Chapter Fifty-Four

Sengul

Daniel and Jack stayed awake almost the entire night watching over Nick and Ares who grew worse as the minutes passed until both of them began to doubt Grandfather’s and Grandson’s capacity to do anything more than fall flat on their handsome faces. Morning came and both of them awoke, hauled themselves to their feet and demanded to carry what they could.  Throughout the course of the night Daniel managed to finagle a crutch for Nick out of the two he’d requisitioned from the hospital.  He split one crutch in two, taped the bottom of the broken crutch to the bottom of the whole one to lengthen it and did the same with the arm rest to double it.  It wasn’t perfect but it worked well enough when they started their walk through the deserted town.  Both Daniel and Jack offered to carry Adoy but the little creature refused the kind offer saying he could make the journey on his own.  This proved true, Adoy was much more nimble and agile than any of them would have given him credit for earlier.  He walked through the town…rather he toddled through it…at an even pace which easily kept up with their gait.  When they reached the bottom of the small mountain he offered to lead, Jack deferred as he was aware that Adoy knew this mountain much better than any of them did. Adoy would find the path of least resistance.

The sun overhead shone brightly but it did not beat down upon them during the course of the day. Instead he enfolded them in a gently warm embrace.  Autumn was setting in here after all, if it weren’t for the absolute silence and lack of movement in the ghost town they were leaving behind the planet would be beautiful as it burst forth with deep reds and bright oranges.  Standing at the bottom of this hill, for an inexplicable reason, with great suddenness Daniel was back on Tiberia.  He was standing at the bottom of the hill which led to the Stargate with Calla only a step behind him.  So long ago he led her home. He did now as she did then when he turned and took one last look at the town below them.  Now as then he reached out for the person behind him only this time it happened to be Nick and not Calla.  Now as then, Daniel put his hand under the elbow and helped Nick up the hill just as he’d done for his Mother so many years ago. Now but not as then, Daniel looked down at the ground.

“What is it, Dad?” Nick asked taking in the strange look on his Father’s face. “Something wrong with my shoes?”

“No, nothing,” Daniel said with a sad smirk taking in the heavy Air Force issue black boots on his Son’s big feet.  She didn’t have any shoes and I didn’t notice.

“Dad?”

Daniel took one last look out of the corner of his eye.  “Let’s keep going. You doing all right?”

“Hanging in.  What about you, Umpa?”  Ares grunted from in front of them, he insisted on walking behind Adoy so that he could be the point man if trouble showed its head.  “General?”

“Don’t worry about me, Colonel, you worry about yourself.” Jack advised and nearly had to laugh when Nick called him ‘General’. Colonel Nicholas Jackson only called General Jack O’Neill ‘General’ in front of inferior officers and those with so much brass on their chests they’d drown if they got near water.  It was the one part of the job Nick could never quite get used to; making the transition from ‘Uncle Jack’ to ‘General O’Neill’. Although being in his mid-thirties now Nick felt it all right to drop the ‘uncle’ and just call him ‘Jack’ as of late when others were not around. Jack much preferred to hear his name come out of Nick’s mouth.  Gazing up from near the bottom of the hill and then behind him at Nick and in front of him at Ares Jack felt certain that at least one of them wouldn’t make it to the top. The climb was slow and easy for the most part but nearer the top it did become quite steep and rocky. Getting in through the mouth of Adoy’s cave was a feat fit for an acrobat.

A few days ago it took Daniel and Ares just over two hours to walk from the church to this exact spot. A few days ago it took them almost three more hours to ascend to the cave at the top.  Today, it took the party of five three almost four hours to walk from the church to this exact spot.  “What do you say we have a drink over there in the shade before we go any further?” Daniel asked no one in particular. All agreed that sounded like a right fine idea to them.  In the shade of a stand of trees they took off their packs and rested their bodies while quenching their thirst.  Looking down at his watch Daniel guessed it was near time for each of them to take their pain killers.  “Let’s get a look while we’re resting.”  He said to Nicholas who rolled his dark eyes but turned around so that Daniel could see the wounded calf muscle.  It was bleeding badly and was in need of a clean bandage.  For a moment Daniel didn’t see any of that disgusting yellow pus and thought that the antibiotics must be working. Daniel fished around in the pack Nick was carrying for medical supplies until he came back with clean bandages and tapes. Leaning in to take off the old bandages he caught a whiff of something foul.  Taking the bandage off Daniel plainly saw that the yellow pus turned dark green and black. Gangrene was setting in. He tried to remind himself that wasn’t possible and certainly not quite so quickly.  Yet there it was staring him in the face and assaulting his nose.  “What about you?” He asked Ares without looking up at him.  “Bite on something, will ya?”

“What?”  Nick didn’t understand as Daniel handed him a fat stick to put in his mouth.  On the way up here Daniel stopped in the local saloon and gathered up several more unopened bottles of alcohol.  He also gathered several bottles of water and food from the pantry.  Now he opened one and poured it directly on the wound just like last night. Nick bit down until the ¾ inch stick snapped in half and he choked out splinters of wood while he bellowed in agony.  The searing pain too great to withstand he began to tilt to one side, Daniel grabbed him by the shirt with one hand while Jack rushed to the other side to shore him up.  “What the hell is it Dad?” Nick asked breathlessly as he held onto Jack for support.

“I’m not a doctor but I think it’s….”

“Gangrene,” Ares answered flatly. “You think I don’t recognize it when I see it? Do you know how many men that dreaded infection has stolen from me over the eons?”  He looked Nicholas in the eye. “Soon he’s going to want to cut your leg off to save your life, isn’t that right, Jackson?”

“Cut my? Cut my leg off?” Nick stuttered.

“You’re an ass,” Daniel shot at Ares and then turned to look up at Nick while he put fresh bandages over the gapping wound.  “I’m sure if we get home soon you’ll be just fine.”

“And if we don’t?”

“We’ll deal with it if we get there. Ok?”  The bandages secure Daniel stood up and held out two then three white pills to Nicholas.  “For the pain.”  Nick swallowed them dry and then followed it with four antibiotics, a double dose.  Cutting Nick’s leg off was not an appealing idea but, as drastic as it was it was an option.  Ares had none.  If his flanks turned gangrenous he was done for.  It would spread to his liver, his kidneys, his lungs and Olympian or not there wouldn’t anything anyone would be able to do to save his life so long as they were trapped here. “Your turn.” He said to Ares as he helped Nick settle down on a nearby rock.

“I’ll do it myself.” Ares countered and held his hand out for the bottle of booze in Daniel’s hand.

“Whatever you want.” Daniel handed it over and watched while Ares peeled the dirty bandages aside only to reveal thick black pus mingled with his Ichor.  Don’t you die on me you son of a bitch, was the first thought to go through Daniel’s head.  He looked close, as closely as he possibly could from his distance and didn’t see any reaching tendrils of discoloration.  It wasn’t spreading, not yet anyway. As long as it didn’t spread then there was a chance that Ares (and Nick) was going to get home just fine.  Ares poured the alcohol over his open wounds, he didn’t scream, he didn’t cry out but his face reddened to a deep crimson as it gnarled and twisted in agony.  A few moments later and the worst of the burning passed, Ares started to breathe again.

“I heard you, you know.” Ares taunted through his pain.  “I’m so touched that you’re concerned for my life. Truly, it makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.”  The claw marks were deepening and the stitches were weakening but they’d have to wait to be replaced until they reached the top and were safely inside for the night.  Instead of re-stitching his wound Ares settled for a change of dressings just as Nick had gotten.

Jack, who’d been attacked by the same cats still showed no sign of even a mild infection.  Daniel turned to Adoy.  “They have poisonous claws, don’t they?”

“What?”

“Those cats, the Chimera, there’s something in their claws that’s poisonous to an Olympian but not a human and probably not a Sengali either.”

Leaning on his rickety cane Adoy seemed to think about it for a few minutes.  Then he told a brief story. In the days when Artuir Sera’s line was strongest, his blood still most powerful in the lines, a few of his offspring succumbed to the attacks of a pack of Chimera.  The cats were dangerous to anyone but the boys died a death the inhabitants of the planet had never seen before; the flesh turned black and simply rotted away.  “Perhaps poison it is.”

Great. That meant whatever cure there might be was back down there in the village.  “What did they come up with for a cure?”

“A cure there is not.” Adoy said sadly as he looked up at the afflicted men.

Jack looked at the sky and at his watch to see they’d take almost forty-five minutes to sit here and yak.  “We need to get moving.”

“Yes,” Ares agreed finishing up his bandages.  “The climb is more arduous than I thought it would be.”  Throwing the old bandages to the ground he looked down at Adoy. “Well, lead on little man.”

**

Early morning came and Lilly was up just before the sun.  She lay in her bed and waited until she hard her mother wandering around the house before she got up.  Colleen was in the kitchen putting on the coffee and Paddy was still in bed.  “Mom?” Lilly began with a nervous voice. “Can I talk to you?”

“Of course you can, honey.” Colleen said as she poured the coffee into the tank of the pot and then hit the ‘on’ button before looking over at Lilly.  “Oh, sweetheart, what is it? What’s wrong Lil?”  The girl looked like she’d seen a ghost and an unfriendly one at that.

Annie knew about Wolfgar because Danny was sick and Amy thought she needed to know but no one told the Queen yet.  Lilly felt very awkward being the one to do it but someone had to.  “Sit down, mom.”  In the kitchen while the coffee brewed Lilly tearfully told her mother all about Wolfgar and how she, along with her unwitting sisters, had all slept with him.

“Oh my god,” Colleen gasped. “Are you all right, Lil?  Oh my god, you’re not….you’re not…pregnant…are you?”  That would be horrible.  Just the worst thing that Colleen could think of in that moment.

Lilly hadn’t thought of it until now and she let out a long low groan as the thought went through her mind. “I don’t know.” She whispered and wrapped her arms around her belly before she burst into tears. “I really loved him, mom, how could he do that to me?”

“Oh my poor little girl.” Colleen got up and knelt beside Lilly to put her arms around her. She knew just how it all felt; being duped, being used, and having your heart broken. Those were all things Lilly’s own father had done to her. At least Colleen hadn’t been related to Sandy.  “I’m sorry, honey. I’m so sorry he did this to you.” To all of you. The others must be equally hurt and upset over this.

“He’s my fucking cousin! That’s sooo disgusting.” Lilly wailed. “He knew it, he knew, he knew.”

“Yes,” Colleen said gently and held Lilly just a little firmer. “He knew what he was doing and now we do too.  He’s not going to get away with this, Lil.”

One by one, Colleen Queen of Altair Ain had her siblings called into meeting where she listened to their stories individually and then, being Queen, did what she thought best when she ordered pregnancy tests for all of the girls. Brigid balked saying she’d only slept with him once and it was only a few days ago, such a test wouldn’t show anything for her yet.  Nevertheless, Colleen insisted and took them all down to the clinic where each pissed on a stick and handed it to Annie or her new assistant, Randy.  Each stick, except for Brigid’s turned bright blue. All were pregnant including Lilly, Colleen’s heart broke for all of them but none more so than her own daughter. Colleen knew all too well the trials of being a young parent on her own.  There was no reason to believe that within the next week Brigid wouldn’t also test positive. “What you do about this is up to you,” she said them in a whisper s she took them aside each at different level of disbelief. “You understand?  It isn’t anyone’s business but your own. Unless you decide to keep your child no one ever has to find out about this.”

They agreed that was true but none knew what they were going to do and Colleen encouraged them not to make snap judgments on a matter of such importance. A short while later they left for Russia and Colleen pondered what the kingdom’s next move should be.  This was most distressing news. No one thought Wolfgar could get so close to any member of the family except possibly Brigid who had no special abilities whatsoever. She didn’t expect that the others should have known his face or his voice but they should have felt him, his magick, his power, his essence.  Yet, they did not. What secret did he possess which would keep that tell-tale sign from them?  How did they defeat it? For as long as it he had a great advantage over them. What in God’s Name were they going to do about his offspring?

Having been just made to relive such a unpleasant experiences and received such unwelcome news tensions were high as they all arrived in the old church. Only on very few occasions had they ever tried to combine their powers and on fewer occasions had it been a success.  At first the three of them tried; Athena, Amy and Aiden.  It was a failure just as before.  The vortex opened and remained open longer than the last time but in the end they simply couldn’t control the energy long enough to maintain the pathway.  It imploded in on itself sending the three of them flying off in three different directions.

A few moments for resting and Lilly joined them for another attempt. “You too, Brig.” Aiden called to his sister who sat there looking useless as well as helpless on an old pew.  Brigid never knew why they made the attempt to include her in such things from time to time but it was nice to be wanted especially now when she felt so unwanted.  Joining in the circle she took hold of Aiden’s hand on one side and Lilly’s on the other.

“Mind if I join?” The group turned to see Colleen standing there.  “I thought you might be able to use my help.”  She wasn’t very powerful but she was still the Queen so perhaps that alone might count for something.  Athena let go of Amy’s hand and moved aside so Colleen could enter.  Now that all of the available descendents of Zeus were here perhaps they stood a better chance of accomplishing their task.

In the guise of one now deceased Lt. Michael Blood, Wolfgar stood back and watched with much delight as Colleen joined the group. He hadn’t expected to claim the Queen in this game quite so soon. Standing there in the clinic holding his tongue trying not to smile and let slip that he was delighted to be privy to such sensitive information regarding his impending children was most difficult but he’d managed it.  Staring at their faces he knew at least Athena and Amy were going to choose to abort; Lilly and Brigid (when she found out) had more conflicted feelings.  It was fortunate indeed that this opportunity had been laid in his lap, best to scoop them all up before they could run off and do anything foolish.

**

The troop of stranded men made it three-quarters of the way up the small mountainside when the vortex began to open. “No!” Daniel shouted. “Wait!” Yes, wait! Why couldn’t they wait another hour or so?   Like yesterday, the wind picked up steadily and the air prickled with electricity.  Above them the sky darkened and seemed to turn into some sort of gel as it wobbled and rippled before the outer edges of the vortex became visible. Two rings in the sky, the outer one turning clockwise and the inner counter clockwise.    Purple lightning criss-crossed the forming opening.  “We’re never going to make it.”

“You’re in the best condition of any of us, Danny, if you run, you’ll make it.” Jack said. “You can get home and tell them what’s going on back here.”

For a long moment Daniel just stood there torn between staying here with his friends and running for the opening in the sky.

“Go Danny!” Jack ordered.

Without further hesitation Daniel scrambled up the hill toward the whirring vortex hanging in the sky.

In the old church it seemed as though they’d finally found the right combination for opening this damnable thing. The six of them harness and directed the wild forces of the energy until it focused narrowly on the planet with the red dots.  All around them the sky darkened as the vortex opened and the wind began to howl.  Bright lightning bounced around the church and shot through its walls up into the sky.  Then…

“Oh, oh, that’s it.” Athena gasped. “Keep it up we’re doing it!”

There was a silent agreement as they felt something open on the other side.

Daniel ran as fast as he could, his legs straining and his breath hitching in his dry throat.  It was so steep near the top and he stumbled several times catching himself each time before he could crash to the ground, loose momentum or be injured.  “Wait!” he called up to the sky. “Just wait!”  The crest of the small mountain within stone’s throw and he felt victorious, soon he would stand in the glow of the nearly iridescent light coming from the vortex and be swept up into it landing on the other side back home on Earth.  The whirring sound suddenly grew to a cacophony as though someone rudely turned up the speed from 45 to 78 and then threw the volume from a comfortable 5 to an ear shattering 11.  The vortex shook violently in the sky as it became unstable and the lightning within the gaping hole changed direction to seek out the ground below.  In a blinding flash of purple light with a report so long and loud it deafened all around the vortex collapsed and disappeared.

In the church the bright green energy the six of them had been working with grew to a blinding degree and all those standing as witnesses to this incredible event had to look away.  There was a massive explosion in that second causing much of the remaining church to crumble.

“Where are they?” Sam asked dumbfounded when she was finally able to lower her hand from her face and open her eyes.  “I said; where are they???”

Athena, Amy, Aiden, Lilly, Brigid and Colleen had vanished in that flash of light.

**

“Welcome to my humble abode,” Wolfgar said to the dazed and confused individuals who now found themselves prisoners.  “I hope your stay will be enjoyable…however long it lasts.”

“Who are you?” Colleen asked in shock as she looked around to see a place completely unfamiliar to her and to note that each had their own small cell here.

“I think you know my name, my Queen.”

Lilly stepped up to the bars and grabbed them with both hands as she stared at him in disbelief.  “St—Wolfgar?”  She reached out with hesitant fingers to touch his shirt. “What happened to you?  You’re so…so….”

“Old,” Athena shot from her cell.

“Mature,” he corrected.  “It’s nice to see you too my dear.” He blew Athena a kiss then turned to the girl with the tears in her eyes. “My darling, Lilly, I’m sorry I deceived you but it was necessary.  Fear not, I don’t want to harm you. When this is over you will be my Queen and we rule all of the heavens.”

“In your dreams,” Colleen threatened through gritted teeth. “Lilly get away from him.” She reached out through the bars of her cell in a futile attempt to reach her daughter. “Lilly!”

“You love me, I know you do.” He whispered as he leaned in closer to her. “You can’t help it.  We will be together of that you should have no doubt.”

Although concerned with the way Lilly seemed taken with the handsome captor Amy and Athena tried desperately to use their magick to escape their prisons but it was useless.  Their powers did not work here.  “Where are we?” Amy demanded.

“Welcome to Olympus.” Wolfgar chimed and stepped away from the bars to address all of them.  “I knew they would look for you on the islands but since my Great-Grandfather was kind enough to blow his ancestral home to hell a few years ago they’ll never come here. They believe this place destroyed so don’t hold out hope for rescue…any of you.”

End of Chapter Fifty-Four of
Golden Years
by Moon Mistress
a/k/a Lisa Beth Darling
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Chapter Fifty-Five