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Daniel straightened his notes on the lecturn and looked at his class of personnel from the SGC. Most looked like they would
have preferred to come face to face with a goa'uld, but there were a few who did
actually listen and were interested.
"Any last questions?"
Silence.
"Okay, that's it for mythology 101."
The class remained seated.
"On, yeah. Dismissed."
The Air Force personnel left a classroom like any other class. Some were talking with others as they left the room. 'Once
they were given permission, that is,' Daniel thought.
He put his papers into his briefcase and got the feeling that someone was watching him. He looked up and was suprised
to see a lieutenant waiting patiently.
"Yes? Lt. Adams, get enough sleep today?" Daniel teased.
"Yes, Sir. I mean no, Sir. I wasn't asleep. I was thinking," he quickly replied
"You have a question?"
"Sir, your lecture? It was about you, wasn't it?"
Daniel was stunned. He couldn't think of anything to say in reply.
"You hid it very well, Sir," Adams told him and then left.
Daniel finished stuffing his papers in his breifcase and hurried out of the room.
~~
General Jack O'Neill was frustrated. He wasn't used to hunting all over the base for his people. He was used to going
to their offices, or room, in Teal'c case, and finding them deeply absorbed in whatever they did when they were deeply absorbed.
Whatever that was.
Daniel wasn't in his office. He wasn't in the mess getting coffee. He wasn't with Carter. He wasn't in the infimary getting
his whatever attended to. He wasn't even in the archives! Jack shook his head.
"I actually went into the archives!" he said to himself in disbelief.
Sure, Sgt. Walter 'Cheveron-guy' Davis had offered to conduct the search himself, but Jack had to get out of the office.
There was paperwork in there! He decided he would try Carter's lab again. Maybe she'd heard something about Daniel.
"Carter! Seen Daniel yet?"
"He just went back to his office. Sir? You could have saved yourself some time by paging him."
"Yes, Carter. I could have, but I didn't want to."
"Too many memo's Sir?"
Jack winced at the thought. "Carter, there are memos for everything and they all come to me for some reason. Even
the ones Daniel sends to his own people! I hardly understand him when he makes it all simple for me and now I have no idea
what he's telling his people! It's all in acheogibberish!"
"Archeogibberish, Sir?"
"Yes, Carter. I'll even put it in a memo for you, how's that?"
"I'm looking forward to reading it, Sir."
Jack gave her a pained smile before he left. A few minutes later, he arrived at the door to Daniel's office. It was dark
except for the seemingly small desk lap illuminating Daniel.
"Daniel?"
No response.
Jack stepped into the room "I've been looking all over for you. I even went into the archives! Never been there before."
Nothing.
"Want to talk about it?" Jack asked, almost forcing the words out.
"I'm a phoenix," Daniel finally said.
"A what?"
"A phoenix. The mythologicigal bird that dies a firey death and then is re-born from it's own ashes."
"I got that part. How are you a phoenix?"
"After the lecture today at the academy, Lt. Adams came up to me and said that I had been talking about myself. He
said that I hid it in the lecture."
"Daniel, how can you be this bird?"
"When Nem took me, he planted the image in your minds that I died a firey death, right? Flames coming out of the
water and I was burned to death?"
Jack winced at the false memory. "Yeah."
"When the Kelowans were experimenting with naquadria, they set off a chain reaction that could have destroyed their
planet and I was burned by stopping it."
"You died, Daniel!"
"Yes I did. I also rose from my own ashes to be reborn as an Ancient. When I was fighting Anubis for Abydos, Oma
stopped me. She pulled me away in a firey ball of white light!"
"I thought you didn't remember."
"It's still coming back in bits and pieces. But the thing is, Jack. Adams is right. I am a Phoenix!"
"Daniel, you're not a phoenix. You don't even like heights, let alone flying!"
"Jack!"
"Daniel. Honsetly, I don't care what you are as long as you're here! You're back with us now and I want to keep it
that way!"
Jack started walking towards the door and then stopped.
"A couple things. Try to keep the feathers in here, okay? Housekeeping won't like it if they have to pick up after
you everywhere, and the next time you burst into flames? Could you take some of the paperwork
on my desk with you?"
With that said, Jack left Daniel's office.
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