Lacrimosa

Major Mirkwood had managed to push Doctor Jackson into a corner. Literally.

“Leave Sampo in peace. Don’t go after it. And believe me, you really don’t wanna go after it,” she hissed and scared the archeologist half to death.

“Yes, but Sampo can help us…”

“No! It never did any good to anyone,” growled Mirkwood and shoved the linguist against the wall. “Bury that thought right now and you’ll live to see another day.”

Colonel Mitchell strolled around the corner and found Mirkwood and Jackson staring at each other with such heat it could have melted the whole Cheyenne Mountain.

“Jackson? Is everything alright?” he asked and eyed Mirkwood. She didn’t give in to a higher officer and continued to harass the doctor.

“Yes, but…”

“Good, carry on.”
***
Major Mirkwood entered the lab where Doctor McKay was chewing on another puzzle he couldn’t solve. Mirkwood crept behind him and looked over his shoulder at the device he was taking apart.

“Why did you see the crimson wasteland?” she asked quietly but McKay jumped and almost fell over with a shriek.

“What? What wasteland?” he asked and straightened up.

“The one you saw in the chair,” said Mirkwood calmly in a low tone.

“Oh, that one? Um, well I sorta… er,” he turned his eyes away from her and Mirkwood noticed he felt ashamed. “I thought about you,” he mumbled and wished he’d be in another Galaxy. Mirkwood studied him for a while before reaching out her hands and putting them on his shoulders to turn him facing her.

“You shouldn’t have,” she whispered, “There is too much darkness inside me,” and pulled him into a hug. McKay was startled when he was pressed against one of the most beautiful and most fatal woman in the city, in the Galaxy and perhaps in the whole Universe.

“And it troubles you,” she said and slithered her hand over the back of his neck, “I can make it all better.” A glow under her palm glimmered as it touched his skull.

“I can make you forget,” she whispered and pressed a light kiss on his temple.
***
Colonel Sheppard found her in a small library she had discovered on the same day she had arrived for the first time to Atlantis. She had seemed to know the city like she had lived there for ages.

Back then he had only known that she had once been a true warrior by the side of General Mirkwood who had won the elections few years ago and had become the states Senator. And soon after that he had become a Chairman of Appropriations Comity. Senator Mirkwood had all the power over Stargate projects and that had scared Colonel Sheppard at first when he had stumbled upon Major Mirkwood who was her father’s favorite.

But Major Mirkwood never lived in the shadow of her father. She had her own career full of wars and medals. She could have easily been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel but she must have declined so many times.

And there he was again watching her sitting on the floor and skimming holographic entries before her eyes. The logs of Ancients.

“Staring is rude, John,” said Mirkwood but didn’t lift her eyes from the rows of writings scurrying past and around her.

“Sorry,” muttered Sheppard and stepped closer. Getting next to her, he sat down and looked at the holographic records running before his eyes. He didn’t understand a word it was saying but he trusted she did.

“So, have you found anything?”

Major didn’t answer at first. She was too busy reading the lines or she was just ignoring him. Her sole existence on Atlantis was to find Sampo she was sent after. General Landry had given her the order and her own father had also agreed and done everything to give her enough power in the Atlantis mission she needed to succeed.

“Yes, Ilmarinen built twelve Sampos. Half of them are destroyed, many are missing and only one was left to Atlantis. But according to this log over here, the remaining Sampo helped to create the Replicators and soon after that it was dismantled,” said Major Mirkwood and finally looked at Sheppard.

“And the missing ones?” asked Sheppard in some hope.

“They are missing,” chuckled Mirkwood and huffed as she went on reading the old logs.

“Can they be found? Somehow tracked down?”

“You do know I really don’t want to do that? Sampo is the worst thing that could happen to anyone,” said Mirkwood seriously.

“But it can help us,” argued Sheppard and enjoyed the fact that he was talking to her.

“Haven’t you people never learned that goldfishes and genies takes your wishes ant turn them into shit?” she asked and stood up. Holographic record disappeared which meant the session had ended. She gathered up her notes and laptop and started to leave when Sheppard grabbed her by the hand.

“Ilmatar, you don’t have to go after it by yourself,” said Sheppard and looked at her.
***
Doctor Jackson was once again leading the briefing about the Sampo when he had found out that there was more than one miracle mill out there. General Landry was getting more excited about the idea of a machine that could help them defeat every single enemy.

SG-4 had recently visited a planet from where they had brought back some hard evidence about Sampo. Jackson had gone back to that place with SG-1 and returned with loads of translations that indicated that only 150 years ago one Sampo had been on that planet. The civilization had recently died out with no visible cause or relocated to another planet but that didn’t bother Doctor Jackson at all.

“And where is it now?” asked General.

“Well, I believe it was…” started Doctor and quickly skimmed his notes.

“It was destroyed,” said Major Mirkwood from the back row of the conference hall. “Every single Sampo ends up destroyed.”

“Actually, this one was not destroyed. I found a tablet and if I translated it correctly, then the Sampo was put into some container and…”

“Don’t bother. If it was hidden, then you’ll never find it,” smirked Mirkwood.

“Major,” addressed General, “Why are you so negative towards finding the Sampo?”

“Sampo is like genie,” said Mirkwood and stood up, “It takes your deepest desires and turns them into evil realities. Loviatar, Hell’s eldest and strongest daughter, once laid 9 eggs. Eight of them hatched into demons – Fear, Pain, Madness, Cruelty, Lust, Anger, Creed and Ignorance. But the 9th waited for the time when the blacksmith in the prophecy would build Sampo so he could come and bring Hell on Earth with the machine.”

General Landry looked at Jackson for confirmation. Doctor nodded, knowing the folklore surrounding the Sampo.

“You see. He’s innermost desire was bringing Hell on Earth. It doesn’t matter if your intentions are good or evil; Sampo only reads what’s hidden inside you. Oh, one more thing, doc,” she said as she walked down the isle, “Only Ilmarinen could activate a Sampo.”