Chapter 14 : Viral emergency
Let the boredom begin.
"We need to cancel the launch," said Dr Lam.
"What for?"
"It's urgent. We absolutely cannot allow this launch to go ahead.
"It's too late! They've already left and we don't have communications in place yet.
"But I thought the launch was scheduled for..."
"It was brought forward for security reasons. What's the problem?"
"It's Angela!"
"How do you mean?"
He invited the doctor into his office, excusing himself to the representatives.
"I just received the results," Carolyn explained.
Flashback
Carolyn had sent off the medical analyses the night before. She had been waiting for the results for more than two hours now and they were late. She decided to phone the analysis centre.
"Hello, it's about the analyses...yes, that's good, hmm...a problem, what problem?...Are you sure? Hmm...hmm...hmm, okay, I'll be there right away."
She made her way quickly through the various corridors that led to the analysis lab. The lab was abuzz and chaos reigned. Alarms were whirring and glass to protect against infections had been put in place.
"What's going on?" asked the doctor as she approached a young woman in a blue blouse.
"It's one of the samples we were given yesterday."
"But they were just blood samples from the SGC teams and a few others for checks. Where did the samples come from?"
"You," said the young woman.
"That's impossible!"
"See for yourself," the young woman said as she handed her a form, "one of the samples is contaminated."
"What kind of contamination?" asked Carolyn, not wanting to miss anything important.
"Flu."
"But why all this fuss over...?"
"Spanish flu," the young woman clarified.
"What? But, I thought that had been eradicated."
"Tell that to the people on the other side of that glass. But, that's not the problem. We're being affected by a modified strain according to the analsyes. Someone's been playing chemist."
"But who would want to...?" It's a biological weapon," Carolyn said, understanding now.
"I think so, given that the incubation period is do rapid, much more so than normal," the young girl said hesitantly.
"But...," Carolyn pressed as she saw the young woman's hesitation.
"But, it doesn't seem to be contagious. Its ability to propogate is nearly zero for some strange reason."
"So, it's inactive and inoffensive."
"No, it's definitely a pathogen but something's blocking the virus and stopping it from multiplying and dividing into viroids. The virulent genes are there as well as the replication machinery. That's why we've implemented the emergency procedure, because we just don't know why nothing's happening with the virus. It might be dormant."
"None of my patients are showing any flu symptoms. Nothing visible anyway," Carolyn said, surprised.
"Even though, given the speed of the incubation period, there should be some signs. Plus, we have no way of knowing when a person became infected given that the virus is latent. It's as if it's in a dormant state. It seems to be frozen in place by the molecules. They might be antibodies, but there's no immune system on Earth with such effective defences."
"What else could prevent it from propogating?"
"Apart from the immune system, I don't know. But look at this. I've never seen anything like this before in my life."
"That's extraordinary. Could this be...?" said Carolyn.
"A descendant of those people who survived the Spanish flu. The immune system seems to be able to completely eradicate the virus, but there's more. See here...that's typical of a Lantean molecule, from a descendant of the Ancients."
"So, the antobodies are blocking the virus pretty well, you can cancel the isolation programme. It's been neutralised."
"No," the young woman sighed. "Unfortunately, when we looked at the blood sample, we were surprised to see there was a very low lymphocyte count to neutralise the flu virus."
"So the patient's system is either very weak or it's been weakened."
"Yes, but apparently not so much that an infection can set in."
"Who does the sample belong to?" asked Carolyn, despite already having a fair idea.
"There was a blood sample and a skin sample...," the young woman read out.
"Angela?"
"Yes, General Angela Calling," the young woman said as she searched through the file.
"She possesses the Ancient gene, so a large part of her DNA and her immune system is severely weakened. But, it's still effective in spite of that."
"Yes, we're trying to isolate the Spanish flu antobodies, but we'd prefer to study the virus outside d'etat de nuire."
"Yes, we should study all her antibodies, but what I'm wondering is how she picked up this flu. I'll need to sort that out."
End of flashback
"The Spanish flu? You're certain that's all?" said Landry.
"Yes, I'm certain."
"Is there any risk to the others?"
"No. It's been neutralised or at least it seems to be."
"But how was she infected? I thought the Spanish flu had been completely eradicated and the only samples we're securely guarded."
"It looks like it's a biological weapon."
"Iraq, Iran? She'staken part in so many missions, it's hard to know where to start," Landry sighed, "it could have come from anywhere."
"Even the US."
"What are you saying?"
"You said yourself that we have a strain of it."
"Well, in any case, there's nothing I can do for you. They're already too far away to turn back round now."
"Well then, we need to..."
"I'll call the Pentagon to warn them. They'll study General Calling's mission reports."
"But we also need to warn SG-1."
"I'll do that as soon as I can. It would be quicker to ask her about this. Tell me her life's not in danger."
"Not for the moment, but she's getting weaker by the day and I'm afraid it's going to keep getting worse."
Aboard ship, everything was going well. Sam had engaged the autopilot and kept an eye on their progress from time to time and continued to implement their settings, expecially the shields. They had all returned to their rooms to settle down. As Vala entered her room, she went towards her bag but noticed something, or rather the lack thereof. The painting had disappeared. It was no longer next to the bag on her bed. Surprised, she turned around to make sure she hadn't put it somewhere else without knowing. It was once again hanging on the wall where she had first found it. She took it off the wall again. Then she unpacked her belongings and put them away. She was having trouble deciding where to put everything. It only took O'Neill a few minutes to unpack as he had barely brought anything. He then went to rejoin Sam, followed by Teal'c. They wondered whether there was a rec room on the ship, otherwise this was going to be a very long, very boring trip. Sam tried to see if she could find one on the ship's plans. Daniel put away all his belonging a porter de main. He took care with his manuscripts and laid them out. Angela did not bother putting her things away. Instead, she was writing a letter to her mother. She wanted to put her affairs in order and let her parents know what was new with her. She had never really been that close to her adoptive parents, but nevertheless she wanted to reassure them. She had to make an effort as they had done everything they could to integrate her into their family.
Mum,
I know it's been a while since I last gave you any news (and I can already imagine you lecturing me at the fact I'm only doing it now). But, as you probably know, a soldier's life – even a semi-retired one – is a pretty full one. I'm writing to reassure you. I'm actually doing better, physically-speaking; I've barely got any white hairs anymore and I can just hear you telling me: "I told you to give it up..." and I actually ended up listening to you.
Unfortunately, I was recalled recently by the Americans. Don't worry, it's not for a dangerous mission like usual. It's just an unusual mission. I can't tell you anymore than that and, please, tell Dad not to get involved, it'll just make things more complicated. Anyway, I don't want to worry you (any more than I have being so far away from you). Just take comfort in the knowledge that I'll essentially be a taxi driver. The complicated part is that they asked me to sign a confidentiality agreement (which I didn't sign). And, thanks to my premature reactivation, I've been able to catch up with old acquaintances like Cameron, the young man I shared a room with at the hospital, the one I told you about. You really should meet him some day. I've also met up with John and Jack – don't tell Dad about them, he might have them assassinated (even if it ends up being me who does it) and he'll probably find out about them somehow anyway. I know you've always said that violence doesn't solve anything, but sometimes it makes me feel better to hit something. Sorry, I'm getting off-track but it's getting late now and I've had a hectic week. This is the first chance I've had to write to you.
Lastly, I just want to tell you that I love you both and the house. I've left Voyou with General Landry. I think Dad might know him because he seems out of place here. I know you don't like him much, but if my trip lasts longer, I'd like you to look after him so as not to bother the General for too long. Anyway, if you want anymore news or details, you're probably best asking me for them. Okay, well I'll leave you now and I promise to come and see you when I'm back.
Love you,
Angela
She read through the letter again. She sighed. She wasn't satisifed, but she couldn't think of anything better. She had never been very good at expressing herself on paper. Anyway, it was better than nothing. She took another sheet of paper. This one was a "just in case" letter, if she didn't make it back. That was the title of her second letter. Not very original, but she could change it if she had time. Whenever people went on missions, they always wrote a goodbye letter. At first she never wrote them because she never wanted to think about the fact that she might not return. This time, however, she was ready to put her affairs in order.
My last will and testament (it made her laugh to be writing this. Her throat was closing, which was not a good sign if she was thinking about death.
She stopped writing, because she honestly did not know where to start. She put down her pen and then picked it up again.
To my mother, whose maiden name was Mc O'Mary and my father, Peter McNixon, my adoptive parents since I was 16 years old (03/09/1989).
Dad, Mum, if you receive this letter, it means I'm no longer in the world. Don't cry and just tell yourselves that I'm now with the angels and making their lives hell. And, like you always said, I'll always be in your hearts and, if you want talk to me, all you need to do is look up at the stars. Those stars we looked at together so often, hoping I'd see my parents. Up there is where I'm happiest because that's where my parents are, whom I barely knew and from whom I've been so far for so long. Before today, I could barely remember their faces; they were replaced by yours over time. Of course, I know you'll be missing already and my last thoughts were of you, because I'm sad that I couldn't spend more time with you and never had the chance to thank you for what you've done for me. Thank you for everything, for the last years I spent in this world. You gave me back my passion for life and, thanks to you, I've discovered so many new horizons. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't know everything I do now. I also had un foyer ready to welcome me at any time and people to listen to me. You know better than anyone that my life was going to be short and there was no escaping my 'deadline'. Just remind yourselves that, thanks to your generosity, I've lived longer than I ever should have. It was a bonus to live with you and I'd like to tell you that my death wasn't as painful as it would have been. Of course you know all about my burial. There are customs, such as spending a year in my hometown, then I'll be placed in my family vault and finally in the crypt. But, because I already have a death certificate in my own name and I've already been buried...anyway, I won't get caught up in all the details. My throat is choking up just thinking about it. I don't want some big ceremony, nothing like my parents had. Even though I think it's an obligation and I should probably do it, I know you'll do your best to make sure it's intimate. I don't want my death to be celebrated with a load of pomp and ceremony or see everyone sad. Of course, Dad will want a military burial appropriate for my rank, but it'll be enough for me to have my friends there. As I'm writing this letter, I'm getting a bitter taste in my mouth because I really expected to go on so many missions in my life. As you know, instead of that, I've started the large task, still unfinished unfortunately, of researching several subjects. Mum, you'll know what to do because you know most of the files, so I trust you. I also need to apologise for not being around very much, even though you did everything to build an ideal family. I wasn't a perfect teenager or the model child you had in mind. The only problem I caused you when I was young was love and I'm sorry for that. Despite this, you've always supported me during the hardest times and never criticised the choices I made. I'll never be able to write everything I want to say to you because there aren't the words to express what I'm feeling. Just know that you'll always be an important part of my life.
Now, unfortunately, it's time for the bad news. I'm delegating all my scientific research to you, Mum. I know you'll make good use of it and that you'll know what to do. This of course includes my latest research on embryonic stem cells, cancer (this one needs to be studied more in-depth; I've improved the virus with help from the professor you recommended; the nano bacteria...don't let anyone have access to these, you'll be the only one. I'd also like to entrust some files to Dad. I'll let him decide if he wants to disclose them; I never had the strength to do it and I can't see how they would have changed my future anyway – my path was already laid out. I only have one thing to tell him about these files:
EEGNARLAM TSE EUQEHTOILBIBAL L1E263EP6EH1EO4EE10EN8EI12EX 11320A709E
And as you often, quite wisely, say "the mirror always reveals the truth. When we wake up, it doesn't lie and doesn't reflect anything that isn't there" and I hope you finally discover the truth...
Angela started finishing up her last will and testament. Her hand was shaking more and more, as was happening frequently these days. She put it down to tiredness. She set her pen down and stopped writing her letters. She held her hand in the other to stop it from shaking and stood up. She looked around frantically for her medication. She pulled out an injection, set the dose and injected its contents. She then sat down on the bed and waited for the medication to act. She sighed as she watched her medication indicator. She knew these symptoms were just the beginning of her illness and that they would get even more frequent, but she didn't want to think about that, not now anyway. She had no desire to worry anyone. Her shakes passed and she stood up and folded her letters carefully so they would fit in an envelope. She decided to go out for some air and went to join Sam, but found that O'Neill had got there first. She stood back, watching them. They didn't realise she was there. Something was going on between them, something they both tried to was aninvisible chemistry between them. One would have to be blind not to see it. It was a chemistry she had not had with a man for a long time. For their part, Mitchell and Teal'c carried on looking through the ship while Angela headed towards the gangway to look at the stars. Vala had finally finished putting her things away and was, eventually, satisfied. She placed the painting at the bottom of her bag and put the latter on the bed. She then took out her team uniform to change into as the one she was wearing was a little inpractical. A few minutes later, standing in front of the mirror, Vala seemed happy with the way she was looking. She had hairclips in to keep it in place. She was now finally ready to go and see Daniel. She took the decoder and made for the door. She looked around the room feeling satisified that she hadn't forgotten anything. Her gaze fixed guiltily on her bag, but the feeling soon passed. Vala hit the door panel but nothing happened. She looked at the panel and tried again, but still to no avail. She was stuck inside.
"Damn, that's all I need!"
She put the decoder in her pocket and tried to open the door manually. She tried to stick her fingers in between the two wings of the door, but the more she tried, the more the door resisted. She tried kicking it, only succeeding in hurting her foot but the door still refused to budge. She limped back to get her bag. She had hidden some weapons at the bottom of it. She took one of these out and aimed at the door. The door stopped the bolt of energy with a shield.
"Dammit!"
Screaming also wouldn't do much good given how thick the door was. No sound would be able to get through it. She cursed. She always had to pick the wrong rooms. She sat down on her bed, hoping that someone would notice her absence and come to her aid. She thought about solutions other than waiting to get out of there. She looked around the room to find a way out but found none and then her gaze once again landed on her bag and the empty space on the wall where the painting had been.
"This might sound like a stupid idea, but you never know," Vala said to herself.
She took out the painting and placed it back where it had been on the wall. As soon as it was back, the door opened.
"Well that's strange," Vala whispered.
She shot a glance at the painting and got out of the room quick before the door could close or change its mind. On her way to go and see Daniel, she thought about what had just happened and decided to talk to Daniel about it.
"The ship's haunted," said Vala after spending time reflecting.
"What?" said Daniel, busy reading a book,"what are you saying?"
"I was trapped inside my room."
"Oh yeah? So how did you get out?"
"I...well, I took a painting off the wall..."
"You tried to steal a painting from the ship!" said Daniel, taking his eyes off the book.
"...because I didn't like it where it was," Vala lied.
"It's a security system, presumably against people like you."
"And you don't find that disconcerting?"
"That you tried to steal something, no. But you didn't come to see me to tell me that you like a painting and you got frustrated when you couldn't take it."
"I told you I didn't...forget it. I came to...," she said as she took the decoder out of her pocket, "to show you this and how it works."
"Yeah, Mitchell already told me about that," said Daniel as he went back to what he had been doing. il lui en voulait toujours de lui avoir pris le talisman'
"Is that all you have to say!"
"What do you want me to say?" asked Daniel as he put down his book again in frustration and looked her in the eyes.
"Oh, I don't know. You could at least show some interest."
"I was interested in it before you took it and..."
"Oh here we go, it always comes back to the same thing with you. But you see, I haven't spent all my time in an office surrounded by old relics. I've braved dangers to get hold of this platform and managed to find a solution by reading this damned talisman. And, it's thanks to me that we now know it's not just a piece of jewellery."
"I could've found that out on my own just by reading the inscription," said Daniel, "and I haven't spent all my time in an office waiting. I spied on the Ori and I also went looking for solutions while you were doing...what?"
"If you must know, I got into one of Anubis' old hideouts. I had to deal with an army of his faithful because, you see, they weren't all wiped out in the Battle over Antarctica. And after going through all that, all you can do is tell me off and treat me like a thief. But I don't want anything to do with you. I just want to give you the platform to solve the prophecy."
"Prophecy?"
"Prophecies, yes. Oh, yes, a load of mysteries about some child or other. But, this prophecy in particular is the one that caught my attention. Jack told you about it," she said as she put down the decoder and turned around to leave the room.
"Wait," said Daniel, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry for behaving like that. I didn't know you'd gone through all that alone. I'd like it if you told me everything you know and help me with this, because it's obvious Jack forgot to tell me the details."
"Okay," said Vala hesitantly, but that did not last long, "but actully there was no-one in the base. I was in and out of there in a few minutes."
"Vala, are you going to help me or not!" said Daniel, exasperated. "You never change, do you? You're always hiding behind lies."
"Well, what matters right now is that you've apologised and we've reconciled."
"Yeah, if you say so."
Angela spent a long while gazing in wonderment at the stars. She was joined by Teal'c eventually. He had approached her very softly so as not to frighten her, like one would behave around a young gazelle, but she had been waiting for him. He supported himself on the rail as Angela did but kept a respectful distance. He could feel the tension inside her but, for now, she was calm and in control. The silence weighed heavily between them. Teal'c could guess how fast the young woman's heart was beating, her muscles were taut and ready to leap into action and her senses were alert. To his surprise, it was her who broke the silence.
"Where's Mitchell?" Angela asked.
"I am sorry," said Teal'c. This was harder than he had imagined.
"Sorry," Angela whispered, the word resonnating in her mind but doing nothing to ease her tension.
"I am sorry for my behaviour. It was inappropriate. I should not have attacked you as senselessly as I did, but..."
"Forget about it," Angela cut him off, "I don't want to talk about it anymore."
"I should not have behaved that way," Teal'c said insistently, "but I have never faced an opponent as gifted as you."
"I told you to drop this," Angela pleaded.
"I have great respect for you."
"You do?" she said, sounding surprised. She became a little less tense.
Teal'c saw this and carried on.
"As I said, I respect you immensely."
"You certainly have a funny way of respecting people close to you."
"I wished to see your strength and you are clearly someone in which one can place absolute trust. I trust you."
"Thanks for the compliment."
"It is well-earned," he said as he lowered his head slightly as a sign of respect.
"You shouldn't do that!"
"What?"
"That gesture, exposing your neck to your opponent. It's a gesture of submission."
"Is that how you perceive it?" Teal'c laughed.
"With wolves and with felines like lions it has two meanings, one is submission and the other is the final blow delivered by the dominant one."
"Among my people, it is a simple sign of respect."
"Maybe, but just be careful."
"I am not ashamed to submit to you. You are clearly my superior."
"Is that what you really think? I don't deserve your submission; I'm not superior to you in any way. It's not physical strength that makes you superior. It's what's in your head," said Angela seriously, "that's why the Ori think of themselves as gods, because of their power."
"You are a sensible person and I have complete confidence in your judgement."
"In that case then, we should really stop being so formal around each other."
The tension between the two had completely disappeared, but they still seemed awkward in their conversation. Teal'c paid attention to his words so as not to inflame the young woman again. He chose his words with care. They spent a few more minutes talking. For her part, Vala was showing Daniel the receptacle's mechanism for reading the amulet. She decided to help him and make up for lost time, but also so that she could ask him about the new recruits.
"So, do you know these new recruits well?" Vala asked him while the receptacle was uploading the information from the amulet to Daniel's computer.
"None of them except for Angela, but I think they all know each other."
"Really? They never mentioned that."
"They've been on missions together. They reunited here by accident," said Daniel.
"By accident?"
"Yes and apparently she knows a lot of people and has a lot of relationships," he said as he thought back to the relationship between Angela and the President.
"Doesn't she have a social life? A family?"
"I think she was adopted. She doesn't talk about it and she was engaged."
"Did he leave her?"
"No doubt about it, but she's never told me about it," said Daniel as he looked at the first information that had been transferred to his computer.
"And what about the others?" she asked, wanting to know if they were single.
"I don;t know much about them, but they're not married. The mission requires that they have no attachment to Earth."
"So how come you know so much more about Angela's life?"
"I already told you, Sam and I worked with her before."
"So, nothing more than a professional relationship?"
"What are you trying to say?" asked Daniel, his eyes looking up from the screen.
"I don't know why you're avoiding the subject," said Vala, happy that she had touched a nerve.
"What do you want to know?" Daniel sighed.
"Who is she? You know a lot about her, so I'm sure you can answer my questions."
"She's a French soldier, with the special forces. I don't know if there's any equivalent or even what it's called in French, but she's part of the secret division of the French army. She used to work together with America and England and with the Russians apparently, according to John. We don't know exactly what she was doing as it's not mentoned on her CV, but I think there must be a very thick section of her file for very dangerous missions and I think she played a major role in all the important missions like anti-terrorism. She was a mathematics and medical student as well."
"So she has an excellent but empty CV?"
"Pretty much."
"Okay, so that's her professional life, but what about the rest?"
"The rest?"
"I know she has the Ancient gene in most of her genome and she seems to be superhuman."
"She's completely normal," said Daniel, knowing that one day or another Vala was going to get round to this conversation.
"What do you know? She could be a ten-fingered alien for all we know."
"No she's not," Daniel sighed.
"Alright then, but...wait a minute, how do you know...? Ah, you went out with her, you were more than friends!"
"Yes," Daniel admitted, "but we're not together anymore."
"Why? Because she's odd!"
"No, she's perfectly normal."
"Alright then, so she's unfaithful. She cheated on you."
"No."
"Okay then, so you were unfaithful."
"No! I never cheated on her and I'd never do anything to hurt her," Daniel said brusquely, "I was afraid about the future we might have with...everything," he said, gesturing at the room.
"Seriously? Is this not the woman who fires bolts to take out her enemies?" Vala said, shuddering because the image of the painting was going through her mind.
"She doesn't fire bolts, don't be ridiculous! She would never use her powers to kill anyone unless she had to."
"How do you know that? Need I remind you that her CV is empty? She hides them so well, we don't know what she's really capable of.
"Why don't you like her? Tell me. She's not dangerous. Her body could never cope with that much energy."
"Oh, yes! How does she manage to survive with that tumour in her brain, then? She seems a little too fit for a dying woman."
"How did you find out about all this?" Daniel asked her, sounding surprised. He didn't want to make a secret of it, but Angela didn't like speaking about it very much and he hadn't mentioned it to Vala. In any case, Vala had a point.
"In the infirmary. I had to have a health check before I left and I'm doing perfectly fine, thanksfor your concern, and I saw her file."
"Tell me, she's nothing to be afraid of and why ae you talking to me about her anyway?"
"You had a relationship with her! I'm being defensive because you're clearly too blind to see."
"So that's it, you're jealous."
"No, I'm just interested, that's all," Vala said, trying to defend herself.
While this was going on, Angela and Teal'c decided to go for a little walk. They explored more of the ship and, as they got further, the corridors lit up. Doors would open by themselves where before they had been closed as they talked to one another. Angela didn't even notice anymore.
"Do you have a family?" Angela asked, "you must miss them."
"My wife died many years ago and I have a son. Indeed I do miss him but I know that everything I do, I do for him and his safety."
"And I'll bet he doesn't even realise, that he doesn't appreciate the sacrifice you'remaking for him and he doesn't even acknowledge that."
"Such is the way with the young, you are unconcerned. And you?" he said, as they left the passarelle behind them.
"I was engaged. He died too. No children and parents I don't see much of. That pretty much sums up my life," Angela sighed.
"But your life has been a full one and I am sorry for the death of your betrothed."
"Oh it's been full alright, a little too much in fact."
"I have often wondered why young people feel the need to be constantly occupied when they have their whole lives ahead of them. They always wish for something interesting to take place in their lives, even if that thing is dangerous," said Teal'c as, this time, he took the corridor which was the furthest right of the four.
"Because we think we're immortal. We want instant gratification. For me at least, I don't have the time to stay still and start a family, so I prefer to make the most I can of life."
They passed by the door to the cafeteria as they spread out into the corridor trying different doors. They took the first door on their right. Angela noted that Sam had already identified this area which, according to what she remembered of the ship's schematics, ought to be the library. She had not been there herself and, as Teal'c wanted to find out more about it, they went inside. As they entered the room, Teal'c stopped talking as he was fascinated by the décor within.
"Impressive, isn't it?" Angela said, amused, "like everything else on this vessel."
"Does Daniel Jackson know of this place?"
"No, not yet, but I can see why you're asking. It's a real treasure trove of information this place with all these abandoned books," Angela laughed.
Her laughter chilled him to the core, but he laughed as well. Her laugh was very expressive.
"It is true that this place is surprising," said Teal'c as they went further into the room.
There were mounting stacks of books, seeming going on forever. Even Teal'c couldn't see where they ended. Angela asked herself how anyone could get books down from so high up. Soft lights were placed all around the space, allowing readers to read comfortably and without being distracted by the brightness. There were also moelleux and comfortable armchairs as well as huge wooden tables placed all around and filling the room, which in itself was very welcoming. Sometimes the pieces of furniture were isolated and sometimes they were organised in circles so that one could equally work alone or in groups. There was also a corner where people could relax as there were ottomans everywhere and tables with different games which looked very old. Most notably, Angela recognised a game that looked like chess but with unusual pieces.
"It appears that this place is more of a recreation room as you say than a dedicated library," said Teal'c, interrupting Angela's observation of the chess-like game.
She reluctantly left the table and went back to join him.
"Well, I don't think so; these books seem very high-brow. Tell me, were all the Ancients so erudite?" asked Angela as she looked at the titles of some of the books.
"Yes, for the most part, but they had the right to amuse themselves as well."
"Yeah, maybe, but I always thought the Ancients were the sort of people who didn't rest for amusement. From what Daniel's told me, they seemed pretty boring."
"I do not believe they were 'boring'."
"Whatever you say but all I can see here are intellectual games, no video games."
"They also created music," Teal'c added.
"Music?" Angela said as she moved away from another gaming station, the aim of which she couldn't understand.
"This appears to be some sort of piano, I recall seeing something similar in your world," said Teal'c as he stood before a large machine.
"I guess so, with a bit of imagination."
She went a little closer to it to see it in more detail. It looked more like a large console or one of the big old computers from the 70's. It was made from a translucent, bluish metal of the same type they saw all over the ship. It seemed like blue was the ship's main colour. Angela noted that the Ancients must have loved blue. It didn't bother her in any case. To her eyes, the machine didn't resemble anything she knew, not a piano at least. She got a bit closer to it, taking care all the way. The console lit up as she approached.
"The Ancient gene," said Teal'c.
"Yeah."
"What do you think it is?"
"Well, it's definitely not a bomb," Angela joked, "I think you're right, it is some sort of piano. We're standing in front of an alien piano."
"As I said."
"Where is it from?"
"I do not know."
"I meant the gene," said Angela.
"I believe that people such as yourself and O'Nell are distant descendants of the Ancients. Although they are long gone, at one time there was a mixture between our two peoples. In fact, I believe the two of you are the only ones who have retained so much of their heritage. Your genomes carry a greater proportion of theirs."
"So you think they all got mixed up with us?" she said as she went behind the machine to inspect its connections."
"Daniel Jackson believes this as well. He knows that some mixed with humans, but unfortunately their numbers were very small."
"So, there aren't many of us with this gene?"
"Indeed."
"We're just a minority then. So, if it's so rare, how come I...have so much of it?" Angela asked, surprised.
"Perhaps because of marriage. It is possible that your family brought together two important families which possessed the Ancient gene and this gene became stronger in you whereas, in others, it grows weaker from generation to generation until it disappears."
"It might be a result of inter-marriage that goes back a long time," Angela suggested.
"Yes."
"Maybe. I know that at one time inter-marriage happened a lot in families, especially between cousins, which would explain the presence of the gene in such a large quantity. And my family was a noble family in the past, so we would have married other important families for political reasons. In other families the gene-carriers disappeared because they had no purpose. The gene isn't advantageous or disadvantageous, so nature wouldn't have selected the carriers over the passage of time and gradually they would have been eliminated by natural selection over the course of human evolution. Evolution only selects advantageous genes," Angela explained.
"Please explain."
"Sorry, I'm just babbling on. What I meant to say is that the Ancient gene disappeared because it had no use to us. The Ancients must have used it for other faculties that we don't have, like telepathy. They must have had some kind of protection in their brain for when they used this ability which the gene supplied," seeing that Teal'c still wasn't getting it, she continued. "I'll explain it...let's take me as an example...so, these genes gave me the ability to handle the electrical discharges I produce, psychologically-speaking anyway. If they didn't, my heart would have problems beating or my brain or other organs would have problems with the nervous messages being sent. So, in my case the gene gave me an above-average ability to tolerate electricity. These Ancient genes allow my body to cope with this unusual evolution in my body and allow for the faster than normal evolution of my brain. They regulate my whole system."
"If you say so."
"Hmm...," Angela said, still in her own thoughts.
She sat down in front of the console.
"Do you know how to play?"
"No, our instruments are a lot more like heirlooms and not as sophisticated as this."
She tried to make out the various inscriptions, but she couldn't even read them, let alone understand them. It was like Chinese to her eyes. Actually, compared with this, Chinese seemed easy. She pressed a button on the upper left of the console by mistake. Nothing happened. She didn't even know if the button was a start or end button. Even the simple signs on the keys, well, what looked like keys, were a mystery to her. Despite all this, the machine did look like a piano. Again, she touched a key by mistake. When her finger made contact with it, a sound was produced. She thought she recognised a 'do' but to her it sounded supernatural and resonnated throughout the whole room. To tell the truth, the whole ship was vibrating with the sound. She touched a second key and then her fingers continued to dance over the keyboard with precision. Her fingers knew exactly what to do. She played a tune, the first one that popped into her head. In fact, it was the one she knew the best, the first she had ever learnt. It was the only thing her biological mother had taught her. It was quite a sad, soft and slow, but also comforting lullaby. As she looked more closely at it, she saw that the 'piano' looked like an Earth version, but the notes were not in the same order. She then played one or two false notes and very quickly got used to their moods. She adapted so quickly thanks to her ability to analyse situations at great speed. It helped that the keys were also placed quite logically. Teal'c came to join her and sat down next to her so that he could hear the tune in more detail. It was the first time he had heard someone play this strange instrument in his presence. Her fingers were now spreading out with certainty and ability, just lightly tapping the keys. At the same time, her confidence was increasing and her memories resurfacing. Son regard se perdit devant elle . She imagined that she was with her mother once again, with her ample with her full tresses of light chestnut hair. She had inherited her dark hair from her father. Her mother was sitting next to her, looking small on the cushions. A soft hand with delicated fingers showed her the notes on une partition. She explained to her how the partition worded and the different signs. This vision disappeared when the tune ended.
"That was magnificent," said Teal'c, clearly moved, "are you alright?"
"Yes," she said as she came out of her daydream, "it's just that I hadn't played in a long time."
"Did you play often?"
"No, just bits and pieces but, because my memory's so good, it helps me play and retain the pieces. But I'd almost forgotten this particular one," said Angela, just like the others as she thought back to her mother's face which she had been starting to forget.
"The music was not very joyful."
"No, unfortunately I don't know what it's about. Would you like to hear another one?" Angela asked.
"I would like that very much."
She tried to remember some other tunes and searched for a happier one. However, her mind was occupied and asking questions. She looked Teal'c in the eyes as she played.
"Have you forgotten?"
"Forgotten?" said Teal'c.
"Your wife. I mean, her face, her voice..."
"At times I remember her as though it were yesterday. I remember every moment I spent with her. Sometimes, however, the features of her face disappear, the details, but she is always here, in my heart, my soul. Why do you ask this question?"
"My mother. I mostly remember her voice, her face looks like a ghost; her face has lost its features and just left behind a blank mask. I remember her as a beautiful, stunning, gentle woman. The light surrounded her like an angel," she said as she remembered the vision of her in the middle of the cushions.
"It was an autumn day. The rays of the sun had managed to break through the clouds and invade our house. I looked at my mother thinking she was a ghost. She smiled at me and I was so happy being next to her. I knew nothing bad could happen to me as long as she was near me."
"That is normal. You were young when..."
"But I miss her. There's an emptiness here," she said, pointing to the poitrine where her heart was, "I've lost a part of my heart since she's been gone. How can you miss someone so much when you barely remember them?"
"I..."
"What's that sound?" said a voice coming from Teal'c's radio.
"O'Neill, it was music," Teal'c said.
"Thanks, Teal'c, I thought I heard something."
"Angela was playing the piano," Teal'c explained.
"Whoops, I must have patched it into the ship's audio systems. Sorry, I didn't know what I was doing," Angela said.
"Where are you exactly?"
"In the library," a woman's voice said. It was Sam.
"We were exploring the vessel," said Teal'c.
"It's okay, I was just surprised Daniel wasn't there," said Jack.
"He is with Vala Mal Doran," said Teal'c.
"Ah, I see," said Jack, "Mitchell and I were thinking of getting something to eat at 12:00. We're gonna take our food to the canteen, but Sam thinks we can eat the reserves on the ship."
"Are they edible?" Angela asked.
"Yeah, they're in perfect condition but they're running pretty low. Apparently the ship has a system that can produce its own food, but it's been offline given there was no need for it but I think we could get it up and running for tonight, I've already run all my diagnostics," said Sam.
"Okay, we're just going to carry on with our little tour," said Angela, "and again, sorry about the noise. Shall we carry on?"
"Indeed," said Teal'c, standing up.
Angela got up as well and passed by a gaming station as she did so.
"What is it?" asked Teal'c as he saw her hesitation.
"The game isn't over. The pieces haven't been put away."
Teal'c came closer.
"Indeed. Who do you believe is the next to play?"
"I don't know," she said as she took a black knight but wasn't able to pick it up. "That's strange."
She took a closer look at the game. She tried once again to pick up a piece, this time a white one, and managed to move it.
"Seems like it's the white pieces that are in play. There must be some system that stops the came as it's being played."
"It is most likely to prevent players from cheating by playing twice," said Teal'c.
"Maybe. In any case, all the pieces here are a lot more normal than the piano just now."
Teal'c began to make his way out of the room. Angela's gaze fell once more on the gaming station she had seen when she first came in. She still couldn't make out the shapes of the pieces with any accuracy, but they seemed unusual. Apart from that, there was nothing else specific about this station. For some reason, though, she found herself unable to take her eyes off it.
"Given the size of the room, I believe we can aller en face."
"Yes, but we haven't seen everything in this room. There's a screen," said Angela.
"Indeed. However, given that we cannot read the Ancient language, that is of no interest."
"That's true," Angela admitted as she took one last look at the room before leaving and then started up a new conversation. "What's going to happen once we get there?"
"I do not know. I imagine we will decide when the time comes."
"It's just that until now my role here has been pretty simple. All I've had to do is be here."
"Indeed."
"Shall we take this door?" Angela asked.
"After you."
Angela went through first. They came out into a vast, empty room. Just two screens were attached to the far wall and the the sides. There was a large array of weapons. There were also stasis pods linked to a console.
"What's this?" Angela asked as she looked at the screens.
"It appears to be a training room," he said as he pointed to a double-bladed sword which he then put down as he went to look inside the stasis pods, "the Ancients frequently placed themselves into stasis to pass time and relax during their voyages. Only a skeleton crew would have piloted the vessel."
"How awful!" said Angela.
"They lived in a virtual environment, similar to the participants in Colonel Carter's training programme," Teal'c explained.
"Doesn't sound much fun."
"Indeed," Teal'c said as they passed in front of several stasis pods.
"I believe there were more of them in the library, most likely behind the screens. I estimate that around a dozen people could be held in stasis in total."
"You'd never thinking looking at the outside that this ship could hold that many people. It's the spatial distortion."
Teal'c continued exploring and passed in front of a sort of cabine, the floor of which seemed to be moving.
"This must be some sort of treadmill."
"I don't think that was all it was used for. According to the programme, it can go at speeds faster than a human could handle."
"Perhaps some had that ability."
"Hmm...like Flash."
"Who?"
"Flash! How can you not know him? He's a superhero who runs at the speed of sound or Superman if you know him?" Angela explained, not goingon about someone he didn't know.
"Ah, Superman, the Kryptionian. I have seen the movies with Cameron."
"Yeah, that's right."
"I like this place."
"Yeah, let's make a move, I think the place is a dismal," she said as she looked at all the stasis pods that looked to her more like coffins.
"Please explain."
"Sad," Angela clarified.
These pods reminded her of the day she buried her parents. She had gone into the family vault by herself, as her family's tradition demanded. She wasn't completely alone however; along with her grandmother, she had passed by various dead people she had never seen. She had never been able to see them very clearly because of the curtains that were drawn every time. At one point, she thought she saw the laid-out shape of a man, serene and surrounded by a pure white light, but her vision was brief because the family's caretaker had interrupted her as she was observing. He had cast her a glance so severe and her grandmother had taken her hand firmly, explaining that she was too young to see certain things. She would later learn that the caretaker was meant to watch the family vault against intruders and to protect the bodies so they could rest in peace. After going through a long corridor, I also saw my parents laid out and peaceful.
"Sad?" Teal'c asked Angela, stirring her from her daydreams.
"It looks like a morgue in here with all these pods," Angela explained.
Recent events had brought up memories of her painful childhood, memories she had nearly forgotten. She wondered why they were coming back to her now, though, given that her memory had been worsening for quite some time. This worried her as she knew that Alzheimer's patients often remembered their earliest experiences, their childhood.
"Let us go somewhere else," Teal'c suggested, seeing the worry in Angela.
As they left the room, they ran into Mitchell, John and Jack.
"Going for a stroll?" said Mitchell as he looked at Teal'c and Angela who had apparently patched things up, which was a relief.
"Yeah. You?" Angela responded.
"We tried to open the blocked door," Jack said, "but didn't have much luck."
"And we dropped off the food in the canteen. Where did you go?" John asked.
"We came across a library and a morgue," Angela said flatly.
"What?" said Jack, who thought she was joking.
"It was a state-of-the-art training room with real-time training on the screen. There were also stasis pods," Teal'c explained.
"Like in sci-fi books?" Jack asked.
"Very similar, it was horrible!" Angela said.
"I think we'll tag along with you," said Mitchell. "By the way, did you guys hear that song, well the tune?"
"Indeed," said Teal'c, sounding amused, "it was a piano."
"There's a piano here? On-board this ship?" said Mitchell, surprised.
"Life tells it," said Angela.
"Sounds like you know how to play," said John, "was it you?"
"Uh huh."
"I believe we should try this door as it is on the way to the canteen and we will then be near to one another when it is time to eat," said Teal'c.
"Okay," Mitchell said enthusiastically.
Mitchell went first. He waved his hand in front of the door opener but nothing happened.
"Another blocked door!" Mitchell sighed.
"It's not the same thing; the other doors opened via motion or heat detectors but here it seems to be another kind of opening system...," Angela started to speak as she studied the door from a distance.
"With the Ancient gene," Teal'c said, understanding the reason why the young woman was ill at ease.
"Yeah," Angela sighed.
As she approached the door, she barely placed her hand on it before a clear blue light was produced causing different symbols to appear on the door's rayures. The door then opened sinistrement as it had been a long time since they had last opened. Mitchell took the initiative and went first once again. They entered a low, small room.
"Whoa!" said Mitchell.
Other exclamations came from behind him. Everyone made their way to the middle of the room. It was filled with all types of weapons, all of which were unknown to SG1.
"Cool!" John said.
Michell approached a line of perfectly-arranged weapons. Angela could feel the hairs raise on the back of her neck. She shuddered. She could feel the air begin to crackle with electricity. The others couldn't fee lt, but she had felt the electrical current passing through the room since they entered it. She was getting an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach and she didn't have time to stop it. Mitchell's hand was already reaching towards one ot the weapons.
"No!" Angela screamed.
But, it was already too late. Mitchell's hand was practically on the weapon. A forecefield interrupted his action and threw him against the wall. Angela rushed towards him to check if he had done any damage.
"You okay?" she asked, concerned.
"Yeah, a little groggy," he said as Angela helped him to stand up.
When she touched him, she could feel the current that had passed into him. An energy flow had entered his body which knocked Mitchell off his feet. That was a relief. Angela breathed to contain the accumulated energy. She had never absorbed this much energy from a human before. This energy was also different compared to the other times; it was soft and made her insides feel warm. She could also feel it in her chest. Her heart started racing on contact with this soft energy. She was surprised by all this and lost control. Her hair electrified, although none of the others saw it, busy as they were looking at the weapons. The pain had now left Mitchell's body.
"What was that?" John asked.
"A forcefield," Mitchell responded.
"I think that's worth discussing," said Angela as she looked at the condition Mitchell was in.
"But what is the purpose of protecting weapons? One may need them at any moment," said Teal'c.
"I don't get it either," said Angela.
"Maybe the Ancients wanted to protect the weapons before they left the ship so they wouldn't fall into enemy hands. It'd make sense given how hard it was for Sam to penetrate the central system and le contourner," Mitchell suggested.
"But why abandon ship when it's still in working order? And, it does have the latest technology and those forecefields would need a lot of power, especially if they've been running all this time," Jack pointed out.
"Like a few thousand years, you mean? You're right, it must have an incredible power source," said Mitchell.
"Do you believe the ship may possess a ZPM?" said Teal'c.
"ZPM?"
"Yeah, it's a device that gets its energy from the zero point..." Mitchell tried to explain.
"From the universe. It's a Zero Point Module," Angela said.
"I was thnking more along the lines of a core like the ones the Asgard use but a lot more sophisticated. Those cores have a pretty big power capacity," said Mitchell.
"Well whatever it is, there's no point wasting time in this room since we can't get to the weapons or use them," John remined everyone.
"Yeah, we'd better go eat now before one of us gets hurt," Mitchell said, still feeling a little groggy.
Jack O'Neill entered the canteen to see that everyone was already seated and engaged in conversation. From where he was standing, it looked like a family dinner table at a special occasion. He let himself observe them for a moment, one by one. The new arrivals to the team were quickly integrating into the group and adapting well to the situation. John and Jack, two confirmed agents, had a long career history behind them. Angela, well, hers was mostly unknown but he had no doubt that it too was extensive and he would never be able to get through it all. Despite her years, she was already very mature, more than others he thought, looking at Vala, who was sitting next to Daniel. She was entertaining herself pioceher dans l'assiette her neighbour's. He picked up a tray and went to look at the menu, expecting to find it different from the night before. Apparently not. Daniel had just written on a piece of paper what the inscriptions meant and had had also written down the phonetic signs to help everyone pronounce the Ancient words. He chose a dish that looked like it was made up of meat and vegetables. Best to go with something simple in case he didn't like it. He had no idea where this food came from or how old it had been there. Jack approached the table once he had plated up.
"Hey, Jack. You really should try the cake, it's great," said Daniel enthusiastically.
Daniel was in his element, really enjoying his time on this ship, as if the Ori had never existed.
"Hey," Jack answered, "I see you're enjoying yourself," he said as Sam pinched a few things off Angela's plate to tease her.
"What is it with everyone taking things off other people's plates?" asked Angela, "it's a self-service buffet, so go and serve yourselves! How lazy can you be!"
The meal went smoothly and everyone was in good spirits. They forgot about all their problems and their destination. They told each other about the things they had discovered like children: the library, the weapons room. While this was going on, by mutual agreement, Sam and Angela got up and left without saying a word. As their plates vanished, Jack questioned Daniel with a look.
"They're going to talk about mechanics," said Daniel.
"Ah! Nothing interesting, then. Hey Teal'c, you said there was a sports room. That could be fun," said Jack.
"Indeed," Teal'c said as he stood up, "let us do battle."
The start of the journey was quiet and good-humoured. With Angela's assistance, Sam studied the ship more closely, making sure to check the vessel's course from time to time as well as the ship's stats which showed that the team's presence was not having any adverse effect. Sam and Angela tried to understand why some doors were condemned, like the one next to the canteen which led to the fighters and drones and why they were unable to access the Lantean weapons. She worked on her own in front of the aquarium window whilst everyone else was busy. The first day passed by very quickly, giving way to the second.
End of chapter