Status: Complete
Pairings: N/A
Category: One Shot
Genre: Character Insight, Friendship
Rating: Teen
Summary: The thoughts of General George Hammond as he packs to leave for Washington about the people under his command, including one archeologist.
Size: 1,011 words
Timeline: Somewhere in Season 7, Pre-'Heroes'.
Warning: Minor original character death
Notes: Any Season before 7.
Series/Sequels: Part of the Soldiers From the Other Side series.
Updated: October 15, 2013
My Warriors Stay Eternal
General George Hammond placed the empty box on top of his desk, soon to be General Jack O'Neill's. He grinned. No one ever though his easy-going, not-by-the-book second in command would make it to general.
Chuckling to himself, he reached for the first of the photos that lined his desk. It was of his wife. Ever since the moment he meet her, he was forever lost. She held his heart even after her death from cancer. The next two were of his granddaughters. They were almost spitting images of their mother, his only daughter; their wide toothy smiles filling his old heart with happiness. Tenderly he placed the photos on top of the books inside the box.
He sat down when his eyes came into view with the next photo on his desk. It was of SG-1, the premiere team of Stargate Command. Dr. Jackson with a water gun was bending forward with Major Carter on his back, their easy laughter reflected in the frozen moment. Colonel O'Neill was next to them, a Super Soaker in his hand. Behind him was Teal'c, also holding another Super Soaker. All of them were wet.
He remembered this photo. It was at a barbeque after Dr. Jackson's return from the Ascended, right after they had returned from Kelowna. While in the house, Dr. Jackson had stumbled on the hidden water guns and gave one to the major. Afterward, the water battle had begun. The colonel had given him the job of looking after the grill as him and his team soaked each other in front of the entire audience. Of course, Teal'c and O'Neill won but Dr. Jackson and Major Carter had given their best. And in the process, they soaked a good number of people as well.
Hammond opened one of the drawers, pulling out another older photo. It was beginning to tear at the edges but the image itself was in good condition. This particular photo was taken at O'Neill's house after the destruction of Apophis' ships.
Teal'c was in kel'no'reem in front of the couch where the two scientists were taking a nap. O'Neill was lying on the floor; a forgotten bowl of chips had just begun to tilt. The photo was taken by Dr. Fraiser as she left for the night.
Sighing he laid the photos on the desk. In the seven years he had been here, he had seen remarkable things, events that couldn't be described fully in all of their glorious detail; the horrors of the battles, the scars on the victims, the beauty of explored planets, the miraculous comebacks of their soldiers and civilians.
Hammond smiled. No, not soldiers. Definitely not soldiers. His eyes fell back on the archeologist. They weren't soldiers any longer because of one man. A man of integrity, of forgotten honor, of unwavering courage in battle, of human faith despite the sufferings he had been through so much in his young life. He had influenced the soldiers stationed here on this base, reopening their lost emotions and creating roads that were no less easy to walk on but were the morally correct paths that were so often hidden in the rigid ways of the military.
When he died and ascended, the torches that he lit were carried on by his fellow friend and comrades. Through the Stargate they marched, with their torches of hope and safety glowing brightly in a dark universe full of fear and evil. The first time he laid eyes on the young man, he didn't think much of him except to be a hindrance. Boy was he wrong.
Dr. Jackson had turned a mostly military team into an elite first contact team. True, Colonel O'Neill was the team leader, Major Carter the astrophysicist, and Teal'c the expert on the Goa'uld. But they wouldn't have taken into account other factors that were Dr. Jackson's expertise. He always heard others comment on the warriors of the Tau'ri, never once mentioning soldiers. Maybe that was true. Soldiers always listened to the orders of their superiors but warriors fought for the causes they believe in. It was never truly boring around here.
When he left for Washington, he would miss everyone here on base, mostly SG-1. He looked again at the photos. Moments frozen forever in time, snapshots of the lives of the warriors of the Tau'ri. In photos, they stayed alive for a second. But in stories and legends that littered the universe, they lived forever. The warriors of the Tau'ri; enemies of the Goa'uld and the people of the First World.
"Sir?" It was the colonel. He could SG-1 standing behind him.
"Yes, Colonel O'Neill?"
"Um since, you're leaving for Washington and this is my last time as the commander of SG-1, we were wondering if you would like to join for dinner at O'Malley's?"
The general looked around, seeing the boxes that littered the office. It could wait until tomorrow. "I would love to, colonel." He stood up and turned the lights off. As they walked to the elevator, he watched as Dr. Jackson and Colonel O'Neill started another legendary verbal fight. Sometimes, they seemed like children and him in the role of the stern father. He smiled. That was weird in itself as Teal'c was over 130 years of age.