But not many, she reminded herself. For the most part, expedition members regarded her as a friend and viewed her skills as useful attributes in their mutual struggle against the Wraith. Still, fear of the unknown was a powerful emotion, and no one was entirely immune from the terror that they might harbor something within them that could transform them into a Wraith. Rodney was on edge, others seemed distracted, and Teyla's own recollection of the iratus insect lurked at the edges of her consciousness. Perhaps it was for the best that the people of Earth did not know that some among them likely carried the genes of a ruthless, insatiable species, for they would surely turn on one another.
Jumper Two was the last of the four craft to enter the wormhole. Once it did so, Teyla had just enough time to wonder if she would like this world, the birthplace of her cherished friends, before she was propelled through the gate and into an austere gray room fronted by a huge glass window.
The images she had seen on Atlantis's monitor when speaking to the SGC had not misled her; the gate room was every bit as confined as it had appeared. Where Atlantis's architecture melded practicality with grace, this facility had been designed strictly for utility. Indeed, the very room they had entered had once housed a nuclear weapon John had described as a Titan missile. Her eyes went to the first level visible through the windows, and she smiled as she caught sight of John, standing behind a seated man who she knew from previous communications was Chief Harriman.
John's lips moved, and his voice came over the radio. "All four jumpers accounted for, Atlantis. Shut down at your discretion. Good to see you guys," he added, looking in through Jumper Two's windshield, and even from a distance Teyla could see in his expression how sincere a statement it was. "Welcome to Earth, Teyla. It gets a lot prettier than this, I promise."
"I have no doubt of that, Colonel. Thank you"
"Go ahead and park in the bay, Rodney, and stick around up there. We're going to head out as soon as possible. You'll get most of the briefing on the way."
"This is what I get for traveling with the Marines," Rodney muttered, complying with John's request and lifting the jumper toward what Teyla soon saw was a chamber above the gate room. "Supposedly they're always `first to go, last to know. "'
In the bay, which also felt stark next to its Atlantis counterpart, technicians had quickly swarmed in to install additional equipment on the other jumpers. Jumper One, which John had brought to Earth some time ago, had already been outfitted with the new devices. A spectacled, balding man with a beard, whom Teyla did not recognize, was supervising their work, and the Marines had gathered in an empty corner of the room to await further orders. Before long, the bay doors opened to admit General Landry, followed by Dr. Jackson, Agent Larance, and John.
"Thank you for coming." The SGC commander addressed Teyla and Ronon directly. "I know this isn't your fight."
"I do not believe responsibility for this fight can be cleanly divided, General," Teyla replied. "We are the same people, created by the same beings, and we face the same destiny."
Acknowledging her viewpoint with an approving nod, Landry turned to the assembled Marines. "There will be some major unknowns in this situation. First and foremost, we have no way at this point to distinguish succubus from cambion, Lilith from Ninlil-or any other human for that matter."
Rodney broke in, sounding dubious. "You're calling them the Lilith and Ninlil?"
"The Lilith worshippers are the ones we're after," said John. "The guys subscribing to Ninlil's philosophy supposedly are on our side, although it's hard to say what their motivations are." He glanced at Agent Larance, whose expression was unreadable to Teyla.
"Lilith and Ninlil." Rodney shook his head. "Military originality strikes again. With ten seconds of thought you might have been able to come up with marginally less ridiculous names."
"Well, we could have gone with `dark side succubi and incubi' versus `maybe good side succubi and incubi,"' Dr. Jackson pointed out, "but these names have ten thousand years of history to them. Changing them now just to accommodate your idea of coolness, McKay, seems a bit tacky."
Landry's frosty look silenced the group. "There's a good chance some of you will be going into a cave system that I'm told is anything but simple," he continued, "so be prepared for close-quarters combat. Maneuverability will be very limited and, while the outer galleries have staircases and good lighting, the inner areas are not as user friendly, so staying oriented will be critical. Remain in radio contact at all times."
This time Rodney raised his hand tentatively before speaking. "If that's the case, is it absolutely necessary for me to go along'? There are plenty of people better suited to climbing around in enclosed spaces-not that I'm complaining," he hastened to add. "I'm a professional and an offworld team member, and I'm perfectly willing to-"
"We need you to work with Dr. Lee on something else." Daniel Jackson tipped his head toward the man supervising the jumper modifications. "He and Agent Larance have a theory about using harmonics to repel or even disable the succubi and incubi."
"We've tried that before," Rodney said dismissively.
"Only on Wraith," countered Agent Larance. "These are hybrids. We believe there's a reason why mythology texts suggest invoking the names of the angels Senoy, Sansenoy, and Semangelof as protection against an attack by Lilith's children-or what we now know are her creations using her DNA. The vocalization of those words sets up an unusual harmonic wave."
Rodney looked as though he wanted to scoff at the idea, but he restrained himself. "So, Germany?"
"Nope. Tasmania." John crossed the bay, heading for the hatch of Jumper One. "Like I said, I'll fill you in on the details in the air."
General Landry dismissed the Marines to their jumpers with a curt "Good luck." Teyla went with Ronon, Agent Larance, and Dr. Jackson to join John in Jumper One's cabin while Major Lome, Rodney and Dr. Lee took Jumper Two. A squad of Marines dispersed between the two craft and boarded as well.
As Teyla slid into the right cockpit seat, John's fingers skipped over the instrument panel with practiced ease. "Tasmania is off the southern coast of Australia, not too far from Antarctica," he told Teyla and Ronon, activating his radio link to the other jumpers. "While Jackson was getting you guys and Elizabeth up to speed, I was listening in on a phone call between Woolsey and the Australian government. Both national and international law enforcement agencies have had their sights on a particular shipping company for some time. The company, Goeldi Limited, is suspected of transporting illegal goods-drugs, guns, people, all the usual under-the-radar stuff that makes big money and would give the Lilith access to worldwide transport. The Australians have offered us their full support."
Jumper One rose from the floor as John went on. "German authorities spotted a group of climate-controlled container trucks, the kind that are often used to transport live animals, parked at the entrance to the Blaubueren caves twice in the past couple of months. They were back this week, on the night the police were killed. Anyone want to guess who owns the trucks?"
"Goeldi," Rodney responded from Jumper Two. "Quite the coincidence. What are we going to tell the Australians when we get there?"
"Their government is aware of the actual situation, since they're signatories to the Antarctic treaty. They're also concerned that over the past few weeks a number of hikers have failed to show up as planned at the southern end of the Overland Trail, a well known walk. Tasmania doesn't have large carnivores, and aside from a few bush fires the only natural hazards are rapidly changing weather conditions.