Sam was awake with the light of dawn, but the knock on her door still made her jump a little. Without waiting for an answer, Maram bustled in carrying a basin of water and a towel in her hands.
“Good morning,” Sam said, rising to her feet.
“Yes, it is.” Maram agreed. “I hope the day continues in such a fashion.”
Sam was a bit puzzled by the remark and wondered fleetingly if it had anything to do with the empty chair at the table the night before. Something was making Maram sad, but since the woman had covered it up with cheerfulness and Sam wasn’t sure it was any of her business, she didn’t say anything. Besides, she had plenty of other questions to ask.
“Maram, may I ask you something?” she said politely as she began to wash her face.
“Of course, Major.”
“Call me Sam. Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone would find...well...I mean,” Sam struggled. Applied anthropology always left her flustered. “I didn’t see any other women wearing pants last night. Will it offend anyone that I do?”
“I shouldn’t think so. You all dress strangely. And many of our girls wear trousers when they go out of town.” Her face darkened again. “Why?”
“Well the Crusaders, your - our ancestors, had some pretty particular ideas about women.”
“Oh that,” Maram laughed. “It has been eight hundred years, Sam. Surely your world has changed too?”
“Yes, most of it.” Sam felt a little silly. Still, better safe than sorry.
“One thing the men of Sandiem learned very early on was to respect their women.” Maram said proudly. “There were many more men than women originally, when we were brought here I mean, and so marriages and children were greatly important.”
“That’s why your names are genealogical.” Sam reasoned.
“I’m sorry?”
“Never mind,” Sam said quickly, filing it away to tell Daniel later. “Thank you for answering.”
“It is wonderfully exciting to meet people from Terra,” Maram said. “I’ll leave you to get ready for breakfast.” And she made her way out of the room, shutting the door behind her.
At breakfast, which was much simpler than the meal they had eaten the night before, there again stood an empty chair and place setting. Jack could tell that Daniel was dying to ask why the chair was significant, but the archaeologist refrained from doing so. Instead, he spent the meal trying to figure out which of the Crusades Aeronn’s ancestors had been on when they had been taken by the Goa’uld. Since his only clues were linguistic, Daniel was not having much luck. However, given that Aeronn and Maram had both used the expression ‘By the Heart of the Lion’, Daniel was leaning towards the 1190s.
“What is your plan for today, Colonel?” Aeronn asked as he and Daniel concluded their discussion of Richard I.
“Well, Carter and Daniel were hoping to go back to the Stargate and see the MALP.” Jack began.
“What is a MALP?” Maram asked quickly.
“It’s a...device that collects information for us.” Sam explained. “It records things we would not see by ourselves.”
“May I come with you?” Maram asked. “That sounds intriguing.”
“Of course,” Jack answered. “Teal’c and I would like to see your defenses, if you don’t mind.”
“Easily done, Colonel,” Aeronn said. “I’ll take you to Zephrey Richison, my brother by marriage. He understands such things much better than I. I shall accompany Sam and Daniel as well.”
They again left their plates on the table when they filed out of the dining room. Teal’c saw a flicker of movement just as the door swung shut, but decided it was not a threat and did not say anything to Jack.
------------
Zephrey Richison, though separated from Chulak by thousands of years and millions of kilometres, found a kindred spirit in Teal’c almost immediately. Surrounded by such laconic company, Jack felt uncharacteristically chatty as he peppered Zephrey with questions about the strength of the wall and range of the various medieval weaponry while they walked along the promontory. He was just about to voice his lamentations over not bringing Daniel, whom he felt would have better understood the historic weapons when Teal’c finally spoke up.
“Were you able to procure pitch and naphtha Zephrey Richison?” he asked. “Or have you manufactured a suitable replacement?”
Zephrey grinned in a manner that could only be described as wolfish and led them into an alcove on the outer side of the wall. There was what Jack thought to be an unsafely large window through which he could see Carter’s party disappearing into the woods. Zephrey pulled a lever and the large cauldron in the middle of the floor rose up into the air, blocking the view. Jack looked perplexedly at Teal’c.
“It was common practice to defend a walled keep by pouring burning pitch down upon those who might attempt to scale it.” Teal’c explained. Jack winced. “The practice was maintained here.”
“There are deposits of tar to the east of here.” Zephrey pointed towards the sun. Apparently, the compass points hadn’t changed here after all. “We distill it, but don’t use it very often.”
“Do the Sanoctem not attack?” Teal’c queried.
“Indeed,” said Zephrey, a hint of sadness in his voice. “They do. But we prefer to hold them off by...less extreme measures.”
Jack looked at the cauldron again and shuddered, but quickly to hold of himself.
“Do you maintain a watch?”
“Nightly,” Zephrey said, leading them back out on to the promontory. “The garrison does four hour shifts from The Lighting to sunrise.”
“How long are the nights?” asked Jack, hoping he this would not lead to a discussion about the precession of the equinoxes.
“In high summer they are short, but in winter they can be longer than twelve hours.” Zephrey said. “But it is the summers that are the worst. The sun makes them worse, you see.”
“Are there enemies other than the Sanoctem?” Teal’c asked.
“No,” came the reply. “There are other towns, of course, but we do not fight them, and the Demons have never returned.”
“Do you mind if Teal’c and I join your watch tonight?” Jack asked, finally getting to the question he had been waiting all morning to ask.
“Of course. We would wel-” But Zephrey stopped talking and was staring out to the north.
Jack and Teal’c instinctively followed his gaze. To the north were the foothills of what appeared to be a very impressive mountain range. Below them was the thick forest that would encircle the town if not for the clearing. At the edge of the clearing a solitary figure was making its way towards the village. As Jack squinted for a better look, Zephrey pushed past him, his face aglow with unadulterated joy. Within seconds, their guide had disappeared down a set of stairs, and they could hear his muffled shouts as he issued what could only be orders. Teal’c quirked an eyebrow, Jack sighed, and the two of them made their way off the wall.
---------
“This is very curious.” Maram ran her hands along the treads of the MALP as she spoke. “It talks to you?”
“Not really,” said Sam, a slight smile on her face. She pointed to a screen. “It puts the information here and then I can read it.”
“What is it telling you?” Aeronn asked, peering fruitlessly at the charts and diagrams on the screen. “This doesn’t make any sense at all.”
“I don’t understand most of it either,” Daniel admitted, winking at Sam. “But Sam does, and she translates well.”
“Right now the MALP is telling me about your sun.” Sam answered, grinning fully now. “It’s comparing it to our own sun, and telling me if there are any differences.”
She continued to read the display, calling up other reports and setting the MALP to new tasks while continuing her simplified explanation to Aeronn and Maram. She paused suddenly in her dissertation, her attention grabbed by a certain graph. Daniel moved to look over her shoulder.
“What is it?” he asked.
“Some sort of solar radiation,” Sam said, sounding puzzled. “It’s in the Ultra Violet spectrum, but it’s not UVA or UVB, that’s for sure, and I’m not sure exactly what it means.”
“Or what it might do to us?”
Sam opened her mouth to reply, but her answer was cut off by the sudden arrival of a young man Daniel remembered having seen at The Lighting the previous night. He burst out of the trees at top speed shouting for Aeronn and Maram. When he saw them, he leaned heavily against a tree, exhausted from his run.
“She’s back,” he gasped out, trying to get his breath back.
At his words, expressions of joy and utmost relief covered Aeronn and Maram’s faces. They both immediately ran off in the direction of the town, leaving Sam and Daniel staring perplexedly after them and the young man leaning against the tree, his chest still heaving.
“What was that?” Daniel asked.
“Esser Aeronnsdaughter has returned to her family,” the young man announced happily. “Come, there will be great rejoicing tonight.”
Daniel followed willingly enough, but Sam cast one last look over her shoulder at the MALP. She was missing something, something she had a feeling was going to be very important, but she could not think what it was. Finally, she shrugged and shook her head slightly, as though to clear it. She lengthened her stride and had soon caught up with the others.
In the clearing, the sun bathed and ‘Gate and the MALP in its alien light.
------------
They had not seen Aeronn, Maram or Esser in some hours. By the time Daniel and Sam had reached the town, Jack and Teal’c were waiting for them and the whole team spent the rest of the day with Zephrey. The man’s attitude had lightened considerably, but there was still something sad lingering in his eyes.
“Why do you always send the children away for their coming of age?” Daniel asked, as the sun lowered in the sky. “I mean, they’re gone for a week. How do they defend themselves?”
“It is too dangerous to the others if the transformation takes place in a populated place,” Zephrey said. “We would have to kill them if they changed here. This way, they can go to the caves and seal themselves in. Only from the inside can the doors be opened. If they do not change, they wait for the daylight and then come home.”
“Aren’t there a lot of Sanoctem in those hills then?” Sam questioned. “Can’t they take over your caves?”
“There is nothing for the Sanoctem to eat up there.” Zephrey said, grimacing slightly. “Come, the sun is setting. We must go to the square.”
The square was, if possible, even more crammed this night than it had been the one previous. This was largely because a mammoth bonfire, as yet unlit of course, and a dozen large tables had appeared. The monks again stood on the steps up to the cathedral, and this time the silence which fell over the assembled crowd was excitedly hushed.
Aeronn spoke again the hallowed words, and the light of the torches pin pointed across the stairs. Then Esser emerged from the cathedral. She was bare foot and her hair was unbound. In her hand, she held aloft an unlit torch. She stood before her father, and he said something quietly to her that Daniel was reasonably certain was not actually part of the ceremony. Then, he touched his torch to hers. With her flaming torch in hand, Esser descended to the bonfire, touching flame to each corner as she trod around it. Finally, she faced the crowd again and threw her torch to the top of the pile, which ignited immediately.
A roar of joy arose from those assembled, and the monks threw back to their hoods to reveal smiling faces. Though Teal’c could have sworn he had not observed anyone carrying musical instruments, the square was suddenly full of them. Food appeared on the tables and laughter filled the air.
Zephrey Richison waded through the milling crowd, working his way back to SG-1 to speak with Jack.
“Is it still your wish to join our watch tonight, Colonel?” he asked politely, obviously expecting that Jack would wish to remain at the party.
“Yes,” said Jack, pausing only briefly to shoot a look at Sam, who nodded. “Teal’c and I will join you. That will free up two of your men to stay here.”
“Thank you, Colonel.” Zephrey inclined his head, then straightened and led the way out of the square.
Sam and Daniel stood looking at each other for a moment, then by unspoken agreement made their way towards the bonfire where Esser and her parents were surrounded by well wishers. The crowd had subsided a little by the time they got there, having moved along to the tables. A tall woman bore a cup to Maram, who took it in both hands and drank before passing it on to her husband.
Maram raised her face and began to sing. Sam knew enough about music to know that the song was in a minor key, but that was about it. Maram sang in Latin and Daniel whispered somewhat spotty translations under his breath so that Sam would understand. Maram’s voice rose, singing of her anguish as she waited for a daughter she was not sure she would ever see again. As she reached her crescendo, she grasped Esser's hand and her final note faded into the firelight.
On her other side, Aeronn raised his voice to sing. He sang of a father’s pride and thankfulness that his daughter had returned home, and his voice was not sad. Maram raised her voice alongside his as Aeronn reached the end of his melody. They sang together, their daughter held between them as though they would never let her go again. Sam realized she had goosebumps on her goosebumps.
“Sam! Daniel!” called Aeronn, finally spotting them in the mass and waving them over. “This is our daughter Esser. She has Returned.”
Sam greeted the girl enthusiastically. It was easy to tell close up that Esser was her parents’ daughter. Esser was one of those children who managed to look exactly like both of her parents, even though neither of them looked anything alike. The result could not be described as stunningly beautiful, but Esser had a look that could only be described as self-assured, and Sam knew how a young woman acquired a look like that.
“Father, I need to ask you something,” Esser said hesitantly. Aeronn steeled himself, as though he already knew what his daughter was going to ask him. “Where...where is Eprem?”
“Eprem has not Returned.” Aeronn said heavily. Esser’s face fell and her father enfolded her in his arms. “I am sorry, child.”
Aeronn held his daughter, and for a few minutes, the joviality in the square seemed to dim, and the fire burn with less enthusiasm. When Esser raised her face again, however, there was a set look to it.
“Tonight is for rejoicing.” She said determinedly. “Tomorrow is for...tomorrow.”
Maram led her daughter off into the crowd where she was immediately beset by well wishers and swung off into the merry dance that had begun around the fire. Daniel was watching Aeronn closely, trying to think how to best word his next suggestion. He hadn’t got around to discussing medical traditions with anyone yet, and he wasn’t sure how Aeronn would react.
“Who was Eprem?” Sam asked while he was thinking.
“Eprem is a good friend of my daughter’s.” Aeronn placed only the slightest emphasis on his verb tense.
“Were they betrothed?” Sam always felt awkward saying that word, despite Daniel’s insistence that, etymologically speaking, it was much more romantic than ‘engaged’.
“No,” said Aeronn, his eyes distant. “No, we don’t trothplight children. Not because we think they are too young, no Esser and Eprem were the sort born for each other. We wait so that situations like this don’t happen.
“I have only one daughter and she Returned.” Aeronn paused for a moment, looking out at his happily dancing wife and daughter. “Eprem had three older brothers and now his mother keeps an empty house.”
“It’s genetic,” Sam said without thinking.
“I beg your pardon, Sam?” Aeronn replied.
“The Sanoctem tendency runs in families,” Daniel explained. “Like how Esser got your blue eyes and Maram’s hair.”
Aeronn looked thunderstruck, opening and closing his mouth several times without saying anything.
“Aeronn,” began Sam, and Daniel knew what she was about to ask. “We have some very advanced medical technology on out planet. A good friend of mine is an excellent doctor. If you let us take a blood sample from Esser and some of the younger children, she might be able to devise a treatment.”
“This is...amazing,” said Aeronn breathlessly. “We would be eternally in your debt. What would you require in return?”
Daniel opened his mouth, but Sam beat him to it.
“Nothing right away.” Sam said. “We might want to negotiate for trade with your planet at a later date, but you have a medical emergency on your hands. If we can help you, we will.”
Aeronn tried again to speak and was again over come. He took a deep breath and finally spoke.
“I will talk to some of my friends with young children. And I know that Esser will do anything...” he didn’t finish, but Sam knew he was again thinking of Eprem.
“Meet me back at your house in ten minutes, and I’ll have my blood kit ready.” Sam said.
Aeronn nodded and set off into the crowd with an air of excitement. Daniel and Sam exchanged a glance, both hoping they had not just touched off a false hope. Something still nagged at Sam as she left the square to set up her impromptu blood bank, but it floated annoyingly just out of her reach.
------------
Sam had just finished labeling the last blood sample when the horns sang out. The reaction of the Sandiem was instantaneous. This was no greeting or call of joy. This was a warning, and Daniel did not have to wonder what it was warning about: the Sanoctem were attacking the town.
While Daniel stowed the blood samples into the small cooler in Sam’s pack, Sam grabbed up her combat gear and Daniel’s gun. The two of them made their way to the wall there they located Jack and Teal’c by the sounds of their voices. The Sanoctem were by no means organized in their assault on the wall. Rather than attacking as a group, they charged individually. Even in the sputtering torch light, the madness was evident in their faces, and even when mortally wounded, they did not falter in their onslaught until they were dead.
Jack gave no order to fire. Instead, the four members of SG-1 gazed down at the battle, if it could be called that, feeling slightly sick. The attackers were pale and unkempt, but they were undoubtedly human, and they were obviously very, very ill. There was an archer standing on the wall just to Teal’c’s left, and Teal’c could hear the man weeping with each arrow he loosed.
It was soon over, and Zephrey came along the wall to speak to them.
“They often attack on feast nights,” he said in a sick voice. “The light and noise attracts them. There were only about fifty tonight, and I think we drove most of them off. Colonel, would you and your team join us outside the wall? We must check the bodies.”
“What for?” Daniel asked without thinking. He silently cursed himselfas he figured out his own answer.
“To see if it’s anyone we know.”
------------
The night dragged on and on. The stars and moon shone down, quite uncaring, on the town. There had been a dozen bodies, and only one of them had been recognized. Sam had unobtrusively collected blood samples from the cadavers and put them with the ones she’d taken earlier in the evening. More and more people began to file on to the walls, looking down over the strewn field. Esser’s face was pale with exhaustion and grief, but she stood resolutely between her mother and father on the wall.
The sky in the east began to turn pink and a hush fell over the watchers. Those who were still in the field or in their houses hurried to the wall as well. The first few rays of sunlight appeared on the horizon and the dew on the on the grass began to glisten. Daniel squinted at the corpses. They were smoking. The light grew steadily brighter, and the smoke became more obvious. As the full morning sun filled the eastern sky, the bodies of the Sanoctem burst into flame. A loud gasp ran up and down the wall as the Sandiem watched with awe and terror as their brethren were incinerated.
“Inferno,” Zephrey said, his voice dead. “Ash unto ash.”
Jack looked sideways at his team, gauging their reactions. Teal’c’s eyebrows were raised so high that his golden tattoo was almost bent. Daniel wasn’t watching, having averted his eyes to stare at his feet instead. It was Sam’s expression that concerned him the most though. His 2IC’s eyes had that familiar ‘I’ve just made a really important conclusion, sir.’ look to them, but the rest of her face was recoiling in fear.
“Carter?”
“We have to go,” she said, an odd note of horror in her voice. “Now.”
“Why?”
“The sun. The sun is what causes this.”
“You said it was genetic!” Daniel exclaimed.
“It is,” Sam said, “but the sun triggers it and we have to go. Now, sir.”
“I don’t-” began Jack.
“These people share our genome,” Sam said. Several townspeople were staring openly at them now. “All the adults here must be immune. But I don’t know about us.”
Jack was gaping at her now, painfully aware of his own freshly sunburnt face. He paused for only a few more seconds before autopilot took over and he sprang into action.
“Teal’c, Carter, go and get all of our gear. If it’s too heavy, leave it, but make sure you bring the blood samples. Daniel, you go and dial. Take Zephrey with you and show him how to work the communication system on the MALP. Send a message to the base so that Fraiser knows what she is in for.” His people left as soon as he ordered them, and several of the locals went along to help. “Aeronn, I am sorry, but -”
“I understand, Colonel,” he said. “I am sorry. We did not know.”
“That’s all right,” Jack cut back in. “I need you to maintain a daylight watch by the MALP and ‘Gate. We’ll be in touch.”
Aeronn nodded as Sam and Teal’c appeared at the bottom of the wall. Jack took his gear from the townsman who had carried it for him, and they headed off briskly for the ‘Gate. By the time they got there, the wormhole was active and Daniel had sent the message. Zephrey helped him into his pack.
Jack hurried his team up the steps and watched them as they passed through. Just before he stepped over the event horizon, he looked back over his shoulder. Zephrey raised one hand in farewell and Jack stepped through and disappeared.
------------
“Well, I don’t see anything immediately wrong with you.” Dr. Janet Fraiser switched off her pen light and put her stethoscope in her ears. She held it up to Daniel’s chest. “I won’t know for certain though until the labs come back.”
“What will the lab results tell you?” General Hammond asked.
“I wish I knew, sir.” Janet sighed and removed the stethoscope. “I suppose if their blood samples match the Sandiem they’re fine and if they match the Sanoctem…”
“When?”
“Three hours. Unless there’s something really foreign that the mass spectroscope can’t identify.” Janet spoke somewhat mechanically, her attention diverted by one of her patients. “Daniel, what’s wrong?”
The archaeologist had removed his glasses and was rubbing his eyes as though they itched. Janet walked back to him and took his hands in hers. She stared at them for a few seconds, uncomprehending, before raising her face to look into his. Her expression changed from concern to horror. Streaming down Daniel’s face were tears of blood.