Stargate Sg-1:

Flame of Origin, Ring of Horn.

A Stargate/Unicorn Ring crossover.

(Stargate ã MGM.)

(Unicorn Ring ã Mary Brown & heirs.)

(Original Characters and story ã me.)

CHAPTER ONE:

The Game is Afoot.

The Orici meditated alone in her quarters in the city of Celestis.

This was not unusual.

The invasion of the galaxy the Ancients had named Avalon was… well, to be brutally honest, the invasion was slicing through the heathen forces like a knife through a hot candle. The word of Origin was being spread, and thousands were flocking to the true way every day. One could not help but wonder what could stress the Orici- the Child of Flames, an Ori made flesh- so badly that she would retreat to her private quarters and attempt to find oblivion in her meditations on the flow of forces throughout the Avernakis.

Several things. Firstly, the two people on this side of existence that she could possibly find it in her heart to care for were fighting on the wrong side. Her own mother (well, the mother of her human flesh, not that of her soul) was an outright unbeliever. As far as Adria knew, Vala Maldoran believed in nothing but money. As for the archaeologist whom she had attempted to convert to her side, Daniel Jackson… he had betrayed her.

No one betrayed the Orici. He would suffer, in this life, or the next.

Consequently, she was having… well, it wasn’t a crisis of faith. She knew her purpose here, better than anyone did. After all, it was her purpose. She was here to teach about the truth of Origin, and to guide all the souls of the Avernakis, the universe, to the Path. But it was proving so damnably hard! So few embraced the path willingly. So many had to be forced. She wept for all those who stood against the Path of Origin, but what was done had to be done.

She attempted to let her mind fall silent, to permit her consciousness to roam the universe on the currents of power that floated within the void between the worlds.

“Sanctus Terre,” she chanted, beginning the Chant of the Path. “Sanctus Taonas. Sanctus Ventio. Sanctus Sua. Sanctus Verimas. Lume Sanctus Ani. Illac Sanctus Ani. Ori Sanctus Ani.”

Meh, it was no use. Whenever she reached out, the threads of her thoughts frayed and unraveled, and her concentration collapsed. She sighed in frustration, and directed a simple prayer at the ceiling. “Sanctus Ori, Ego deserde asordo.” ‘Hallowed Ori, I desire your aid,’ it meant, and she meant it with every fiber of her being.

Aid was delivered in the form of three rather prosaic knocks on her door. She sighed and muttered under her breath, “On na matta netario!” She frowned, glared at the door, and added, “You may enter, Prior.”

Her door opened with nary a whisper, and there stood the Prior, robed and cowled. “Blessed Orici,” he murmured, dropping to one knee in unfeigned awe and wonder. Adri could not help but smile. She knew that it was unworthy of her, but she truly enjoyed the feeling of power that came from seeing people bow before her. “Arise, Prior,” she commanded, “and speak.”

“As the Holy Orici commands,” the Prior said obediantly. “A fire has broken out in the Hall of Worship, Holy One. My brethren and I managed to extinguish the fire-“

“You what!” Adria roared. The fire that burned eternally in a small bowl in the Hall of Worship was but a representation of the Flames of Enlightenment that burned elsewhere in the city, but to extinguish it was a cardinal sin.

“Oh, no, Holiness,” the prior rushed to reassure her, horrified at the very thought of quenching the sacred flames. “The fire that we extinguished was not that flame. We only quenched the flames that burned the alter and tapestries. They were quite seperate from the bowl. It still burns bright and clear.”

“Hmmm. It would not, therefore, seem to be a sign of the Ori’s displeasure, correct?”

The Prior fidgited, clearly uncomfortable in the spotlight, but managed to answer, “The Orici is all-knowing, her words are wise.”

“Entirely correct. I wish to examine the damage myself. Has the Doci been informed?”

“I do not believe so, Orici. I was told that he was alseep, and that none dared waken him.” The Prior winced slightly. “I dod not know that I would interrupt your meditations by knocking, Holiness. Mia clementia.”

“No, you did well. You may return to whatever duties the fire took you from. I am more than capable of walking to the Hall without aid.”

o0o

The Hall of Worship was one of the most beautiful places in the City of Celestis. The City of Celstis was one of the most beautiful places in the entire Galaxy. The Hall was composed of equal parts glowing alabaster, polished marble, and faith.

Now, it would seem, two of those were blackened and pitted by an unimaginably intense fire. The marble of the floor and the alabaster of the collumns and walls were both blackened and warped, cracked by the heat. The intricate tapestries were singed badly, and the silk cloth that covered the alter was nothing but ashes.

The presence of kneeling Priors, who wept at the damage as they sought to repair it, indicated that the fire had blackened no one’s faith; and for that, the Orici was grateful.

“As you were,” she replied wearily as the kneeling Priors sought to abandon their work to prostrate themselves before her. “Continue with your efforts, and know that the Ori have sent a sign.” A sign of what, she had to wonder. And then it hit her. “A sign that even the worst damage to our most sacred of places strikes no deeper than the place itself. Our faith is undimmed.”

Turning her attention from them, she paced the length of the Hall. Ashes and slag dotted the floor, and there was little sign of the ornate candalabrums that had stood before the alter.

As she walked to the grand alter itself, a flash of ivory caught her eye. Reaching down, she brushed aside the ash covering the mysterious item a plucked forth… a ring.

The ring was dissapointingly plain, seeminly only a shaprless twist of ivory. It almost looked like a wax shaving. Adria was puzzeled. What could such a plain trinket be doing in the Hall of Worship? Almost automatically, she slipped the ring onto the index finger of her right hand, just to see how it would look.

It immediately began to began to glow with a blue-white light. Ah, she thought. That’s what makes the ring special. However it had been displayed, it was meant to glow. Well, there was no point in keeping it. She plucked it from her finger so that she could entrust it to the care of one of the nearby Priors.

That it, she tried to pluck it off.

The ring was stuck. It was odd, actually. It fit quite well, as far as she could see, and she had not had any problem getting it on. But it refused to come off. “What?” she muttered to herself.

“Orici?” a voice asked cautiosly behind her. “Are you well?”

Adria turned to face the speaker. This Prior still had his hair after the Enlightenment, even if it was greasy silver shot with muddy gold, and had grey eyes flecked with green and yellow. At the moment, he was looking at her with an expresion of genuine concern on his features.

“Thank you, Prior,” she replied calmly, “but I am quite well. I simply- what are you staring at?” For, indeed, his gaze was fixed on the ring.

“Does the Holy Orici happen to know what it is that graces her finger?” he asked at last, clearly shocked and astounded.

“It’s a ring,” Adria replied shortly. “I found it in the ashes.”

“Not just any ring,” the Prior replied slowly. An odd smile crossed his face, one corner of his mouth lifting slightly before dropping, looking almost more like an involuntary tic than an actual smile. “That… is a unicorn ring.”

o0o

The Orici stared at the Prior for a moment. She then said, “Follow me. We shall discuss this someplace more private.” So saying, she grabbed him by the arm and half-led, half-dragged him out into the hallway. From there she hauled him down the corridor and into her meditation chambers. She half-pushed, half- threw the Prior into the room.

“A what?” she hissed quietly.

“A unicorn ring,” the Prior replied blithely, seemingly unafraid. “I was told legends of them by certain heathen tribes on Aquaris.”

“Very well,” the Orici replied, “it is a heathen legend.”

“Perhaps I should clarify, Holiness. I first heard this legend while spreading the Word on Aquaris. I later heard it on another planet. Planets, rather. The legend is quite widespread. Even in our own galaxy, tales of the unicorn rings are told as children’s tales.”

“And of what, precisely, do these stories consist?”

“Well, they vary,” the Prior explained, the many titles that the Priors commonly used to address Adria forgotten in his excitement. He was clearly something of a scholar. The Orici wasn’t sure whether or not to approve. While she appreciated his knowledge of this ring, it did not become a Prior of the Ori to spend his time collecting dusty legends and fairy tales. Besides, the whole thing was absurd. Unicorns were tales for children; such things were not spoken of in the Book of Origin, and could thus not be. “You see, many people have picked up the unicorn ring- or rings, the stories are not conclusive on that point- and there seems to be no commonality save that the ring believes them to be worthy; not just as wielders, but as people. The wielder of the ring traditional assembles six companions, by design or chance, and… well, put simply, quests.”

“For what?” Adria was fascinated in spite of herself. Of clearly fallacious origin (no pun intended) and doubtful moral worth these tales may have been, but they had a certain appeal.

“To be honest, I’m not sure. Aside, of course, from self-discovery, which is at the center of every quest. One of my fellow Priors who works in the Great Library, however, is quite the scholar of ancient legends and histories. I’m nothing more than an amateur, really.”

“Which,” she replied,” is how it should be, Prior. The Path should be the first concern of all its followers; even more so should it be the focus of a Prior.”

“As you say, Holy One,” the Prior agreed, ducking his head, a mortified expression briefly crossing his face.

“Fascinating as these bedtime stories are, I don’t think that-“ Adria stopped mid-sentence. The ring had seemed to pulse on her finger, as if trying to tell her something. She frowned. It was probably just a cramp from the tight-fitting ring. Although, it hadn’t really felt tight on her finger, had it…

“I don’t think-“ This time it was unmistakable. The ring had tightened, and it’s glow redoubled. The glow began to shade form blue into purple, and slowly into red. It flared even brighter, and then went dark.

All that remained on her finger was a plain ring of gold, which resembled the unicorn ring in shape.

She turned to the Prior and said, “You mentioned something about a compatriot in the Great Library?”