Summary: Pain and sorrow have marred the once hopeful staff of the SGC. With recent changes in the staff, people are questioning the security of their positions. The Tok'ra, faced with problems of their own, depend more on their allies than ever before. Fighting among the Goa'uld has them fearing it is something more. Caught in the middle, can the allies survive an all out war? _______________________________________________________ Epilog:
In the cold dark of space a small vessel attached itself to a floating Alkesh. Slowly, pressure was restored to the control room, but the temperature was left alone. Three figures in enviromental suits entered the control room of the Alkesh from the small vessel.
The leader gesture at the controls. Recieving nods from the other two, he moved off to it. Holding up the laser torch in his hand, he started slicing in to the control consol.
The other two did the same with the chair until the figure frozen in the chair had been freed.
Upon freeing their burden, they picked it up carefully and hauled it back to their ship. After the hatch was shut, the pressure in the control room disappeared and the two ships drifted apart. Slowly, the small ship navigated the massive debris field. Upon clearing it, the ship jumped to hyperspace.
Jack sat bored in the middle of a briefing just like a hundred others. Since the decimation of the goa'uld fleets and their home worlds a year ago, their wasn't really much thrill to going through the gate. Sure, there was the occaisional world that still held a goa'uld in high esteem that they liberated, but the last one of those had been four months ago. Since then, the worlds they could reach from the Abydos Cartouche had just been pretty much boring, run of the mill worlds.
Sighing, he figured it was time for a vacation. He glance up to the man explaining the figures the UAV had found on the wall of a temple it had crashed in. Lieutenant Blackwood was the most recent addition to SG-1. The man was as dull as watching wet paint dry, the grass grow, and the PGA tour all rolled up in to one. Mentally, Jack was already doing his favorite past time, going over potential canidates for his replacement.
Out of boredom, he checked his watch. Two hours the dweeb had been at it. Feeling that all his charity had been used up, Jack stood up. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Report to SG-8, you will be going through on this mission with them. SG-1 has other important things to do." Jack glanced to General Hammond. "Sir."
"You may go, Colonel." Shaking his head, Hammond mentally tallied up yet another victim of the infamous Colonel's ill will toward replacements. He often wondered if the man would ever be satisfied. Two years and the other man still hadn't found his new fourth member. It was tempting just to assign him someone permanently, but that would go against what he felt made SG-1 special. "Thank you for your presentation, Lieutenant. Report here tomorrow for reassignment to SG-8 for the duration of the mission."
"Yes, sir." Blackwood knew what he really meant. This would probably be his last time through the gate as a member of the SGC. More than likely he would be exported to one of the new colonies for their Archiological teams. As far as he was concerned, it was exactly what he hoped for. The moment he learned he was on the fast track for SG-1, he knew he was bound to end up for the Colonies. This credit would earn him his own team. As he gathered up his things, he accepted the knowing nods from Teal'c and Major Carter with good graces. It wouldn't do to let them know on the inside he was doing hand stands.
As she passed by the Lieutenant, Sam glanced to Teal'c. She giggled when he just raised an eyebrow. They both knew what had been going through the man's mind. They had caught on to his game the moment he laid out a three hour presentation. If they weren't fired for incompetence, O'Niell's cast offs got plum assignements off world. To deliberately set this up took planning and cunning.
Moving on down the corridor for the elevators, she folded her arms. "Do you ever think about retirement, Teal'c? Go spend time with your family in the Land of the Light?"
"I have. Since the last battle with the goa'uld, I have contemplated my warrior's existance as one of futility. There will always be battles to be fought, wars waged, yet I have nothing to show for my accomplishments. My people are dying without the goa'uld." He paused as the elevator arrived to take them up. Stepping in, he waited until the doors closed before continue. "In fact, there are reports of Jaffa being ambushed and their primta being removed, only to be left to die slowly."
"If it wasn't so disturbingly true, I would say it was just rumors." Sam had heard from the Tok'ra that many Jaffa had turned to marauding lesser Jaffa armies just for their symbiots. The cannabilization of Goa'uld had led them to conclude that the only safe thing was to accelerate growth of the queen they had in their pocession. "I only hope they succeed without killing the new queen. The Tok'ra that is. Sorry, doing a little thinking."
"I too share that hope. Many of my people, I believe, would benefit from a relationship with the Tok'ra." When the elevator dinged their floor, Teal'c stepped out first to scan the corridor. An old habit he did not intend to let lapse. Since there was no reason to continue the training he had been put through, he made a special effort to keep it alive.
Sam just humored him. Stepping off the elevator, she pointed towards her lab. Their eyes met for longer than was necessary, and she smiled for him. "I have to go, the new Naquadah generator the Tok'ra helped me design is waiting for me."
"And my second is more than likely scaling the elevated surfaces from boredom." Hearing her giggle again made his chest tight. Inclining his head in acknowledgement, he turned to go.
The tank bubbled calmly around the now thawed out corpse. Floating in the water, it slowly drifted from side to side. The sewing at the back of the neck and along the spine was all that held the spinal cord inside the body.
Over the corpse, two figures moved, preparing the body for transport. A third person held the jar with the removed symbiot. Taking the symbiot to other side of the room, he glanced in the jar with sadness. With a sigh, he put the jar in a large chamber and sealed the door. A humming was heard then he opened the door. The jar was now empty.
Leaving the jar there, he closed the chamber and looked back at the body.
As Jack entered the control room, he knew something big was going on. His mind picked up as if from a fog. Glancing to the General, he raised an eyebrow. "Sir?"
"Jack, we got word from the Tollan. It seems a Goa'uld crashed on their new home world a week ago. It was only this morning they got a word out of him, and that was from the host. He asked for you by name." Hammond saw the dark look cross Jack's face and held up a hand to stall any forth coming arguements. "He says his name is Skarra, Jack. We just confirmed his identity over the computers. He wants you to come, he needs your help."
"What does the kid need me to do?" Already planning on how many Tollan he had to kill, Jack's trigger finger itched.
"He needs to you argue for him in defence. The goa'uld inside him claims he is the host and has no rights. If no one goes there to defend him, the goa'uld will be allowed to keep him as host."
"Listen up, you snobby bitch! We're going to take the kid, we're going to kill that snake, and then we are going to return him to his people. You even lift one finger to stop us and it will be the last thing you ever do. Do I make myself clear?" Smirking at the smug woman's outraged expression, Jack tipped his cap at her. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a snake to kill."
"You will not!" Standing, High Chancellor Trevel slammed her gavel down. "Guards, seize him!"
"Oh, I think not." Jack zatted the two guards as they came near. Turning around, he zatted the High Chancellor. "I should do you a third time! Turning back to Skarra, he grabbed the kid by the shoulder. "Come on, let's get out of here and get rid of that snake."
Staring at Jack in shock, Skarra nodded. "How? I thought they nullified your weapons when you stepped through the gate."
"They did." Jack guided them in to the hall and towards the exit of the Curia building. Stepping outside of the building, he smirked at the passing Tollans. He held up the device around his wrist to his mouth and whispered in to it. "Two to beam up, Scotty."
"My name is not Scotty, O'Niell."
"Oh, for pete's sake, just get us out of here." Wrapping an arm around Skarra, Jack smiled. "We're gonna get you home, little buddy." The metalic groan of the rings decending from the hovering Tel'tac filled the square and caused people to flee. "Sweet." The next moment Jack and Skarra disappeared in the rings.
Carefully arranging the body in the sarcophagus, the three figures began to paint on the symbols of rebirth. They quickly moved about the body, cleaning up extra ink and spillage to make it perfectly done. The eyes were painted and the lips retouched with a red color. When the paints and dyes had dried, a red veil was layed over the face and the arms were crossed over the chest.
Stepping back, the three figures turned the symbols on the sarcophagus to activate it. They watched as the sides came up and the arms closed over the face. With a stone snap, the entire box was sealed.
Jack sat with his back to the wall of the hut. Drinking a glass of the local brew, he smiled drunkenly to Skarra. "Your sister's kids, pure hellions."
"I know, they are the most beautiful things I have seen." Catching sight of a girl from a neighboring tribe, Skarra smiled. "Well, second."
"That's my boy!" Slapping Skarra on the back, he downed half the glass. With a gasp of appreciation, he licked his lips. "Nothing better than that cactus flower concoction."
"That's distilled with Schad fur, O'Niell. It gives extra flavoring." Snickering at the older man's grimace, Skarra took a drink of his own. The tangy flavor of it made his lips pucker. "This is the first year I can taste it without being watered."
"Relax, you earned it. You're a man!" Catching sight of Sha're's twins, he was reminded of just who their father was. "It's a good thing you didn't meet their father. He's a real.... real, complete asshole."
"What is an asshole?" In all seriousness, Skarra tried to focus on Jack's face long enough to get the answer.
"You know that thing between your legs that stinks real bad and you shit from? That's an asshole."
Skarra nodded sagely. "Ah, I know of these. It is a good thing that she and he only were together for a short time then." Smiling, Skarra fingered his glass thoughtfully. "Is Major Maybourne an asshole?"
"Oh yeah, a Major asshole."
"Major Asshole. Perhaps I should call him that next time we meet."
Jack stood in full gear next to his team and Major Maybourne. He was busy trying not to bust out laughing as the Major tore him a new one for the remarks of his unofficial son.
"If I ever hear you telling your friends to refer to an officer in such a disrespectful way again, I will have the General bring you up on charges! Is that clear, Jack?"
"Perfectly, Major."
"Good!" Maybourne turned on his heel and stalked from the gate room.
When the door shut behind him, Jack leaned on Teal'c. "Eeee-ah, Eeee-ah, Eeee-ah!" He was laughing so hard, he missed the gate opening and fell off Teal's shoulder to land on the gate room floor.
Teal'c merely raised an eyebrow, grabbed Jack by the pack and dragged him up the ramp to the gate. Upon exiting the other side, he let the man drop to the floor and glanced about him. "Colonel O'Niell, I believe you should take a look at this."
It took Jack a few minutes to calm down enough to open his eyes. Seeing the room was empty but for a large stone sarcophagus, he sobered immeadietly. "This wasn't here when the MALP came through."
"Indeed." Raising his staff weapon, Teal'c scanned for any sign of recent activity. "It does not appear anything else was touched."
"What is to touch?" Sam, stepping through the event horizon, shivered. "There isn't anything.... Oh. How'd that get here." Walking down the steps towards it, she kept her weapon trained on the sarcophagus.
"As I was about to state, I do not know. There are no signs of activity here as there are no tracks in the dust." Moving to the sarcophagus, Teal'c reached out a hand to trace it over the stone surface. "I am unfamiliar with these markings."
"That's because they aren't a language you have encountered. These symbols are ancient Sumerian, possibly from the city of Sumer itself." Lieutenant Marigold adjusted his thick, hornrim glasses. Running a hand over the symbols, he traced them to get a feeling of them. "Definitely Sumer."
"Great, the bat can actually read." Jack, standing up, dusted off his clothes. His back ached and he was starting to develope a head ache. The recent replacement had been the idea of the JCS. This guy was supposed to be the top of his field, some form of language shit Jack couldn't pronounce. Since the Goa'uld were all but nulified, they had authorized less muscular and more brainy nerds. Only problem with the new guy was he was almost legally blind. "Are you sure you don't need to go back to the base and get your dog so he can confirm it for you?"
"Ha, Ha, Colonel. Sumerian is like Brail, I can read it by touching it." Removing his fingers, he rubbed the tips together and ran them over the symbols again. "Okay, I got a translation. Oh mother of all the world, great giver of life and well spring of humanity. We beseech thee to return unto us and give us life eternal. Restore us from deformity and bring life to those beyond our grasp. Basically it is a love poem for a resurrection box. It doesn't say who is inside, just invokes the Goddess' aid in reviving those who us it."
"Great, you've been a lotta help. Now step aside." Aiming his gun, Jack gesture for Teal'c to come close. "Pop the hood, big guy."
Teal'c turned the wheat symbol on the top and the sarcophagus groaned. The sides started to pull back and lower with the sound of bricks rubbing against each other. The last to seperate were the arms over the face. In the glowing white insides the nude figure laid, painted with symbols and face covered with a red cloth. Teal'c raised an eyebrow.
Lowering his weapon, Jack took a half step forward. His breath catching, he reached out to touch the sarcophagus.
Sam's gun slid from her fingers as a hand went to her mouth. "Oh my god."
The figure in the sarcophagus gasped and shot up in to a sitting position. Pulling the veil off his face, Daniel looked around him questioningly. It took his eyes a moment to focus on anything around him. Seeing the barely lit black room, he visibly calmed down. "Oh god, it was just a dream. Just a dream."
"Daniel?" Sam jumped when he turned sharply to focus on her.
"Yeah?" He blinked a couple times and frowned. "Your hair, you've cut it. I was dead again, wasn't I?"
"Pretty much." Leaning against the sarcophagus, Jack reached out and rubbed Daniel's hair. "You gave us quite a scare there, Danny."
"Jack, don't call me that." About to get out of the sarcophagus, Daniel noted his lack of clothes first. "Where are my clothes? Wait a minute, why am I painted with Ceremonial death symbols? Did someone try to stick me in a tomb?"
"Judging by the symbols, I would say yes."
Daniel glanced to the new Lieutenant and frowned. "Who are you?"
Daniel settled in to his new bed in a VIP room on the base, complimentry of the General. He had been shocked to find that two years had past since his last memory. The Nasians had been uprooted and moved to a new home called the Beta sight, which was a trip in and of itself. Then to learn he had been a host for five days before he died was just plain Twilite Zone material. Life was only going to get harder he had learned.
Despite his overwelming feeling of loss that made it hard to breath at times, he continued on. He had been here a week, and most of his things had been returned. Mysteriously, ninety-nine percent of his pocessions were locked away in a storage unit no one just happened to know how they got there. They simply got put there two years ago and then nothing.
Feeling a sudden urge, Daniel jumped up from the bed and ran for the bathroom. When you gotta go, you gotta go. Since he came back, he had to go quickly or there were bathroom mishaps. They were getting fewer in number, but he wasn't taking any chances.
As he closed the door, his room door opened.
Daniel flushed the toilet and turned off the light, exiting the bathroom. About to close the door, he caught sight of a half nude man getting the rest of his clothes off. "Excuse me, but what are you doing in here?"
Whipping around, Martouf looked at Daniel in shock. "Dr. Jackson!"
"Yeah, that's who I am, now who are you and why are you stripping in my room? Last time I checked, I didn't order a stripper." Catching himself about to plop out, Daniel zipped up his fly and headed for his bed.
"I was unaware this room was in use. They simply said that I was to use one of the VIP rooms for the night." Grabbing up his hand woven shirt, Martouf started for the door.
"Wait a minute." Daniel stopped him before he reached the door. "Don't I know you?"
"We have never met, but I know much about you." Facing Daniel again, Martouf smiled.
"Now I feel awkward. You probably know everything that everyone else did about me, but you are a complete stranger to me." Watching the man carefully, Daniel judged him. He gestured to the chair at the foot of the bed. "I hope you don't mind my asking, but would you mind telling me about yourself? How did you come to the SGC? What race are you from?"
Smiling brightly, Martouf took the offered chair, putting his shirt on the floor beside him. "I am Martouf, my symbiot's name is Lantash. I am a member of the Tok'ra."
"Ah, that explains the shirt. I hear your people are very good at making clothes." Daniel seemed to think on that for a moment. "Wait a minute, no, that is the Tolka. Tok'ra, I'm afraid that doesn't ring any bells."
Sighing, Martouf effected a put upon demeanor. "We are the scourge of the once powerful goa'uld. Now we believe we out number them."
"Goa'uld numbers dropping, that's a good thing. Being the enemy of the bad guys is a very good thing." Daniel caught himself staring intensely at Martouf and glanced down, blushing with embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I just feel like I know you from some where. This is rather embarrassing as I keep getting images of what you... must... look like... well, nude."
Martouf flexed his muscles a little as Daniel scanned him again. "Is there something wrong with that?"
"No, not really. I'm just not normally this straight forward about my sexuality with people. Normally I spend half an hour just getting around asking a person their name." Daniel snorted. "What is it by the way?"
"Martouf."
"Oh yeah, that's right, you already said that. I can't believe I forgot, don't know what I must be thinking..." he trailed off as Martouf stretched for a yahn. "Where are my manners, would you like to sleep with me?"
Martouf paused mid stretch and peered through half closed eyes at Daniel.
"Oh... oh god, just, ignore that. I was wondering if you would like to share the bed as I'm not sure there is another open tonight. There seems to be a big get together tomorrow and a lotta VP's are here." Taking a quick breath, Daniel tried to back peddal further. "The closest to comfort you can get is either this room or the barracs, and trust me, sleeping with me is much better than sleeping with a bunch of marines. And I did it again." Pointing to the empty side of the bed, Daniel covered his face. "You sleep there, I sleep here, good night!"
Chuckling, Martouf nodded. "I believe I will accept your invitation, Dr. Jackson." Stripping down to his undergarments, Martouf reached over and turned off the bed side lamp. As he climbed in to bed, he tried to avoid contact with Daniel's skin. That soon changed with Daniel turned over and curled in to his body. Despite their attempts, Martouf and Daniel found being closer together more comfortable and were soon fast asleep.
Sitting in the Messhall, Daniel couldn't keep the big dopey grin off his face. Even when Jack, Sam, and Teal'c sat down, he kept on grinning like an idiot. "Hey, guys."
Sam gave him a quick hug, still not quite used to having him back in their lives. "Hey, Daniel."
Jack messed up his hair, smirking when Daniel glared at him. "Howdy. That is greeting number one-o-eight. I plan on using all twelve hundred on you just because I can."
"I reall wish you wouldn't." Taking a bite of his oatmeal, Daniel grimaced. "Somethings never change."
"Oh, they did for a while, then General Hammond finally beat Maybourne at his own game and the old cooks got rehired. I think that is one battle Hammond should have lost." Jack stirred his fruitloops with gusto. Sighing, he picked one up and let it drop back in the bowl. "I miss the days of fresh eggs and bacon."
Teal'c nodded his agreement. "I too miss aborted fowl embrios in the morning."
"Gotta work on those jokes, T." Jack pointed at Teal'c with his spoon. Pretending it was a magic wand, he shook at him. "Alakazam, you are now a pickle!"
"Do not make me hurt you, O'Niell." Picking up his own banana, Teal'c carefully and precisely peeled it. "Good morning, Daniel Jackson, you rested well?"
"Yeah, Daniel, what's up with the shit eating grin?" Eating a spoonful of fruitloops, Jack slirped to make Carter grit her teeth.
Daniel was about to answer when he caught sight of Martouf in the line. He waved at the other man and sighed.
"Oh god, not him." Jack snapped his fingers in Daniel's face to get his attention. "Please, tell me you didn't, not with him."