Revelations
Personal Log: Dr. Daniel Jackson
It's been two months since N'qua'ri and today is my first day back to work. I plan to work on the piles of artifacts that need to be cataloged. I have been so busy over the past five years that I haven't kept up with my research. I am going to start with the arrow Sam took out of me and the markings I copied off the "stones". At least Sam brought back the arrowhead. I'm sure Jack would have left it there with the bad memories of the planet.
One thing of note for today. When I arrived at the SGC SG-4 was returning from an Aztec like planet (P8W 924), so I went to the gate room. As the gate activated I felt a little woozy. If it happens again I will have to let Janet know.
********
O'Neill and Teal'c came down the corridor from the elevator to the briefing room. They both appeared exhausted and were walking stiffly. It didn't look as if they were returning from a leave, but they were. It had been another "Jack O'Neill" vacation. Ice fishing. As they entered the briefing room, Hammond gave them a quick glance and returned immediately to reading a file Dr. Fraiser had given him. It was the mission report from N'qua'ri. As soon as O'Neill noticed which file it was, he turned and began to drag himself from the room.
"Just a minute, Colonel O'Neill"
O'Neill stopped in his tracks and still facing the door, moaned, "Yes, General?"
"I would like to discuss some matters concerning N'qua'ri." Hammond never looked up. He expected O'Neill to turn obediently and sit at the briefing table. Even though O'Neill was always full of surprises, Hammond was shocked when O'Neill continued out of the room and back into the corridor. Hammond quickly followed him. "Colonel O'Neill!"
O'Neill stopped again. Turned slowly on one foot. Tilted his head. "Yes! General Hammond." His cock-sure air showing full force.
"We need to talk about what took place there." Hammond put a hand out on O'Neill's arm as if to guide him back to the briefing room. "There seems to be some discrepancies between Dr. Fraiser's account and your own."
O'Neill moaned under his breath, "oh boy" "OH," he spoke up, "what kind of discrepancies?"
"Please, come in and sit down." Hammond lead O'Neill back to the briefing room.
As soon as they sat down, Dr. Fraiser and Daniel Jackson entered the room and took their regular places.
"Okay, people if we are all here now. Except of course for Maj. Carter who is on assignment at the JPL. I would like to discuss the mission to N'qua'ri. Dr. Fraiser, I'd like you to start by explaining if you can the description of your arrival at N'qua'ri."
"Well, I err.." Janet Fraiser squirmed in her chair. She had known that O'Neill didn't want that particular information in the report and she had struggled with loyalties to come to the decision to go ahead and do it. "I believe I experienced a vivid hallucination when I got there."
Some moments went by while General Hammond waited for Janet to continue her story. When she didn't volunteer any more information, he spoke up. "Dr. Fraiser, could you elaborate please."
"Uh, yes sir!. I stepped through the stargate and saw a beautiful city of temples. There seemed to be several hundred priests or people praying to the stargate. I saw no damage from the grenade Colonel O'Neill had thrown through the stargate just before egress. Two days later when we returned to the stargate for regress with Dr. Jackson on a stretcher, the temples and priests were not there anymore. I believed then that it had been an hallucination."
"Thank You, Dr. Fraiser. Colonel O'Neill, do you have any explanation for this? Or do you have anything you would like to add to your report?"
It was O'Neill's turn to squirm now. He stared at Daniel for a full minute then turned to General Hammond, "Well sir. We figured there was some kind of holographic image being projected."
"A holographic image?" Hammond pursed his lips.
"It isn't really my field, General." Is all O'Neill would now say.
"Dr. Jackson, do you have anything to say to this?"
"Well, General, uh" he turned and took a quick look into O'Neill's eyes, "It wasn't a hallucination. We all, erm, experienced it. And I have some writings from tablets that only seemed to be there for a few hours."
"Have you had a chance to decipher them?"
"No General. I don't think I can. Perhaps the Tok'ra.."
"Oh here we go.." Interjected O'Neill
"Well, Jack," Daniel twisted his face in O'Neill's direction but didn't look directly at him. "It's a completely alien language. The Tok'ra may be able to help."
"Alright, Dr. Jackson. Prepare a communicae to the Tok'ra and we'll see what their response is."
"If they have a response..." O'Neill interrupted again.
"Colonel, don't leave important things out of reports anymore, please. Dismissed all." Hammond rose and went to his office. Then the others looked at each other for a moment and went on their ways. O'Neill seemed to be stomping. It was just noticeable to Teal'c.
******** the next day....
<Knock Knock Knock>
"Hey Daniel, are you here?" Sam peeked into Daniel's lab.
"Over here Sam" Daniel was in a back corner at a small table holding the arrowhead under a bright light. "Welcome back from California."
"Thanks." Sam walked up to Daniel.
"What do you think of it? Is it Earth-like?" Sam leaned over his shoulder.
"Well, all arrowheads are basically Earth-like, but yes I think it is. It's a four point, steel arrowhead. The steal is interesting. That it isn't Naquadah is probably the most interesting thing about it. There isn't any indication of what kind of tribe it came from. Did you read Janet's report?" Daniel turned to look at her.
"No. Anything interesting?"
"Yeah. She wrote that upon arrival at N'qua'ri she saw a large opulent city. She thought she was surrounded by priests and temples." The creases in Daniel's forehead deepened as he told her.
"What? She never said anything to me about it."
"Yeah. Well apparently, though it's Janet afterall, she felt that because the city wasn't there when they returned to the stargate that she had been hallucinating. But, because she was there to rescue me she shouldn't say anything lest I don't get the care I need."
"What made you think to read her report Daniel?"
"Uh, there was a mission debriefing while you were gone and besides i was curious about what she said about my condition. I really didn't feel that bad until I woke up in the infirmary."
"Hey campers" Col. Jack O'Neill yelled from the open door of Daniel's lab.
"Over here, Sir." Sam yelled back.
"What's going on..."
"I was just working on the stuff from N'qua'ri."
"Oh? Anything interesting?"
"Yeah, the arrowhead is made of steal."
"And that means, exactly what?"
"That it was made on Earth."
Both Sam and O'Neill answered together, "What?"
"I have found a lot of common metals around the galaxy but this steal is 19th century American. So yeah, like I said it's interesting."
"Are you saying," O'Neill leaned in, "that these aliens had American steal arrowheads, like from the sports shop or something?"
"Well, I'm sure they didn't come here and..."
"I mean, these arrowheads, are they from Earth, for sure?"
"Well, I don't think...."
"How could that happen Daniel?" Sam interrupted O'Neill.
"If you will let me finish..."
"Yeah, sure Daniel, go ahead." O'Neill said.
"The arrowheads are made of steal, not Naquadah. I don't know how they got the steal, just that they are made of steal. It is much more interesting that they are not made of Naquadah."
"Major, didn't he just say that this steal is a 19th century American? Daniel, so it isn't Naquadah. If it's steal that's important. How would they get it? Have they been here? Are they from here? Did the Goa'uld give it to them?"
"I don't know Jack." Daniel grabbed his head, "oh" he leaned over the table.
"Daniel, what is it?" Sam jumped toward him.
"Uh, I don't.... I don't" Daniel slumped forward into the table and collapsed.
"Daniel?"
"Major, call the Doc."
"Yes sir."
******** late that evening....
General Hammond came into the briefing room with a file in one hand and surprisingly, a cup of coffee in the other. He wasn't much of a coffee man but it was late at night and this situation called for it in his opinion. He set the file down at the front of the large oval table. Then he took a drink and set the coffee down next to it. The creases of his forehead were deeper than usual and his uniform was a little looser. He hadn't had anything but coffee since Dr. Jackson had collapsed in his lab. Daniel was now apparently near death.
Janet Fraiser followed him in and went straight to a seat. She didn't want to be away from her patient for long but understood why this meeting had to take place. She looked around the room and noticed that Teal'c, O'Neill, and Sam were all staring at her. Hammond was staring at the table.
"We understand your time is short Dr. Please fill us in as best you can." Hammond never looked up, he already knew what she was going to say.
"Dr. Jackson is deathly ill. He has what appears to be a tumor in his brain. The only way to know for sure is to open him up and try to take it out, or at least a sample of it. The MRI shows it to be about 8 cm in diameter. If that is true, then I don't know how he was able to communicate or even move his body today. Personally, I think it's time to call for help. Perhaps the Tok'ra's sarcophagus can help him. I can only identify it and put him on radiation. I can't save him." She choked back a tear. Other than Sam, Daniel was her best friend. Not being able to help him made her feel absolutely worthless.
Hammond sat up a little bit. "We have contacted the Tok'ra, they are sending an envoy. We have to discuss what we should do in case we loose Dr. Jackson. He has expressed a desire to be with his wife on Abydos. Does anyone have any thoughts?"
"I have a thought." O'Neill sat up, disgusted. "Let's not bury him until he's dead for crying out loud. If the Tok'ra won't help him we'll find another sarcophagus. I'll take the one Apophis has if I have to."
Everyone was silent for several minutes. They didn't look at each other.
Sam sat back and got ahold of herself. She looked down and said, "Janet, how did this happen. Is there any indication?"
"I have looked at everything. Every post ribbon device MRI. Every post sarcophagus physical. All of his regular work ups. Everything. I can't find any early indication for this ... this kind of ... of damage." She swallowed hard. She tried hard to find what she missed in the past. But there wasn't anything. Nothing.
"General Hammond. When will the Tok'ra be arriving?" Teal'c looked right through Hammond.
"They should be here in about an hour." Hammond sat back in his chair. "Dr. if you have nothing further you can go back to your patient. Please let him know that we are thinking of him."
"I'll tell him, but I doubt that he will regain consciousness soon." She arose and left the room.
"If no one else has anything to add then we are adjourned." Hammond rose to his feet. He took the file and the coffee and left to his office.
Sg-1, the remainder of them, sat and stared at each other, completely helpless and in shock..
*******
Dr. Janet Fraiser sat next to Daniel's bed and sighed. "Daniel? Can you hear me? I'm so sorry Daniel. I don't know how to help you. I have to tell you something." She paused and took a breath. She didn't think Daniel could hear her, but that didn't make it any easier to say the words. "Daniel, you are going to die soon." She momentarily lost control and sobbed outloud. She quickly stifled herself. 'God,' she said to herself, 'I hope no one heard that.' She looked back up at Daniel's face. 'What am I thinking?'
Daniel lay there still as death. He was intubated and had IVs in both his hand and his arm. Several electrical lines came out of his shirt and went to a machine that read his heartbeat. It was stable. His heart beat strongly despite his brain rapidly shutting down.
Janet wiped another tear away from her cheek. "I hope you find Shau're."
*******
"Incoming traveler, Sir!"
Hammond looked up to the lieutenant in the booth and nodded.
Three figures stepped through the shimmering surface of the event horizon. General Carter stepped forward first. "General Hammond. How is Dr. Jackson doing?"
"Fading fast, I'm afraid. Welcome to the SGC. Please we must hurry. This way." Hammond held out his arm in the direction of the infirmary. As they walked toward the corridor General Carter introduced his companions.
"Yes, I believe we know Anise, welcome back again. Ferrell, it is nice to meet you."
********
Daniel stepped out of the pyramid into the sunshine. He closed his eyes and let the warmth of the sun sink into his skin. It had been so long since he was home.
"Dani?" A young beautiful woman glided up the slope to where Daniel was standing. "Dani?"
He opened his eyes. She stood before him smiling, inviting. "Shau're. It's so nice to be home." He grabbed her up into his arms and twirled her around. Then he kissed her like he hadn't in years.
"Come." She whispered. "Father will be happy to see you back from Tau'ri."
One hour later, they sauntered through the gate and up the steps to where Kasuf stood holding out his arms in greeting. "Nefer Se." Kasuf bowed.
"Nefer Aht." Daniel held out his arms. The two embraced. Both were relieved to see each other.
All the people gathered and sat in rings around the center where Daniel, Skaa'ra, Shau're and Kasuf were seated. "Nefer Se, tell us all of your adventures away from home. And of your meetings with the Gods."
"Oh it's a long tale Kasuf. Better met after food and drink. It has been so long since I tasted the food of home. Too long, I'm afraid."
They ate and drank into the night sharing stories and laughing about the past.. They joked about Daniel's first adjustment to Abydon life. Skaa'ra remembered in particular a night long ago when Daniel had been washing dishes and the boys were laughing at him. He remembered to Daniel that moment because it was the moment when Daniel had himself become an Abydonian. They laughed and Shau're kissed Daniel then they remembered that night privately with their eyes.
At last Kasuf said it was time to continue stories another day and to let the God protect and keep them through the night. He bid farewell and sweet dreams to all and left to his home. Shau're took Daniel by the hand and to the cheers of those still present, led him to their home far at the end of a dark alley street. Everything was exactly as Daniel remembered. He even felt the exhaustion as if he'd worked a full day in the starmap room.
"We will sleep tonight, husband and in the morning resume our lives."
Daniel turned to Shau're and frowned slightly. "Good wife, am I dead?"
She laughed out loud, "Oh Daniel. Life goes on. The God would not deny me you."
"Yes, the erm God. About that Shau're, I have met a lot of God's...."
She put her hand over his mouth.. "shh.. My husband. It is time for bed now. Benehr resut."
**********
Three members of SG-1 as well as Dr. Fraiser and General Hammond were surrounding Daniel's bed. General Carter, Anise and Ferrell stood nearby the bed.
"Is there any change doctor?" Hammond said solemnly.
"No. None. If anything he is a little weaker."
"Anise, do you think there is anything the Tok'ra can do?" Hammond asked hopefully.
Anise's was a young and beautiful woman. She had been to Earth twice before and did not think to be invited back. She was most comfortable with Daniel Jackson, as are many, but now she was called upon to do what she felt was wrong. But she had to do it.
"He must die first." Anise said in her matter-of-fact voice.
The room was completely silent for several long minutes. They all stared at Anise as if she were completely crazy.
"Are you certain of this Anise?" Dr. Fraiser had never liked Anise and more, she never trusted her. She was right last time. Now she didn't know what to do.
"Are you nuts?! The point is to keep him alive. General, we can't...."
"That's enough for now Colonel O'Neill" Hammond walked over to the door. "Let's take it to the briefing room, Colonel, General Carter, Anise and Dr. Fraiser if you will please...."
Sam, Teal'c and the young Tok'ra man stood there alone, watching Daniel die. To say they were in shock would be an understatement.
"I believe Anise is correct!" Teal'c offered.
"What?" Sam practically screamed as she turned to stare in his eyes.
"Daniel Jackson is beyond help. His injuries are too severe. If he dies Sarcophagus can revive him."
"Can't it just cure him of what he has?"
Teal'c was silent. He simply looked upon Daniel with sympathetic eyes.
**********
Morning on Abydos. Warm, gentle breezes blow through the city streets and the easy scents of morning meal waft through the open windows of the Abydons. The sun rises gently and slowly. On a planet with a 36 hour rotation everything in the heavens seems to slow down and take a breath. The early morning air on Abydos is fresh and crisp. As the sands lose their heat rapidly in the darkness of night, the planet cools greatly. Within an hour though the air warms and is comforting. No dew is formed in this desolate place but the water from deep underground is clean and sweet.
Daniel washed his face in a small basin by the only window in the house. He looked back toward the bed where Shau're lay sleeping and enjoying sweet dreams. He noticed on the floor was his SG field gear. It was exactly the same as his first night with Shau're. Everything was perfect. He felt liberated of his past worries, of the pain of loosing her and of his constant responsibilities in the SGC.
After hearing children playing, he walked over to the third story window and looked down to the streets. Four boys were kicking a rounded piece of Naquadah back and forth between them. Daniel thought they must be about 12 or 13 years old. Not yet old enough for village responsibilities. He wondered why, though, they weren't in the school. After he had been here for several months several of the fathers had formed a school for the children. Daniel had had a major impact on this society. He felt responsible for it now.
"Someday we will have our own..." Shau're had once told him on a similar morning a million years ago. It seemed like that long. He had traveled so far and learned so much but still, this was where he belonged.
He turned and looked at her again. "I'm sorry." He whispered. "I should have taken you with me that day." He sighed. He knew the truth of it. He knew he was either dead or this was one terribly vivid dream. One horribly vivid dream.
He dressed and decided to wake her, if he could. He remembered her to sleep soundly. After a few moments she began to stir. He sat down across the room near the eating table and waited for her to open her eyes and stretch.
"Good morning my husband." She yawned.
"Hi!" He needed to ask her, needed to tell her that he knew. He needed her to say the words 'you have died and this is heaven..' He just needed to settle it, so they could get on with their lives.
She climbed out of bed and stood naked before him. "Husband, you seem sad."
He rose and wrapped her in her basic dress. "Sad? Not really. Confused is more like it."
She kissed him. "You are fine. You are here and all is well."
He kissed her back. "Mehroo-et eo chen!"
She smiled and made an 'I know' sound.
**********
Alarms sounded from the equipment surrounding Daniel's bed. In the hall of the infirmary a klaxon sounded. "CODE BLUE : CODE BLUE"
Dr. Fraiser ran in from her office where she was discussing the arrangements for Daniel to go to the Tok'ra base with Anise. Two nurses had reached Daniel side first and were preparing to do CPR. Janet busted in and called for a crash cart. She began pumping his chest, and praying.
"How long has he been down now." She barked.
"1.5 minutes Dr. Fraiser." The young blond nurse across the bed continued to force life giving air into Daniel's lungs.
"Atropine!" Janet barked. She took the needle from the nurse and injected Daniel's iv. with the adrenaline type drug.
Anise and Colonel O'Neill ran into the room.
"What's happening?" O'Neill yelled.
"We're loosing him," Janet said outloud, "charge the paddles; 200!"
*********twenty minutes later.....
Jack O'Neill laid his friend gently into the sarcophagus. He folded Daniel's arms across his chest and slowly stepped back. He had a fear that it wouldn't work. That it had been too long and Daniel wouldn't come back. He had a worse fear that Daniel would come back and still be sick. No one else doubted the Goa'uld technology, but Jack was a suspicious man. Especially of anything created by the snakes.
**********
Daniel felt weak. It had been a long time since he did a days work on Abydos. He took his soft brush out of his side pocket and brushed more sand away from the precious tablet. He took out his notebook, made a IAL mark meaning (in actual language) and traced the hieroglyphs onto the page.
Skaa'ra came up the slope to the small site where Daniel had found the Starmap room. "Daniel, what you find there?"
"I don't know yet. It looks like a counting tablet, maybe some kind of chart. When I decipher it I'll know. These hieroglyphs are strange I'll have to get my book out."
"Shau're said it's time to eat. She has made a camp and I put up a tent for you." Skaa'ra pointed down the slope to where he and Daniel could see Shau're waving at them.
Daniel stared at her for a long time. It looked just like the day she died, except there was a lot more sand here and Shau're wasn't wearing that ridiculous queen outfit. "Okay! Let's go eat."
********
Slowly, the sarcophagus opened. Daniel lay perfectly still inside. Everyone watched his chest to see if it would begin moving up and down. O'Neill looked at Teal'c.
"It may take a few moments, Colonel O'Neill"
"come on...... come ON Daniel...." O'Neill begged.
Ten minutes went by and nothing happened. Dr. Fraiser listened to his heart several times in the interim. Nothing.
Daniel did not wake up...
*********** two days later.... Abydos
Skaa'ra stood up and stepped back from the grave. "Ahnekh em hetep!" He bowed his head and turned to look at Kasuf.
Tears ran down Kasuf's face. This was his good son. He had buried his daughter.... and now her husband. Both young. Both vibrant. He looked over to Shau're's grave, "Good Daughter," he sighed out loud, "here is your husband. Ahnekh em hetep!"
Seven SGC riflemen took one step forward, raised there guns and fired 3 times into the air. Then a bugle rang out Taps.
They all stood silently by for several minutes. They were waiting but they did not know for what.
Daniel walked slowly up the slope toward the grave site. Shau're appeared next to him and they clasped hands. No one took notice of them. He looked at her and sighed. "It is true then, mehrah, I am dead."
"Husband, we live again. Just as the prophets say the God promised."
"But they are so sad...."
"As were you when you buried my body. It is the way of things." She leaned over and kissed him gently on the cheek. They looked one last time upon their own graves then turned and walked away.
********** from the beginning then......
Daniel Jackson awoke to find himself sprawled out on a couch with his head on Samatha Carter's lap, staring up at a huge chandelier made of flaming torches.
"I am most sorry, traveler Jack, perhaps if you can make the To'ule Rock to function again you can send him back to the stars. We can of course pray for him and we will. But I'm afraid traveler Daniel is out of our ability to cure."
"Alright, thank you anyway." O'Neill walked over to Carter and Teal'c and just noticed as Daniel opened his eyes. "Hey, welcome back Daniel."
"Uh," Daniel whispered. "Thank you, I think. Where am I? What happened?"
"You been out for nearly two hours. I thought we were gonna have to call Dr. Fraiser."
"Hmm? Yes, Janet. Well I feel very tired...."
***********
Personal Log: Dr. Daniel Jackson
It's been a week since I was at the SGC. Spending time at home just makes me think about Shau're. I don't remember much about N'qua'ri except that it was warm. And of course, that I died there. It's a strange concept to think about let alone hallucinate about. A friend in college once told me that if you dream you die, then you die in life... Apparently, it isn't true. I wonder if my death will be anything like that? If I will ever see my mehrah Shau're again.
I'm not going to get much work done today. Janet wants another MRI, God I hate those things, and Hammond wants to speak with me about my experiences on N'qua'ri. I don't know what to say to him. Apparently nothing happened after I passed out in the temple...
Regular communication has been opened up with the N'quarians but I can never return. It turns out that I am terribly allergic to the place. None of the science teams have come up with exactly what I am allergic to there but Janet is certain it is a plant or animal and not just the air itself.
All just an hallucination.... I supose the military honors were just wishful thinking!
Speaking of Janet. I plan to ask her to dinner tonight. I wonder what she'll say?
© April 24, 2001 The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp. The Stargate, SG-I, the Goa'uld and all other characters who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.