Chapter 10

Oma Desala was not expecting someone like Harry Black to show up at the monastery where she helped people ascend. She did so with the help of a monk, who had graciously agreed not to complete his ascension, to help her in her cause. It was the only place that the other ascended allowed her to manifest her powers, as proof of what was possible when you followed the path she represented. Well, she was really being allowed, as much as they turned a blind eye, likely to keep a window open for themselves to get away with things later on.

Harry didn't have trouble finding the monastery, since the information they had gotten from the alternate reality had given an exact location. In that world, Daniel Jackson was looking for his wife's son, the Harcesis of Apophis. They had come back from that mission with information previously unknown about the ascended ancients.

Harry had no doubt that there was more to the story, so he opted to go there and spend whatever time he needed to, to find out what he could for himself. Fortunately the potion seems to have worked, in their universe, so Daniel didn't need to worry about his son turning into some sort of re-incarnated Apophis. It turns out that the genetic memory was overwritten when the baby boy was given the blood adoption potion.

Oma Desala watched as the young man listened to the monk and reacted positively to the hidden instructions. Perhaps he would be able to achieve enlightenment, yet. Unfortunately, it seemed that the young man was not just a normal human being. He was apparently also a powered individual and was able to pass the first test, without her needing to assist him, by lighting a candle with nothing but his mind. When she moved closer to inspect him more closely, concealed as she tended to be, he had turned in her direction and stared directly at her.

"So you are the one?" Harry asked, as he looked at the location where he sensed, more than saw, the ethereal being. "You're Oma Desala?"

The woman didn't know what to do. This had never happened before. She had no doubt that he was sensing her, but she didn't know how. None had been able to do that before. Finally, she decided to show herself, but she said nothing. She was glowing white, with tendrils of what looked like energy wafting off her. She looked a bit like a cross between a nun and an angel, with the white cloth covering her head. Harry supposed that made sense, considering where they were.

"The quiet type, are you?" Harry asked. Silence.

"Oma Desala shows herself only to the worthy." the monk, who was still there, said in his calm voice. "But you were able to sense her without her wanting to show herself. How was this achieved?"

"I'm gifted." Harry said, still looking at the woman. As he watched her eyes twitched at the monk again and he opened his mouth to speak, but Harry interrupted. "You speak through him." he said in realisation. "So, you're not allowed to interact directly, only influence? Hmm, that's interesting. I'm assuming Mr Monk over here is in contact with you, because he's either ascended himself, or close enough to communicate with you?"

The monk's face didn't change, didn't show shock at all, but Oma Desala turned her head, as if in question.

Harry realised that she was still waiting for an answer. "I'm capable of sensing certain forms of energy. Since you're a being made of energy, I was able to sense you." Harry explained. "Now, let's get down to business. I'm about to work on something interesting, right here in your monastery. You may choose to make yourself 'invisible', until you feel what it's doing… if it works. Until then, I suspect you will need to stick around."

"Nobody chooses the path they are born on, only which paths to follow from there. You need to ask yourself, are you on the path to a higher existence, or not." the monk said, after a look from the woman.

"I don't want to ascend.�� Harry said, understanding her indirect question. "I would like to understand it, though. Maybe even find out why beings of pure power, who are capable of going anywhere and doing seemingly anything, would choose to spend their time watching as these monsters take over the galaxy they themselves seeded with life. If you are watching, that means you are interested, or your current universe is boring. Either way, why not use your power to help?"

"It is the responsibility of every individual to shape their own destiny." the monk said, for her.

"Exactly." Harry said, as he stood up and walked to his shoes. "I suggest you stick around, Oma. This is going to be interesting."

For the next two weeks, Harry experimented with wards, having placed connected stones around the monastery. They weren't a new development. Bill had come up with these stones years ago, after learning how Harry's family magic, the connection of magical effects, worked. It had been a big achievement for the man, but Harry seldom used them, since they had companies in Harmony to handle such things.

This time however, he was working with a delicate balance of effects, which had never been attempted before. His experience with it came from when he was still working on the werewolf issue. He needed the ward to surround the property, but not permeate. He needed it to block a very specific form of energy, but not knowing how to identify it, except for a gut feeling, it would take him some time to find the exact combination of energies. He'd already tried blocking everything, by using Project Black Light, but that either didn't work, or it had blocked too much.

Every day, after his mental exertions, and updating a journal on what he had tried and why, he'd spend some time with the monk, who, when he wasn't trying to be all mysterious and quoting verses from what seemed like scripture, was actually a very nice guy. Harry and he would share the chores and cook and clean as necessary. Harry could do everything with magic, but after sitting still all day, he needed to move, so he did everything by hand.

The monk never gave Harry a name, so he called him Monk. Not very original, but there were literally just the two of them there, so it wasn't really a big problem. The monk never said Harry's name either, even though he knew it, but then, when one of them spoke, it was usually to address the other.

Harry was still working on the wards, having just set another variation on the combined fields that the wards projected, when he heard a voice.

"Now I see what you've been up to." the female voice said.

Harry spun around, to see the woman, this time without the white aura she had worn before. Neither did she wear the white clothing or the covering on her head. This time she looked simply like an attractive brunette woman in her thirties or forties, with her hair pulled into a loose ponytail. "Oma Desala. Finally we meet for real." Harry said, with a smile, his shoulders slumping in relief. He was running out of ideas and it seemed one of the last ones he was to try that day, was finally a success. "Can you speak?" he asked.

"It seems so." the woman said, with a nod. "You have been trying to isolate me from the others, so that I may speak freely?" she asked. It sounded like a question, but Harry was certain she knew it for a fact.

"Yes, that's about right." Harry admitted.

"Why?" she asked.

Harry smirked. "Let me show you."

OOO

When Harry returned to Harmony, it was with a new friend. It had been a body he had created for her on the spot, using Naquadah he had brought for just such a situation. Oma was very interested in this new creation. It seemed that the Ascended had a meeting place where they discussed any new things going on in the universe, but nobody knew about Harmony. Harry suspected it had something to do with his wards on Harmony, as it turned out that Oma had been ejected from her Monastery the moment he'd blocked everything. He'd just stumbled on a way that worked to isolate, rather than interfere. Fortunately she hadn't told anyone of him, or there may have been other issues to consider.

"Lord Harry!" Hathor exclaimed, as she met them at the foyer of the Black Mansion. "It is good to have you back, sir." she said as she bowed.

"We had wondered what had happened to her." Oma said. Her name, for the purposes of keeping her secrets, would be Desiré. It had been the only name to pop into Harry's head, when he thought about it. Oma seemed to like it, though. "When was she freed?" she asked. The ascended weren't all-knowing after all.

"Some Archaeologists found her tomb a while back and she tried to take over the SGC." Harry said, knowing that Oma already knew most of what was going on in the SGC, since the Ascended liked to be kept abreast of things as they happened. Of course, that had ended when the wards were setup more strictly, prior to Harry's revealing himself to them properly.

"And now I serve faithfully." Hathor said, as she bowed to the newcomer. "Welcome, friend of my master. May I get the elves to prepare some snacks for you?" she asked, turning back to Harry.

"And something to drink, please." Harry agreed. "Also, if you can see if Daphne is available?" he asked. Daphne seldom took any time off, since Harry never did, so he'd used the opportunity to force her to take leave. She wasn't happy about it, but had to admit that there were a few things she'd like to take care of on her own. Harmony didn't have any beaches, after all, and she wanted to spend some time in the sun, rather than a clinically clean lab environment, which was how she normally spent her days.

"Of course, sir." Hathor said, as she turned and left to the kitchen, where she could access a Comm under the supervision of the elves, after telling them that the master was back and what he wanted.

"She seems different." Oma noted.

"Sex magic." Harry said, like that explained everything.

"Right." Oma nodded. She actually did understand. "You magicals were a surprise to us, when you first emerged. At first we thought you were ascended, or partially so, but your manipulations of the world around you is different, somehow. We would have studied you further, but then suddenly your people disappeared and we were unable to see you."

"That's probably when wards were first introduced." Harry said. "Since I can sense you, I'm assuming some of them could too, and they warded against your people."

"But the new magical births also evade us." Oma pointed out. Harry had spoken a little of these things, but had spoken of the natural occurrences of magicals in the mundane world, when he was telling her about his girls.

"I don't know." Harry said. "Evolution? Perhaps there's some sort of magic, like the Taboo, which protects magicals from your kind?"

Oma rolled her eyes. Harry was adamant that Magic wasn't the same as the energy they used. There was no proof, obviously, and the fact that she now had a connection to her 'real' body and could use the connection to affect anything she touched with her power, meant that there were obviously similarities, at the least. Her new body had a ward built in, which would allow her to interact with the world without the other ascended ever learning about it. She was both conscious of her projected physical presence at her Monastery and her connected faux-living physical form, here in Harmony, where she would be limited to since the wards would add to the protections she needed from being observed by the other ascended from outside.

"So, magicals evolved to evade ascended beings?" Oma asked. "How was I able to approach you, then?"

"I was aware that you would be there, remember?" Harry pointed out. "I actually wanted to meet you, thus no interference."

"Uh-huh." Oma said, sounding sceptical. It was wonderful for her to be back in the world. She wouldn't give up her ascended state, especially with the penalties the other ascended would place on her, removing memories and skills as needed to stop her from making any real change, but she missed the real-time, inter-personal interaction. Most of the other ascended were a stuffy bunch, too stuck in their rules and voyeuristic habits to care about such things, but Oma missed meeting new people, which was why she spent her time helping people to ascend. That, and she was a good person, who wanted to help people.

Harry led them to the den, where Daphne joined them just a few seconds after they sat down. She had missed him and didn't stand on ceremony, or even introduce herself to the newcomer. She simply jumped into his lap and started snogging him hungrily.

When they finally came up for air, Harry joked, "Well, hello to you too."

"I missed you!" Daphne exclaimed. "How was the visit? Did you find out whatever secrets you couldn't say out loud?"

"Good and yes." Harry said, as he indicated to the smirking woman. Oma needed to look different than her normal form, of course, so Harry had given her midnight black, straight hair and her face was aristocratic, but tanned. "This is Desiré. She's one of those secrets."

"Hello." Oma said.

Daphne narrowed her eyes at the woman. "You're not trying to seduce our man, are you?" she asked the beautiful woman.

"Our?" Oma asked.

"Oh, right." Harry said. "I have eight fiancées." He had not mentioned that part on purpose, to see her surprise. He'd only talked of 'his girls', and never went into why he called them that.

Oma's eyebrows rose at that. "Ambitious." Not many men were able to handle more than one partner, even back when she was a physical being. "And no, I am not interested in someone his age." she said.

"You like older men?" Daphne asked, suddenly calm again.

"Daphne, Desiré is one of those beings that ascended millions of years ago." Harry said. "Technically, she's not even human. She'd have a difficult time meeting someone her own age, let alone older."

"You are going to trust her with this?" Oma asked. They had discussed this, but Oma wasn't really all that enthused about sharing the fact that she was ascended. Not when she suddenly found herself in the world again, being able to interact. If she was ever discovered, she'd lose everything she'd built.

"My family have been, and can, keep my secrets." Harry said. "You don't need to worry about them." Oma said nothing to that. Her concerns were understandable, though. "I'll only be telling my girls, if that makes you feel any better? I refuse to keep things from them if I can help it, though. I've had too many incidents with people who know more than me, keep it from me for my own good and then it ends up biting everyone in the ass."

"Your colourful language aside, I suppose I can, and have no choice, but to accept that." Oma agreed, as she nodded.

"It's nice to meet you, Desiré." Daphne said, nodding back. "So, you're the one from the Monastery?" she asked. She'd been with Harry when he heard about the alternate reality. "I'm assuming that you're using a different name for a specific reason?"

"The others have rules." Harry said, for her. "While she's still at the monastery, she's also controlling this body, free from observation."

"How is she doing that?" Daphne asked.

"Your paramour is quite capable of manipulating the energies that are able to enter and exit the place where I reside." Oma said.

Daphne looked at Harry, for an explanation. "Wards." was all Harry said.

"Oh." Daphne nodded. "Yeah, he's a bit of a Jack of all traits these days."

"That happens when you have a whole universe of cool things to discover and create." Harry said with a smile, just as the rest of his girls started showing up. The next hour was spent in conversation and snogging, as the girls all took their time with Harry, sitting on his lap, kissing or hugging him. During that time, Harry introduced Desiré. The girls had all been wondering what was going on, but now that Harry knew the other Ascended couldn't enter or see into Harmony, he informed them of everything they needed to know.

"But, why do you need her?" Hermione asked. "You don't want answers about how things work, after all."

"We all know you prefer learning yourself, so that someone doesn't transfer their limitations onto you." Pansy confirmed. It hadn't been difficult to figure out why Harry had ended up learning on his own and never really studied further into the muggle sciences, officially anyway. He'd achieved more his own way than letting people tell him what is or isn't possible.

"Desiré is here, because I think I can offer her an opportunity, rather than the other way around." Harry said. "I mean, I will be looking into how ascension works, but I don't intend to do it myself if it has any consequences, like needing to answer to a bunch of stuck-up voyeuristic bastards, who refuse to help."

"What do you think we can offer someone like her?" Luna asked. She was currently seated on Harry's lap.

"What she can't do herself." Harry answered. "She can now go out and look for her own disciples. She's got complete autonomy for the first time in millions of years."

"Harry was kind enough to make it so that I can interact with the world, without the others finding out." Oma said. "Even now, the Monk is informing me that he has noticed newcomers. Jaffa soldiers approach the Monastery, weapons drawn."

"Any idea who?" Harry asked, sitting upright suddenly, but still holding Luna.

"No need to worry." Oma said. "I am paying close attention."

"But the Monk." Harry objected.

"He will not be harmed." Oma promised.

"Good." Harry said. He really did like the monk. He was peaceful. Calm. "If his body dies and you ascend him, I'll not be happy with you."

"That is the ultimate goal of his mission." Oma pointed out.

"I don't care." Harry said stubbornly. "Until I've fixed it so that the other ascended can't touch him, he's not being ascended, okay?" he threatened the higher being. Oma just smiled tolerantly, but nodded calmly again.

"That's not right." Parvati said. "Her clothing doesn't suit her personality. We should get her something different to wear. Her features do not match that outfit either." she added, indicating the plain robes Harry had conjured for the body.

"Well excuse me for not being as fashionable as you." Harry said. "I wasn't really thinking about clothing when I made that body."

"Oh dear." Pansy said. ��Come on Desiré. I'll check out your body and make sure everything is in working order. Harry has a habit of getting things the wrong way around."

"Hey! That was one time!" Harry objected, as Pansy led the bemused Desiré out of the room.

When they were gone, Hermione looked at Harry and said, "You do know that Daniel will be glued to her when he finds out, right?"

"That sounds like his problem." Harry said. "Desiré has the right to her secrets like the rest of us, and we'll not be telling him about her, unless that's what she wants. I promised her that we'll not place her in danger and the SG teams go out into the universe, where the other Ascended watch, way too regularly to tell them. If they let slip that they've made contact, she's going to be punished by the others."

"I don't think Jack's team would make that mistake." Susan pointed out. "But, I guess I can understand. We do live in a secret town in a hidden location on a dead planet, for the purposes of security. If she wants to take part in the secrecy, who would we be to argue?"

"Well, she'll still need to make a contribution." Fleur said. "That's the first rule, after all. Everybody contributes to Harmony as a whole."

"Even if it means she tends one apple tree, she needs to add to the town." Daphne agreed, with the other girls nodding along.

"I wouldn't push it." Harry said. "Her presence is going to help me with my next project."

"Let me guess. You can't tell us what it is?" Hermione asked, after a breath to calm herself. Not giving him a moment to answer, though, she exclaimed, "We don't even know what your last one was!"

"Well, I'm not giving up my surprise, but the last project I did was to setup a connection to the body that just left with Pansy." Harry said.

"Desiré?" Hermione asked. Then she nodded. "Fair enough." she allowed. She was still burning with curiosity, but Harry and Padma wouldn't budge on this. Harry really wanted to keep the surprise. "Could you at least give us a clue?"

Harry smirked. "I'm going to create a new dimension."

OOO

Oma Desala, or Desiré, was settling in at the Black Mansion. She had been offered a room in the guest wing and Hathor had been very gracious, checking on her and informing her of meals, while the woman got her bearings on interacting with the world in a mostly mortal body again. The ex-goddess had shown her how the magical television worked and even how the Comm in the kitchen worked to access the available libraries. She'd be requesting one of those for herself at some point. She was dying to learn about what had all happened in the magical world since they lost contact with them.

When she was not in her room, she was exploring the Black Mansion's extensive library. They didn't need one, for sure, but the Head of the House, Lord Sirius Black, had explained to her that it was simply something that he wanted. A nice large library, where he could sit and pretend to read, while impressing visitors with the size of his collection of magical and mundane tomes.

Sirius had been told that she was a new friend from another world. Her people were advanced, but didn't understand normal people all too well, since they had grown distant from each other, due to a focus on spiritual enlightenment. He hadn't really minded and could often be seen chatting with the woman, attempting to get a laugh out of her.

Desiré didn't really mind the company. Harry was often busy with his experiments in a different part of the galaxy, through the proxy of a different body. He had offered to take her body there, but it would be a one-way trip for several days, since he had sealed the lab he was working in, for the purpose of containing that which he was working on. She had declined, preferring to continue her exploration of the new civilization she had sole access to.

Her exploration of the small city had inevitably brought her to a business district, where she saw many signs and open doors, with customers walking around and chatting, eating snacks and showing each other things on their personal communicators. She'd noticed a map on one she could see, and realised that they were using the communicators for navigational purposes. It wasn't new concept, but she was still impressed. From her reading, it had seemed like the more primitive magicals were still using trained avian creatures to deliver messages, written on parchment.

Harmony seemed to represent the best that two worlds could offer. Magic seemed capable of enhancing or reproducing pretty much any technological feat, sometimes even allowing interaction between the magical and the mundane varieties. Vehicles that were obviously made to travel along the ground on wheels, were now flying around in the sky, supposedly to cater to people who were new to magic.

That was another thing she noticed. Not everyone in Harmony had innate magic, but everyone was offered access to everything. It seemed that everything that was being made and sold in the largest part of this district, was being made in such a way, as to allow both mundane and magical people to use them. Remote controls, voice commands, permanent effects which were set up by representatives from one company or another, all with certification from the council of Harmony, confirming that everything was tested and had followed approved steps to be allowed to be sold.

There were a few people that seemed to be in a hurry, or grumpy, but the most common feeling about the place, was that they were the luckiest people in existence, for being allowed to come to Harmony. There were many people, with obvious differences in their intellect and skillsets, but no matter the gap in either, everyone seemed to be a part of the bigger whole. The sense of community and close-knit bonds was palpable.

She had never witnessed such a thing. Or at least, she'd never seen such a thing last very long, since there were always people that tried to hold themselves above others. No doubt that would end up happening here, as well, but Desiré thought that this might be one town where it could last for quite some time, especially if the news reports on research into reversing the effects of aging was anything to go by.

If they could succeed in that, the current generation of leaders might stay in charge long enough to ingrain the ideals that they had established the town around, for the next few generations. Doing so might actually succeed in creating a working utopia, of sorts. She knew well that there was no one definition of that, but given time, everyone could be made to see things in the same light. It was just another form of indoctrination, but from what she had seen, it was a good doctrine.

She had enjoyed the flying carpet ride Hathor had arranged for her. It was more of a rented chauffeur, where the man was professionally dressed and paid for the day. He'd follow his charge around and give her a lift, all while giving commentary on the layout and attractions of Harmony. There were many attractions. Desiré had ended up inspecting many of them, but hadn't really taken part in any of them. She did catch a film, however. It was an animation, with pictures drawn and recorded in such a way as to emulate movement.

The story was both entertaining and suspenseful, with a completed plot in under two hours. So much simpler than following people around and hoping that they made good decisions, over the course of many years. Perhaps such entertainments should be considered for certain ascended beings, who loved to watch as things played out. Then again, those ascended probably already knew about movies, since it wasn't a new concept.

All in all, the town seemed to function like a well-oiled machine. Everyone was kept up-to-date on developments that affected everyone. Crop-yields, weather schedules, resource production time-tables and even medical research progress, was all a matter of public record. There was no government that kept secrets from their people. The only secrets seemed to be how things were being done, to protect people's livelihoods and family secrets, something she'd been warned from asking after.

When her tour for the day was completed, she'd return to Black Mansion, to discuss her discoveries and ask her questions. When Harry was around, he would give her answers, as far as his own pacts of secrecy would allow. When he wasn't she could usually ask Sirius, Remus, Tonks or even the head House-Elf, Dobby. Hathor didn't seem to care how the inner workings of the government worked, as long as she believed she served the man at the top. Her master, Harry.

Through their many discussions, Harry never asked after her advanced knowledge. She knew he must have had many questions, but he never pushed her for information on how to achieve technological feats. He simply asked her about the realm of the ascended. She tried to give him clues as best she could, without out-right handing him the answers. She figured that she could protect herself that way. Technically, she was still at her Monastery. If she didn't give direct answers, she'd still be in keeping with the rules, kind-of.

Harry didn't seem to mind, keeping track of the conversation and clarifying one clue with others given, also never really coming out and saying anything, likely realising why she was doing things the way she was doing them. The only person who seemed to follow their whole conversation, was the younger blond one. Luna. There was something strange about that girl. Something otherworldly, but she couldn't quite put her fingers on it.

Even as she continued her exploration, she was present at the Monastery, where the Jaffa had been easily diverted, when they had finally reached it. They were there looking for a Harcesis, but no such child had made its way to her or the Monk. She didn't think to ask Harry about it and, frankly, it didn't matter if she did. No Harcesis existed, after all.

OOO

Through all this, Harry was busy with his research. Opening breaches into subspace was as simple as apparition. Opening a hyperspace window was more difficult, but Harry had succeeded in it a time or two, using magic. Creating a system from there, which could perform the trick again was reasonably simple by comparison, even if it took a lot of work.

The big problem would be his current plan to create a new dimension. Technically he intended on creating one, or at least discovering one, where new ascended beings could exist. If he succeeded, he could offer a place for people who did not want to abide by the rules set by the other ascended. The problem was, he had no place to start, except for the bit of information he'd extracted from Desiré.

The Ascended seemed to exist in a place where distance meant nothing, but there was also nothing physical there. When they manifested in the physical world, where the laws of physics, like gravity and distance were active, they were bound by them too, to a degree. So, they existed in a dimension, which, for the lack of a better description, lacked dimensions. Time seemed to flow at the same rate, and it seemed that they had counterparts in the alternate timelines, so they weren't above that, or outside it. They were technically part of the same universe, but just in a place between or parallel to current reality, with the ability to see the physical world, in a place where certain laws of physics did not apply, exactly like how Hyperspace and subspace worked.

It took Harry weeks, before he found the answer. He didn't need to know how their reality worked. He just needed to create a new one, in a place where he set the rules of existence… like how the backup site was located in a pocket reality outside, or rather, in-between dimensions. There would be a few things to work out, like how to implement movement between dimensions, or how to manifest outside of it, once an ascended has moved into said dimension. That was all just part of the fun though, and once Harry had a plan, he did what he did best. He started working on all the little details, with a gleam in his eye, which would make Doctor Pike jealous.

The next few months flew by, as Harry focussed primarily on his latest project and making time for family, friends and special occasions. Bill hadn't planned on a long engagement and his wedding to Bella came and went, with Charlie being best man, and Harry taking over piloting and observation for SG-1 while the happy couple was on honeymoon, visiting many countries on Earth and a few other planets in Harry's gift, Bill's very own spacecraft.

It wasn't made of the Naquadah-Carbon-Trinium alloy his sphere was made of, but Harry had splurged and had the Goblins use their proprietary expansion magic on his ship, making its inside much larger than the Sphere's. It was a flat oval with visible markings for its forward window. The shape was perfect for the strongest wards Harry could make for the ship's flight. The girls had then stocked the ship and hired quite a few people in Harmony to add every kind of entertainment they could think of. Bill had named the ship 'Weasley-Couture', his and Bella's surnames.

When Bill returned, Weasley-Couture had become their home. It was big enough and they lacked for nothing. It even had what looked like an outdoor pool, with a barbeque and an illusionary view of some tropical beach. It even smelled like it should. Harry's girls had spared no expense and the people they had hired were the best.

To top things off, Fleur had designed a parking spot for the ship, which would create an illusion of what the inner dwelling looked like, so that the house could take its proper spot, when it was parked. Harry was impressed, since when the ship was parked, the pool and external features connected to actual features around the house, making them real, rather than illusion. They had a very nice view of the Harmony sky-line too.

During that time, Harry had also completed another side-project of his. There was now a production facility, run by mundane humans, which produced both Cacodaemon and Eudaemon. It had been on the books for a while, but Harry had never found the time. With that started, Project Galaxy seed was underway. The only downside was that Bill needed to start spending time modifying and establishing the connections that the devices needed.

No matter the amount of automation, there would always be a need for a magical to finish the devices. Also, applying the new ASW connections was not something just anyone could be trusted with. Bill had loved being taught that little trick, even if Harry still was the only one that could produce the blue diamonds they used. Well, him and the Asgard, but they did it in their own way. Harry used purely his own methods, but borrowed power form the MGA, or Magic Gathering Array, to achieve the feat more easily, these days.

When Harry returned to his research full-time, it was to finish off a few of the last things he needed for the project. It had taken quite a bit of work and planning, but Harry finally knew what he needed to and his plans were cemented.

OOO

Harry found Jack at his favourite fishing spot, by the lake in Harmony's forest. He had a house by a lake, but this one came with the benefit that very few people knew to find him here.

"Why don't you ever just get drunk and hang with the boys like a normal person?" Harry asked, as he fished a beer from Jack's cooler.

Jack wasn't shocked. Probably because Harry had set up this place for him to be left alone, with wards to allow him to enjoy the peace. "It's what I do." he said simply. He turned to look at Harry, then. "Your doing?" he asked, indicating the large bucket with a few fish swimming in it. It was the first time he was catching anything.

"Not me." Harry said. "I think Neville decided there was space and added some. Just, put back what you're not going to eat."

"Sure thing." Jack said. "Any specific reason for your visit?" he asked then, his eyes on the lake.

"Actually, there is." Harry agreed. "Would you be interested in joining me for an off the books mission?" he asked.

"How off the books?" Jack asked, raising an eyebrow and looking back at Harry.

"You'll be the only one that knows." Harry said.

"Your wives?" Jack asked.

"We're not married yet. Why does everyone insist on calling them my wives?" Harry asked, not answering immediately.

"Because you've been together for many years, you live together and you act like married people." Jack said easily. "Now answer the question."

Harry sighed. "Nobody knows." he admitted. "I don't know if I succeed in this mission."

"What do you mean?" Jack asked. Harry had phrased that like he should already know.

"We're going back in time." Harry said.

Jack started reeling his line in. "You mean, you're about to do that thing that Carter told me I'm by no means allowed to do under any circumstances, should I ever have the choice? That kind of back in time?" he asked.

"Yes." Harry said, as he conjured a seat and sat down next to Jack.

"Start talking." Jack said.

And Harry did. He had been doing research and testing effects as best he could, but he kept on getting results that were bothering him. The new pocket dimension he was trying to create, kept on trying to settle into a mould of some sort. It was like it wanted to go into a very specific configuration, every time he attempted it. Unfortunately, the space it was trying to occupy, already had residents, as far as he could tell. It seemed that for the size of the dimension he was creating, there really only was one place to go. As a result, he needed to go back to a time to when there were no occupants, to see if he could establish, and then modify, his creation, to exist alongside the other. Alongside, but separate.

The other option was to go to a different galaxy, which would allow him to establish, or populate, a clean dimension, with no residents, but that wouldn't help him here, which would kind of ruin the whole point.

"So, we're going back millions of years?" Jack asked, after Harry explained what he could, in terms Jack understood.

"Pretty much." Harry agreed.

"Don't you need a solar flare and a Stargate to do this?" Jack asked. That was how they had done it the previous time.

"Solar flares affect both Subspace and magic." Harry said. "I was able to isolate and reproduce that effect." Harry may also have broken into the department of mysteries to look into their time room, to identify what they were using and created a correlation between the two forms of time-travel he knew about.

Time turners were quite the ingenious piece of magic. They followed the passage of time, creating temporal anchors which served as a reference and almost worked like Harry's indexes. Only, they didn't last, being replaced with a newer index after a while. Applying just a bit of his magic to the concept, would allow Harry to create a much longer lasting index, allowing for a near infinite index of time increments.

Applying the same effect on subspace as what happened on the Stargate wormhole during a solar flare, was more easily said than done, and had been a large part of the research Harry had spent his time on. What he ended up making, was a series of rings, which applied the correct effect on the subspace tunnel/wormhole he would be using with the Sphere.

"And you've tested this?" Jack asked.

"Not on such a large jump." Harry said, looking sheepish. "I didn't want to use the full system more than once… so I was going to test it when we went…"

"If I decided not to go with you, you'd go anyway wouldn't you?" Jack asked. Harry nodded. "Oh, for crying out loud!" Jack exclaimed, in defeat.

OOO

Harry hadn't waited too long, and they had scheduled the mission for the next day, so that they could take care of things, should something go wrong. Fortunately it was Friday and the family was set to get together as was customary.

Harry got to chat with all his girls and caught up on what everyone was doing. He acted like his usual self, ensuring that he kept the mystery of his current project, like he normally would have and hinted at the awesome things to come. The playful banter and family unity was something he'd hold on to, if the mission ended up taking as long as he feared it might.

It was near the end of the evening, and Harry was just stepping away to use the facilities, when Pandora Lovegood approached him. "I'll be right back, Mrs Lovegood. I'm just quickly going-" he started.

"No." Pandora interrupted, uncharacteristically seriously. "You and I need to talk. Now." she said, as she waved her wand and Harry felt the relief as if he'd already gone to the facilities.

"Okay." Harry said, frowning at the woman, who walked up a flight of stairs and to the Library. When the door was closed behind them, Pandora proceeded to cast several security spells, most of which Harry was at least familiar with, but some of which he couldn't even guess the effects of. "What's with all the security?" he asked, when she put her wand away.

"You're about to do something stupid." Pandora said. "Unfortunately I can't stop you, or I wouldn't be able to give you this." she said, as she stuck a hand in her pocket and pulled out what was unmistakably a storage disk. "You know the rules you're about to break. What you're about to do will affect all life in this galaxy. Not doing it, however, will likely damn most of the galaxy as well."

"What is this?" Harry asked. He was starting to freak out. He could tell that the diamond was made by himself, but it wasn't just a data crystal. It also contained blue diamond, running in veils in a pattern he had not designed. This was either something he had made in his sleep, or something he still would make. "How much did I screw things up?" he finally asked.

"Enough that you needed to come to me to thank me for help I still needed to provide you with." Pandora said. "I don't know the details, but I'm almost certain that I put what I was working on for you, on that crystal, before obliviating myself. The research I thought I had done, was apparently what I put in place, myself." she said, indicating the disk in his hand.

"Did I tell you to tell me anything?" Harry asked.

"Yes." she said. "'Take one of the batteries.'"

"Oh, shit." Harry groaned. That could mean only one thing. One of the Asgard's magical storage batteries. Harry still remembered thinking that he'd never need that much power. "So, I screw things up badly?" he asked.

"I don't know, Harry." Pandora said. "All I know, is that it's imperative that you go. With the preparations you have made and the information you asked me to give you, you should have everything you need."

"Thanks, now I just have the weight of the world on my shoulders." Harry griped. "Again."

"Oh, do relax." Pandora said, some of her usual humour coming back to her. "And remember to have some fun. Once you are done with getting everything fixed, you'll be free to do whatever you like, because you'll know you were sent back to do what you did and you will know that you can get away with anything after that, because you did." she smiled.

"You know what? That's a very good point." Harry said. "There's always going to be some things that we wish we could have changed. Perhaps I'll go ahead and act on that impulse."

"After all, Luna did just that, when she was just slightly older than she is right now." Pandora said, smiling at Harry.

"Really? I always thought that it happened during the battle of Hogwarts, or around that time, anyway…" Harry mused aloud.

"You have much to learn, Harry." Pandora said with a patient smile. "But only once you are officially part of the family."

"I know, I know." Harry said, allowing Pandora to drag him away from the depressing thoughts. "I'm thinking we can get started on that, when I come back."

"You'll probably need a holiday… and a honeymoon." Pandora agreed. "I'll let Luna know to start warding from Wrackspurts. They love interfering with long-term plans." As she said it, she started undoing her security magics.

"Wait, when am I supposed to look at this?" Harry said, indicating the data crystal still in his hand.

"When you realise something went wrong." Pandora said, continuing to disable her magics. "Something about not overthinking it. You've already done the work. Don't let the Nargles distract you." She finished with the magics, and then she left.

"Dobby wants to go." Dobby said, as he appeared next to Harry.

"Fuck!" Harry swore under his breath. "Listen, Dobby. I-"

"Please, Master Harry, sir!" Dobby begged. "If Mister Harry isn't taking the missuses, he won't have any people to protect him!"

"I'm taking Jack." Harry said. "Only Jack." he finished firmly. Harry wouldn't be putting someone like Teal'c or Sam in danger. The same went for his girls. He couldn't risk them.

Jack knew why he was selected, of course. He knew, and he didn't ask after it. If there was a chance of failure, of being left behind, he'd rather go than drag any of the rest of his team into it. Of course, there was also the fact that he could pilot the Sphere and use the weapons systems. Bill had just gotten married and was trying to start a family, so Jack understood why he was chosen over both him and Teal'c.

OOO

Jack was spending the night with the team, having a few drinks after their day ended. He had informed the General that something was happening that Saturday, but that he was under 'Harmony-level security protocols', to make sure that the General knew something was going on and not to ask any questions, or expect answers, at least.

Bless his heart, the General had simply wished him god-speed, stating that he hoped to hear from him soon. He was not an idiot. There would only be one reason why Jack had told him. There was a chance of failure. If it was just a weekend event, he'd not need to tell him anything. Jack was worried about their chances of coming back. The general would be saying a prayer for Jack, who had quickly become more than just a subordinate. He was a friend.

Teal'c had sensed that something was going on, if his looks were anything to go on. Thankfully he didn't ask about what Jack was up to. Sam and Daniel hadn't noticed a thing. Jack was sometimes just strange, so they attributed his request for a drink after work to the fact that he had found a good place to get his favourite beer, on tap, in Harmony.

The evening was mostly uneventful, except for when two drunken goblins started fighting about something. They were arguing in gobbledygook, so few understood what they were angry about, but they were soon escorted off the premises by a wolf who happened to be on patrol in the area and had heard the altercation.

When everyone went their separate ways, Jack used a portkey Harry had given him, once-upon-a-time, to go to his lookout point. The hidden spot near the wards that protected Harmony from the natural environment on Mars, was still nearly empty, except for two seats, where Harry had once conjured them, for Jack and himself. They hadn't lasted, of course, but Harry had since placed permanent ones there, for the two of them.

"Needed a bit of time away?" Harry asked, as Jack appeared.

Jack was not surprised to see him there. Harmony was probably one of the things he claimed as his most wonderful achievements. He knew he'd feel that way. "Something like that." Jack said, as he walked to his chair and sat down. A cup of coffee appeared next to Jack and he smiled. "Thanks, Dobby." he said.

"You must look after Master Harry." Dobby pleaded, as he appeared. "Master Harry trusts you, so Dobby will too."

"He heard part of a conversation and connected the dots." Harry said.

"You told someone?" Jack asked.

"No, someone told me." Harry said. "Apparently we go back and change something and then tell someone, who needed to pass a message along."

Jack was quiet then, considering this. "So, it's like the message General Hammond sent to his younger self? What did Daniel call it? Predestination?"

"I'm not a fan of destiny, myself," Harry admitted, "but at least it means I get back, or send something back, to a few years ago. We don't know anything but that. I could have created a copy, or sent an illusion, or one of many things, so we will need to be careful anyway. We can't let the fact that I sent a message be a reason to let our guards down."

"But, you sent a message." Jack pointed out. "What's it say?"

"Don't know." Harry admitted. "I'm supposed to check it out once we've left."

"Why?" Jack asked, incredulously. "If you can help yourself by checking it now…"

"I was told to do it after we got there." Harry said. "If we're to protect the timeline, we should do what we can to maintain it. One false step and we could potentially knock ourselves out of existence, even if we succeed." That is, if they didn't cause other problems, like undoing existence.

"Ugh." Jack groaned intelligently.

"I know how you feel." Harry said, sitting back again and taking a sip of his own coffee.

"Do me a favour?" Jack asked. "Next time, send yourself a message and tell yourself to read it first?"

"Will do." Harry agreed. "I did tell Pandora to tell me to bring something along, though, so I'm thinking we will be as prepared as we need to be, or at least, can be."

"Then say that first." Jack said, feeling slightly better. "What did you ask yourself to bring along?" Jack said, closing his eyes to ponder his own sentence over.

"One of the batteries we made last trip." Harry said.

"Were you going to take one, before?" Jack asked.

"I was considering it." Harry admitted, only then realising what Jack was getting at. "Now that you mention it, if I didn't take it, I wouldn't have asked, since that would change things." He cocked his head to the side as he considered it. Either Pandora was playing, or he was pulling a prank on himself. "Damnit! I thought I was helping me!" he said, realising that his situation hadn't changed at all with the message. "Damnit!" he repeated, after going through the thoughts again.

Jack sighed. "Leave it to you to prank yourself with useless information." he said.

"Well, to be fair, we do have something. We just don't know what it is." Harry said.

OOO

The next day dawned bright and early for Harry. He had finally returned home and went to bed, not too long after his conversation with Jack. When he awoke, he quietly got up, to avoid waking his girls and went to the kitchen, where he planned on making breakfast, but it seemed Dobby had beaten him to the punch. In fact, it looked like the kitchen had been hit by a hurricane, well, in comparison to how it normally looked.

"Dobby?" Harry asked.

Dobby popped into existence next to Harry, large bags under his eyes, looking as tired as Harry had ever seen the elf. "Master calls?" he asked, his words slurring slightly, from obvious fatigue.

"What happened to you?" Harry asked.

"Dobby was making food for… For master." Dobby said, remembering at the last moment not to mention the trip.

"And you've been up all night?" Harry asked. The elf had once prepared an entire feast, with multiple courses, for twelve people, in under an hour. Just how much food had he made?

"Dobby didn't know how much Master Harry would need, sir." Dobby said, in explanation. "It's all been packed in Master's ball ship."

Harry was moved at the show of caring from the little guy. He'd not known the elf would worry that much, but he had obviously stressed and done what he could to provide something… Anything. "Thank you Dobby." Harry said sincerely, kneeling down beside the little elf.

"Master Harry must eat healthy." Dobby said, as fresh tears started pooling in his eyes. "Master exercises and then must eat much for energy, but must remember to sleep and rest and the missuses will be angry at master for not taking them and Dobby will not lie, but Dobby doesn't want to betray master and Dobby doesn't know what to do!" he blurted out all at once. Poor guy must be very tired and on his way to a nervous breakdown, by the looks of things.

"Dobby, you don't need to lie to my girls." Harry said. "If everything works out, we'll be back before you know it and they won't even ask."

"Master promises to Dobby?" Dobby begged.

"I promise to try." Harry said. "Now, go to bed, Dobby. Get some rest. With any luck, I'll be back before you wake up."

Dobby nodded, and snapped his fingers, disappearing at the same time as a plate of food, along with a cup of coffee and the morning paper, appeared. Harry smiled and took his breakfast to the den, where he usually enjoyed his first cup of coffee, watching as Harmony slowly came to life, for yet another day of wonder.

The girls soon started trooping in, one at a time. Harry never really paid attention to why they came in one at a time, but he had noted that they tended to do it in a certain order. He suspected that they each took a moment in the en-suite of his room, before coming down for breakfast, but he never found out, since he was usually the first one up. A lifetime of training had made it so that he couldn't sleep late, even if he had a late night of drinking.

The girls all had their own breakfast, provided by the elves, and took their own seats, starting the day in their own way. Luna was usually first to arrive, her usual smiling self. She really brightened a room when she entered. Fleur and Daphne, the other two blonds, were usually next, followed by Hermione and Susan, at around the same time. Then the twins would make their appearance, and finally Pansy, who tended to only look ready for the day after her morning shower. Doctors apparently valued their sleep.

There was very little in the way of conversation normally. Just the sounds of breakfast being consumed and a blissful, comfortable silence.

"So, you're going somewhere today?" Luna asked, just as Harry was preparing to get up and return his plate and cup to the kitchen.

Harry had considered what he would say here. "Just an errand that needs taking care of." Harry said easily.

"Backup?" Hermione piped in. Cooper wasn't around all that much anymore, since Harry had his clone at his dangerous testing site and he tended to use that, rather than his own body.

"Jack is coming with me." Harry said honestly.

"Anything we should be worried about?" Susan asked. She'd sensed something in Harry's posture. There was something in his scent as well, but she was too new to it, to recognize that it was nerves.

"Just a bit of a test." Harry said. "I'll be perfectly safe in the Sphere."

"And?" Hermione pushed. "What are you testing?"

"That would be a surprise." Harry said, smiling at Hermione. That seemed to put the girls at ease. Harry was being his playful self. It couldn't be all that dangerous.

"Well, be careful anyway." Susan said. She was still suspicious. Harry's scent was definitely different. Maybe Remus would be able to help her identify it, if he showed up for breakfast at the manor, which he sometimes did.

"When are you leaving?" Fleur asked.

"Now, actually." Harry said. "I've got some things I'd like to get started on later today, which will call for all our friends and family, an abundance of white dresses and probably the most unorthodox of ceremonies." he said with a smirk at all the widening eyes, before he apparated out. He'd not say goodbye. He was worried they'd pick up on his nerves, that way.

"You're early." Jack said, from where he was standing by the Sphere, fully armed and backpack on his back.

"So are you." Harry said.

"Couldn't sleep." Jack said. "Lots to do."

"Ready for an adventure?" Harry asked, as the Sphere opened up, the door appearing from the seamless surface of the craft, and dropping down for them with little steps suspended in place for them to walk up and into the sphere. It had been an upgrade Fleur had thought of. Application was for Harry, but Fleur had many ideas about things that made the Sphere just a bit more special, every other month. Harry usually apparated onto the ship, but it seemed appropriate to enter it properly that day.

"So, where are we leaving from?" Jack asked, after he stowed his backpack and guns in the storage built into the rear of his normal seat.

"I need to pick up my clone first." Harry said, as he activated the Sphere and lifted up, before accessing the StellarNet and taking them to his exclusive lab. He closed his eyes for a moment, connected to the Clone and had it take a portkey up to the ship, bringing with it, a blank body construct.

"What's with the doll?" Jack asked the Clone. He'd seen this trick a couple of times now, so he knew to address the clone.

"This is just in case." Harry said. "We may need it for something later."

"Wait, what?" Jack asked. "You have other plans on top of going back?"

"It's just a security measure." Harry assured the man. "If we're successful, we won't need to spend a lot of time in suspension."

"Remind me again. Why is it so important that we create this dimension?" Jack asked.

"Because if we don't understand the ascended, they will pose a threat to us." Harry said. "They knew about threats to Earth and didn't tell us about them. They know about more, but still refuse to tell us. We'll only know, once we've either loosened some lips, or given the ones that would help, the ability to do so."

"So, you're doing this to protect the Earth?�� Jack asked. That wasn't the reason he'd given before.

"Well, no." Harry admitted. "At least, not only that. I also have a feeling that this is something that I need to understand. Something is changing about me and I need to know what is happening." The fact was, he had been having a feeling about this, since the moment he had conceived of it. There was something about this that needed to happen. His very magic was pulling him to do this. The fact that Pandora had pretty much confirmed that he needed to, had just solidified his resolve. "My magic is telling me that I need to do this. I'm sorry. That's the only way I know how to phrase it." That and the damned Hallows, but he didn't intend on telling anyone about that.

Jack considered it, before nodding. "Don't let me hold you back because I'm scared. I told you, Harry. I'm with you on this."

"Thanks, Jack." Harry said, as the clone walked out of the room to get in its pod. While the real Harry's hands started moving, preparing the system he had created just for this occasion.

"Since when could you use both at once?" Jack asked, looking between Harry and the Clone.

"I've always been able, but I needed to automate some things and reduce sensory input so that I can remote control the clone and be active in my own body. The human mind wasn't meant for that much input." Harry explained, as he continued preparing. His use of wandless magic and illusions that spoke and interacted with the world had prepared him for such things as well. That, and the project he and Padma had worked on, but Jack didn't need to know that, so he'd lied a little.

As Jack watched, a light appeared before the Sphere. It was white, it was bright and in the form of a ring. Soon another ring appeared behind that one and another behind that. "What's with the rings?" Jack asked.

"Those would be our solar flares." Harry said. "They create a field of energy which will affect the subspace tunnel, or wormhole, as well as affect the re-entry of the matter into the physical world at a different time. Basically, it changes the destination in space-time, to lean more toward time, rather than space."

"Time-machine, got it." Jack oversimplified. Harry just smiled at the man. He never minded when Jack did that, though it drove Daniel up the wall. He suspected Jack did it that way on purpose. "Why so many?" Jack asked. They'd only needed one solar flare to go back thirty years after all. He was seeing four, now.

"You know how the Stargate needs an address to pinpoint a location?" Harry asked.

"Yes." Jack said.

"Well, the long and short of it is, I'm sending us back a few million years." Harry said. "We need to go back to before the ancients figure out how to ascend, so that they don't end up using mine."

"Yeah, I don't understand that part." Jack said. "You guys can create as many of those pockets as you want. Why is this one so different?"

Harry smiled. Jack was smarter than he acted. "Well, the fact of the matter is, I'm trying to do more than create a little pocket. I'm trying to create a layer, which spans the entirety of our galaxy. You know how we see the universe in three dimensions? Well I'm creating another one of those, with some help from Doctor Pike's technology and a big power-source, I'll be attempting to add a layer outside of-, but at the same time, interconnected with our galaxy."

"Wouldn't that take a massive amount of power?" Jack asked. "More power than even you would be able to store and use?"

"That's just the thing, Jack." Harry said, nodding. "I won't be powering it. The galaxy will. The very stars that give life to the planets, will be used to power this dimension."

"How?" Jack asked.

"Well, while I was working on establishing a small part of said dimension, I realised that it was overlaying something that already existed, so I know it's possible, but it's also not something that I want to draw attention to." Harry explained. "If the ascended realise it's there, they will start inhabiting that too, so I need to create it and then… for the lack of a better word, hide it. Then, when we come back, I can both control that dimension and choose who I allow into it. The power for this will stem from magic, which the stars themselves shine out. As you know, a lot of power is lost, since the stars shine out in all directions. I'll be taking a bit of that lost power and funnelling it into the new layer."

Jack seemed impressed, even though he still didn't think he understood. "Sounds technical." he finally said.

"More than you would believe." Harry agreed, as he started up the process that would activate the flares in the subspace destination manipulation devices. He'd not named them yet, and doubted he ever would. Once he was back, he'd likely be shelving that project. After all, he'd never need it again.

The circles started flashing faster and faster, from the one furthest back to the one closest to them.

"Why is it flashing in reverse?" Jack asked.

"Consider it a form of building up momentum." Harry said. "The closest loop will launch us to the second one, a few seconds in the past, where it will launch us to the next and so on. In the meanwhile, the ship will be building up temporal energy, like a slingshot manoeuvre, where you build up momentum? Since we'll not be moving through space, but rather the fourth dimension, or time, the momentum is directed differently. At least, that's the theory."

"Theory?" Jack asked.

"Well, I have tried a combination of one and two." Harry said. "The effects are exponential. The first loop sent something back a few years. The second sent it back a thousand. I did need to spend time figuring out timing and then finding my test devices, but I'm pretty sure I've figured it all out."

"This why you were worried we may get stuck?" Jack asked. "Are you afraid you might throw us back to before time started?"

"I don't think that's possible." Harry said. "Even so, the universe is billions of years old. We're just going back a few million."

"How many is a few, exactly?" Jack asked out of interest, as Harry continued pressing buttons. Jack thought he was synchronizing his systems with the flashing circles, and then adjusting them to a sequence only he knew to follow apparently.

"Two hundred." Harry said.

"Two hundred Million Years?" Jack asked. "Are we even sure that this star will exist back then?" he said, indicating the far-off red sun.

"Oh, it will exist." Harry said. "It will be smaller, but it will exist."

"Smaller?" Jack asked. "It's a giant?" He knew how these things worked. As the star's fuel runs out, the processes that run it changes and it actually heats up and expands, turning into a red giant. If it was big enough it could sometimes turn into a black hole.

"Yes." Harry said. "I'm using a star which I know a lot about. I specifically want to ensure it stays stable. The planet I've been working from gave me all the info I needed. This star is stable enough for that much of a jump in time."

"But stars move." Jack pointed out. "You took care of that, right?"

"Stellar drift won't be an issue." Harry said. "Our physical movement will be linked to the star, so we'll stay the exact same distance from the star as we are now. Like how we stayed on Earth and in the same location when we went back last time, even though the Earth was in a different location in the past?"

Jack had been asking questions because the flashing had increased in pace and he was feeling more and more nervous. "Will this feel weird?" Jack asked.

"I'm not sure. The magic I used to test the previous test units didn't last long enough to give me proper feedback, but I'm thinking it will feel like a roller-coaster, or, at least, like being sucked through a straw, while on a roller-coaster." Harry hazarded a guess.

"You're not helping." Jack said.

"Not really trying." Harry said, with a smirk. "Come on Jack, where's your sense of adventure?" he asked. Harry's own adrenalin had started pumping and he felt like a schoolboy again. One that was about to try a new broom.

"Is now really the time to joke?" Jack asked, even as Harry activated the final stage, pressing a button with a flourish.

The ship stood still and for a moment, Jack thought something had gone wrong, until a terrible squeezing sensation overcame him. He knew apparition, so he recognized this feeling, but the instantaneous form of travel was dragging out much longer than Jack had ever felt before and there was an additional explosion as the ship seemed to shudder and darken around them four times, like it had been shoved between two big, solid masses, before being punted on to the next stop.

Logically he realise they were being pushed back in time and to the next ring over and over. After the fourth stop, all the lights went out and Jack could feel movement, but he had no sense of self and he could see nothing. He could feel the grinding of time, somehow, as his human body went against the natural order, against the flow of what it was used to. Humans are all time-travellers, after all. We just usually go one way; forward.

Jack lost all sense of time. He knew he was aware for a long time, a moment, but also an eternity. Millions of years or seconds. They all felt the same in this… place without definition.

Then, just as abruptly as it had started, it stopped, and Jack became aware of himself again. His body ached and he felt like he had been taken apart and put back together. He took a deep breath and realised that his body was deprived of oxygen. Had he not been breathing that entire time? How was he still alive? As his body started sucking in oxygen, the lights slowly came on, as he realised that he had been on the very edge of unconsciousness.

"Jack?" Harry's voice, suddenly too close to his face, asked. "Are you still with me, Jack? Come on man, I need you to help me here!"

"What… happened?" Jack panted, his lungs burning as they suddenly both had the energy to function and needed more. It was painful.

"Well, it seems to have worked, but now we've got a different problem." Harry said, relief colouring his words.

Jack opened his eyes again and realised that Harry was looking as pale as he felt. "You look like you had as much fun… as I did." he said, trying for a smile, but failing as he started taking in the bridge of the Sphere around him. Everything seemed to be in order, except… "Why is the window blank?" he asked.

"That's the thing." Harry said. "I don't know why it's blank, but my magic informs me that there is no star near us and I'm feeling a little bit lost at the moment. I need to check this out, while you go outside and see what's going on outside the ship. Can you take a Caco out for us?"

Jack had used those a time of two. It wasn't really all that difficult. After getting on his feet unsteadily, he went over to the security terminal, where the Cacodaemon was usually located. Jack switched on the display and the illusionary display popped up, but nothing appeared on it.

Jack looked over at Harry, who had his eyes closed as he no doubt did something magical to try and figure out what was going on. "Um, Harry. How do I get the Cacodaemon out?" Jack asked.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, opening his eyes and looking over. "That's not right. Activating the Caco releases it instantly. That must mean that it's being affected by whatever is blinding us."

"Is it possible that there's nothing to see outside the ship?" Jack asked, as his joke about travelling to before time, jumped back into his head and he started berating himself internally, for jinxing them.

"No, you'd still see the display controls and indicators. If there was just darkness, your display would have shown those as well. Currently, it's showing us nothing, like the feed is being interrupted. Like it's… lost its connection. That's it!" Harry said in understanding. His magic was working, but the connections had reset for some reason. That, or part of the connection had run out of power. They weren't doing what they should.

Quickly, he connected the secondary display, which was still a backup he used from when he had made the original saucer. It brought up a blank display as well, but this time it was easy to reconnect the system, with just a small application of magic, to reconnect the forward display to the monitoring crystal on the front of the ship. It turned out that there was power in the systems that had been idle, but not the ones that were up at the time of their move.

"Damn!" Jack exclaimed as they saw, for the first time, that they were very close to the sun. "I thought you said we would stay where we were?! You said there was no sun!"

"Well, obviously something's changed." Harry said, as he took control of the ship's propulsion. "That's not good." he said, as the ship refused to respond.

"Harry?" Jack asked dangerously.

"We're dead in the water." Harry said. "I'll need a bit to re-establish connections."

"Suspension first." Jack said, his experience in dealing with immediate threats kicking in and prioritising what they'd need to survive. "Keep us from taking a dip."

"Right." Harry agreed as he reached out and started working on the tractor beams. It didn't seem like they were quickly approaching the sun, but he would trust his eyes only. It took a few minutes, but finally he was able to secure them in place. "We're anchored." he reported as he sighed a sigh of relief. It had been difficult. The beams had taken way too long to reach the sun, to suspend them. It was like there was something missing. His magic still told him there was no sun.

"We're good?" Jack asked.

"Well, we're good for now." Harry said. "It'll take me a few hours to go through all the systems. Once I've got those up again, I'll be able to tell you what happened… hopefully."

"Anything I can do?" Jack asked.

"Just, keep an eye on our luminous friend over there, and make sure he doesn't try to eat us up." Harry said, indicating the sun they were parked next to.

"Don't you have a message to read, just about now?" Jack asked, reminding Harry about the crystal.

"I'm thinking it would be better to get into a safer position first, don't you?" Harry asked. He'd not thought about the crystal, but at that moment, it seemed to him that they had other priorities. This was just not something they were prepared for and Harry wanted to check the rest of the systems.

Jack didn't argue, either, preferring to do as Harry suggested and keeping an eye on the star they had been approaching for, god only knew how long. "Do you know how long we were out?" Jack asked.

"Not sure." Harry admitted. "I'm not sure I was ever out, but I sure as hell felt like I would have preferred it."

"Amen." Jack said, completely agreeing. "Then again, if we were out, we were probably going to wake up toasty."

"The ship should be able to resist quite a bit more heat, before the life-support magic starts failing." Harry said, as he reached out with his magic to check on the life-support. "Son of a bitch!" Harry exclaimed as he realised that that magic was just about to fail as well, and he needed to feed it his own magic to secure it. "I'm thinking I know what's causing our problems." Harry said.

"What?" Jack asked.

"The systems are all drained, like they are running out of power." Harry said. "Fortunately, life-support was still active. If that had failed, we'd already be cooked."

"What's the next priority?" Jack asked. Things didn't sound like they were going all that well. So far, it seemed like they were facing problems upon problems. All of which were rooted in the fact that the ship relied primarily on magic.

"Space expansion." Harry said, as he quickly focussed on those. "If the space expansion fails, we'd be crushed on the inside of the ship… just before it exploded."

"Good thinking." Jack said. "I never did want to find out what that's like."

Harry smirked, feeling better, now that Jack seemed to be regaining some of his humour. "Thanks, Jack." he said, as he found he needed to re-enforce the space expansion as well. Fortunately they seemed to be capable of losing quite a bit more power on that front. Harry didn't take any chances, though, topping the runes that held that configuration in place up with his own power.

Harry had a lot of power, but even he was starting to feel the drain as every system screamed at him for more power. Deciding to address that, after the most crucial systems were sorted out, Harry powered up and activated the MGA, to help him recover his spent energy. Nothing happened. Harry suddenly had a bad feeling, and he accessed the tractor beams directly, to feel for what was going on.

"There's the culprit." Harry said, as he lost some colour.

"Harry?" Jack asked, looking over and seeing Harry's face. "Why do you look like someone just told you they ran over your dog?"

"It's the magic, Jack." Harry said, his voice having lost all traces of humour. "There's no magic."