CHAPTER NINE
"I hate this continent," Jack muttered as they stepped out of the dorm and into the cold Antarctic air. After arriving at McMurdo late last night, they'd spent the night in one of the dormitories, planning to leave for the outpost first thing in the morning.
"Not wearing your thermal undies, Jack?" Daniel asked with a straight face.
"You bet I am. Unlike certain people I could name, I don't have someone to snuggle up to and keep me warm."
"I could probably suggest someone."
Jack glared at him. "Don't you start that again."
"Start what, Jack?" the archeologist asked innocently.
Sam hid her smile. Daniel had revealed to her his belief that Jack had feelings for Janet, and she, in turn, had told him about her conversation with the doctor about the colonel. The two had toyed with the idea of doing a bit of matchmaking, but decided that Jack would try to kill them if they did.
"Actually, sir, it's really not all that cold here this time of year," she said, "not compared to what it will be in a few months. It's still summer."
"Well, I don't think I'll be whipping out my Bermuda shorts and Hawaiian shirt any time soon," Jack responded.
The three members of SG-1 boarded the helicopter that would take them to the outpost. Their pilot was an Air Force major named John Sheppard, who chatted throughout a great deal of the flight. He'd been stationed at McMurdo for a few weeks, but didn't know about the Ancient outpost. All he knew about where they were going was that it was some kind of research station with a U.S. Military presence and scientists from around the globe.
After being dropped off at the outpost, Jack, Daniel and Sam were greeted by a dark-haired woman the archeologist recognized.
"Hello. I'm doctor Elizabeth Weir. I'd welcome you to our little outpost here, but you were here before any of us were."
"Yes, and may I say it is not a fond memory," Jack stated.
Elizabeth smiled slightly. "No, I should imagine it isn't." She turned to Daniel, shaking his hand. "Doctor Jackson, it is a pleasure to meet you. Everyone has been eagerly awaiting your arrival. I'm afraid that you're going to be a very busy man while you're here."
"I'm always busy, Doctor Weir. I'm used to it."
"Used to it? Daniel, if you weren't up to your eyeballs in work all the time, you wouldn't be happy," Jack responded.
The archeologist looked at him meaningfully. "Actually, Jack, I've come to quite enjoy my leisure time."
Jack glanced at Sam. "Ah, yes. Of course. My mistake."
Elizabeth looked at them in puzzlement. "Well, if you'll follow me, I'll show you to your quarters so that you can unpack and relax for a little while."
She led them through the building that had been constructed to house the scientists and other personnel working at the outpost. The three newcomers made note of where the dining room was.
"Here you go. You can decide which room each of you want. I'm afraid that they're not very big. Space is at a premium here."
"Twin beds?" Sam asked, already knowing the answer. So much for sharing a bed with Daniel while they were here.
"Afraid so," Elizabeth confirmed.
Daniel and Sam exchanged a look, which Elizabeth noticed and immediately interpreted. Now she understood those earlier comments. Too bad she hadn't known this before. She might have been able to make special arrangements.
"Well, I'll let you get unpacked," she said. "You can eat whenever you wish. There are people working round the clock, so the kitchen is always open. I'll be heading back over to the outpost now, so I will see you there."
"So, I'm assuming I'll be taking that room," Jack said after Weir was gone, pointing his thumb over his shoulder at the one that was across the hall from the other two rooms, which were side-by-side.
"Why do you say that, sir?" Sam asked.
"Because you two are going to want to be in the rooms next to each other so that Daniel can rip out part of the wall and make them into a suite."
Ignoring the look on his teammates' faces, Jack turned and disappeared into his room.
"Now, why didn't I think of that?" Daniel said.
Sam stared at him. "You're not actually going to do that, are you?"
"If I can. I don't want to spend the next several weeks sleeping alone."
"Me neither."
The couple went into one of the rooms, and Daniel examined the wall separating it from the other room. It was constructed of plywood nailed into two-by-fours.
"Do you think you can do this without making a racket that'll have everyone running to see what's happening?" Sam asked.
Daniel studied the wall and the room for a few seconds longer, deciding upon the best course of action. He turned his attention to the nails holding the plywood in place. One by one, he pulled them all out from the first sheet of plywood.
After a bit of shuffling around of furniture, the couple managed to set the plywood sheet up against the opposite wall, behind the bed, Daniel driving a couple of nails in to hold it in place. They repeated the process with the other one. The couple went to the other room, and Daniel did the same thing with the plywood on that side of the wall. He then carefully removed a couple of the two-by-fours in the center of the frame, making an opening large enough to walk through.
"There we go. Our two singles are now a double," Daniel said.
"Yeah, but the beds aren't."
"We could put them together."
"I guess that would work as long as one of us doesn't lay in the crack."
"We can ask for a couple extra blankets and lay them underneath us where the crack is."
Daniel and Sam spent several more minutes moving furniture, placing everything except the beds in one room and putting the twin beds together in the other.
The couple looked around at their handiwork, satisfied that it would do.
"So, how do you want to carry out our plan regarding the ever-irritating Doctor McKay?" Daniel asked Sam as they unpacked.
"Hmm. I was giving that some thought on the flight over, and here's what I decided." Sam explained her idea to Daniel, who thought it was perfect.
They left their room and knocked on Jack's door.
"Ah. So, did you finish the remodeling?" he asked. "I didn't hear any sounds of destruction, just some banging around."
"Yes, Jack, the remodeling is done," Daniel replied.
"That's good. I really wouldn't have wanted to be around you two when you started getting grumpy about sleeping single."
Embarrassed by the comment, the couple did not respond to it.
"We're going over to the outpost now," Daniel said.
"Yep, just as I figured. You can't wait to get your hands on that stuff. Have fun."
The first person Daniel and Sam met when they descended into the outpost was a man with a thick Scottish brogue who introduced himself as Doctor Carson Beckett.
Daniel shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you, Doctor."
"Your Doctor Fraiser contacted me about your most recent adventures, Doctor Jackson. What you are able to do is simply amazing, a truly marvelous gift and a blessing to those whose lives you've saved. She expressed some concern about your health, though, and I promised her that I would make sure you were all right. May we go to my lab? I would like to discuss something with you."
They went to the lab, and Beckett found some chairs for them to sit in.
"I'm a medical doctor," he explained, "but I also have a wee bit of knowledge about genetics. When the first scientists came here after you discovered this place, they all tried to see if they could make that chair work, but not a one of them could even get it to light up. Some thought that it was because only someone who had the knowledge of the Ancients could operate it, but, once I got involved, I began to suspect that there was something more to it." Beckett faced Daniel. "I hope you won't be upset when I tell you that I got a sample of your DNA from Area 51."
"Um . . . no, I don't mind."
"I took a look at the data gathered by the scientists there and ran some tests of my own, and I have to say that your DNA is really quite extraordinary. It is like nothing I have ever seen before. Though, genetically, you are still quite human, you are advanced far ahead of us." The doctor leaned forward. "I firmly believed it was that genetic difference, not the knowledge of the Ancients, that allowed you to turn on the chair. The problem was that, if I was right, there was a possibility that you were the only person who would be able to control it. But then I recalled something. According to the Asgard, Colonel O'Neill is also advanced on the evolutionary scale, which was the reason why he was able to carry and utilize the information from the Ancient repository."
"You think that Colonel O'Neill could control the chair?" Sam asked.
"I don't just think it, I know it. You see, I did some tests on a sample of the colonel's DNA, and I discovered that it possesses a gene not found in normal humans." Beckett looked at Daniel. "Interestingly, you do not have the gene."
"Actually, that doesn't surprise me," the archeologist responded. "Thor told us that the way I'm genetically advanced is not the same as Jack."
"Well, since discovering the gene, we have tested several thousand DNA samples, and I discovered the same gene in a few other people. Ironically, I am one of them."
"You have the gene? Are you saying that you can control the chair?" Sam questioned.
The doctor made a face. "I have no desire to try, though Rodney has attempted to get me to sit in the bloody thing several times. But other people with the gene are here and have succeeded in making the chair work, though their abilities are limited."
"How come we're only just now finding out about this?" Daniel asked.
"Until we could actually test it, I had no way of knowing for sure if I was right about that gene enabling someone to control Ancient technology. I cannot tell you how anxious I was to get here. When we confirmed that I was right, there was an attempt to let Stargate Command know, but we were told that your base was in . . . in lockdown? I think that's what they said."
Sam nodded. "The base was put in lockdown because of the issue with Anubis."
"We did tell General Hammond yesterday, but you would have been en route to here at that time."
"This is incredible news," Sam said. "It means that, if some other Goa'uld ever attacked, we wouldn't have to worry about there being someone who could fire the weapon, that is if the weapon still works. There's no way to know that short of trying it again."
"I don't know how well one of the others could control that weapon. Like I said, their skills are limited, though I'm sure they could learn in time. There is some question on whether or not the reason for their limited control of the chair is that they don't have the advantage of the Ancient knowledge." The doctor turned his attention to Daniel. "That's why we'd like to see how well you can control it now that you no longer have the knowledge."
"Um, sure, I can try," the archeologist said.
"Good! We can go there now, if that's all right."
Daniel shared a glance with Sam. "Actually, we have something else that we'd like to take care of first. It won't take long."
"Certainly. I'll wait for you here, then."
"Do you know where Doctor McKay is?" Sam asked.
"I think he is in his laboratory."
The doctor gave them directions to the lab, and they headed over there. As Daniel remained outside and out of sight, Sam walked in. Rodney McKay saw her right away, smiling.
"Major Carter. It's good to see you. I think you'll be impressed with everything we've accomplished here already. I've been able to figure out how several of the systems work, and we're getting a lot of data. It's all written in Ancient, though, and the translators we have leave a lot to be desired. That's where Doctor Jackson is going to come in handy."
"I think you'll find that Daniel's handy in a lot more ways than that. With him here, we'll probably find Atlantis in no time."
"There's a lot of data and records to go through," McKay responded. "Even if the key to Atlantis' location is here, it'll probably take weeks to find it." He looked at her a little nervously. "I was, um . . . I was thinking that we could go get some coffee . . . or something, and go over my research notes."
Daniel decided that was his cue to enter. He came walking in casually.
"Hey, Sam." He walked up to her, pulled her into his arms, and brought his lips to hers in a long kiss.
As the lovers drew apart a few seconds later, they turned to look at McKay. The man was gaping at them like a fish, eyes as wide as they could be and jaw just about hitting the floor.
"Hello. You must be Doctor McKay," Daniel said. He left Sam's arms and stepped forward, holding out his hand. "I'm Doctor Jackson."
McKay stared at the archeologist dumbly, still in shock. Regaining his composure with a great deal of effort, he shook the proffered hand.
Daniel smiled at him. "Sam's told me a lot about you."
That brightened McKay's expression. "Really?"
"Uh huh. We share pretty much everything with each other."
All hints of brightness were snuffed out. McKay began to frown. "Well, I'm sure you two must have a great deal to do. I'll, uh . . . I'll just get back to what I was doing here."
"We can go over those notes later," Sam said to him.
"Fine. Whenever."
Daniel and Sam left the lab and walked away around a corner, where the major let out a quiet laugh.
"Did you see that look on his face?" she asked, grinning.
"Yeah." A little frown turned down the corners of Daniel's mouth. "You know, Sam. I think we broke his heart."
"Are you kidding? There's only one person Rodney McKay's in love with, and that's himself."
"I don't know, Sam. He looked pretty unhappy after he picked his jaw up off the floor."
Even if Daniel was right, Sam didn't think that McKay could have anything more than a crush on her. It couldn't be anything serious. She decided not to think about it anymore. "Come on. Let's go back to Doctor Beckett."
After returning to the doctor's lab, they went with him to the control chair. Daniel stared at it, remembering the last time he sat in it.
"Whenever you're ready, Doctor Jackson," Beckett said.
Feeling just a little nervous, Daniel climbed the dais and cautiously sat in the chair. It immediately lit up and reclined. Remembering what he did before, Daniel closed his eyes and sought to gain control of the device. As he did, he sensed a connection being made with his mind.
"Daniel?" Sam inquired, seeing his expression become distance.
"Do you feel something, Doctor Jackson?" Beckett asked.
"I feel everything," the archeologist replied.
"What do you mean?"
"I can sense all the systems in the outpost. It's almost like when Thor merged my mind with his ship's computer. I think. . . ."
Seconds later, things started turning on throughout the outpost. Technology and equipment that the scientists hadn't been able to figure out yet became active. All the lights came on.
Several people came hurrying up, including Doctor Weir and McKay.
"What's happening?" the woman asked.
"He's turning everything on!" McKay said excitedly, forgetting for the moment his earlier dark mood.
Daniel opened his eyes. Above his head, a holographic image of Earth's solar system formed. It changed to another solar system and then another. A dozen systems of worlds far away appeared and disappeared over the next minute.
"I can only imagine how massive the database of systems must be," Sam murmured, gazing at the image.
The hologram turned off. The chair returned to an upright position, and Daniel looked at everyone.
"That was extraordinary," Elizabeth said.
McKay looked around the area. "We need to get busy studying the things he turned on." He rushed off.
The dark-haired woman smiled. "Congratulations, Doctor Jackson. He'll be in seventh heaven for days."
Sam grinned. "Me too."
Daniel got out of the chair. "Glad I could give everyone even more work to do."
"I'm going to get started," Sam said. "I'll see you later, Daniel."
The archeologist watched her go with a fond expression, enjoying the sight of her eagerness and excitement.
"Could we chat for a while?" Doctor Weir asked him.
"Sure."
They went to her office.
"First of all, I want to apologize for the situation with the rooms," the woman said. "I had no idea that you and Major Carter were in a relationship. Frankly, I'm a little surprised, what with you being teammates."
"We've only been together for a few weeks," Daniel explained. "And don't worry about the rooms. I already took care of it."
"You did? How?"
"I took out the wall between the rooms that were next to each other. But don't worry. It can be put back the way it was before."
"I see. I am aware of your paranormal abilities. I'm one of the few here that is. I have to say that I find the whole thing amazing and quite fascinating." Elizabeth smiled. "Carson, Doctor Beckett, is enamored of your DNA. He'd have gone on about it for hours, if I'd let him." She sat in a chair. "I have a personal request to make."
Daniel settled in another chair. "What's that?"
"Since I arrived here, I've been spending as much time as I can learning the Ancient language. I can't tell you how much help your notes on the language have been, not to mention the instructional tapes you made. I'm not the only one here who has been making use of them. However, even with the notes and tapes, we all still have a lot to learn. I was thinking that you might be able to help in that regard."
"You want me to teach you?"
"I would greatly appreciate it. It would be wonderful if you could hold some kind of class, perhaps just an hour a day."
"Learning a complex language like Ancient in its entirely is not something that could be done in a few weeks."
"Yes, I know, but the more we learn, the better off we'll be. And I do have some skill with languages. Nothing compared to you, of course, but I do all right."
Daniel nodded. "Five languages, right?"
Elizabeth smiled. "I see you've done your homework on me."
"A bit."
"What I'm hoping is that we'll be able to learn enough of the language that, when the expedition I'm putting together goes to Atlantis, we will be as prepared as we can be."
Daniel stared at her questioningly. "You're already planning the trip to Atlantis?"
"Didn't anyone tell you? Barely a day after the outpost was discovered, the president called me to the White House and asked me to lead the Atlantis project. At the time, I didn't know anything about the Stargate or anything else, so, to say the least, I was a bit surprised. I had no idea why he'd want me. He explained that, because of the terms of the Antarctic Treaty regarding military activity on the continent, it would be best if a civilian was in charge here. He also knew that there would likely be some problems with the other nations and was familiar with my history in dealing with that sort of thing. As it turned out, he was right, and I ended up spending a lot of time trying to smooth ruffled feathers, calm fears, and get everyone to agree on what could and could not be done with the outpost."
"And what about this expedition you're talking about? I knew that, if we ever found Atlantis, someone would go there, but I had no idea that plans were already underway."
"President Hayes isn't one to put things off. He recognizes the importance of what we might find at Atlantis. He also knows that, while Anubis may have been defeated, there are still plenty of other Goa'uld out there that could cause trouble. Atlantis may give us what we need to eliminate that threat. I'm hoping that, by the time Atlantis is found, we'll be all ready to go there." She studied Daniel closely. "Which leads me to something else. Not even counting your ability to operate that chair and, most likely, any other Ancient technology, your knowledge of the Ancients and their language is absolutely invaluable. When we go to Atlantis, I would very much like you to come with us."
Daniel thought about the offer. "If this had happened before all this stuff with my paranormal abilities began, I'm pretty sure I would have jumped at the chance to go, but a whole lot has changed during these months. As you said, the Goa'uld are still a very big threat, not just to Earth, but to the whole galaxy. I've managed to do a lot with these abilities I've gained. They've saved a lot of lives and helped bring down more than one Goa'uld. While I would be glad to give you a hand wherever I can and occasionally come help with some project or a tough translation, I need to stay at the SGC and with SG-1, where my abilities will do the most good."
Doctor Weir gave him a little smile. "I understand. I am a little disappointed, but I do agree with your reasoning."
"Besides, for the first time, I actually have a real life outside the program, a life that I love, and I'm not prepared to give that up, even if it would just be for several months."
Elizabeth's smile widened a bit. "I can understand that, too. I know what it's like to be in love. To be honest, when we leave for Atlantis, a part of my heart will be staying behind on Earth." She got to her feet, as did Daniel. "So, may I make arrangements for you to give daily language lessons?"
"Sure, that would be fine. Mornings would be best, after everyone's had their coffee and had a chance to wake up."
"Eight o'clock?"
"That would be good."
Elizabeth held out her hand and shook Daniel's. "Thank you, Doctor Jackson."
Daniel left the office to begin the job that might ultimately give them weapons to defeat the Goa'uld.
Teal'c came forward to grasp the arm of the man who had just exited the Stargate.
"Tek matte, Master Bra'tac."
"Tek matte, Teal'c." The older Jaffa embraced him. "It is good to see you."
"Indeed."
"Has young Rya'c arrived yet?"
"He arrived yesterday evening."
The two men began walking toward the amphitheater on Albaren, two other Jaffa accompanying them at a slight distance.
"How many are assembled to witness the ceremony?" Bra'tac asked.
"Over one hundred are presently here."
"That is good. This Ra'kon Akel will be unlike any other that has ever been performed. When the time comes for mine, I will follow in your footsteps, that is if there is any need. By then, the Goa'uld may truly be defeated. Word of Anubis' destruction has quickly spread among the Jaffa and given new life to the rebellion."
"I am afraid that I have news of Anubis," Teal'c said. "He is not dead, as we had believed. He survived the destruction of his ship and managed to come down to Earth."
Bra'tac stopped, looking at him in concern. "This is grave news. What threat does he pose to the Tau'ri?"
"He poses no threat, not anymore. Thanks to Daniel Jackson and Major Carter, Anubis is now trapped upon a lifeless world with no means of escape."
"Explain this to me."
As they resumed walking, Teal'c told the Master Jaffa of the events that had occurred just a few days ago. Both of the other Jaffa who were walking with them were aware that Daniel was Dan'yar, so Teal'c knew that he could speak freely.
Bra'tac was surprised and very pleased when he learned how Daniel had prevented himself from being made a host to Anubis and how he relentlessly pursued the Goa'uld throughout the SGC.
"Ah, if I had only been there to witness that," he said.
"And you would have been as amazed as I when you witnessed Daniel Jackson bring Major Carter back from the dead."
Master Jaffa halted again. "Tell me more of this."
Teal'c explained how Daniel had retained the ability to heal injuries in others and in himself, then told him about Anubis killing Sam and Daniel bringing her back to life.
"She was truly dead?" asked one of the other Jaffa, who had been listening to the conversation.
"Yes," Teal'c confirmed. "The Tau'ri have a device that shows the activity that is within a living brain. There was no such activity in Major Carter's brain. She was quite dead."
The Jaffa shared a glance with the man beside him, their expression that of incredulousness.
"I watched the Goa'uld bring many back from the dead, but, every time I saw it, I knew that it was their technology that made it possible," Bra'tac murmured in amazement. "Daniel Jackson has brought the dead back to life with only the power of his mind. If I were young and foolish and not so wise to the truth about false gods, I would begin to believe that he truly is a god."
"Indeed, Bra'tac. During these months, I have seen Daniel Jackson's powers continue to grow. He has done things that I would have believed to be impossible. Yet, he remains the same man that he was before."
"Which is a good thing for us all," Bra'tac said as they started walking again. "I can understand why the Tau'ri at your SGC feared so greatly when they believed Daniel Jackson was possessed by Anubis. Even with all my years of being a warrior, both fighting for and against the Goa'uld, I would fear facing Daniel Jackson in battle. I am deeply disappointed that I was not there to fight at his side when he defeated Baal."
Teal'c smiled slightly. "It was a great battle, old friend. Your presence would have been welcome."
Bra'tac smiled. "And to see Baal stripped naked and humiliated like that is a sight I would have cherished for the remainder of my life. I have spoken to more than one Jaffa who was there, and they laugh in delight when speaking of it."
"It was a sight I will never forget."
The two men fell silent for a short while.
"We received your request for news of who this one is that controls Anubis' forces," the older Jaffa said. "I am afraid that we still do not know anything. Most of Anubis' Jaffa died in the battle over Earth. Many of those who were left fled and joined the rebellion when they learned of his defeat. The few that remain are completely loyal to him or to whomever it is that now commands them. We have been unable to learn who this one is. He continues to attack the other Goa'uld as Anubis did. The armies of Camulus are gone, and many other Goa'uld have suffered great defeats. If this continues, we may see an end to the Goa'uld at the hands of one of their own."
"But we will be left with a single Goa'uld of great power."
"Yes." Bra'tac looked at his former pupil. "But enough about this. Today is your day, my friend, and we must discuss the preparations for tonight." He smiled. "Have you decided what your pledge symbol will be for this Ra'kon Akel?"
Teal'c smiled slightly. "I have, Master Bra'tac, one I believe quite fitting."
