interrupted, "she's not ready, not even for the physical."
"We'll see about that," Sam said as she got up, putting an end to the conversation.
End of chapter