Blood Ties

Chapter seven

Daniel swiped his ID card through the reader attached to the elevator that would take them down to the lowest level of the Cheyenne Mountain complex. Behind him, McKay was describing to Rebecca Larance in minute detail what would have happened to him if the air freshener he'd found in the SUV had in fact contained twenty percent real lemon juice as advertised.

The elevator doors opened, and McKay, oblivious to Dr. Larance's pained expression, kept up his running commentary of symptoms as he stepped in.

Catching Elizabeth Weir's eye, Daniel said, "Talking is pretty much his default state, isn't it?"

"That is so," mumbled Radek Zelenka, stepping in behind them and turning to face the front. "The total time would be greatly reduced if he would stop while eating."

"Do you think I can't hear that?" Forced to choose a single target for his glare, McKay selected Daniel. "Do you have any idea what it's like to live with the sort of allergies that-"

"Yes, now that you mention it," Daniel interrupted, pressing the button.

"Really?" McKay regarded him with a look that suggested he'd found some common ground on which they could bond. Terrific.

While allergies were no longer a problem for Daniel, he wasn't in the mood to remind McKay of the reason. As soon as the non-cleared member of their little gang was out of hearing range, the scientist would no doubt want to regale him with tales of his own recent brush with Ascension. Well, `close' only counted in horseshoes and hand grenades, as Jack would say.

Thankfully, the elevator doors opened before long, and Zelenka stepped out. Larance, giving McKay as wide a berth as possible, followed and fell into step beside Elizabeth. "I have to ask," she said, studying the utilitarian tunnels with intense curiosity, "what roles could an expert in international relations and an archeologist play within the U.S. Air Force?"

McKay only got as far as opening his mouth before Elizabeth beat him to the punch. "That's a question best answered during the briefing." She offered Larance a smile, as if to reassure her that they weren't being deliberately evasive. It didn't convince Daniel much more than it appeared to convince the FBI agent.

No one involved in this situation lacked for questions at the moment, to be sure. Daniel wasn't completely certain even he had all the available facts, limited though they were, just yet. He'd been playing catch-up on most of the events of the past few months when Carolyn Lam, who'd been keeping an eye on Carson Beckett's research, had dropped this bombshell with her usual no-nonsense approach. As unsettling as he'd found the prospect of humans carrying fragments of the iratus gene, Carolyn had explained that it was no different from having fragments of the ATA gene or, for that matter, the DNA for any one of six thousand currently known genetic disorders, ranging from cystic fibrosis to sickle cell anemia. Possessing a flawed gene didn't automatically cause a disease to manifest; that took a rare confluence of events, such as a series of environmental triggers, or a child inheriting two copies of the gene.

Given that detail, McKay's anxiety attack on the road had seemed over the top, until the scientist had reminded them that he'd received therapy to trigger the ATA gene. So far, however, they'd lucked out on that score. Both Beckett and Carolyn had searched long and hard for a link between the ATA and iratus genes and found none, aside from the fact that they'd been introduced into the human population simultaneously. There was no reason to expect Wraithlike attributes to start appearing within the gene-activated Atlantis expedition.

But something had to be triggering this outbreak on Earth. Daniel didn't know whether they'd find the answers they needed in molecular biology or in the exasperatingly cryptic lessons left by the Ancients. Either way, for now, nearly everything remained a question.

Lengthening his stride to match their visitor's brisk pace, McKay asked, with awkward civility, "So…what kinds of cults do you specialize in studying?"

Larance barely glanced over at him. "Violent ones."

"Ah. I suppose that makes sense." McKay let himself fall a half step behind again. Whether he had some interest in her or had been trying in his own way to uncover more information, Daniel couldn't tell, but it was always entertaining to watch him fumble.

Elizabeth led them into the briefing room, which felt smaller with the blast doors closed over the gate room windows. The monitors that usually displayed the status of the gate and offworld teams had been switched off, and on the table beneath them, a carafe of water and pot of bubbling coffee stood beside a stack of cups and a plate of cookies. Bland and unremarkable, the room could have belonged to any company or hotel conference room in the world, complete with a potted plant in one comer.

As McKay made a beeline for the food, Sheppard and Carolyn arrived, presumably having taken the bodies to the SGC's morgue. While Carolyn admitted that she trusted the county ME, she'd also stated that she'd be scrutinizing his autopsy notes thoroughly. She also had a few additional tests to perform-primarily a check for the Wraith enzyme.

There was barely enough time for everyone to grab coffee before Landry strode in. Civilian or not, Larance straightened noticeably at his arrival. Daniel couldn't blame her; most people didn't bump into two-star generals every day.

"Agent Larance, welcome." Landry briskly pumped her hand twice. "Hank Landry. I'm the commander of this facil ity. We're grateful for any insight you can provide into the situation."

"Thank you, sir. I assure you the sentiment goes both ways." Larance's tone still held a sizable amount of caution. Daniel couldn't blame her for that, either.

While they shuffled around enough to get everyone a seat at the conference table, McKay darted a glance toward Sheppard, who frowned at him.

"What?"

"Nothing. It's…" McKay waved a hand inarticulately in the Colonel's direction, perhaps indicating his uniform shirt. "That combination, the tie and the hair-I'm just saying, it's incongruous."

Sheppard's answering look bordered on insolence. "Live with it."

"Our earlier briefing on this subject was cut short," Landry said, "so if Dr. Jackson is prepared to pick up where we left off…"

"Of course." Daniel moved over to the computer positioned against the wall and called up his files on one of the room's main monitors. The leads he'd had to follow so far were flimsy and vague enough that it wouldn't take much more than a short description of the mythological context to get the others up to speed. There were numerous aspects of the Lilith story that he was eager to pursue further, as soon as possible. The urgency of the current situation aside, it had been some time since he'd had the opportunity to do the type ofpure research that had first drawn him to this field, and after everything that had happened recently he could admit to feeling the need to reconnect with his roots.

"Lilith," he began, "as Drs. Larance and Zelenka pointed out, is identified by some Talmudic texts as the first wife of Adam."

"I may not have been paying attention, but I think my Sunday school class skipped over that," commented Sheppard.

"Very likely, since she doesn't rate a mention in the Bible. Having said that, Lilith does make an appearance on the roof of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, in Michelangelo's Temptation and Fall." Daniel brought up an image on the monitor. In the painting, a half-serpent/half-woman creature wound itself around a tree. "Essentially, Lilith represents a compilation of fabled demons found in the Kabbalah and Babylonian mythology. One interpretation suggests that Adam and Lilith were created simultaneously and given joint dominion over the Garden of Eden. However, Lilith refused to lay beneath Adam."

Quickly swallowing a sip of coffee, McKay raised a tentative hand. "And by `lay beneath,' you mean-"

"Yes, Rodney," Elizabeth answered briskly. "Daniel, you were saying?"

Clicking the computer mouse to display the next image, a map of ancient Persia, Daniel walked over to the screen and indicated the region between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. "Anyway, refusing to adopt a subservient role, Lilith invoked the name of God, an act that in many cultures is considered sacred and powerful in its own right. She then took to the air and left the Garden of Eden." He traced a line from Iraq to Egypt. "And settled on the coast of the Red Sea, where she became the consort of Samael and bore him countless Win — offspring."

"And Samael is…?" Landry asked.

"Satan." Daniel pushed ahead. "According to Talmudic mythology, at Adam's request, God sent to Lilith three angels-Senoy, Sansenoy, and Semangelof-who ordered her to return to Adam. If she refused, the angels would kill one hundred of her demonic children for each day she stayed away. Lilith countered that she and her Win would prey eternally upon the sons of Adam, namely humans. The Talmud further states that such children could only be saved by invoking the names of the three angels."

"Which is why," Larance broke in, "Hebrew tradition dic tates that an amulet inscribed with those three names is placed around the neck of each newborn boy, to protect him from Lilith."

Her unexpected contribution took Daniel by surprise. From the curious expressions of the others, it was clear he wasn't alone.

"I didn't wander into my line of work yesterday, Dr. Jackson. If this mythology primer is all you've got, we're wasting everyone's time." The profiler started to rise from the table.

"Sit down, Doctor." Landry's voice resonated with all the authority of his rank. "Before you arrived, I had a phone conversation with your Director. He assured me that we'd have the full cooperation of the Bureau in this investigation, starting with you."

After a tense moment, Larance managed to check her obvious resentment at being overruled, and settled back into her chair. "No disrespect intended, General," she replied with cool civility. "Let me simply say that I've done the same homework as your people. Lilith appears in Roman mythology as a night demon called a strix, who stole children. The strix was a nocturnal flying creature, similar to a vampire in the way it fed on human flesh and blood, with the ability to transform into a wild animal such as a lycaon."

"Lycaon," echoed McKay, the word slightly garbled as he finished chewing a bite of cookie. "Lycanthropy-isn't that…" He swallowed quickly. "Werewolves?"

"Does this mean we have to start taking the Underworld movies seriously? Because that might be kind of tough." Sheppard plucked the cookie out of Rodney's hand and set it down on the table. "Two hours of Kate Beckinsale kicking ass," he muttered to his teammate, "and what you remember is the mythological name?"

"Therianthropy is the correct term," Daniel said. "The metamorphosis of humans into wild animals of all types-even chimeras, or creatures made up from the parts of multiple animals. They're also interpreted by some as night monsters, succubi, and vampires. Keep in mind that all these creatures are considered to be the demonic offspring or, less literally, the creations of Lilith, not Lilith herself."

"Not to mention the fact that there are known genetic disorders that can account for the existence of many of these supposed monstrosities," Larance countered, her impatience clearly returning. "Hypertrichosis can cause the excessive body hair identified with werewolves; porphyria has been explored as a potential explanation for some of the traits associated with vampires. It's the age-old story of people fearing and marginalizing things they don't understand. Based on the physical descriptions of suspects in these murders, the Bureau has already investigated Marfan's syndrome and cystathi- oninuria, an enzyme deficiency disease, as possible factors, with a view to tracing perpetrators through a national database of registered recipients of the prescribed medication for such disorders. None of this is news, Dr. Jackson."

"And yet," Zelenka remarked quietly, "despite this knowledge, the FBI has not managed to identify the… perpetrators, yes?"

Larance's expression conceded her frustration, either-or perhaps both-with them or with the case.

A file folder sat on the table in front of Landry, and he slid it down to the agent. "That's a nondisclosure agreement," he stated. "Your security clearance is valid, and no doubt you're familiar with the penalties for disseminating classified information. Yes, we know more than we've told you. If you want the rest, you'll have to sign that document."

Without responding aloud, Larance opened the folder and scanned the two-page agreement inside. Lifting her head, she looked in turn at each person present. Daniel, accustomed to being evaluated by more intimidating beings than her, stared back when her gaze reached him. She moved on to McKay, who attempted a smile and then uncomfortably averted his eyes-most likely the precise reaction she'd wanted. Finally her appraising look settled on Sheppard.

The klaxons chose that moment to start wailing.

"Unscheduled offworld activation," announced Walter from the speakers.

Landry and Sheppard were out of their chairs before the warning had finished. Throwing open the door, the General fell in behind the security squad double-timing down the corridor.

"Unscheduled what?" Larance shot to her feet, taken aback by the sudden activity. "Why in God's name are there Marines tearing around a secure facility with weapons like those?"

"Sign that piece of paper and you're about to find out." Elizabeth crossed the room to the windows, still blocked by the blast doors. Her brief stint in command of the SGC evidently hadn't been forgotten. "Otherwise, security will be happy to escort you to the surface."

As the alarms continued to bleat, Larance took out a pen and scribbled a hasty signature on the nondisclosure agreement. Watching her, Elizabeth brought a hand to her ear and spoke in a low voice. Daniel wasn't wearing his radio, but he assumed that she'd given an instruction to the control room, because soon the blast doors pulled back to reveal the gate room, the iris locked in place over the Stargate, while watery hues reflected off the rear wall.

The klaxons fell silent. Zelenka stepped over to the nearest monitor and activated it, displaying a video uplink from Atlantis. Elizabeth turned toward the screen, Sheppard moving to stand at her shoulder.

Seemingly without being aware of her own motion, Rebecca Larance had been drawn to the windows and now stared openly at the gate below. With the iris closed, the sight wasn't as impressive as it could have been. Still, Daniel watched their visitor and remembered the awe that had accompanied his first view of the gate, over a decade ago. Granted, for him the experience had been first and foremost a vindication of his strongly held belief in the origin of the Egyptian pyramids. He could only imagine what must be going through Larance's mind, seeing the huge ring flanked by a pair of massive weapons. For the first time since they'd met, though, some of the jaded skepticism she wore began to slip, giving way to a look of pure amazement.

"You're kidding!" Elizabeth's exclamation grabbed Daniel's attention. "No, of course you're not. When this mission was authorized, I was assured that under no circumstances would one of those creatures be allowed through the gate." She shot a glance at Sheppard, who affected an air of contrived innocence.

On the screen, Teyla Emmagan was looking mildly chagrined. Larance's expression didn't change as she turned from the window to the screen and studied the exotic location. "Where is that place?" she asked Daniel.

"Atlantis." He didn't try to suppress his smile.

Her head whipped toward him, disbelief finally taking up residence alongside the wonder in her expression. "Not the resort, I'm guessing."

"Somewhat further away than that," confirmed Colonel Sheppard.

"And no longer lost, as you can see." McKay appeared to be bouncing smugly on the balls of his feet. "We found it a few years ago."

"We?" Zelenka echoed pointedly.

"If you want to split hairs, it was Dr. Jackson who-"

"Where?" Larance took a step toward the monitor. "Crete?" Hesitating, she glanced at Sheppard. "Antarctica?"

"Pegasus, actually," Daniel offered, distracted by Elizabeth's pinched look. "It's a galaxy approximately three million light years from here."

"Well, good work in locating the Ancient laboratory," Elizabeth was saying. "We can only hope it will offer some insight into Lilith's work. Meanwhile, just tell me that Ronon and the Marine team will take care of all the animals that managed to escape past the gate room. We can't have anything like that loose in the city."

Nodding her assurances, Teyla moved to one side. Daniel could see over her shoulder into Atlantis's gate room, where a large body lay motionless on the floor. I'll be damned. He'd assumed the previous mission reports had been oversimplified, but the thing did look like a T. rex…which opened up an alarming array of possibilities about how it had ended up in the Pegasus Galaxy.

Cocking his head, Sheppard studied the animal critically. "I think that might be the same one that almost had us for lunch a couple of years ago."

"How could you possibly distinguish one from another?" McKay demanded.

I tend to be pretty observant when something's trying to eat me."

"Very helpful. Elizabeth, tell them not to destroy the carcass. I'd like to take a look at it when we get back."

Zelenka raised a cynical eyebrow. "Now you develop a sudden interest in biology?"

"There is nothing sudden about it! Just because you lack insight into some areas of my research…"

Everyone but Daniel appeared to have forgotten their visitor. As Larance stood there, still staring at the screen and seemingly trying to convince her mouth to close, he moved in beside her and said, "That's ours. Now, you show us yours."