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Chapter Text

2974 BCE
Heavy footfalls kicked up sand as a young woman fled from her pursuers, long blonde hair blowing backwards from the strong winds. The plasma blasts of several Ma'Tok staff weapons flew past her, narrowly missing their mark. She gripped the Zat'nik'tel weapon tightly in her hand; but she dared not turn around and return fire. They were closing in on her, this she knew. And their blasts were becoming more accurate, close enough now to practically singe her hair.

She quickly sprinted through the opening in the large pyramid structure before her. The consistency of the ground changed instantly; from soft sand, to that of hardened stone beneath her feet. With the change in terrain, came the added sound of her pursuers' footsteps echoing through the long stone corridor through which she ran. Before long, she came to a stop in a wide open room, an ornate sarcophagus sitting at its center, the lid partially ajar. She barely had enough time to spin around, before her pursuers stepped through the doorway and into the room, blocking the exit.

She looked over the forms that had become all too familiar to her. Ornate armor, topped with golden masks styled in the image of a falcon. They were Horus guard; Jaffa warriors loyal to the family of the Goa'uld System Lord known as Ra. Ra was gone from Earth, having fled the planet after an uprising over twenty years ago. It was before she was born; but her parents had told her stories of that momentous day.

The Jaffa aimed their weapons at her, poised to fire, to end her life. But the blast never came. Her execution was postponed by a deep, booming voice that echoed through the long corridor.

"Jaffa, kree! Hol mel!" The voice commanded.

But it didn't speak to her. No, the command was to the two guards who, in response, immediately stepped to either side. The pair planted the tail ends of their staff weapons into the ground, as if to pay reverence to the new arrival. From the tunnel stepped another figure. Unlike the other two, this figure wasn't wearing a mask, or any armor whatsoever.

The man who had entered was adorned in long, ornate red robes hanging down to his feet. He had amber skin as fair as the sand outside of the tomb's walls. His black hair was cut short and he had deep, hazel eyes.

"Kal kek m'al, Hasshak?" The man asked, his eyes glowing brightly as he stared her down.

"You first, snake head." The woman shot back.

"We shall see." The man said with a smile.

No sooner had the pair of Jaffa turned their staff weapons back on the woman, before she raised her Zat gun in turn. They fired their heated bolts of plasma, but she ducked out of the way, before returning fire. Her own weapon was far more accurate, and quickly sent out several bursts of electrical energy, that coursed through the Jaffa's bodies. The Jaffa convulsed in place, before dropping lifeless to the ground at their master's feet. She next fired on the man; but he was already raising his arm in response.

He brandished the silver colored Kara kesh hand device encasing his left hand and arm. Opening his hand, he displayed the red gem centered on his palm. He hit a button on the back of his hand just as the electrical blast had reached him. But, rather than render him comatose like his underlings, the energy blast impacted an energy field that now surrounded the man.

She fired several more times, to similar effect. The man smiled, as the gem shimmered and an unseen force caused the air around it to ripple, before exploding forth with great kinetic energy. The woman dove out of the way moments before the wall behind her exploded in a spray of rubble, leaving a small crater at the site of impact. She landed with her body obstructed partly by the sarcophagus in the center of the room. The man brandished an arrogant smile as he slowly stepped further into the room, moving around until he could once more see his target.

Seeing her laying on the ground, face down, the man reached down to grab her. But, in the blink of an eye, she spun around on the ground and fired at him again. This time, the blast hit its mark, causing the man to groan out in pain and stumble backwards. She fired again, going for the kill. But he hit the button on his hand device again and the blast once more impacted his personal shield.

He took aim with his hand device again, but she was already getting back to her feet. She ran at him with everything she had. He fired, but she had already tackled him, knocking him backwards into the wall. The blast impacted the ceiling, causing the very room in which they stood to violently shake. They continued to struggle, as stones rained down on them from above.

The entrance to the tomb was quickly blocked off, leaving them both trapped. The breaking and fracturing of the room became more and more violent. They both narrowly avoided being crushed to death. But neither of them was willing to give up their fight. She struck him across his face and he returned in kind, causing her to stumble and fall.

She fell backwards into the open sarcophagus, dragging him with her. The moment they were inside, the lid automatically closed over them. And, in just a few moments more, the integrity of the room gave way entirely. Pounds upon pounds of debris rained down upon the makeshift coffin; burying the two alive.

***
June, 2009
This was a dream come true for David Bishara. He and his archeological team had discovered the find of a lifetime. They had uncovered a long buried catacomb that had been buried deep below the sand; maybe for millenia. To make matters even more exciting for them, they had discovered an ancient relic within the room they had unearthed so far. It was unlike any other known Egyptian artifact to date.

It looked like a sarcophagus. But it seemed to have been created using far more sophisticated tools than were available at the time. To make matters all the more confusing, no imaging equipment seemed capable of penetrating the material at all. He wasn't even able to gather a sample of the material and dared not use stronger tools for fear of damaging such an important artifact. No, he'd take this slowly and carefully.

He had been studying the engravings on what remained of the walls, when his eyes began to blur. He decided to call it a day for himself and his team. They had done well. He turned around to face his team, one of whom was still inspecting the sarcophagus. He opened his mouth to speak but, before a word left his lips, the lid to the sarcophagus began to move to the side.

"I-I swear, I didn't touch anything..." One of his team members uttered nervously.

But David was too enraptured by the sight before him to have heard his colleague. Instead, he only watched the lid as it moved to the side, until the sarcophagus was completely open. His team had backed away in fear; but not David. He walked slowly toward the metal tomb, trying to catch just a glimpse inside. But, before he was close enough to see over its sides, a man from within the tomb sat up and looked at him with bright, glowing eyes.

***
It had been hours since Dr. Bishara was supposed to report back to the Institute with his findings and, when he didn't, his superiors had notified the Egyptian authorities of a possible missing person. The police began at his last known whereabouts and began searching the area. It didn't take them very long to stumble upon the unearthed chamber, or those within. By the time they had arrived, every member of Dr. Bishara's team was dead. And David Bishara himself was nowhere to be seen.

The police approached the only item in the room, an open sarcophagus. But, before they reached the sarcophagus, a figure from within the artifact sat up suddenly. They raised their weapons, trained on her. But she only stared back at them with wide, blue eyes.

***
"Sir, what's this about? I'm supposed to leave on the George Hammond in a few minutes." Samantha Carter explained.

"I'm sorry, Colonel, the Hammond has already left Earth's orbit. Major Franklin will be its acting captain until you're free to return. Would you believe me if I told you this was more important?" General Hank Landry told her.

"I'm sure it is, sir. If you don't mind my asking; what's going on?" Carter asked.

"You've been requested, by name, from a young woman currently being detained by authorities in Cairo, Egypt." Landry informed her.

"Do I know her?" Carter asked in surprise.

"I don't know. She hasn't said much apart from asking for you. And not just you. She's asked for General O'Neill as well. Don't ask me why. He's on his way from DC. You're both to speak with this woman and find out who she is and what she knows. But be careful." Landry warned.

"How dangerous can one person be? She's already in police custody." Carter mused.

"I haven't told you everything. This woman: she was found inside what looks like a Goa'uld sarcophagus." Landry said, a dire expression crossing his face; one shared in an instant by Carter.

Chapter Text

Samantha Carter was led down a long hallway, escorted by Egyptian authorities. When she got to the end of the corridor, she was met with a familiar face; that of General Jack O'Neill.

"Carter. I heard you got requested too." He greeted simply as she approached.

"Sir. Any idea why this woman would want to speak with us specifically?" Carter asked.

"No clue. I just got here a few minutes ago. Why don't we go ask her?" Jack suggested.

Not wasting another moment, Carter and O'Neill allowed themselves to be escorted to a holding room. One of their security escorts opened the door with a swipe of a keycard and ushered them inside. There, in a chair on the other side of a metal table, was a young woman. She was strangely familiar to both Carter and O'Neill, although neither of them could put their finger on why that was. O'Neill gave the woman a cursory glance, before turning to their police presence.

"Gentlemen, why don't you give us a few minutes. Alone." O'Neill told them.

After a moment, the police nodded and left the room. O'Neill turned back to face the woman, who was staring at both him and Carter with a curious look on her face.

"Okay. We're alone. Mind telling us who you are and how you know our names?" Jack asked.

"And why you were in that sarcophagus." Carter added.

"Yes. That too." Jack agreed.

"I don't know if you'll believe me, but... I was being chased by these people. They're... not from here." She told them.

"You mean goolds. Funny little snakes, get inside people's heads." Jack inquired.

"So they're still around." The woman said, more of a resigned statement than a question.

"Until recently, the Goa'uld still held considerable power. But we've been able to effectively neutralize many of the System Lords and free most of the Jaffa from servitude." Carter explained.

"The question still remains: why did you ask for us?" Jack asked again.

"That's even more complicated. I'm... your daughter..." The woman said.

***
Daniel Jackson sat in his office, pouring over his notes from SG-1's most recent archeological expedition. By his side, his ever present nuisance, was Vala Mal Doran.

"Daniel, when are we gonna go on another mission?" Vala asked as she paced around impatiently.

"We just got back from a mission!" Daniel exclaimed, unable to mask the annoyance in his voice.

"Yeah, but that was one of your boring archeology things. I want some action." Vala said, as she hopped up to sit on Daniel's desk.

"Yeah, well, with the Goa'uld and the Ori defeated, there hasn't been much action. Do you want them to return?" Daniel asked indignantly.

"Well, not THEM, but-" Vala's response was cut short by the sound of the base's alarm suddenly blaring.

A number of the base's armed forces ran past the door to Daniel's office and he and Vala stepped into the hallway to find out what was going on. With no other idea of what to do, Daniel and Vala decided to head to the General Landry''s office on Level 27, nine floors below. If anyone knew what was happening, it was him. When they arrived at his door, Landry was already leaving his office.

"What's going on?" Daniel asked.

"We're not sure. I got a report from the surface that one of our men was found unconscious on the premises, completely stripped of gear and clothing. Then we began to lose the camera feed on most levels. I just called for a full base lockdown." Landry told them.

"If they're trying to get to the Stargate..." Daniel began.

"We won't let that happen." Landry assured them.

With an uncertain nod, Daniel followed Landry down one more level, to the Gate Room, with Vala in tow.

"Anything?" Landry asked one of the Gate Room's personnel.

"Nothing, sir. Nobody's tried to access the gate." The man told him.

At that moment, a man walked past Daniel and their eyes met. The man was wearing standard air force attire. But Daniel knew the man. Not from the base, but from somewhere else.

"Dr. Bishara?" Daniel asked in confusion.

It wasn't only Daniel who was taken aback. Vala's eyes opened wide at the very presence of the man. For her, it wasn't his appearance; she had never seen him before. It was an innate feeling deep in her gut, a sickening feeling.

"Daniel, he's a goa'uld!" She exclaimed.

In response, Bishara's eyes glowed brightly and he held up his hand, firing a blast of kinetic energy from his palm. The blast sent General Landry, Daniel and Vala flying backwards. He spun around and fired again, repelling a group of soldiers who were preparing to open fire. With the foot traffic momentarily disabled, he turned his attention to the gate operator. He held his hand toward the man's forehead, creating an energy field that connected between the man's head and Bishara's hand device.

"Activate the Stargate." Bishara ordered in a deep, booming voice.

Under the compulsion of the hand device, an out of it gate operator dialed a seven chevron Stargate address. To complete the process, Bishara forced the man's hand onto a palm reader, which identified him as an authorized user. In a rush of energy, the Stargate established a stable connection. Bishara quickly marched down to the gate and stepped up the ramp toward the event horizon. Daniel staggered to his feet and moved to try and abort the gate's connection.

Bishara looked up at Daniel, smiling in victory, before stepping through the gate. Moments after he had vanished past the blue 'puddle' of the event horizon, the vortex dissipated, as the gate severed the connection.

***
"Thankfully, nobody else was killed in the attack. But SG-3 reported no sign of the man on the planet to which he gated. I take it from your reaction that you knew the man, Dr. Jackson?" Landry asked.

"I did, his name is David Bishara. He worked for the Institute of Archeology out of Cairo. I've referenced his work." Daniel explained.

"Sorry we're late. I heard what happened." Carter said as she and O'Neill entered the briefing room.

"Jack." Daniel said.

"Daniel." Jack returned.

"It's good to see you."

"You too."

The pair exchanged.

"Mind if I?" Jack asked, gesturing to a chair.

"Jack, you don't have to ask. Hell, you outrank ME now." Landry told him.

"Yeah... even after all this time, that still doesn't feel right." Jack quipped as he and Carter took their seats.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. We wanted to make sure there were no more goa'uld before we lifted the lockdown." Landry told them.

"I'm sorry I didn't sense it until it was too late." Vala said.

"It's not your fault. We were all taken by surprise." Landry assured her.

"Sir, may I sit in?" A man, Colonel Cameron Mitchell, said as he walked into the room.

"Colonel, I thought you were on vacation." Landry said.

"I was, sir. But I heard what happened. I feel like I should be here for this." Mitchell told him.

"Then pull up a seat." Jack said, gesturing to an open seat.

Mitchell just nodded and took the offered seat.

"So, what of the girl? Is she a goa'uld too?" Landry asked.

"No, sir. I'd have sensed it if she were. Like Vala, I was host to a symbiote. As far as we can tell, she's human. According to her, she was being pursued by a goa'uld underlord and both of them became trapped in what amounts to a larger version of the goa'uld stasis jars. It not only heals like a normal goa'uld sarcophagus, but also renders the user in a state of suspended animation. She claims she doesn't remember much after she became trapped, only waking up after the tomb was unearthed by Dr. Bishara and his team." Carter informed him.

"But wait, there's more." Jack said sarcastically.

"She claims to be mine and General O'Neill's daughter, sir." Carter added.

"Daughter? Is that possible?" Landry asked.

"Well, not in THIS timeline." Carter told him.

"Wait a minute, do you think she's the kid of that alternate SG-1 that we met when we chased those rebel Tok'ra into the past?" Mitchell inquired.

"That's what I figure. Now, from her perspective, she claims that the rebellion that drove Ra from Earth happened around twenty-one years ago. And that she was born two years after the event." Carter clarified.

"Ra was overthrown in 2995 BCE. That would mean she's been in stasis for nearly five thousand years." Daniel told them.

"Do we have any idea of who the goa'uld was that was imprisoned with her?" Landry asked.

"She called him 'Shu'. What kind of a god names himself after footwear?" O'Neill asked.

"No, Shu, the Egyptian god of light. And, the... you're not gonna like this..." Daniel trailed off.

"What, Daniel?" O'Neill demanded.

"Well, in some traditions, Shu was the son of... Ra." Daniel informed him.

"You're right, I DON'T like that." O'Neill said in response.

"That would explain the other items found at the site. What were once bodies, but have long since been reduced to dust. What were thought by the team to be ceremonial headpieces. They were Goa'uld helmets. Shaped in the style of Horus Guards. They've since been confiscated by the air force and taken to Area 51." Carter told him.

"What now?" O'Neill asked.

"I'd like to speak with our guest, if possible." Daniel said.

***
A knock sounded on the door, before the beeping of a keycard scanner was heard. Moments later, the door to the holding room opened and Daniel Jackson stepped inside.

"Hello. You must be the person they found in- in Egypt. My name is-" Daniel began, only to be cut off by the woman.

"Daniel Jackson, I know." She said with a small smile.

"You know me?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, you were close friends with my parents. You were like an uncle to me growing up. The... other you, that is." She told him.

"Right, we met them once. May I ask: what's your name?" Daniel questioned her further.

"Ellie. Ellie Carter-O'Neill." She answered.

"The goa'uld you were trapped with; he broke into this facility and fled through the Stargate." Daniel explained.

"Shu. He was always vying for more responsibilities in his father's empire. When Ra fled Earth, Shu tried to claim it as his own. My parents and the other you opposed him. You all died keeping Earth out of his control. I was the only one left who stood in his way." Ellie responded.

"I just heard back from Dr. Lam. The blood test confirms it. She IS related to both myself and general O'Neill." Carter said as she stepped into the room.

"What happens now?" Ellie asked apprehensively.

"Now, you can get out of this room. Stretch your legs a little." O'Neill said as he stepped into the room. "Landry gave it the go ahead."

***
Ellie walked through Daniel Jackson's office, looking over several ancient unearthed relics, each engraved with goa'uld writing. Daniel looked at her and she returned his look with a pensive gaze of her own.

"Are you okay?" Daniel asked.

"Yeah, it's just... looking at all this..." Ellie gestured to the artifacts.

"Right, I'm sorry. To us, these are ancient artifacts, links to our past. To you, they were your present." Daniel said in realization. "Would you like to speak somewhere else?"

"No, I'll... I'll be fine. Where's Teal'c?" Ellie suddenly asked.

"Teal'c went back to Chulak to help lead his people. And building new homes, removing the slums created by Apophis to punish dissenters." Daniel explained.

"Yes and, without 'Muscles', SG-1 has just been me, Danny here and good old Colonel Mitchell." Vala said as she walked into Daniel's office, followed by Carter and O'Neill.

"Not a bad team; crazy alien notwithstanding." Jack said, earning a smirk from Vala.

"Right, you said we died, but you never mentioned Teal'c." Daniel said.

"That's because I don't know what happened to him after he left with Egeria. Hey, maybe the Tok'ra can help us!" Ellie suddenly exclaimed.

"I doubt it. After the war with the goa'uld, their numbers have been greatly diminished. They're also very old. Once a symbiote gets too old, they risk rejection, which kills both host and symbiote. And, without a queen, they can't replace their dead. I doubt they'd be in any position to help at the moment." Carter explained.

"So Egeria is dead?" Ellie asked.

"I'm afraid so. Last we heard, they were considering cloning much as the Asgard had. But even with their advanced healing abilities, diminishing genetic returns would eventually threaten their species too. There's no way for them to repopulate without a queen. And no currently living Tok'ra is a... queen..." Daniel said, before trailing off.

"I know that look. What is it, Daniel?" O'Neill asked.

"Where did your Teal'c get his symbiote?" Daniel asked.

"From the stories my parents used to tell me, he had it when he betrayed the goa'uld Apophis on Chulak in my parents' original time period. I think they said it was the year 1997?" Ellie said, her last statement being spoken with an inflection of uncertainty.

"Then, if he never met us, he still had his original goa'uld. The goa'uld he gave to-" Daniel began, only to be cut off by Carter.

"Rya'c." Carter said in realization.

"How is that going to help us? For one thing, how do we even know it'll be the same Egeria as the other one?" O'Neill questioned.

"He brings up a valid point. The circumstances of its history are different. Who knows how that'd affect its personality and eventual decision to rebel against the goa'uld." Carter agreed.

"What if we offer it to the Tok'ra. Maybe they'd help you then?" Ellie asked.

O'Neill looked over at Carter and she shrugged. "It's worth a shot, sir. The worst they can say is 'no'. Besides, they deserve to know that there's a way their species may yet survive." Carter added.

"And we have to obviously ask Rya'c, see if he'd be willing to switch to Tretonin ahead of schedule. And, while we're there, we could always ask the Jaffa if they have any ships they can spare to look for Shu. I'm sure they'd want the chance to hunt down a stray goa'uld." Daniel said.

"Yes, and we can all visit Teal'c while we're there. You know how grumpy he gets when we forget to drop in every now and then. As is, I'm expecting a very stern eyebrow raise." O'Neill joked.