Tamil walked into the Sunken Flagon Inn with a dark look on her face.
"Let me guess," Jack said with a dry look, "the good captain isn't going to let you see the guy you need nor let us in to visit Neverwinter's archives, right?" At a nod from the bard Jack shook his head. "What is it now? Too many people loitering in the streets now that they're safe?"
Tamil gave an empathetic 'hmph.'. "I'm starting to think I should have joined the thieves instead of arresting them." She stormed over to the bar and grabbed a pint of ale the bartender hastily poured for her. "No, apparently it's some kind of emergency. An emissary from Waterdeep has gone missing and the commander at the outpost he was supposed to have passed through has called for help looking for him. The captain volunteered me for the mission." Tamil drained half the mug and then turned to look at Jack. "I know your top concern has to be finding that 'Stargate' device that will send you home, not playing watchman with me, Jack, but you and your team would be welcome if you wanted to accompany me."
Not for the first time Jack realized how charming and beautiful Tamil Farlong was. Her dark black hair curled naturally around a face that seemed born to sell skin care products. She had an athletic build, though that in no way detracted from her femininity, which was certainly distracting during morning workouts. Then there was her voice, which Jack having heard her singing out during battles knew held a compelling power when she wanted. Right now, though, he was noticing her eyes. They were clear and bright, a shade of blue that reminded him of sparkling topaz.
Jack realized that even if Tamil had been a complete stranger and approached him for help he'd have a hard time refusing any sensible request from her. In fact, Jack couldn't imagine any man refusing her with ease. But Tamil Farlong was no stranger and had become a trusted friend. He could count on one hand the number of people he would trust more than the bard, and most of those fingers were taken up by his SG-1 teammates. After a quick check with the other members of SG-1 he was happy to let her know he would be lending a hand.
"Teal'c and I can join you in your search and we'll bring all of the walkie-talkies. Daniel and Sam are still working on trying to find information to help us locate the Stargate on this world, if there is one. That is, they're looking when Daniel isn't trying to blow up something by talking to it or filling the room up with a cloud of stinking gas," Tamil grinned remembering the results of Daniel's experiment with a magic wand. "It was bad enough when he could talk me to sleep before he learned how to do it using magic," Jack sighed.
"Great, Jack, thanks," Tamil said and flashed him a brief but brilliant smile. "The druidess, Elanee will be traveling with us partway there, she needs to talk to a lake or something like that." Jack gave the bard an odd look. "Hey, don't ask me. She talks to animals and trees all the time. I guess speaking to a lake is not that great a stretch."
Samantha Carter was hard at work finding the right mix of alchemical ingredients to use in producing replacement bullets for the P-90's and 9mils. While she had access to the formula and specifications for the smokeless powder, not all of the ingredients available were exactly the same as those in professional manufacture. She was experimenting to find the right chemical composition to create the right sort of explosion without leaving any residual chemical by-products that could jam the weapons.
"Hey, Sam," Daniel interrupted. Major Carter spared a moment to shoot Daniel a dark look. "There's something I really think you should look at."
Dr. Carter didn't even move away from the alchemist's workbench. "Daniel, you know I'm busy. If you're trying to get me to join you in your daily sorcery lessons again, you can forget it. And you should be focusing on trying to find us a way home instead of indulging in the superstitions of the locals." The last part was said with a measure of accusation, though in truth the astrophysicist was less bothered by the fact that Daniel was studying up on the subject than that the magic defied any attempt she made at a scientific explanation.
"Well, first, I'd hardly class studying the rules governing the manipulation of an energy force that has observable effects in the real world as superstition," Daniel met Sam's denial with a fast-spoken rebuttal she could not easily refute, but which he slid right by in a preamble as he often did when dealing with such skepticism from teammates. "But that's not really the point of my visit to your 'lab' here. While I haven't found any references that sound like it might be a Stargate–and I am looking, thank you–there is something in the writing Sand is directing me to which seems to be discussing wormholes and possibly even gate travel. The problem is that I can't make heads or tails of what it is saying since it seems to be written in terms of quantum physics."
Samantha Carter gave Daniel an incredulous look. "Come on, Daniel, I'm not going to fall for that. These people are so technologically backwards they still don't have running water or electric lights. There is no way they have the slightest idea about wormholes or even space flight for that matter." Dr. Carter pointed out towards the inn's exterior, "They are still getting around on horseback!"
"And in flying cities, instant teleportation over great distances, flight without machine aid, and according to Elanee walking into a tree in one place and out of a tree far across the land," Daniel countered. "You've seen Elanee's transformation into animals and I've been reading about magic that would let me do almost the same thing. That's biogenetics on a scale we've only seen the Ancients be able to match." Daniel paused for a second to change tact.
"Whether or not this magic that is in use all around us is some sort of elaborate scheme by an alien race, I can tell you for certain that it is certainly not being used to keep people in ignorance. The theories and formulas to use this magic are challenging. I mean, I've had to borrow off my knowledge of trigonometry and calculus while studying this stuff. If it weren't for us having had to reprogram alien technology on half the missions we've gone on I doubt I would have made as much progress as I have without a serious refresher on math."
Dr. Carter knew Daniel's limitations. When it came to understanding systems of language and the use of symbols he was beyond brilliant. He had a knack for making intuitive leaps that more often than not turned out to be right. However, when it came to math and physics he was only as good as your typical university graduate. She, on the other hand, was one of the very top of the field among those of Earth and was far ahead of anyone who had not had the chance to join the Stargate program. So, if there was some sort of advanced math or physics, she would be better able to handle it.
"Alright Daniel," Sam sighed, "show me what you've found. But this had better be scientific and not about magic."
"Well," Daniel hesitated slightly, "it's both."
Daniel pulled out a book filled with arcane symbols. "This book talks about a way to open a sort of a temporary gateway between two places. Unfortunately, there are some things about how it's done that I don't understand, especially since Sand is not much into conjuration and this is a conjuration spell." Daniel turned to some pages, "But here is where it starts talking about how to target the area where you are to arrive. This is a bit beyond me. But together, we might be able to get this 'Dimension Door' to take us home."
Jack O'Neal, Teal'c, Tamil Farlong, Elanee, Khelgar, and Qara made their way to a hidden lake known to the druids as 'Sky Mirror'. It was quite a ways off the beaten path, but not too far out of the way to the encampment of Neverwinter soldiers. Elanee became visibly more comfortable as the cultivated lands of Neverwinter city gave way to wilderness, her confidence and ease returning with each step into tangled bushes. During her time in Neverwinter she was often bewildered and at times withdrawn, only really conversing with Tamil other than to remark how odd she found city behavior to be.
Qara, on the other hand, complained loudly about the discomforts of travel. "Eww! Tree sap!" the adolescent said as she wiped her hands on a nearby tree, but only managed to add bark to the mixture coating them. "Gods, I hate these woods. If my legs get scratched by one more thorn I'm going to fireball the whole area."
"No, you will not," retorted Jack. "Light a fire here and the whole place might go up."
"Good. Let the whole place burn for all I care," the impetuous teen responded.
"Let me rephrase that. Light a fire here and the whole place might go up with all of us burnt to a crisp within it." Jack pointed towards the built up dead leaves and fallen foliage on the ground. "See that? That's several seasons' worth of build up. If a flame hit that the whole area would be engulfed in a matter of hours. There hasn't been a fire here in several years, which means when this place does burn, it will burn fast, hot, and dangerous."
"Just like me," Qara added, needing the last word.
Elanee was surprised by Jack's understanding of forestry. After discussing the Earth practice of lighting controlled fires and the intervention Faerûnian nature spirits in the case of most wildfires in this land, Elanee had a much greater respect for SG-1 and the people of Earth. She had not expected people who relied on technology to be conscious of such things as conservation and protection of the wild. Allowing Jack and Teal'c to see the sacred waters of Sky Mirror was no longer a concern of hers, though she still had doubts about Khelgar and even more worries about Qara.
After hours of walking through difficult terrain they reached their destination. There was a peaceful stillness to the land and the great lake of pure water around them. Elanee walked up to a tree that would be virtually indistinguishable from any other tree to the uninitiated, but to the druidess it stood out as if it were bathed in a warm light. She looked within the wood and found the carving of an animal, the meaning of which was perfectly obvious to her. After a moment of contemplation, the elven maiden of the Meredelain murmured words of power and cast a spell upon the tree. She repeated this with three more trees. In answer, a token was released and fell lightly down to her hands.
"Give me a moment to center myself. And then, I can try to contact the druids of Neverwinter Wood," Elanee said as she touched the water. After a few seconds, a shimmering mist arose from the center of the lake and a misty image of a male elf appeared in the center of the lake. A moment later, the image spoke.
"Elanee, child is that you?" The voice had a gentle, paternal quality to it. Qara, of course, had a smart remark to make about the druidess being referred to as a child, but she was ignored.
"Elder Naevan? Can you hear me?" came Elanee's question in response. The elder druid seemed somewhat confused about how he was being contacted so she explained. "I am touching the waters of the Sky Mirror, but I had thought to contact the druids of Neverwinter Wood, not one of my own Circle."
Tamil tried to ask a question, but Elanee explained that the druid elder could only hear her, so she relayed the question on. Elder Naevan answered her, "I was traveling for the past season, not as long from the Mere as you, perhaps, and only recently have I returned from the Sword Coast." After another question from Elanee he added, "My path has been a long one. What I found, and what I have not found, has been troubling."
Jack rolled his eyes. "He sounds a lot like Daniel or Sam when they know something but don't have it completely figured out yet. Always sounding cryptic to cover the fact that they don't know it yet."
Unable to hear Jack's comments, Naevan continued, "Like you, I have had no success in contacting the druids of Neverwinter Wood. I suspect they are avoiding me - or have cut themselves off from others."
Now it was Elanee's turn to tell the elder druid something, "We encountered one in Neverwinter, and he had come in search of one of Circle of the Mere, either you or I, but had found no one, not even Elder Vashne."
Jack directed a look at Tamil, who just shrugged and turned her hands palm up.
"That is troubling news. And part of what drove me here. I returned... because I felt something was wrong with the Mere, and I have not been able to reach any of the other druids. This feeling from the Mere - it is like a black silence stretching through the Merdelain, and even seeing through the eyes of animals and birds has proved useless."
"Elder Naevan, there's something else we must tell you. While we were in one of the druid sanctuaries on the way to Neverwinter we encountered another druid of our Circle. It was Kaleil, but he had been driven mad, he had slaughtered the animals there!" Elanee's voice took on a very emotional tone when talking about this.
"What?" Naevan was incredulous.
"Without the aid of some travelers who joined me I do not think I could have subdued Kaleil, but with their help we were able to bring him down without harming him. He said he had been infected by something in the Mere and warned us not to return there. I helped cure him and help him return to his natural form, and hee said he would search for the druids of Neverwinter Wood or for you," Elanee paused. "Elder Naevan, we came here to ask the lorekeepers of Neverwinter Wood if they knew anything of what was happening at the Mere. And we fear that whatever is occurring in the Mere is tied to a set of silver fragments we carry."
Elder Naevan questioned Elanee about the shards and their mission. He was particularly keen about their origin. "The darkness clouding the Mere, it is familiar in some respects to events that occurred at the time of the discovery of those shards. During the war against the King of Shadows many years ago, a similar darkness infested the land, though not as thick as it is now."
"King of Shadows?" Jack and Tamil said at the same time. Jack added, "Isn't that the guy the evil, goth priest guy with all the zombies said he was working for?" Tamil nodded and Elanee relayed that information back to the elder druid as well.
"Can he have returned? There were many battles fought in the Mere, and at its borders, one even at West Harbor. Elanee, I must continue on to the Mere, and try to find what became of Vashne and the others. Even if they are dead, I must see it with my own eyes... and see what I can do to find out more about this threat and the shards you speak of."
With that, the communication via the Sky Mirror ceased and the misty image dissipitated into nothing. Mulling over all that had been said, the group turned back to leave the road when Elanee suddenly noticed a change in the environment. "Did you hear that? Something is wrong. We are no longer welcome here."
With that, the group walked away from the lake and began the trek back to the exit with their weapons drawn and protective spells cast from bard, druidess, and sorceress. When the corpses of creatures who died trying to enter the sacred area and great beings of water rose from the ground to attack them, they were glad they had been prepared. It was a simple matter to destroy them, but without the protective spells their may have been some injuries.
When they finally arrived at the entrance to the protected grove, the group realized the reason for the sudden hostility from the land. Another one of the necromantic priests and a large group of ruffians to back him up barred the way. Jack heard the priest rant off something about darkness coming for the druidess and decided he didn't like him.
"Qara, now these guys are people you can burn to ash," Jack began. Qara smirked and immediately began chanting. "Just don't kill—" Qara's fireball blasted the shadow priest and those nearest him, "—the priest."
Despite that unfortunate lost opportunity, the battle went very well for the group. Teal'c used his staff weapon, but Jack didn't even need to pull out his zat. The fighting was over in less than thirty seconds. Then it was on to Old Owl Well.