Hello, Stargate Lovers!
It took me a while, because I'm currently untying some knots in this story, but we'll get there.
Enjoy this new chapter!
Chapter 66: Original Chapter 0.23
"So, the boxes... they're empty, right? And they had nothing when you found them that would say, 'power to give life'?"
Alexandra looked up from the four boxes on top of the table, where Rodney was conducting another series of tests. It had been two weeks since the confrontation against Adria and there was no news about the Ori. Or the Wraith faction that was working with her. Even Todd was made aware of that, so he could be watchful of any changes in his own ranks.
"Nope. I've been making all kinds of tests. They are indestructible, though. Tried to blow them up at some point, but there was no changes." The scientist answered her question, not taking his eyes from his own computer.
"What if they only do something when they're together?"
"That's a theory." Rodney agreed, his eyes flickering for a moment towards his friend and saw her touch her bandaged hand with her good one. "How is your hand?"
"Healing. Slowly. Too slowly. Carson says I will probably have a few scars." Alexandra shrugged, not taking her eyes from the boxes.
"If you had your powers..."
"I know, Rodney. But, I don't." There was a sigh out of her lips as she felt the terse tone she had said those words. "I'm sorry. I just... having my powers is not important, right now. Right now what is important are these boxes." She fiddled with her bandage. "Why are we going to... Procullis? Is there any significance?"
At that question, Rodney looked up with a frown.
"You don't remember Chaya?"
"Only her name. From the reports I've read."
The scientist watched her walk around the table, her eyes glued to the boxes.
"Curious."
"Why is that?" Alexandra glanced back at him.
"She helped you get in contact with Ganos Lal last time you were in Procullis. Got some answers, as far as you told us. And now I hope she can help us figure out the boxes. And why your memories are still... fuzzy."
With his words in mind, Alexandra nodded, placing a glove on as she picked one of the boxes to place it in the case that would transport them to the planet in question.
Procullis, hours later
"How is she?" Having Rodney for company, John was walking ahead of the group, his eyes hidden behind sunglasses as he gave a quick glance towards Teyla and Alexandra talking a few steps behind them, while Ronon ended the procession, with his quiet stance.
"Why don't you ask her?" Looking towards his tablet, Rodney didn't pay much attention to his team leader. "Stop avoiding..."
"Rodney. You've been working with her for the past two weeks. Testing her, testing those damn boxes... Just answer the question."
Upon hearing his exasperated tone, the scientist looked up to his friend. Even with sunglasses, Rodney could feel the tension coming out of John's body.
"She's fine. Her healing process it's very much human right now. When... well, when she gave up her powers after what happened with Mitchell, the Ancients left her with that shield, at least. Right now she doesn't even have that. And what we saw with Adria was a fluke, because the box has no energy, much like the others, and I don't want her to pick one up again without gloves. For obvious reasons. We don't know what would happen, since she's not an ascended being anymore."
"Good call." John had a calm and resignated tone to his voice now.
"However, she had a theory this morning."
"What's that?"
"She thinks that only when the boxes come together, they will do something."
With a nod, John looked ahead, thinking on that possibility. It might answer a few questions, like why they had no markings, energy, or anything inside.
And that's when a light appeared in front of the group, making them stop, and a woman in a white dress materialized a few steps ahead of them.
"John Sheppard."
"Chaya." The pilot offered a soft smile, pulling his sunglasses on top of his head, sensing the rest of his team coming up behind him. "How have you been?"
"Good. And curious, now that you are here." Her eyes followed the faces she already knew, stopping on Alexandra. "Dr. O'Neill, so glad to see you again. You're..." A frown appeared on the exiled Ancient face. "You're human again?"
"How... We met before?" Alexandra stepped closer to the other woman, standing next to the pilot. "I mean, while I was ascended?"
"Yes. You don't remember?" There was a softness to the Ancient as she stepped closer to the group.
"No. Something... something happened. The Ori the Ancients imprisoned escaped. I fought her. I lost. And became human again."
"With no memories?"
"No." Alexandra gave a brief glance towards John. "I still don't remember a few things." Then, she focused her attention back onto Chaya. "Why did I came to you, while ascended?"
Chaya looked between her and John.
"To talk."
"About?"
"Many things, Alexandra. However, now I am curious on the reason why you are all visiting me."
At that, Rodney stepped ahead and opened the case with the four boxes.
"Maybe you could enlighten us on what these are." The scientist began.
"They're supposed to be five." Teyla added.
Looking at the case, the frown on Chaya's brows deepened.
"Come with me."
The group followed her to a nearby wooden house, near the Ancient temple Alexandra had visited more than a year ago.
Filled with artifacts and tapestries, the woman made a gesture for them to sit, while Rodney placed the case with the boxes on top of a table.
"Well, these boxes are definitely something. I just don't know what exactly."
Chaya stared at the SGA-1 team. Then, her eyes turned to Alexandra.
"And you were able to pick one up."
"Not exactly." Alexandra held up her bandaged hand. "I got burned. However, when we found the first one, Sheppard almost died."
Chaya nodded.
"You've told me. What I meant was that you picked one up... as an ascended being."
"Yes, she did." John was the one to answer. "Does that mean anything?" He was anxious to get answers.
Looking out the window, the Ancient eyes stopped at the temple she usually used to communicate with the others.
"I'm not sure. There is something in my memory. Something you asked me about, Alexandra. About your past self."
"Mélya."
"Yes." There was a smile on Chaya's lips. "She was a curious Ancient. The first one to ascend. To have abilities beyond comprehension. Met her only once and there was this calmness about her, a quietness like she knew many things that were coming but that she knew everything would be okay in the end. There was sadness too." She turned her eyes back to the humans. "I tried to help you reach your memories of her, but there was something blocking it. You told me that perhaps there was an information hidden, that was being protected."
"About the boxes."
"That was the theory, yes."
The scientist stood in a flash.
"Perhaps, I can talk with the Ancients. Like before."
"They are unreachable. Now I understand why. I felt an energy burst a while ago. Now, I know that perhaps had been the battle against Adria."
"Unreachable?" Ronon spoke, frowning, seeing his friend slumped shoulders at the other Ancient's words.
"I tried to understand what was happening. But I couldn't reach the higher planes." Chaya confirmed, her eyes turning worried at the somber expression that was now on Alexandra's face.
"Do you think..." Unable to stay still, Alexandra started to pace, million thoughts roaming through her mind. Frowning, John watched her. "Do you think Adria killed them?"
"I am not sure, Alexandra."
The scientist stared at the Ancient. Her brown eyes sad, serious and something more John couldn't understand as she left the house without a word.
"I'll be right..." The pilot followed her outside, not finishing his sentence, finding her not too far away. "Alex..."
She stopped. And the pilot got closer. Slowly, to not spook her. If there was something he knew about her was to not press her.
"What have I done, John?"
He frowned, not understanding. For a moment, the tone seemed so much like the Alexandra he knew when she doubted herself.
"I don't..."
"I should have fought her. I should have stayed and helped them fight her. What if they are dead because of me?"
The waver in her voice made him walk around her and look down. There was tears falling down her cheeks and her eyes were red. His heart broke for her and his hands itched to touch her.
"You did the best you could have done. You fought her. Before. Now. Even with no powers, you fought her two weeks ago."
"I am... was their warrior. I should have known better..."
"Maybe you became human so you could fight her."
"Daniel, Vala and Teal'C were the ones to defeat her in the last battle. Not me. I am not strong enough. I am not powerful enough. Never was."
"Alex." His hand went to her.
"Don't touch me." She barely moved, but her voice was hard. "I should have done what I was supposed to do years ago. Fight for them, win for them. I should have destroyed Adria then, if I hadn't been so focused on wanting..."
"Stop!" Is tone was commanding. Somehow John knew what she was about to say. Her brown eyes locked on his hazel ones. "Don't say something you'll regret. You wanted a normal life. That's not wrong. You wanted to love and be loved. You wanted to not have a responsability that was forced upon you. They manipulated you, Alex. Have you forgotten about it? Sneaky little bastards, that's what you told me, many years ago." Now, he was angry. He was not used to a self-deprecating Alexandra. He would much prefer the one that would push him away, not the one that regreted wanting things that were supposed to be normal.
"You're only saying that because you... because you want me! You want me to remember and to go back to normal, like nothing happened."
"What if I do?" He took a step closer to her, making her look up at him. "I've been staying out of your way, Alex, because I didn't want to overwhelm you. But I will not deny that I want you, that I want your memories back. Dammit! We had mere weeks together! Just weeks that barely scratched the surface on what we felt. Weeks, when I wanted..." His lips turned into a thin line.
"What about this galaxy, Sheppard? Have you thought about the damage Adria will bring if she wins, if she gets the boxes? She will bring everyone to their knees!" Her heart was beating erraticaly. "Everyone that will fight her will die. You, Atlantis..."
"Stop!" John grabbed her arms and pulled her to him, their bodies mere inches apart. "Listen to me. We'll find the remaining box, we'll find answers. And, powers or no powers, we'll defeat her."
They stared at each other, breathing hard, their hearts on their sleeves, feelings for everyone else to see.
"I don't want those memories." She simply said, her brown eyes turning serious, no emotion discernable.
John frowned, his hands letting go of her at the sudden hurt he felt from her words.
"Feelings made me lose my powers two times now. And, in those two times, the Ori won. I won't go for a third time. This time, powerless or not, I will kill her."
"Alex..." He could not believe in what he was hearing. She never sounded so much unlike her.
"I have work to do." She turned her back from him again and walked towards the house.
For a moment, he just watched her retreat. Once again, the fact that she was not the Alexandra he knew struck him.
"Can you look into my memories now?"
That was the question John heard as he entered the house, the eyes of his friends going from Alexandra to him, noticing that something happened and it was not right between them.
"I can try, yes. But if you have no memories..."
"I have no memories of Col. Sheppard. Or what happened for Adria to escape. Of everything else I do have memories. I have dreams that I'm not sure if they are memories of mine or Mélya's. Or if they are visions of what is coming. Maybe you could help me decipher them."
"Of course, Alexandra." Chaya looked at the team with a worried glimmer in her eyes. "Perhaps, we should go to the temple. It might help."
With a nod, Alexandra followed the Ancient.
"What happened?" Teyla asked, stepping closer to her friend, standing still by the door.
"She... she's giving up. Whatever happened up there, with Adria, with the Ancients, she doesn't want... our memories back. She wants her powers, she wants to fight Adria. She wants to kill her."
"That doesn't sound like Alex." Ronon spoke, leaning on his knees.
Closing the case with the boxes, Rodney sighed. Three pairs of eyes turned to him.
"You don't understand, do you, Sheppard?"
"What do you mean, Rodney?" The pilot frowned.
Blue eyes turned to him.
"Her memories. They might contain the answer to all of this. And what if those memories are the ones protecting her from what she is supposed to do? What if she wasn't the one to make herself forget? I've been wondering about what Adria said. About Ganos Lal."
"So?"
"What if Ganos Lal was the one to take Alex's memories, because she knew that the answer would lead to something?"
"We need answers, Rodney, and if having her powers is what will defeat Adria, we need to know." Teyla was exasperated by the turn of events from the last few weeks. "She's barely the person we know."
"Exactly. Because the person we knew fell in love with Sheppard. What if Ganos Lal is trying to protect her from decisions she made up there and it was breaking her apart? Listen, we all know that it was Ganos Lal that fought Adria back in the Ori Galaxy. And was the one to emprisioned her. And if I'm not mistaken, she's been protecting Alex for a long while now. Okay. The Ancients need her to fight Adria and the horrors of the universe, I get that. There's a lot of evil out there. But she defied them once with Mitchell and she conceded to their terms with John. If they are alive, what do you think they will ask of her now? Adria said it herself. They're the same."
"Her life." The pilot said after a moment.
"Only a life can defeat a life in equal manner." With a quiet tone, the athosian let out.
"And she knows that. She doesn't want her memories, because it will be hard to make that decision." Rodney turned his eyes back to John. "To leave you. It was hard enough a year ago. You didn't see her, John. You didn't see the look on her face when she decided what to do. So, imagine if she has to make that decision now. This time, if she fights Adria, she will die. And by the looks of it, she's all in right now."
"With no feelings, no memories... it's easier." Now it was the satedan's turn to put his thoughts into words.
"She's all in right now, because she doesn't remember." As John said the words, his fist connected with the wall.
"John..." Teyla had a sad look when she turned to her friend, worried.
"I promise, John." Rodney continued. "I'll do my best with the boxes. Maybe they are part of the answer. But you have to keep in mind that Alex is the one with all the power to unveil this conumdrum."
The pilot's jaw ticked as he offered a nod to the scientist, acknowledging his words, as his hazel eyes kept vigil on the temple.
The light surrounded the Ancient and the human.
Electricity. Prickled skin. Lips. Secrets. Tears. Blood. Screams. Life. Death.
A breath got caught in her throat as brown eyes looked up at Chaya.
"Mélya... she was powerful. She knew what was going to happen. She was reborn in you. That's why you are so different from the rest of us." The ancient spoke softly.
"Ganos Lal said as much while I was ascended. Kal said it too."
"The exiled ancient you fought, that tried to kill John Sheppard?" Leaning her head to the side, Chaya was curious.
"How do you... Oh, I talked about it when I came to see you?"
The other woman nodded, watching her closely.
"It's curious. A darkness was coming. Mélya knew when, not why or how to fight it. So, she was reborn as a human. In you. However, the Ancients never caught up on that until the first time you used your powers."
"And, even then, it took them a while to make contact. And, only when I ascended, they realized what had been done. Well, Ganos Lal knew... in a way."
"And why do you think you have no memories of your relationship with Col. Sheppard?"
Looking down at her hands, Alexandra fiddled with her bandage for a moment.
"He's going to die."
"Are you sure?"
"The first box we found, almost killed him. I ascended to save him. And now, with Adria on the loose... he's definitely not safe. She knows. I don't know how she knows, but she knows my connection with him. Like Cam, she's going to try and kill him. And... I have this feeling..." Her good hand went to her chest. "Everytime I see him laying on the floor in my dreams, I stop breathing. If I feel like this now, and have no memories of him, of what I felt about him, what do you think it will happen if I do?"
There was frown in Chaya's face, understanding the human feelings and reasoning.
"Well, the boxes are not something I am familiar with. But the threat you talked about, it was something seared into us as we ascended, just to be aware of it and find any clues of it coming. However, if the boxes, together, give life to the one that possesses it... they are dangerous and should be destroyed either way."
"Rodney tried it. It didn't work." Alexandra shrugged.
"He's not an Ancient."
"Could you try it?"
"I can. But I am not as powerful as you were."
"Chaya... what if I was the one to let Adria escape?" The scientist tone wavered at the fact out into words. It had been her fear since her encounter with the Ori.
"What is done is done. Either you did it or not, there's no way of knowing until you get your memories back. But you need to be willing, Alexandra. Own your mistakes."
With a nod, both women stood and walked outside the temple, finding the team not too far from them.
"Are you...?" John started, his eyes glued on Alexandra that barely glanced his way.
"There is nothing I could do with her mind. However, we must try to destroy the boxes." Chaya interrupted his question.
"Destroy the boxes?" With a pitch, Rodney held the case against his chest.
"It's our best chance to prevent Adria from getting more powerful." Alexandra spoke as she stepped closer to him and took the case. He couldn't argue with that theory, even if the boxes were amazing artifacts to study.
"You should step aside." Chaya offered as a warning, her eyes going to the female scientist that was placing the case near her feet and opened it, stepping away at the same time the rest of SGA-1 team.
For a moment, Alexandra had a tug to her heart as if her need to hold the boxes was important but she fought it and saw the white light engulf Chaya and expand towards the case.
In that moment, as silence filled their surroundings, the boxes turned dark and the image of a battle came to Alexandra's mind.
Two shadows fought in a field of battle.
Energy surrounding them and blood fell from one of the shadows. Then, something held one of the shadows before falling to the ground, spent.
Familiar eyes locked in place, holding the shadow steady and a scream filled it's ears.
As light subsided from the field, the scream turned real as Alexandra grabbed her head and fell to her knees at the pain the vision gave to her body.
"Alex?!" Warm hands grabbed her wrists and made her look up at him. "What did you see?"
Breathing came hard as brown eyes found hazel ones. There was a moment of silence where the images were incomprehensible to her, as if she was trying to align what was real and what was the vision.
"Two shadows. A battle. Blood." She saw his jaw tick. And she frowned, for a moment enjoying his touch, before pulling away from him and standing up. Her eyes went for the case. The boxes were intact. "Thank you, Chaya. For trying." Alexandra spoke, now looking back at the Ancient that had a curious look on her face now.
"Of course."
"Are you okay?" Teyla stepped closer to the scientist, having noticed the hurt in John's face when Alexandra pulled away from him. She saw her close the case and picking it up.
"I will be, Teyla. Don't worry." Alexandra offered a quick smile. "We should go back to Atlantis."
"Alexandra." Chaya called back and the scientist approached the Ancient. "Heed my advice. Whatever you saw. Whatever it made you feel. Whatever you decide, don't let go of what makes your heart beat."
There was a strange look in the scientist eyes. Then, she nodded and walked away.
"John Sheppard." The pilot turned to Chaya that stepped closer to him this time. "You are important. All of you are. That's what makes her human. Perhaps that's the reason she came back to you. Perhaps, only with your help she will be able to defeat Adria."
"What do you mean?"
"You'll know when to act." At that, the Ancient offered a smile and turned into a white light before disappearing.
Ps: Thoughts?