Now! Stop.
Charge.
First lock engaged.
Revolve.
We're supposed to be at that physical assessment thing.
Oh, yeah. I'll go. I'll just...
Just let me finish this reel.
You seem a tad obsessed with this stuff.
This was transferred from film of experiments on the gate in 1945.
- You don't find that at all intriguing? - Oh, yeah.
Nothing piques my interest more than repeated failure.
Look at them. They're turning the gate manually, for God's sake. It's incredible.
- How many hours have you seen? - There's no conclusion.
There's no summary. No notes. No reason to explain why they gave up.
- Boxes of material may be missing. - The Pentagon said this was everything.
Oh, please. The Pentagon's lost entire countries.
Come on.
The doctors have two days of tests planned for us. Wonderful tests.
Uh, Jack.
That's impossible.
Obviously not.
This doesn't make any sense. Why wouldn't someone have told us this?
Why would they stop their research if they'd actually managed to turn it on?
Holy cow.
Hello, Martha.
There's a young man waiting for you in the kitchen.
You let a strange young man into the house?
Yes. I'm sorry. He said he knows you.
My God!
Hello. I'm sorry. I hope you don't mind.
How long have you been back?
Oh.
My God, why are you back? Colonel O'Neill said you stayed on Abydos.
I see you got the amulet.
Yes, of course. I never take it off.
Why avoid my question? What's this all about?
Colonel O'Neill, Dr. Jackson was supposed to be briefing SG-4 this morning.
He's not here and he's not answering our pages. Any idea where he is?
I haven't seen him in a while, sir.
- Catherine, I couldn't tell you. - Why not?
They wouldn't let me. Everything is classified. You know.
When did you become an upstanding military man?
I'm not... exactly. And that's why I'm here.
I'll make you some tea, then you can go back to your Stargate Command.
Thousands of Stargates. Planetary shifts. Didn't anyone think I might be interested?
- That's why I came. - Now, six months later.
- You could have told me sooner. - Yes.
Just like you could have told me there were experiments on the gate in 1945.
My father headed up a research team that worked on the gate during the war.
Actually, they didn't know what it was then.
President Roosevelt was like that. Curious.
They suspected the gate was a weapon, or could be used as one.
Nothing ever came of it. How do you know?
The Pentagon is declassifying old material.
They found file boxes that dealt with the old experiments and they sent them to us.
Really?
You weren't involved in the research?
The military had very little use for a 21-year-old girl at that time.
Neither did my father.
I only know what little I overheard him and Ernest talking about.
I'm sorry, who's... Ernest?
You get as far as entering the fifth symbol, then the whole room starts to shake.
Today one of the generators exploded from the feedback.
- Are you going to talk to my father? - He knows. He was there.
I meant about us.
Oh.
Yes, I will.
- Maybe it's supposed to do that. - What?
The ring. Maybe it's supposed to shake.
I don't think so.
Are you using alternating or direct current to charge it?
- Alternating, I think. Why? - Try using direct.
It might prevent the charge from bouncing back to the generator.
And you should talk to my father.
I will. I promise.
You didn't know the government kept the files from the original experiments?
I had my father's notes. He told me that was everything they had.
You know how many administrations I had to petition
to get this programme started up again? 40 years had passed.
Information was classified and buried.
I never asked for any files because I thought I had them.
General West never offered because he probably didn't know they existed.
So...
you don't know that they turned the gate on in 1945.
What?
There must be over a hundred million combinations.
If it's merely a combination lock used to turn it on, why 39 symbols? Why not six?
- What are you saying? - They're not combinations.
They're destinations. And we just found one.
A doorway to heaven can mean any number of different things.
It could simply mean that anyone who passes through there will die.
For example...
- Catherine, we have a maid for a reason. - I wanted to do it.
No. I never knew they turned it on.
My father never told me.
It wasn't in his notes, either.
Then there's something more you should see.
Here, watch this.
Oh, God.
There was an accident today.
An explosion in the lab.
Ernest?
I'm so sorry.
So the man who went through the gate is Ernest.
Yes.
My father must have lied to me.
He said Ernest died in an accident.
An explosion.
Why would he do that?
- Probably thought he was protecting me. - From what?
From knowing that the man I was supposed to marry chose to risk his life
and go through the Stargate, without even talking to me about it.
He chose his idea, his work, over me.
Well, I'm sure that he believed he would... he would come back.
He was so young.
So full of passion.
Like you. You reminded me of him when I first saw you.
That's why I knew you'd solve the mysteries of the gate.
Catherine...
I wasn't supposed to show you this.
Actually, I wasn't supposed to show you any of this, but now...
Computer enhancements from the film footage.
I isolated the chevrons that were locked in before Ernest went through.
Not Abydos?
No. Another planet with similar coordinates.
And we can go there.
Have you lost your mind?
Who authorised you to reveal classified information to a civilian?
- Sir, if you will let me explain... - This is a serious breach of protocol.
The rules exist for a reason. Do you think you're above them?
- No! No, I... - Catherine.
- Hello, Jack. - It's good to see you again.
I trust the general is making you feel right at home.
So far he actually sounds worse than General West.
Ah, he's a teddy bear.
Did you authorise Dr. Jackson to reveal classified information to this civilian?
Absolutely not, sir. In fact, I advised him not to say anything to her,
even though she used to run the programme
and is responsible for most of our current knowledge about the gate.
- I'm aware of who she is, Colonel. - Catherine, this is Teal'c.
Teal'c, this is Catherine.
Daniel's told me all about you. Such a pleasure.
Colonel, are you aware of the request Dr. Jackson has most currently tabled?
You gotta go that one step further, don't you?
The man who went through the gate in 1945 was Catherine's fiancé.
Now, I have the address of the planet he went to, and we can go there.
And I'm coming with you.
General, we know where Ernest Littlefield went.
He could still be alive - a man with the vision to see the gate for what it was
a half a century before anyone else.
He sounds like a bona fide American hero, sir.
Sir, there may be another reason to go.
- Samantha! - Catherine!
Captain Carter.
Yes, sir. It seems the planet in question is close to Abydos,
so it uses many of the same points in space as locators.
That's why the team in '45 could dial in without compensating for planetary shift.
But, sir, the planet in question is not on the cartouche we found on Abydos.
- What's the significance? - The Goa'ulds haven't charted it.
They may not even have been there.
If the Goa'ulds haven't been to this planet, and there is a gate there,
we would have proof that they didn't originally build the Stargate.
The Goa'uld are scavengers. Since they have not travelled to this planet,
we may find technologies we can use against them.
You speak?
When it is appropriate.
Thank you. Thank all of you for your very thorough analysis of the situation.
But I was already convinced by Dr. Jackson's initial argument.
Ernest Littlefield could still be alive, and we should try to find him.
It's a piece of cake.
- Ready? - And...
- You OK? - Huh! That was some piece of cake.
- It's hot in here. - Oh, yeah.
Anybody see a way in or out of this place?
There appears to be only two doorways.
Oh, my!
Oh, for cryin' out loud.
Dr. Littlefield?
Ernest?
Hello. I'm Daniel Jackson. We just came through the Stargate.
Yes... uh, that thing. The... Stargate.
We're real.
It's... about... time.
Oh, boy.
Daniel, do something.
Uh, Dr. Littlefield?
You don't recognise me.
Ca... Catherine?
Hm.
50 years... That's all he has to say!
I'll... I'll go... see if I can find him.
Still here?
Uh...
do you have anything to wear? Clothes?
Oh, uh, uh...
going home.
Yes, we're taking you home.
So much time.
Did... no one try again?
That's a long story.
Are there other people here?
No one else lives here?
How about nearby?
Are you saying that you've been completely alone here for 50 years?
Eat.
I don't know what I expected.
I mean, I can't believe he's right here.
Light years away but still so close, all this time.
Alive.
I think he's probably having a little trouble dealing with it too.
I felt like a schoolgirl. My heart beat faster than when I came through the gate.
- You think you're old and wise. - I don't think the heart ever grows old.
I can't even fathom what he's been through.
Such a long time. I don't even know that man!
Why don't you go and talk to him?
Last day.
It's a calendar, isn't it?
Have you figured out who built this place or who used to live here?
Heliopolis.
Repository. Philosophy. Astronomy.
The ancient Egyptian city. People came from everywhere to gather there.
Scholars, community leaders. It was also the central place of worship for Ra.
Are there Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs here?
Symbols that indicate Ra? This could be very important.
"Four languages."
"Writing is like none on Earth. Catherine says they're probably alien."
- "Catherine says"? - She found me long ago.
"We walked for miles today, and still found no signs of civilisation."
"Catherine seems concerned but I am not."
"As long as she is here with me I will never feel alone."
"It seems impossible but every day we're here together I love her more."
My father lied to me.
Oh...
Uh...
I'll leave you two.
So... real!
Yes.
You're going to have to believe.
This isn't easy for me either.
You... you look, um... different.
I'm old, Ernest. So are you.
We... we had a wonderful life together.
I couldn't imagine you, Ernest.
In my mind, we didn't have a wonderful life. I thought you were dead.
Forgave me. You forgave me long ago.
No. I didn't.
Oh.
Doesn't seem to be anybody else around.
This place used to be pretty sweet
but it's seen better days, if you know what I mean.
I think Professor Littlefield has been alone since he got here.
Wow.
- A storm approaches. - And a pretty big one at that.
- It comes every year. - Every year?
Yeah, look, kids. We're right on the edge of a cliff here.
This place can't withstand another big hit.
- We should take our leave. - No, we can't.
Not yet. We've only begun to explore this place,
figure out what it is, what it used to be.
We launched a survey balloon. Now let's take the professor and Catherine home.
We'll leave the probe here until the storm blows over
- and then we'll come back. All right? - I tried for years to make it work.
You never tried entering different glyphs in this thing?
We call this the dial-home device.
Basically, you enter the correct address and...
Daniel, why don't we just show him?
- My God. - What the hell...?
The probe was supposed to detect stuff like this.
We got visual confirmation of its presence but the damage was obviously concealed.
- It's not working. - It was like that when I got here.
That's why you never came back.
Does this mean we're not going home?
Since we're going to be here a while, I'd like you to see something.
What?
Come on. It's the safest room there is, you know. Especially in a storm.
Give me your hand. Thanks.
Keep at it. We'll be back.
What is this place?
"I believe this room is some sort of meeting place where four alien races -
denoted by the symbols and distinctive writing on the walls - would gather,
to share knowledge or discuss relations, like a 'United Nations of the stars'."
"Catherine agrees."
You're right. I would have.
All roads seem to lead here, which means this is likely the power source.
I believe you are correct.
It could take years to work out how to put the crystals back properly
but we might be able to figure out a way
to rig the power source directly to the gate and then dial in manually.
This looks familiar.
Touch it.
Whoa!
It's beautiful!
Daniel? Does this... mean anything?
Well, if this was a Mecca of sorts -
an "alien United Nations" - this has to mean something.
- I know this. - Of course. High-school chemistry.
One proton. One electron.
- Hydrogen. - Beryllium.
- Sodium. - Silver. Iron.
Barium. Xenon.
Oh, my God. So many electrons. How can you tell?
I've been here a very long time, remember?
Excuse me.
Are you saying that all of these are atomic... things?
The images are graphic representations of the elements.
Electrons revolve around a proton. The number of them indicates the element.
146.
There are currently only 111 elements on the periodic table.
Only 90 when I last looked.
This is incredible.
We've only been able to speculate on the appearance and structure of an atom.
The fact that four completely alien races
chose to represent it visually in an almost identical way...
The basic elements are what make up the universe. They're the basic building blo...
Of course! How do you ensure universal communication?
You reduce the method of communication to basic elements common to everyone.
Jack, this is a true universal language.
- Turn the page. - What?
Turn the page.
Are you saying that this... this is like a book?
- I tried to read it. I tried to understand. - 146 elements. Letters or word symbols.
If they're letters, if they're pictographic, this could take a lifetime.
- More. - Oh.
Sorry.
Daniel, before your head explodes,
can I remind you we have more important things to do?
How can you say that? Don't you know what this could mean?
Actually, no.
This could be the key to understanding our existence.
Everyone, everything's existence.
The collaboration of the knowledge of these four alien species.
None of which will mean squat if we don't get out of here.
How's it goin'?
We're trying to connect the power source from the dial-home device into the gate.
I'm about to run a test. Where's Daniel?
- Oh, Ernest was showing him a new toy. - Really? What?
A fancy light show that may be the key to our existence, or something like that.
Uh, you wanna pick up the pace on this a little bit?
You did it!
Get back!
This is how you knew what this was.
- Then you recognise it too. - Othala, the Norse rune,
thought to represent numinous power and knowledge from past generations.
And the gathering of clans to share a common interest.
You know, there's more than just a coincidence here.
But that means that humans were here... centuries, maybe aeons ago.
Not humans, aliens. This is Thor's race.
Thor was an alien?
Oh, yeah. That's, uh... that's another long story.
But a... good one.
All right, basic survival training. We know what we have. What do we need?
We have the Stargate. We need the dial-home device.
Thank you, Teal'c.
The element the gate is made up of absorbs energy directly.
Internal functions will convert and store that energy in capacitor-like reservoirs
but the inside wheel will only unlock and spin once there's enough reserve power.
So what we need is energy.
I don't see any electrical outlets, do you?
This is useless. It's not allowing for any relative perspective.
How did you incorporate the 3D nature of the information?
Look down.
Of course. You measured the element's distance from a central point,
degrees from zero round in a circle, and height above the floor.
- What's up, guys? - Step away from the pedestal, Daniel.
What? Why?
The dial-home device just fell through the floor into the ocean.
So what are we going to do?
That thing may have a power source that we can use to get the gate working.
Uh... no.
You don't understand. This book may contain knowledge of the universe.
This is... meaning-of-life stuff.
I have to get more of it on paper. There has to be something more you can use.
- What about Teal'c's staff? - Not powerful enough.
There's not much time. We have to get inside it.
The whole place could join the DHD at the bottom of the ocean any minute. Please...
Great.
Shoot it.
Now what?
I'm obviously no scientist but, uh... couldn't we use that Ben Franklin thing?
The gate is made of a superconductor.
It'll absorb energy in many forms - heat, nuclear, solar, static.
If we could channel a lightning strike into the gate, it might give us enough power.
How do we attract lightning to it?
Not directly. We'll have to rig something up
and hope a sudden and enormous charge doesn't destroy the gate's mechanisms.
We got it, Teal'c!
Daniel won't come up. He's obsessed with that thing.
- So much like you used to be. - The torment of Tantalus.
- What? - Tantalus was a king in Greek mythology,
banished to Hades, forced to stand in water that receded when he tried to drink.
Everlasting, unending temptation.
He was reaching for something that was, uh... out of reach.
That sounds familiar.
Some might say that's what makes a man great.
If we all accepted what was within our grasp.
Sometimes what we have is of more value.
It takes a great man to recognise that. I didn't.
- I was a fool. - Ernest, you've suffered enough.
No sense wasting time in the past. Right?
Ah! Yes. For the peak of the roof. It will attract the lightning.
You get Daniel.
Take this to the roof.
- You have to come. Now. - Not yet. Get me when the gate's running.
- There isn't time. - I have to finish this.
- It's not worth it! - This is!
Nothing is!
Our history would be different if everyone felt that way.
No prize is worth attaining if you can never share it. There would be no point.
Believe me.
I know.
Let's go! Teal'c, start dialling in.
We may only have seconds once the gate is open.
What you did was courageous.
- What I did was stupid. - Come on, boys. We gotta go. Now.
- I'm staying. - What?
- Look, I will be fine down here. - Daniel, we can come back.
No. What if the castle crumbles around the gate? This could all be lost.
- If I stay, I could unbury it again. - What if the gate falls into the ocean?
- I am willing to take that risk. - I'm not! Let's go.
Jack!
Please.
Let's go.
- It's a piece of cake. - Not from what I remember.
Come on.
Go on.
Go!
Wormhole is destabilising. Still no travellers.
Come on, guys.
Stand by, people.
- Close one. - You think?
You don't know how close.
Chevron six encoded.
Chevron seven...
will not engage.
- I think it's safe to say the place is gone. - You still have my book.
Captain Carter's working on a computer model right now.
And here's the bright side - you're alive.
Yes.
Thanks to you.
Look at it this way. If you ever run into those aliens who made up the language,
you can ask them what it means.
You better let us know this time.
I will. I promise.
Catherine, hug me.
Oh, Jack!