09x08 - Babylon

[bunniefuu]

What you got?



- Jaffa?



- Quiet! It is nothing.

He's not doing that on purpose is he?

You know, just to keep me interested?

Well that depends.

Are you losing interest?

No! We haven't found so much as a snapped twig on this planet, but hey, hey, it's all good, baby.

Teal'c's intel did suggest that the Sodan were rumoured to have a base of operations here.

Teal'c's intel came from a bunch of Jaffa he used to be at w*r with, you know?

Old enemies and new allies and all that jazz.

But still.

You think the information's bad?

I think it's vague.

"A world once inhabited by Ancients.

A village shrouded in the mists of time.

" Sounds like a movie trailer.

Well we've found some pretty interesting things based on vague.

Yeah.

Still, I'm getting that grasping at straws feeling.

Yeah, just don't tell Teal'c.

I already did.

Yeah, what did he say?

"The warriors of the Sodan exist, Colonel Mitchell! I am certain of it.

" Needs more bass.

Go! Fall back to the gate, I got our six.

Go, go, go! Where the hell are they?

SG

-22, this is SG

-1.

We are under att*ck! We need backup! Where the hell is Mitchell?

Cameron, what's your position?

Cameron, do you copy?

His wound is grave my Lord.

His symbiote is badly damaged.

No! Bring him! Shal' Kree! Season 9

- Episode 8 Babylon He'll be dead by sunset.

If not sooner.

Then you must keep him alive.

Carter to SGC.

You got anything yet, Chief?

Colonel, we're reading UAV telemetry, five by five.

So far, no sign of Colonel Mitchell.

Let me know when you've completed your first sweep.

Affirmative.

SGC out.



- Anything?



- Not yet.

How's he doing?

Not well.

His symbiote is dying.

If it is not removed, the host will die also.

Sergent, radio Dr Lam.

Let her know we have a priority one medical emergency incoming.

No tattoo.

He is a warrior of the Sodan.

According to legend, no Sodan has been indentured to the Goa'uld for over 5000 years.

So your intel was correct.

Indeed.

Colonel Carter.

There's something you need to see.



- This writing.



- Ancient.

Look familiar?

Nope.

Teal'c?

I have never before seen such a device.

Well, I'm detecting energy readings.

It's definitely some form of technology.

Perhaps this is how the Sodan managed to escape so quickly.

Actually, that's exactly what it is.

This says it's some sort of aperture or gateway to

- To where?



- Enlightenment.

Just enlightenment?

Nothing more specific?

That's all it says.

Hold still! You know, your bedside manner totally blows.

Your wound is infected.

It must be cleansed, or you will die.

This will cause you a fair amount of pain.

How's it going in there?

Touch and go.

They've been at it for nearly six hours now.

Most Jaffa would not survive such wounds.

Wich means she's very good.

That's why she's here.

Looks like you were both right about the device he was wearing.

More Ancient technology.

A cloak of invisibility.

That explains how they were able to ambush you so easily.

What about the transporter?

Carter's with a team on the planet, working on it right now.

So far they haven't been able to even open up the damn thing.

Let alone turn it on.

Yeah, sorry I couldn't have been more help.

Well one line of Ancient text isn't a hell of a lot to go on.

We're running surface scans with Prometheus on several moons and other planets in the system.

You believe Colonel Mitchell is no longer on P9G

-844?

It's a possibility.

Ground sweeps and UAV scans are all coming up empty.

Don't move.

Don't make a sound.

You call to the others and it's goodbye, Jaffa.

It would seem you have me at a disadvantage.

It certainly appears that way.

Now, you're gonna tell me how I get How things seem and how they truly are, are two very different things.

For example.

You are free to leave this place whenever you choose.

What, now you're telling me?

But to reach the Chaapa'ai, would take months on foot to the mountains of Dor'ta'nak.

No one who's attempted the journey has ever survived.



- So how did we get

- We were brought here through the eye of the Gods.



- Which is?



- Your questions can wait! Now that your strength has returned, we should begin Joma'Sha'Tal'ac immediately.

If that's breakfast, I could eat.

You have spilled the blood of a Sodan warrior.

Did you think our mercy was without purpose?

Lord Haikon has decreed that you will answer for your crimes by way of Kel Shak Lo.

Which you will battle with another warrior.

And on that day, you will die.

I take it from all the beeping, our friend is still with us.

That he is.

Though how he survived is a mystery to me.

I'd say that nine hours you spent working on him might have something to do with it.

Nice work.

I did what I could to save him, but his symbiote was too badly damaged.

We had no choice but to remove it and start him on tretonin.

As soon as he regains consciousness, I wanna know.

Why?

So you can interrogate him?

Well that might be more up Teal'c's alibi, but that's the idea.

Well it wasn't exactly the kind of post op recovery I had in mind.

Well let me know the moment he wakes up.

OK.

Lt.

Col.

Cameron Mitchell, United States Air Force.

Earth.

I don't know if you know what's been going on out there, but things are a little different now.

The Goa'uld have been defeated.

The Goa'uld should have been defeated five thousand years ago.

My ancestors were one of the first of the Sodan.

They were part of an elite command force under the Goa'uld Ishkur.

For years, they pillaged and plundered under his name.

Driving fear into the hearts of all those that would oppose his rule.

The further they ascended among the ranks, the more they were able to discern the truth.

That he was not a God at all, but merely an imposter.

Our true Gods are those that came before us.

You're talking about the Ancients.

Ishkur branded my ancestors as traitors and ordered their deaths.

They tried to fight to show their brothers their faith.

But the odds were too great.

They were forced to flee, they set out to find Kheb, hoping that their souls would find peace.

But instead their search led them to this world.

You knew about the Goa'uld, but you didn't help the other Jaffa defeat them.

Look, for the first time in their history, the Jaffa are free.

But it won't last without strong leadership.

They need your help.

Their fate is of no concern to us.

I hope you are prepared to die well, Mitchell.

You will not be able to break your bonds.

We sought out the Sodan in peace.

Wishing only to open dialogue.

Instead you att*cked us and took our comrade.

All enemies who our transgress our sacred ground, forfeit their lives.

Yeah well, you might want to post a few signs.

Look, we just want our friend back.

We figured that your fellow warriors may wanna know that you're still alive and kicking, so we're thinking straight swap.

Our guy in exchange for you.

If your friend was taken, then mourn him.

For if he is not yet dead, he soon will be.

Hear me when I say that all free Jaffa have always had the greatest respect for the warriors of the Sodan.

You speak of respect, yet you condemn me.

Without my symbiote, I will be dead soon enough! A medicine called tretonin, courses through your veins.

You have been freed from your burden.

Such a thing is not possible.

Oh, but it is.

It is very real, I assure you.

It is now used by several thousand free Jaffa, with no ill effects.

Your poisons will not work.

Had you any honour, you would have let me die on the b*ttlefield.

So is it you just don't know what's going on in the rest of the galaxy or you really don't care?

The Jaffa made their choice 5000 years ago.

Their affairs are no concern to us.

Yeah, but how do you survive?

At some point you gotta go hunting foryou know.

We raid Goa'uld strongholds for shipments of symbiotes that have yet to be implanted in any Jaffa.

Such missions are rites of passage for our youngest warriors.

Well it sounds like fun.

The fighting style of Sodan has been a closely guarded secret for a hundred generations.

It is a shame you will die shortly after learning it.

att*ck me.

You find me an unworthy opponent?

No, it's just I don't feel like OK.

Let's try that one more time.

You are slow and undisciplined.

If you fought your opponent today, you would die without landing a single blow.

And what happens if I refuse to fight?

You just k*ll me?

It is an alternative you do not wish to explore.

Dr Lam tells me you have refused to eat.

The very odour of your food turns my stomach.

If you are to survive without your symbiote, you require sustenance.

It is only because your drug has weakened me.

On the contrary brother, it has freed you.

What do you know of freedom?

You, who have served false Gods.

Who chooses to live in this squalor, rather than among his own people.

I know that I have heard stories of the Sodan, since I was but a child.

Your bravery and skill are legend among all Jaffa.

It is because of my failure as a warrior that I languish here now.

Prisoner to a former sl*ve and his pitiful allies.

Speak not of skill to me.

Many Jaffa have fought and d*ed for a cause that was started by the warriors of the Sodan! And for what?

Instead of respecting the traditions of OUR ancestors, you would only seek to lead them further astray! That way.

Blue is left.

Red is right.

Got it!

- Faster!

- Faster.

How did I do?

Badly.

Again! Yeah, yeah.

You stop using that gadget, I guarantee you, I'll be better.

A Sodan warrior must anticipate an att*ck at any moment.

Yeah well, where'd you guys get those things, anyway?

The writings of our Gods instructed us how to construct many of their devices.

We use them to protect our sacred ground.

Speaking of Gods, I know this is probably taboo, but I need to talk to your boss.

That visitor you had yesterday.

I'm assuming it's not the first time he's been here.

I've met their kind before.

They're bad news.

Look, I'll do any crazy, training exercise you want within reason.

Finish the course in time and I'll consider it.

You know, a bag of sand with a hole in it is not an accurate timing device.

You are an evil man! Please, sit.

I'm good OK.

Maybe I will sit.

You know, I'm starting to get an idea of why you guys att*cked us.

That Prior is telling you we're enemies.

Is he wrong?

You could have cut us down the second we stepped through the gate, but you didn't.

Generations of my people fought and d*ed under exile.

Praying for the day when we could seek the path without recrimination.

When we pray to the Gods, do they hear us, Mitchell?

Do they once give us a sign as proof of their existence?

I know that the Ori are not the Ancients.

But can there be any doubt that they are Gods?

And if they can lead us to the path of enlightenment, how can I refuse them?

You're making a big mistake.

These Ori are not what you think they are.

They are not even close.

Tek'Hel'Shee! Perhaps, when you finish your debt.

In your final moments, you'll understand.

I've already been there.

I understand.

You may rest now.

No, I'm good, let's keep going.

You are not tired?

Six weeks airborne training at Fort Benning, that's tiring.

This is nothing.

Come on! If I wanna survive this Kel Shak Lo thing, I'm gonna need a hell of a lot more than you're teaching me.

Quit p*ssy footing around and stop holding back.

Let's go! You believe this staff is what makes you strong.

The Kran'too is nothing but an extension of your body.

No true warrior depends on a w*apon for strength or advantage.

See, that's what I'm talking about! Drink.

I'm not gonna get used to this stuff.

Were it not for my teas, you would have d*ed many days ago.

It was self defence, you know.

The Jaffa I k*lled.

It was him or me.

It does not matter.

Blood has been spilled.

Our laws decree you must answer for it.

So who was he?

His name was Volnek.

A most skilled warrior.

Look, for what it's worth?

There's nothing I can say, is there?

No.

So, who do I fight?

Lord Haikon will determine that on the eve of your battle.

Usually it is the closest blood kin to the slain warrior.

Right.

And the next of kin is just as tough as he was.

Do I stand a chance?

Never mind.

I promise I'll die well and all that jazz.

But before I kick it, I gotta ask.

You buying what these Priors are selling?

Lord Haikon has led us for more than a hundred years.

He knows what is best for us all.

Yeah, yeah, look, I get it, you are a team player.

I'm asking, what do you think?

It is not my place to question Haikon's judgement.

Nor is it yours! Well somebody better, because if you guys follow the Ori, all of your traditions, your Kran'too staffs, your precious path, your tasty beverages, it's all going down the drain! Enough! We're finished for the day.

You say a Prior has come to the Sodan and you have decided to follow the word of the Ori.



- I walk the path of our true Gods

- The Ori are not Gods! What did the Prior promise you?

A place of honour at his side.

As heralds for your new masters.

This Prior will have you hunt down and k*ll all Jaffa who refuse to follow the path of Origin.

That is the path you walk.

I will learn the codes of the Ancient transporter.

No matter how long it takes.

This is going nowhere.

Two weeks and he hasn't given us so much as a decent high coo.

Well, it's understandable, Sir.

Most Jaffa would never break under normal interrogation techniques.

Not to mention the fact that the Sodan are an elite group of warriors.

I'm sure their minds are trained to withstand a lot worse.

What about the device?

We haven't made much progress, I'm afraid.

It seems the code preventing us using it, is rigged to some sort of defence mechanism.

Dr Lee received a few nasty volts, while trying to implement an override.

How is he?

Dr Lam says the feelings should return to his legs in a few days.

Meanwhile, the international committee is keeping score of all the resources we're using to try to find Mitchell.

Science teams, orbital scans by Prometheus.

All of them coming up empty certainly doesn't look good.

Another few days and they'll tell us to shut down search and rescue operations.

Shut it down?

Sir, with all due respect, in the past we have spent months searching for our people in the field.

We can't just stop looking.

What she's saying sir, is we've never left a man behind.

I'm more than familiar with the concept, Dr Jackson.

Give me something I can use, soon.

Or the next paperwork I fill out will declare Mitchell MIA.

I just need a minute! Let him pass.

Thank you.

Alright, I'll make this quick.

The Prior represents a race of Ancients, yes! But believe me when I tell you, they are not the Ancients you wanna worship.

The Prior has healed our sick.

Caused our crops to grow as if by magic.

Why should I doubt the power of the Ori?

Look, their power is not what you should question.

It's how they use it! Anyone refuses to worship them and they die.

And I'm not talking about a few non believers here and there.

I'm talking about whole planets wiped out! And I should simply take your word for this?

You wanna believe my people are godless and inferior?

Go right ahead.

But we have never needed proof of our Gods' existence in order to believe in them.

Faith.

It was your faith that sustained you for five thousand years, not the Ancients themselves.

Don't throw your history away for a bag full of magic tricks.

Admit it! Haikon has totally lost his mind.

A warrior cannot talk and fight at the same time.

A fact you refuse to accept.

Got it.

You may provide a challenge to your opponent after all, Mitchell.

Followed by my violent death of course.

Of course.

To my inevitable demise! Why do you do this?

Do what?

Train this hard.

These are the last days of your life.

I would think you would spend more time in reflexion.

Well all I know is, the moment you accept your fate, that's when you're as good as dead.

Till then, all bets are off.

You cannot survive Kel Shak Lo.

Well no offence, but I've endured things I wasn't supposed to survive before and I'm still here.

How can you be certain the Prior speaks falsely?

Because I've seen entire planets wiped out because they refused to follow the Ori.

Look, I'm not trying to tell you what to think, but if everything I believed was being threatened, I'd wanna know.

Jolan, your people shouldn't suffer for their faith.

You two, again.

Yes.

Us two, again.

Save your words, I am not in the mood.

We know how you feel, but we're not here to talk.

You require evidence that the Ori are not to be trusted.

This is Tass'an.

One of the founders of a free Jaffa settlement on a planet called Sarvarus.

Many families came to live there to enjoy the freedom that they fought so hard to achieve.

He is Sodan?

Indeed.

Tell him what happened.

A month ago, a man came through the Chaapa'ai.

He called himself a Prior.

He told us of powerful Gods called the Ori, who he claimed would give us protection and show us the path to enlightenment.

And he left.

He later returned.

Told us we had to make a choice.

Follow the Ori or be destroyed.

We chose to resist.

Continue, brother.

He dialed the Chaapa'ai and merely placed his staff in the ground in front of it.

Then earth shook with a fierceness I have never seen nor heard of before.

In moments, our city was levelled.

Hundreds of our people wiped out in an instant.

Enough of these lies.

You expect me to take the word of this sorry excuse for a Jaffa?

I witnessed the destruction with my own eyes! Heed my words, brother.

If a Prior visits your world, leave.

You have spilled the blood of a Sodan warrior! Human, do you deny it?

No, but it wasn't No, I don't deny it.

If any blood kin of the warrior seek recompense, let him step forward, now! I seek it.

You?

In the name of Volnek of Gashrail, my brother.

May the blood spilled here today, settle this debt once and for all.

You may begin! May you die well.

Likewise.

The human is dead! The blood of the Sodan has been avenged.

He fought and d*ed a warrior, my Lord.

It is only fitting he be given the rite of Shel'mak'asah.

Very well.

With your permission my Lord, I would like to take care of it myself.

I was afraid you would not wake.

Well maybe I shouldn't have.



- How long was I

- Seven hours.

Seven?

I thought it was only supposed to be two?

I may have inadvertently made the elixir to strong.

Yeah, that's gonna leave a scar.

So, did it work?

The elixir was most effective.

They believe you are dead.

Well done, Bones.

Never mind.

So, where does this leave you?

If the Prior intends to mislead the Sodan as you say, then I am his enemy.

And Haikon?

It may be too late to convince him of his mistake.

But there are several other warriors who feel as I do.

We will continue to walk the path of the Sodan, until the others see the error of their ways.

Well, for what it's worth, you won't walk alone.

Come! How did it go?

Not well.

Even after we showed him video footage of the damage, Volnek still refuses to believe the Ori are responsible for what happened on Sarvarus.

What's he doing now?

Nothing.

He hasn't said a word since Tass'an left.

Which puts us back to square one.

Yeah basically.



- Unscheduled offworld activation! What have we got, Chief?

Recieving an IDC Sir.

It's Colonel Mitchell.

You're kidding?

I would never do that, Sir.

You have a visitor.

You! Yeah, I thought you were dead, too.

Oh, we have unfinished business! Just take it easy.

You sh*t me! You sh*t me first! I will have vengeance! You will listen, brother.

I know that you think we're enemies and right now it doesn't matter if we become allies.

What matters is that you understand the truth.

You are fortunate my brother drugged you.

You would never have survived a true Kel Shak Lo.

Don't know.

Took you down pretty good.

You were lucky.

Lucky is good.

Granting my freedom changes nothing, Mitchell.

We will meet again.

Looking forward to it.