FOREWORD

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Never in my life did I ever think I would write a novel like this one.

One day, when I was watching 'Children of the Gods' on DVD, a scene caught my eye. It was a scene I hadn't lent much credence to in the past but one that was so powerful, I wrote a short story that turned into the Prologue of this work. The story didn't seem to end there. Or, more correctly, it didn't want to end there. Something about the way Teal'c looked made me *want* to dig into his past. And those bits I couldn't find in episodes I was determined to find a way to fill in the blanks.

I remembered the words of fans on the net about writing stories about Teal'c's past. I'd heard everything from, "Oh, he's so hard to write for," and "We really don't know much about him," to "It's really hard to create a whole culture for a planet called Chulak." While I agree writing for Teal'c is a challenge, the rewards are so worthwhile. And yes, we don't know much about him which is why fanfiction is such a great thing--that problem can be fixed. Now that last one was a real doozy. Creating a whole culture? How the heck do you go about doing that? You do that by doing the same thing the Stargate SG-1 writers do: delve into the pages of human history.

Through the countless hours of pouring through every authority on Egyptology I could find, to essays on ancient Egyptian culture to the ubiquitous 'Book of the Dead', Teal'c's past and those people of Chulak came alive for me. Ritual, culture, even patterns of speech from thousands of years ago came to life for me. As a result of this research I've developed a new respect and admiration for the writers of Stargate SG-1. I also envy how they get to take the past and spin it into exciting stories that happen to be in the science fiction genre.

There are definitely a few shout-outs (acknowledgements) I need to give. Much thanks to Miki Seiler for her boundless encouragement to bring this story out of my brain and into Microsoft Word. Denise, Lisa and Libya, I can't thank you enough for your duties as beta readers. Your feedback about what worked and even more importantly what didn't work in the story is invaluable. And to the Australian kid's band, 'The Wiggles', thank you so much for being on DVD. Thanks to you, my three year old has been so entertained she barely left from in front of the television to bother mommy while she's writing. My deepest gratitude is to all of my readers, especially those who are Teal'c fans. While I mainly write to please myself, it is by your reading of my work and word of mouth that gives me that constant kick in the butt to keep writing. For you Teal'c fans, it is my sincere wish that through this story you get to see, hear, taste and even feel the culture of Chulak while reliving those moments that made Teal'c the person he is, and experiencing those moments not shown on screen .

This work is dedicated to the memory of my Nana in this the tenth year since she went to heaven to become an angel. She always taught me to follow my dreams, no matter how difficult they may seem to achieve, to be true to myself and to always do the things that made me happy. Her spirit manifested itself into a character of this story that kept me going when I didn't know what to write next. I love you and miss you, Nana.

-- Trish Williams [December 2002]

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