Chapter One: All Good Things Must Come To An End
General Hank Landry scanned the mission reports on his desk and sighed. This job could be nerve-wracking in the best of times and it had been one very exhausting year. When he read the mission reports that SG-1 had written, he felt a great sense of relief. The fight with the Ori was finally over and he had hopes that he could now retire. He had pleasant day-dreams of a quiet life someplace warm, maybe Key West or Southern California. Then reality hit as he looked at all the work piled up in front of him. He heard a knock on the door-frame and saw Walter enter with a sheaf of papers that needed signatures.
"Can I get you some coffee, sir?" Master Sgt. Walter Harriman always seemed to know what General Landry needed and was usually handinghim something he required, even before he knew he required it.
"No, Walter, but thanks." He looked at the clock and said, "Can you contact General O'Neill and have him meet me in the control room?"
"Yes, Sir," Walter said just before leaving the room.
He rose and took a deep breath before walking down to the control room that overlooked the Stargate. As he stood and watched the technicians around him, he saw that the personnel were working efficiently and he was proud of each and every one of them. They really knew their jobs and they were willing to put in their best efforts to make the SGC a safe bulwark between the evil creatures who dominated so many planets out there and the people of earth who knew nothing about them - or the SGC for that matter.
General Jack O'Neill, the former SGC commander and previous SG-1 team leader, was on the base in an unofficial position. He'd planned on dinner out with his former team and the two members who'd joined latest, Colonel Cameron Mitchell and civilian Vala Mal Doran. He knocked on Landry's door and appeared with a concerned look on his face. "Hank, you asked for me?"
"Yes, Jack. I wondered if you'd seen any of the data from P22-718. Colonel Carter and Doctor Jackson approached me about staying there for a few more days. Carter got a strong energy reading but it looks like it's a few miles away and they'll need more time to investigate. Doctor Jackson is hoping it has something to do with ruins." Hank smiled and dramatically said, "He said he's got a 'feeling'," Hank made air-quotes around the word and grinned. "I told them I'd think about it. That was this morning. It's time for their scheduled check-in and I thought I would dial the gate address and have you talk to them yourself."
"Thanks," Jack said. "Of course, Daniel sometimes nags like a five-year old asking for ice cream so maybe this is just your not wanting to say 'no,' and handing that job off to me?" Jack grinned and watched the Commanding officer smile back.
Hank said, "He's hard to say 'no' to, Jack. And, he's usually right about things like this."
Jack rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet and said, "I'm just sayin'."
"Point taken," Hank smiled and then said to the technician, "Dial it up."
A few minutes later, the gate opened and the computer screens came to life with an image of Doctor Daniel Jackson and Colonel Samantha Carter walking towards the camera mounted on the M.A.L.P.
"You're right on time," Hank said in greeting. "Report, Colonel."
"Yes, Sir," Sam said as she stopped before the camera. "It's pretty quiet here, sir. No sign of life outside of the local flora and fauna. No sign that anyone has been here for a long, long time."
Hank nodded and said, "But the energy readings might indicate more. Doctor Jackson, what do you think?"
Daniel shrugged and said, "There's no sign that anything ever happened here. No weapons left behind. No chains or other objects that indicate that slaves were here, like we've found on previous Goa'uld-occupied planets. No pictures drawn of any kind on cave walls or anywhere else for that matter. In fact, there's nothing here at all."
"Except the gate, which begs the question," Hank said.
"Yes. Why is the gate here if there's no sign of anyone having been here?"
Jack said, "So, Daniel, is it really necessary to stay there any longer?"
"Oh, hi Jack! " Daniel looked down and smiled. "I know." He shrugged and said, "It's just a feeling."
Carter looked up from her scanner and said, "Sir, I'm getting a good Naquadria reading." She looked back down at her scanner and turned slowly away from the camera.
Jack said, "Did you two plan this hoax so you could get a few more days on a quiet planet?"
"No, Jack, " Sam said. "I would never do that."
"Neither would I and I'm offended that you think I would!" Daniel looked hurt.
"Wouldn't be the first time, Danny."
"Yes it would."
"No it wouldn't." Jack crossed his arms over his chest and said, "I seem to remember P4Tsomething-or-other when we stayed an extra day to relax."
Daniel adjusted his glasses and unknowingly mirrored the same no-nonsense stance as he glared into the camera lens. "Yes, and as I recall, it was your idea because you saw a huge fish in that lake and wanted to try to catch it."
Jack paused in thought and then said, "Oh. Yeah, I guess you're right about that. But, you thought about it before I said anything. I could tell by the gleam in your eyes when you looked at those ruins. And, what are you doing, Carter? You're a Colonel now! You don' t have to go off-world and play with your doo-hickies. We've got a lab full of young nerds just waiting for a chance to do that!"
Sam looked shocked. "Are you implying that I'm getting to old for this?"
"NO! Of course not! It's just that you commanded the Atlantis expedition. For cryin' out loud, Sam! I'd have thought following Daniel around would be boring!"
Daniel shouted, "Hey!"
Sam smiled and said, "I actually missed this. It feels good to get back in the field again."
Daniel looked at her and said, "You don't seem too old, to me." He grinned as Sam whispered a 'thanks' to him.
"Come on, you two. I came all this way to invite you both and the rest of SG-1 out for dinner. My treat."
Sam smiled and said, "Really? Wow, that's very nice. But I have a feeling that this might be important. General Landry, Sir- I'm only talking about staying a couple of days just to make sure."
Daniel said, "We promise!" He grinned as Sam bumped his shoulder with hers.
General Landry looked at Jack who shrugged. "Okay, Son. You and Colonel Carter can stay for two more days and then I want you to return with a full report." He looked at the control room clock and said, "We'll check in with you in 12 hours."
"Thank you, General," Sam and Daniel said in unison.
Landry ordered the gate closed and then said, "Don't worry, Jack. Your kids will be fine."
"Yeah, famous last words. So, dinner at Angelo's then? I'm still buyin."
"Seven o'clock! I'll regale you with my latest fishing success," Hank said as he turned towards his office.
Jack headed for the commissary in hopes of finding Teal'c. What he needed was a good piece of pie and a visit with his favorite Jaffa.
0o0
Daniel and Sam watched the gate close and then he turned toward her and said, "So, which way?"
She shaded her eyes and pointed off towards the east. "It's coming from that direction. So-"
"Right." He smiled and then said, "I told ya he'd let us stay longer."
She grinned as they headed off in the direction she'd indicated. He used the remote to follow her with the M.A.L.P. and they were on their way.
0o0
They moved slowly because of the M.A.L.P's crawling-along speed so it still took them the rest of the afternoon to reach the place in question. A gradual rise in elevation led them to a dusty outcropping of boulders and trees which offered much appreciated shade and clear, cold water bubbling from a natural spring. Daniel lowered himself onto a large rock and dropped his pack at his feet. Sam took out one of her instruments and scanned the area for various things from air-quality to temperature and humidity readings.
"Everything okay?" He asked as he peeled the wrapper off an energy bar and scanned the area around them, keeping an eye out for danger but also trying to find signs of civilization, as usual.
She climbed up on top of a large boulder and slowly turned in a circle as she watched her scanner. "Naquadria, and lots of it, which is odd since there's no sign of it in the soil. It must be in a deep vein." She climbed back down, switched instruments and said, "Holy Hannah!"
He stepped behind her to look over her shoulder at the hand-held device. "What?"
"There's a very powerful energy reading coming from that field over there," she said as she pointed. They walked over to the site and looked at the dry soil and rocks scattered about.
"I don't see anything obvious," Daniel said as he turned around in a circle.
Sam quietly walked around the area with her scanner, slowly covering a piece of land. When she was finished, she shut the device off and stopped in front of Daniel. Her eyes were closed and he could see that she was concentrating.
He felt goose bumps rise on his arms. "A ship?"
"Maybe. Nothing big like a Ha'tak but It's precisely shaped. Man-made. "
"Are you sure? There's no sign of the Goa'uld, Asgard, Ori. Nobody." He waved his hands around as he turned in another circle. "No writings. No artifacts. Nothing."
She looked around at the horizon. "I know. But somebody buried something here." She looked at her watch and said, "We're supposed to report to General Landry in the morning. If it is a ship, we'll need help excavating it."
He smiled and said, "I love that word."
She smiled back and said, "C'mon. We should set up camp before nightfall."
Daniel nodded as he handed her the energy bar and reached for another one. As they ate, they looked around for a place to rest for the night and picked a spot by a stream.
Daniel had parked the M.A.L.P. on the highest spot near the gate and raised the antenna to transfer their gate transmissions. Bill Lee had replaced the batteries with a naquada generator so the thing could run almost indefinitely. It was nice not having to worry about the thing going dead. Now, hours away from the gate, they only had to wait for General Landry to call them in the morning and fill him in on their location.
0o0
"How far out are they?" General Landry looked up at the screen above everyone's heads in the control room and saw the images that the Hubble Telescope was sending back. A whole fleet of alien ships was detected but they were still so far out that nobody could count how many there were. Perhaps thousands of ships were on the way to earth and the President had called a meeting with the Joint Chiefs. General Landry had been preparing for a trip to the Pentagon but President Hayes asked him to stay and keep things going at the SGC.
The other world leaders, whom already knew about the Stargate Program, were preparing to tell their citizens the truth about a possible alien invasion. President Hayes was getting the latest information from NORAD and the SGC before he spoke to the people of the United States.
Colonel Paul Davis, liaison officer from the Pentagon said, "Right now, they're out on the edge of our galaxy, by the looks of it. It isn't easy to tell without the Asgard long-range sensors. The sensors are actually still out there but they are useless now that the Asgard were gone."
Hank said, "As you know, the Daedalus is docked at Atlantis, being refitted with upgrades. Not that it would do any good." He looked at Jack and said, "We need to start getting people moved to the Alpha Site."
Walter stepped up and said, "Here's a list of all the personnel who are currently off world." He handed him another paper and said, "This is the roster of all those who are currently here on the base. Sir, isn't this the same thing that happened when Doctor Jackson went to the alternate reality?"
Hank said, "No, Walter. That was when Apophis attacked and there were only two ships. This looks like hundreds, maybe thousands and we don't know yet if they pose a threat, but we have to assume they do."
Paul looked at Hank and said, "You're right, Sir. Unfortunately, there is no way we can fight this battle and win."
Jack looked grim and said, "I hate to say it, seeing as I'm always the optimistic one but the best thing we can do is retreat."
Hank scanned the rosters and said, "I know. The Alpha site has been preparing for this as a worst case scenario for some time. They have housing built and everything we can think of that people would need to start over. The Daedalus recently dropped off some farming equipment and the crew there just finished construction on a water treatment plant and a hospital."
One of the technicians turned and said, "General Landry, Sir, there's a call for you from the White House."
Hank took the phone and listened. Then he said, "Yes, Sir. I agree. Yes, Sir, I understand. Thank you, Mr. President." He hung up the phone and said, "It's time to get this show on the road." He reached for the phone and pushed the intercom number. "Attention! This is your commander speaking. This is not a drill. A large number of alien ships are gathering on the edge of our solar system and are probably on their way to earth, possibly to attack. I want everyone to remain calm and I've been ordered to begin 'Operation Firefly.' You have all drilled for this so I want you to each get your manuals and start the process. Again, I repeat, this is not a drill. We're going to Def-con Three." He put the phone back on the cradle and said, 'Gentlemen, we need to get upstairs to the briefing room and command this operation from there." He looked at Walter and said, "Dial up P22-718 and let Doctor Jackson and Colonel Carter know that they should head for the Alpha site. All our other teams have returned?"
"Yes, Sir," said Walter.
"Good. Let's get to work, people."
0o0
Jack paced back and forth in the control room, making the already nervous gate technicians even more edgy. He couldn't believe their rotten luck. The meeting in the briefing room had no sooner started when the gate activated and he heard "Unscheduled Gate Activation. Unknown Traveler," from the overhead speakers. That had happened yesterday afternoon and the 38 minute window had come and gone. Somehow, whoever it was out there that wanted to tie up the gate had figured out a way to keep it open indefinitely. The Iris was closed but he knew that there were some out there who knew how to bypass the iris and come right through. The Nox could do it. The Tollan were able to before they were wiped out. Anubis had done it but he was long gone. Who else?
The worst part of it was that they weren't able to contact Daniel and Sam. His two friends were stranded light years away from home and there was no way to communicate with them. Combine that with the fact that there was a group of aliens out there who were amassing a force that was growing each day. No wonder he couldn't sit still. He knew that protocol stated that they should go to the Alpha site if they couldn't get home. 'Oy! This is too much. Just too much.'
Hank called Jack up from the control room and said, "Have a seat, Jack. I've talked to the President. He's going to address the nation at the same time our Allies will be speaking to their citizens. It is time to let the world know what's been going on here."
Jack sat and then nodded. He knew that that day would eventually come and he'd thought of all kinds of scenarios in which it might take place. He'd even thought about an alien invasion. He'd just hoped-to-god it would never come to pass.
Hank said, "He wants to put a positive spin on this so he's not going to start out by telling them that we might be attacked at any moment."
Jack steepled his fingers and said, "Good idea," somewhat sarcastically. He then scowled and looked away.
"He wants to start from the beginning and tell the public about how the gate was found in Giza in 1928, how nobody knew what it was until Doctor Jackson figured out what the symbols meant. He wants to talk about SG-1 and the positive contributions that the SGC has made to science and technology and the allies we have out there. Only after that, will he tell them about the danger we're in. But, he wants to emphasize that we may not really be under any threat. It could be a group who want to ally with us."
Jack said, "Yeah. Sure. Then, maybe he shouldn't tell them anything yet. What good will it do but panic everyone? He must think that's gonna go over just fine but I don't. I think we're in serious trouble here and there's nothing we can do about it." Jack rested his jaw on his fist and said, "Oy."
Hank sat down across from him and said, "I agree. But, we'll still have panic in the streets if any of the amateur astronomers out there see them coming. Frankly, I'm surprised nobody has but it won't be long before they do if the alien ships head this way."
Jack leaned back and said, "So, what's the plan? Is he going to enact Martial Law and call out the National Guard?"
Hank nodded. "He said he'll have to. He's sure there will still be widespread panic, despite his assurances that we'll have things under control."
"We won't though, Hank. And, we both know it."
They stood and looked hopelessly through the window at the gate which was still active, though the iris was closed. Klaxons had been shut off hours before but the emergency lights continued to bathe the room in their annoying, flashing pattern. "Pandora's box just opened and hope's escaped," Jack said. Hank nodded as they both gazed at what had become both a miracle and a nemesis in their lives.