Chapter 7
'Wake Up'
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AN: Nothing much to say. A chapter that easily wrote itself basically.
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A day minus 248
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On board of Selmak's shuttle the atmosphere was unpleasant as SG-1 and their Tok'ra pilot returned from their failed mission. The only ones not depressed where Jonas Quinn and Sam, who were busy crunching numbers as to what the Saiyans newly revealed transformation could mean.
Jack however was in a particular foul mood, just gazing out of the window into hyper space Teal'c wasn't into much of a talkative mood either. Probably brooding something along the lines of having failed his teacher.
"I still don't understand," Jonas said to Sam in the back of the shuttle's cockpit, "I thought Saiyans transformed into apes under a full moon?"
"That's what all our sources say," Sam replied, "But there is much more we don't know."
"No small thanks to that asshole," O'Neill grumbled, "That's another thing he hid from us."
"Wouldn't you, Jack?" Jacob said fiddling with his controls, "How many things have you hidden from the Tok'ra? How many things are you still hiding from us?"
"That's different," Jack said, looking at Jacob, "You guys keep a lot of secrets from us as well."
"A little trust goes a long way, Jack," Jacob smiled, "the less you use, the further you'll go. He's no different in that then we are."
"You're remarkably cavalier about it," Jack asked the Tok'ra, who shrugged.
"Can't change what I cannot change, Jack. Like Sam said, all our sources say Saiyans change into apes, they don't get a golden make over. The guy also claims he lived for thousands of years. Who knows, maybe he picked up a trick or two that set him apart from the pack?"
"If only we knew where he went," Jack muttered, then he resumed his thousand mile stare into hyperspace again.
"I think we'll find out sooner or later," Jacob said, "And I have a hunch it will be sooner then later."
"I just don't like being played for a fool," Jack said, "Neither by that Saiyan freak, or by Anubis."
"Do you think with that transformation he could take on the Majin?" Jonas asked Sam. Who looked uncertain.
"I have no idea," she said unsure, "even before it was always hard to put an upper limit to his strength. The sources claim the ape transformation gave them a tenfold increase. As long as I have no multiplication factor it could be anything up from…."
Beep beep beep beep…
A loud beeping noise could be heard coming from somewhere on the Tok'ra's control panel.
"What's that?" Jack asked, again halting his glare into hyperspace to look over his shoulder.
"It's a Tok'ra communication," Jacob said using his Selmak voice, "The Tok'ra High Command is trying to communicate with us."
"Isn't that dangerous," Sam asked as she stood up and moved closer to her father.
"Indeed," the Tok'ra said as he began to respond to the hail, "It's only done in case of a catastrophic emergency."
"You think Anubis has used the Majin to attack the Tok'ra?" Jonas asked concerned.
"I don't think so," Selmak said as he browsed through the data package, then he activated a holographic projection of the milky way, with five dots flashing spread all across the milky way in a random pattern.
"What's that?" Jack asked.
"The Tok'ra High Command has learned that all communications have been lost to these worlds, two of which had Tok'ra operatives," Selmak explained as he pointed to the glowing dots, "They think someone attacked these planets and they want us to investigate."
"Do you think it's the Majin?" Jonas asked as he studied the hologram.
"Not unless Anubis has just turned on his own allies," Selmak replied, "Those are all homeworlds of Goa'uld Systemlords who have sided with Anubis. Oh, and I read here that unless the Majin changed its color from pink to gold there's no way Anubis is behind these attacks.
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"Weren't you supposed to be in Cleveland?"
Giles had just started on yet another round of studying the Gypsy Prophecies when somebody rang the door. To his surprise it turned out to be Xander, Willow and Faith.
"We were," Xander said as he stepped inside, "then Willow clicked her heels three times and now we're back home."
"I uh, um, see," Giles said as the teens stepped inside, "Tea anyone?"
"That would be great, Giles," Willow said as she plopped down on his couch, next to Xander. Meanwhile Giles looked outside the door a few times, then he closed his front door and went into the kitchen.
"Don't take this as criticism from my part but there seems to be somebody missing. Did Spike betray you?" Giles called from the kitchen, then he peered out of the kitchen hopeful, "Please tell me he came to a very gruesome end?"
Xander and Willow looked at each other sheepishly.
"Could be," Xander finally said.
"They left him behind, Jeeves," Faith said accusingly, "They beat a hasty retreat and while Spike was fighting alongside us they abandoned him."
"It wasn't like that at all," Willow protested, then she looked at Giles as he came out of the kitchen carrying a tea pot, "We didn't mean to leave Spike behind. It was more like, um, confusing. And Spike didn't get the cue that he should have come with us."
"And how should he have known?" Faith bit back, "it wasn't like we agreed to a series of signals as to what to do."
"Like you would've cared," Willow countered angrily, "You went off on your own."
Faith's anger faded from her face. She did went off on her own. And she couldn't explain as to why. Maybe this was the time when she should come clean as to why she did. The dreams. The voice in her head.
Now is not the time, Faith.
"I…., uh…...," she stammered, then she averted her eyes.
"Maybe we should start at the beginning," Giles said as he reached for his phone, "I'm sure Major Riley and Piccolo would be very interested to hear the whole part as well."
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As yet another world burned around him Belmovekk paused for a moment. The Goa'uld of this world had already been in the process of vacating his palace and it was only by sheer luck that Belmovekk had still managed to get this one. The next one he'd attack he probably wouldn't be so lucky.
He thought of going straight for the next one on the list. But that would mean leaving the former Goa'uld's First Prime behind to die. And he still had a message to deliver. While the message itself was now probably well known, the principle dictated that there still had to be a messenger to prove the point. Thus the First Prime had to be safe guarded.
The Saiyan thought of taking the First Prime to a safe location, before going on the next target. But he decided against it. It would still mean an additional delay. So instead he encapsulated the unconscious First Prime in a bubble of chi, one that would time out in about an hour. After which it should be safe again for the Jaffa to make his journey to the Stargate. Or be rescued by one of the ships cowering at the edge of this star's solar system.
He was about to leave when not far from him in the sky a dark circle began to form, which then erupted like a Stargate in a geyser of dark energy. Seeing it happen Belmovekk began to gather in his energy.
It would seem he was finally getting an answer.
As the dark geyser retreated and formed a stable event horizon the pink creature Jonas had called the Majin emerged.
"So this is Anubis' answer?" Belmovekk said as golden flames of chi grew to a new level and he rose into the air to meet the newcomer.
"Hhgggggggggh!" the Majin hissed defiantly as the portal closed behind him and he saw the Saiyan rise towards. Then both fighters began to circle around each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move.
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When Piccolo entered the former Librarian's home he knew at least something was going on. Not only were the other Slayer's boyfriend and his deputy present, so were the kids that had gone to Cleveland. But that at least he knew as he had felt these kids suddenly re-appear in Sunnydale, and with Xander pumped up to the max in particular..
There was no usual of greeting of hey Pickles, or Jolly Green, just weary faces. Faith seemed relieved to see him but after a brief nod she resumed her thousand miles stare.
"Where's the vampire?" he asked, then he looked at the kids, "did he betray you?"
"Only by being stupid," Xander said sullen.
"The geniuses left him behind," Faith said, earning dirty looks from the sorceress.
"Now, let us not, um, make recriminations," Giles said as he brought refreshments from his kitchen, "Mistakes are often made on the field of battle."
"I could write a whole book about those," Sergeant-Major Burns said.
"So what exactly happened?" Piccolo asked. Upon which Xander began to explain what had happened to them in the Initiative underground bunkers. How the Initiative had found the remains of Android #13 and used Gero's technology to build their own. And how they inadvertently had copied Gero's programming as well, causing their own creations to turn against them. And that #13 reborn was still hell bent on fulfilling his original mission.
But what caused the greatest shock was when Giles learned that his former boss, Quentin Travers, had conspired to work with the Initiative against them.
"I can't believe it," Giles said aghast, "Quentin Travers conspiring against us?"
"I guess he wasn't as fooled by our little stunt as we thought he was," Xander remarked before continuing.
"Jesus Christ on a pogo stick!" the sergeant-major said out loud, "What a grade A clusterfuck these spooks have gotten themselves in."
"And unfortunately a mess we have to clean for them," Riley said as he shook his head, then he faced Burns, "How many trainees could we deploy?"
"With all due respect, sir," Burns protested and pointed to the kids, "If need be we could throw them all at these cyborgs. But if these kids couldn't even defeat that thing, what chance do we have? It be the Battle of Sunnydale all over again."
"We do what we can," Riley said straight-faced.
"We have to bring in Goku," Giles suddenly said.
"Call in the big guns?" Riley said looking at the former librarian, then he shrugged, "might as well do so, these loons cooked up a big one."
"Isn't that too much?" Willow asked cautiously, then she nodded towards Piccolo, "We have him, right?"
"I don't like being the one who runs for help, but I don't think we have a choice, Will," Xander replied, "We're outclassed here and our own resident Saiyan's outta town. We need to outsource. You didn't fight this thing. Spike was at least as strong as me and Frankenborg out there is way stronger then Sparky."
"No!"
All eyes turned to Piccolo.
"I will not deal with this…, this thing," the Namek said as he turned around and made for the door, "Nor will I allow for Goku to be brought in."
Not sure what to make of this sudden turn of events everybody started to eye each other. Then Faith stood up and went after Piccolo.
"But Jolly Green," she protested, "we need…."
Piccolo stopped and looked over his broad shoulder piece.
"My name is Piccolo," he growled, "Not Jolly Green, or Pickles or whatever you lot think is entertaining. I am Piccolo Daimyo, the Demon King, and neither I, nor Goku will take care of this mess for you. Belmovekk asked me to take care of you and I will. Even if its not in the way he thought I would. Learn to deal with it on your own."
And with that Piccolo left Giles' home.
"What give?" Willow said flabbergasted as she looked bewildered around herself.
"He's got to be kidding, right," Xander said equally bewildered, then he looked at Faith, "Please tell me he's kidding?"
"He ain't," Faith said as she returned to the chair she had come from and plopped down again, "it's classic Jolly Green. As he said, learn to deal with it on your own. This is the guy who left a five year old to fend for himself in the wilderness for six months."
"Yeah, but he was still evil back then, wasn't he?" Xander asked still disbelieving what just had happened, "Surely he mellowed out?"
Faith pretended to look around.
"I don't see a wilderness," she said, "So I guess he did mellow out."
Riley got up from his chair.
"We have to go," he said to Burns, "We have to warn the SGC and Area 51 that they're going to be under attack."
"Short of a nuclear strike on Cleveland I fail to see what we can do, sir," Burns sighed as he got up.
"They'll figure out something," Riley said as reached for his jacket, "If they can stop alien invasions they might be able to come up with a way to stop this cyborg."
"Their luck has to run out at some point though," Burns said quietly, more to himself.
"Then let's hope there's still some left," Riley replied.
The two soldiers were about to leave Giles' home as well when Xander got up.
"Wait a second," he said to the two soldiers, then he faced everybody, "Maybe Piccolo has a point. And so does Riley here. It's not about being the strongest all the time, it's about being the smartest. If we can't defeat that thing, well, maybe we can outsmart it."
"That's a big maybe, Xander," Giles said.
"Well, you still got your books," Xander said pointing the bookcases behind them, "we still have a powerful sorceress who once channeled a God, we have your knowledge, we have a Slayer and we have Riley and his army buddies. If we together can't come up with a plan to stop this Frankenborg reject then the world truly deserves to die."
Giles looked around the room, then back at Xander. The teen looked so dead earnest. And he was right in some respect. You had to learn to work with what you had instead of wishing for you could have. That was how Watchers used to train their Slayers. Before they became dependent on Saiyans.
"You have a point," Giles conceded, then he sighed, "I wish I found something I could use in those prophecies. Some clue I could use."
"Sometimes you just can't pierce the fog of war," Riley said as he and Burns returned to their seats, "Sometimes you have to take things in stride and use what you have instead of wish for what you don't have."
Xander turned to Willow.
"Can't you do sorcery, Will?" he asked, "Maybe extract whatever's powering this thing and make him into an ex-energizer bunny?"
"You just can't use sorcery to do that," Willow said shaking her head, "If you can't rip it just out, neither can I. I wouldn't even know what to look for."
"Didn't you do a memory dump of that Initiative computer?" Xander said as he pointed towards the bag that held her laptop
"You're right," Willow said as her face lit up, then she opened her bag and fired up her laptop.
"You mean you have actual information taken from their network?" Riley said in disbelief as he went to stand behind her laptop as it booted up.
"I did manage to break into their network," Willow said after her laptop had finished booting up, then she began to look through the files she had downloaded. For five minutes she glanced through the files, opening files and scrolling through them for information at an incredible rate.
"I can't belief you're doing that so quickly," Riley said in a mixture of disbelief and admiration, "Is that because you can do magic?"
"No," Willow said absentmindedly, "I could do this before as well."
"I can vouch for that," Xander said, "Will's wicked with a computer."
"I'd attest to that if I actually knew how those infernal things work," Giles responded as Riley looked at him.
"Is that Windows 98 or Millennium?" Burns asked as he looked at Willow's laptop. Strange as may seem to those who knew him, the sergeant-major actually knew something about computers.
"Please," Willow snorted derisively, "Window's for amateurs."
"A Unix based system then?" the sergeant-major suggested interested.
"I'm beyond Unix," Willow said, then she stopped clicking and turned around, "There's nothing in here about this, this thing. Only the stuff they had on us.
"Then I guess we're back at square one," Riley said.
"Not necessarily," Willow said as she rummaged in her bag and pulled out a cable which she gave to Xander, "could you, Xander?"
"Sure, Will," Xander said and then looked around for a moment before turning towards Giles, "Giles, where's your phone connection?"
"Over there," Giles said as he pointed to a corner, then he turned to Willow, "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going online, Giles," Willow replied all businesslike, "I still have those Initiative passwords and now that I know where they are I'm just going to log in from here."
Giles looked at her in utter disbelief, then at Xander pulling the cable through the room, then back at Willow.
"I may not know much about, um, computers," Giles said frowning, "but, um, don't you need an internet connection to connect to the internet? And I don't have one."
"Sure you do," Willow replied, "I'm using it right now. Thanks Xander!"
"You're welcome." Xander said as he got up again. Giles followed the cable to where Xander had hooked it up next to his telephone connection and noticed a small box. He had no idea what it was but he'd bet good money it was something computer related.
"When did this happen?" he said incredulously.
"Last year, after the high school got trashed," Willow said, "I thought since we're gathering here half the time it might be useful."
"But…., I….," Giles said flabbergasted, not sure how to respond.
"Afraid it will ruin your precious books?" Xander smiled as he patted the former librarian's shoulder, "Don't worry, they survived the school's LAN system, didn't they?"
"Why do I even bother?" Giles muttered, then he went back into the kitchen, "I'm getting some tea."
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Damn this was hard, Buffy thought as she fought the magic that these so called priests were unleashing on her. She was strong though. She could take it.
For a while.
She sure wished Belmo would hurry up though. In the nick of time might look good in the movies, but in this case she wouldn't mind a spoiled ending.
The only thing that annoyed her more then the crazy cackling of that Goold, Newby one of those stupid priests had called him, and those crazy priests chanting were those muffled screams coming from somewhere else. It was highly…. distracting.
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"I'm in," Willow said from behind her laptop.
"Hacker girl to the rescue," Xander said as he ruffled her hair as he looked over her shoulder as Willow brought up data.
"And to think we actually worried about what would happen if these people were to turn against us and use their powers," Burns whispered to Riley, "Turns out she could simply hack into our systems and we wouldn't even notice it. "
"Luckily not everybody in the army's as computer illiterate as you, sergeant-major," Riley replied as he read the data, "I'm sure we have a few clever people as well."
"If you say so, sir," Burns replied back, not sounding that convinced. Nor that insulted about his computer skills. He knew enough to know that compared to the girl he really was illiterate.
"I think I found something," Willow said and pointed to a schematic on the screen.
"I think you do," Riley said, "It's similar to the shield on the Enterprise. That's a Goa'uld shield emitter."
"He's got shields? Real shields?" Xander said incredulously, then he looked at Riley, "We got a spaceship called the Enterprise?"
Sighing one more time Riley ignored the teen and continued to look at the screen.
"I think that could be his source of power," she said.
"Holy crap!" Riley exclaimed as he saw what she had uncovered, "that's a naquadria reactor combined with a Gero type fusion reactor."
"That's bad, right?" Xander asked worried.
"Why go for two different power sources?" Willow asked as she looked at Riley, "Isn't a single source much better?"
"I don't know," Riley said unsure, "I just know what, well, that's classified. Suffice to say that a lot of research has gone into unlocking how Gero powered his androids, and while they can power a small city for a lifetime, the design seems flawed."
"In what way?"
"Lemme guess," Xander interjected, "your eggheads don't know how to tune it up any further?"
Shooting an annoyed glance towards Xander Riley continued.
"In a way. Not enough to propel a ship through hyperspace. A naquadria reactor on the other hand can do that. But that stuff is extremely hard to come by. It also wouldn't last him a lifetime."
"Quite clever then," Xander nodded, "He's got the Gero reactor to power him for forever, and in case of an emergency he's got that naqua-something to give him a boost."
"It's naquadria," Riley corrected, "And it's also highly unstable. If through some chance you do manage to blow this guy up without destroying Cleveland you still will."
Xander glanced upwards and sighed.
"Never too much fun at my expense, do you, guys?" he muttered softly.
"So now we must also come up with a way to not only defeat this monstrosity and at the same time prevent its powercore from blowing up," Giles said sipping some tea., "Marvelous."
"What about magic?" Willow suggested, "Maybe some kind of, I don't know...naquadria extracting spell?
Everybody gave her a weird look.
"You can do that?" Burns said flabbergasted.
"I know. I'm reaching," Willow said as she saw the looks on everybody's faces.
"Is that stuff native to Earth," Giles asked Riley, who shook his head.
"It only exists on a single planet in the galaxy," the major replied.
"Then I don't think such a spell has a chance of existing," Giles said as he finished his cup of tea.
"Maybe something else?" Xander suggested and looked hopeful at Giles, "Anything?"
"Perhaps," Giles said as he stood up and walked towards one of his bookshelves and pulled out a book.
"Maybe a paralyzing spell could do the trick," he said as he opened his book, then he stopped, "Only I can't perform the incantation for this."
"Maybe I can?" Willow said as her eyes began to glisten in hope.
"Not unless you can speak it fluently in Sumerian, are an experienced witch and are within striking distance of this, um, thing?" Giles replied.
"Bummer," Xander said.
"But you could teach me, right?" Willow said, "I could learn to pronounce it. And with my own shield I could…"
Giles shook his head.
"Your pronunciation would have to be perfect. That's why I said an experienced witch could do it. And you are still far from being an experienced witch."
"Isn't there something sorcery could do instead?" Xander asked.
"I don't know what," Willow said shaking her head, "Sorcery is a test of will. And judging by these designs he's got two reactors full of it."
The three looked helplessly at each other.
"You should have taken Sumerian instead of French in class, Will," Xander said
"A little late for that now, don't you think, Xander?" Willow countered annoyed.
"You guys are really up shit creek," Burns said and pointed to the three Scoobies, "She's got the magic, he's got the brains and he's got the muscles. if you three could melt into a single fighter you could probably kick this guy's ass, but now….:"
Giles suddenly looked at the sergeant-major.
"Just making an observation," Burns said expecting a disparaging remark. Instead the former librarian looked at his books again.
"Actually, you might be on to something," he said as he pulled another book from his bookshelf, then he paused before opening, "Only we need the Slayer for that."
"If only Buffy were here," Willow sighed mournfully.
"What are you guys blabbering on about," Xander said and pointed towards Faith, still sitting on the couch, "the Slayer sits right over there."
"Xander," Willow said softly towards, "Giles said we need the Slayer, not a Slayer."
Faith wanted to say something but then didn't. Meanwhile Xander walked to the couch and stood behind Faith, then he placed his hands on her shoulders.
"Look, I don't know where you all got this idea that somehow Buffy's the Slayer and Faith's the understudy," he said, "But when Buffy died for a few minutes it was enough for Kendra to be activated. And when Kendra died Faith was activated. Don't you guys get it? Faith's not the understudy, If anyone's the Slayer, it's not Buffy, it's Faith. So anything that will work on Buffy will also work on Faith and the other way."
Willow wanted to protest, more out of some kind of loyalty towards Buffy then an actual rebuff, but Giles stopped her.
"In his usual clumsy way Xander's right," he said, "They're both the Slayer. Faith, will you help us?"
Faith looked at Giles, then at Xander still holding her shoulders.
"Yes," she said, her voice choking just a little as Xander gave her an encouraging squeeze.
"What do you have in mind, Giles," Riley asked the former librarian. Who then told them what he had in mind. As soon as he did Riley gasped for air, as did Burns.
"You've got to be kidding," Riley said in utter disbelief, "you don't actually think that will work, right?"
"Actually it's an extremely dangerous spell," Giles said dead serious, "but I don't think we have any other option."
"I'm still going to bring in every trained soldier we have," Riley said.
"You do that," Giles said, "as long as they buy us the time to perform the spell all help is appreciated."
"I can't believe it," Burns exclaimed and pointed towards Faith, "We're going to have to put our fate in the hands of that murdering bitch?"
"Sergeant-Major," Riley said calmly, "Can it."
"But….," Burns protested, "Her former boss, what about Jenkins, François, and the others, who are still dead because of her treachery. Don't they count?"
"Sergeant-Major Montgomery Burns," Riley shouted, "Do as you are told. That's an order!"
Burns stood to attention and saluted.
"Yes sir!" he shouted back. But it was clear he did so with great reluctance.
The whole exchange had hurt Faith. Again her past was haunting her. Then she felt something in her mind.
See? They cannot be trusted.
This was the second time she felt it speak inside her mind since returning to Sunnydale. Now it really began to worry her. She should really speak up and tell the others that it was speaking to her. Especially with G.'s crazy plan.
Yet as soon as she tried to open her mouth she felt unable to speak out. Xander however saw her trying to speak.
"Don't worry," he said misunderstanding her reticence as guilt, "No matter what he thinks, he's still a soldier. And they know the chain of command. If Riley tells him to shut up, he will."
But that was not what I meant, Faith tried to say. Instead she said nothing. Instead another word popped up in her mind.
Soon!
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On what used to be the capital world of the Goa'uld Herishef his First Prime awoke within the burned remains of his former Lord's palace. Reaching for his head with one hand and trying to steady himself with the other Herishef's First Prime tried to make sense of what had happened. And then he remembered.
The Golden Alien!
As he looked around himself Herishef's First Prime saw nothing but a vast plain of burned rubble and debris of what was once a shining city, a capital to his living God.
Oh dear lord, he had failed, failed his God!
Tears welled up in his eyes as the realization that his God was no more hit him. He wanted to bury his face in the ashes and cry out to the heavens. Herishef was no more!
DOOM!
A massive explosion rocked the very planet he was on and shook the First Prime from his grief. No sooner followed by a massive gust of wind as the shockwave of the explosion followed, nearly blasting the First Prime away with its gust and the ash and sand it contained.
As the wind passed Herishef's First Prime turned around and looked into the skies. They were still heavily filled with ash clouds but then he saw it. Something that moved impossibly fast, then came to a dead stop and a small shockwave erupted as two forces collided with great vigor. Then two streaks, one golden, one white, spiraled around each other upwards, little eruptions of displaced energy causing smaller shockwaves along the way. Then another massive shockwave erupted high in the sky and something fell into the ground with great speed, causing a small earthquake to happen and a crater to be formed.
Then the golden streak slammed into the crater, only to be greeted by a massive purple blast that shot it back into the sky. In the wake of the purple blast the white streak shot up from the crater again and the two forces clashed again. Next it rained golden orbs of death that landed on the planet's surface in the distance. As they landed they exploded in massive blasts, brighter then the local sun and the First Prime had to take cover behind a large boulder that was by now all that was left of Herishef's palace.
It took for a moment but eventually strong winds began to blast the First Prime's position again, who was fortunate enough that the large boulder proved enough protection from the strong winds and debris that now blasted his position.. Unfortunately it didn't provide him shelter against the almost unbearable heat that came with the winds.
Somehow the First Prime survived the onslaught, he had been after all a tough veteran of the many wars Herishef had waged. As the winds settled again there was no sign of the two combatants high in the sky.
But he did saw a field of mushroom clouds rising into the sky where the explosions had taken place, adding more ash and debris to the already heavily polluted atmosphere.
Tentatively the First Prime got up from behind the boulder and looked around him. Literally half the horizon was filled with rising mushroom clouds and the onset of a rapidly approaching thunderstorm as the planet's atmosphere tried to get rid of all the debris and discharge that had built up.
Seeing that discretion was the better part of valor after one's God had died the First Prime ran away. Hoping that through some miracle the Chappa'ai had survived. Like all Goa'uld Herishef had not built his palace next to the gate, or built his palace around it, in case of attack through the Stargate. But it was still relatively close to be in walking distance. If you were put through your paces.
Or in the First Prime's case, had death itself on hot pursuit.
So far the two powers seemed oblivious to his presence, like a Jaffa was oblivious to the presence of small crawling insects on the floor around him. But that did not mean nobody stepped on a small crawling insect by accident.
After running for what seemed like forever the First Prime's hopes began to grow again as he saw the round circle of the Cha'pa'ai standing in the distance. Somehow it had survived. Like he had.
He was close now, just past a hill with the Cha'pa'ai over the next one when suddenly something purple streaked over his head towards the Cha'pa'ai.
"Nooooo!" the First Prime wailed, then instinct took over and he let himself fall to the ground. Just in time as a massive blast erupted on the other side of the hill.
BOOM!
As the earth trembled the First Prime clung to the dirt for all his might. Being in a small valley shielded him from the brunt of the explosion. But not the shower of earth and debris that rained down on him. For what seemed like forever the shower continued, then it abated and finally stopped.
Nearly completely covered in dirt the First Prime raised his head, then he got up and continued his run for the Cha'pa'ai. Climbing up the hill he stumbled at least three times as he found his left leg refused to cooperate. Glancing briefly at his leg he noticed a large tear in his leg armor and a laceration caked with blood and dirt still oozing blood. A piece of shrapnel stuck from the wound as well.
No time for that now though as the First Prime dragged himself up the hill towards the Cha'pa'ai. And on top of the hill he stopped.
In front of him where the Cha'pa'ai should have been, there was nothing left. The once indomitable seeming device, one that would stand the test of time, was no more. Just a large crater where it had once stood.
Defeated the First Prime let himself fall on the ground and looked in disbelief at the crater. It was over.
When he finally noticed the golden orb of death that came right towards him he didn't even make an effort to escape. Instead he welcomed death. At least his God and comrades would be waiting for him on the other side.
x
x
Belmovekk had been fighting the Majin now for more then an hour and found to his dismay that they were evenly matched. Even when he had gone all the way to his max the Majin was still more powerful. Of course it didn't help that he had spent way too much time in Super Saiyan state eradicating planets.
On the other hand the Majin was all about raw power and lacked skill, preferring to use that raw power instead. So for as long as Belmovekk utilized his greater knowledge and experience to his advantage the two of them were equal.
It clearly frustrated the Majin to no end, but hey, that was his bane to carry. Not being able to utilize all his experience and techniques into victory was Belmovekk's bane.
Still, a battle like this was the wet dream of every Saiyan. The very idea of finding the perfect opponent to whom you were so evenly matched was the highest ideal of Saiyan martial arts and whole volumes of song and literature had been created to that very concept. It sang in the blood of every Saiyan and even despite millennia of having the more absurd parts of his culture slowly eroded from his being not even Belmovekk was immune to its lure.
As he fought the Majin a chorus swelled up from his blood that swelled up to epic levels inside his mind. It was the sound of all his ancestors, of the whole Saiyan race as they sang songs of blood, songs of encouragement, songs of war, songs of glory and songs of death. It was something Belmovekk and every Saiyan heard as they engaged into holy combat and when they had to dig deep for strength. It was something that Belmovekk had spent a long time trying to ignore because it made Saiyans do stupid things.
Except now that he was up to his max it sang for his attention like never before. Telling him this was his moment. This was what he was born for.
Horse piss!
He had no time to give in to his inner Saiyan. He had to come up with a way to defeat this demon so he could get to Anubis. He had to safe Buffy.
Ignoring the logic of that alone, how else would he face the wrath of his wife? After all, she had told him to either return together or not at all.
So he soldiered on. Trying to come up with ways defeat this demon as they traded blow for blow, kick for kick and blast for blast. And getting nowhere.
But damn was this fun!
But as the Saiyan fought to contain his Saiyan nature and let excitement get the better of him, the Majin looked visibly more and more frustrated. Whatever the hell it was and whatever strange and demonic powers it possessed, patience wasn't one of its virtues.
It growled and snarled possible obscenities at the Saiyan in whatever the hell passed for its native language. If it had any. It lashed out at the Saiyan with its strange almost mitten like hands but the Saiyan just managed to stay out of reach. Most of the time. It used his feet to kick towards the Saiyan but he managed to evade most kicks. At least the powerful ones.
The blasts were dangerous as the Majin literally seemed to have power to spare in that respect, showering the planet below them with destructive energy in the philosophy that if fired enough energy blasts it might hit the retreating Saiyan.
Of course it occasionally did hit the retreating Saiyan.
Hurting from untold bruises and scrapes the Saiyan tried to counter attack. And deftly was confronted when the demon counter counter attacked with its large tail like appendage on its head.
Somehow that appendage scared Belmovekk the most. Like he instinctively knew bad juju would happen if that thing ever were to touch him. That it was better to be hit ten, twenty times by the creatures feet and fists then just once by its head tail.
And yet as he evaded the demon's head tail his face ran into the demon's fist. So it knew about his reticence in regards to that appendage, Belmovekk thought as he evaded a follow up kick and used his left hand to fire a quick chi blast to cover his retreat. It was learning. He had to take that into account. And maybe use that to his advantage.
For a minute he fought and evaded the demon like before. Causing much more chagrin to the creature. Then he counter attacked like before, coming a little too close. And like before the head appendage lashed out and like before Belmovekk recoiled for its touch. And like before the demon used the Saiyan's revulsion to strike with its other appendages.
Only this time Belmovekk was prepared, blocked the strike and used the demon's confusion to drive it's knee in its gut. His knee struck home with so much force the demon buckled up, giving the Saiyan the opportunity strike him on the back with both hands, causing the demon to fall to the ground and create a large crater.
The Saiyan dove after the thing in the hope that this time he had struck a decisive blow. But he had been there before and ended up eating energy attack instead. So he used a slightly offside course to dive after the demon.
Which turned out just as well cause if he had flown in a straight course he would have gotten a face full of that purple energy beam that now just missed him. So that was a big no on having delivered a decisive strike. Was there no stopping this thing?
Unleashing an energy beam of his own Belmovekk began to pump energy into the crater, creating a golden zone of pure death around that thing as he literally tried to cook the bastard alive.
It was to no avail however as the golden zone suddenly expended and then broke up, sending shards of golden chi into every direction, detonating on impact. And as the dust settled Belmovekk could see the demon as it had its arms outstretched to support a shimmering shield.
Was there no stopping this thing?
Panting heavily Belmovekk took stock of the situation. This was going to be a real battle of attrition. A battle that would take time. And time was something that Buffy didn't have. Only Aldur knew what that freak Anubis was doing to her right now. It called for desperate measures.
He would have to break out his emergency senzu bean.
Maybe if he restored his own energy again and lost his fatigue he would finally be able to finish this thing off and then take on Anubis.
He reached inside his own shirt and pulled out the small locket that hung on a chain around his neck. Crushing the small metal locket he took out the senzu bean that was in it and popped it in his mouth. As he chewed he assumed a fighting stance and challenged the demon to come towards him.
"Bring it on."
The demon on the other hand thought otherwise. It suddenly took off in the opposite direction. And Belmovekk, fully reinvigorated, gave chase. But then he saw what the demon had in mind. The damn thing was trying to escape!
It had opened a portal in the distance and was hauling ass towards it. And even with his energy fully restored Belmovekk found it hard to keep up with the demon, let alone overtake it.
"Nooooooo!" the Saiyan yelled as he saw the demon fly through the portal. Then it closed after him, leaving the Saiyan alone on a ruined planet.
"NO!" Belmovekk yelled angry as he hung there in the air, right underneath a thundercloud. His chi caused the cloud to discharge while he gave outing to his frustration.
"I will find you, demon!" he yelled amidst the roar of thunder erupting around him, "I know your chi now!"
Indeed did he now know the demon's chi signature. You do not fight with an opponent of that magnitude and not pick up on it. But how to find it again a galaxy 25.000 light-years across?
And then it hit on him. He even began to chortle.
"You made a terrible mistake, Anubis, releasing your pet demon. For now I will find you. Through him."
Then Belmovekk brought two fingers to his forehead and closed his eyes to concentrate.
And then he vanished.
x
x
The first thing Riley did as he landed in the Air Force base was make for his office while he set Burns to rally the troops. On the way back to the base the sergeant-major hadn't said a word other then respond to Riley's orders. A part of Riley feared that he may have ruined their friendship by siding with the Dark Slayer. Another part knew that there was no time to play touchy feely, that there was a job to be done and that such things were best mended over a cold beer afterwards.
As he stormed into the HQ building the duty officer arose.
"Sir?" he said and reached for a clip board, "There have been several calls for you by Washington from General War…."
"I have no time for that," Riley said as he walked right past the duty officer to his office, "Get me Jamison in Bragg on the phone. The secure one."
"But sir, the general was quite…." the duty officer tried to protest but Riley gave him a death glare that told him to shut up. Nobody pissed off the major and not suffer the consequences of it. Except perhaps maybe his girlfriend. And the major had made plenty of 'object lessons' out of people who thought that his smart mouthed girlfriend made for funny after hours talk.
"I will get Major Jamison for you, sir," the duty officer said as he swallowed.
Riley entered his office and made for his desk. There he sat down on his chair and waited for the call to be put through.
Which it soon did.
"I have Major Jamison on the line for you, sir," the duty officer's voice said through the speaker.
"Put him through," Riley said.
"Riley, you scum bucket," a thick accented voice spoke from the speaker, "why the hell are you calling me this late? Please tell me it's not an emergency and that you've finally come to your senses and that you're joining the Corps?"
"And go Semper Fi all the time?" Riley snorted as a smile crept on his face, "Thanks but no thanks, Jamison. I like the Army way too much to become a Leatherneck. I was born green, remember?"
"Suit yourself, you army puke," Jamison voice laughed on the other side. The Marine had been one of the top Earth soldiers handpicked by Belmovekk to be trained in the art of chi fighting. At first just what he had called the Auxiliary Training Program. The training Saiyans gave to auxiliaries from their subjugated worlds. But the training program was also specifically designed to keep those who were trained at a certain level. One that lay far below of even the lowliest program.
As he began to train and get to know his trainees their Saiyan teacher had begun to like the men he was training. And halfway through the program he had shown them where the deliberate pitfalls were, meant to keep them at that deliberate low level. He even had begun to teach them the first basic katas or forms of Saiyan martial arts. Which were totally extra-curricular.
And occasionally those members of the original group that had survived both the training and the Battle of Sunnydale still returned for some additional private lessons. Such was the bond between Belmovekk's Bastards and their Satiya.
"So there's an emergency," Jamison said through the speakerphone, "Is our Satiya in trouble?"
The Marine actually sounded worried.
"Could be," Riley sighed, "He's gone off world with the SGC."
Riley then proceeded to give Jamison the gist of what had happened.
"Lemme get this straight," the Marine said as he tried to make sense of what he had just heard, "So some Spooks have begun their own program to create super soldiers using the technology they got from #13's remains. And now the Bastard's programming has subverted their base and taken possession of their uber-cyborg? And you thought it was a good idea to let these kids go off to Cleveland on their own?"
"You make it sound like it's some cheesy TV show," Riley protested.
"No it sounds like you've slept too much with Satiya's stepdaughter and her stupid has rubbed off on you," the Marine's voice said over the speaker, then his voice sighed, "What do you want me to do?"
"Send every man you have towards Cleveland," Riley said, "We're going back there as well and this time we'll finish the job."
Jamison didn't immediately reply.
"And bypass the chain of command?" he finally said incredulously, "Are you insane? We have to evacuate Cleveland. We can't have another Battle of Sunnydale, only this time in Cleveland. We were lucky in Sunnydale that only so few people died. There are almost half a million of people in that city alone. A million in the greater Cleveland area. That's a lot of people to be trusting to luck."
"There's no time," Riley said, "That thing's going to launch an attack against Area 51 and the SGC to reclaim the remains of the other two. If it gets their diskeys Gero will know we're on to him. We could lose a whole lot more then Cleveland if that happens."
"How on Earth can I send 150 trainees to Cleveland without Washington and the SGC noticing?"
"Just tell your superiors you're taking them on a field ex," Riley said, "Satiya did it all the time, remember?"
"Intimately," Jamison's voice snorted, then he sighed, "Alright, I'll do it. I'll kick Mike out of bed and rally the trainees. Will you be bringing your bunch as well."
"Just a squad," Riley replied, "Burns will take the rest to Groom Lake in case those cyborgs make it there. They cannot be allowed to get access to those diskeys."
"We could have really used them," Jamison said wistfully, "would have doubled our strength."
"It's not up to us to decide this," Riley said, "It's up to these kids."
"All the more reason to have your bunch with us," the Marine major said, "Riley, do you trust this Faith? She did betray us before, remember? Well, not us personally, but she did go over to the Dark Side."
Riley didn't immediately respond. To be frank he had his own doubts. Once a traitor….
Of course it was more of what she represented, a deadly past, as he didn't really know her. She did seem full of regret though. Who knows, she might actually want to turn over a new leaf.
He couldn't tell Jamison though of his doubts. He knew Jamison. If he did there was no way the Marine would send his men to Cleveland.
"I think she's on the level," Riley said deadpan.
"You do know I'm trusting the lives of my men to your judgment, Riley," the Marine said in earnest, "And I will personally kick your ass to hell if she gets us killed, your Army rat!"
"Like you could," Riley snorted derisively, "Bragg may have better training grounds then Sunnydale, but this place does have its perks, you know."
"Yeah, I know," Jamison replied, "You get to bang Satiya's daughter. And private lessons with him I assume? So are you going to call the others?. I'm pretty sure they'd hate to miss the party."
"Last thing I heard Jake, Johansen and Spencer were still off planet with SG-41," Riley said.
"What about our foreign friends?" the Marine asked, "Tony was pretty pissed he had to miss Satiya's wedding. That Limey bastard would cross the Atlantic in a heartbeat, taking his trainees with him. Always helpful in a fight those Brits. As would Jürgen and Andre."
"I would if I think it would be of help," Riley said, "But I think this will be all over and decided by the time they'd get here."
"Suit yourself," Jamison said, "I'll tell Mike you said hi. Belmovekk's Bastards!"
"Belmovekk's Bastards!" Riley replied. Then the Marine hung up, leaving Riley to think things over for a moment. He had lied to his friend. Those damn kids better come through for him.
Then outside he could hear the sounds of troops getting rallied as Burns roused the men. Burns could handle that part. Riley had a different part to fulfill. There were still a few more phone calls to make.
x
x
"Nervous?" Willow asked.
"No way. I'm full of that good old kamikaze spirit," Xander replied as they waited outside in front of Giles' home.
"Xander, just because this is never gonna work, there's no need to be negative," Giles' replied from inside his home, then the former librarian emerged from his home carrying a carton box full of books and stuff which he put next to him on the ground, then he pulled out his keys to close the door.
"This enjoining spell, is it powerful enough to defeat Adam?" Willow asked.
"It's very powerful. It's also extraordinarily dangerous," Giles said as he stuck his keys in the lock, he almost turned them when he suddenly remembered something, "Oh dear."
"That oh dear doesn't exactly fill me much with confidence," Xander said, suppressing a mental shudder.
"Is there something wrong, Giles?" Willow asked worried.
"No, nothing wrong," Giles said absent minded, "I just forgot something."
"Then don't oh dear us like that," Xander said as he pretended to slap Giles, "You know every time you say that I get a heart attack."
"I shall endeavour to persevere," Giles said as he opened his front door and went inside.
"You do that!" Xander called after him, then he turned to Willow, "What does that mean?"
Inside his home Giles went to a small room containing his magic paraphernalia and retrieved a small bag of powder from a cabinet. Then he left the room and walked towards the front door. In doing so he passed the living room.
"Hello Rupert," a voice suddenly said, causing Giles to stop in his tracks.
"Who's there?" Giles said as he reached for the light switch, "I do have to warn you though, just by being here in my home you are in breach of the Edict."
As he turned around Giles switched on the light
Only to see someone sitting on the couch who was the last person he'd ever expect to see.
Doctor Daniel Jackson.
The late doctor Daniel Jackson.
"D…, d…, Doctor Jackson?" Giles stammered in utter surprise.
"Nice to see you as well," Daniel Jackson replied as he pointed to the opposite sofa, "please, sit. Let's talk. It's been a while, isn't it?"
"It is," Giles said flabbergasted and pointed over his shoulder, "I, uh, we, um…"
"I know," Daniel said understanding, "You and the others have to go to Cleveland. To fight Adam. A few minutes of your time won't hurt though."
Without thinking Giles sat down opposite the dead archaeologist.
"You know?" he asked, then his face turned surprised again, "Adam?"
"That's his name," Daniel smiled.
"I see," Giles said as he looked downwards, to the coffee table that was between them, then he looked up, "I thought you were dead? Aren't you dead?"
Daniel looked aside and pretended to think about it.
"In a fashion," he finally said, "I ascended to a higher plane. I'm a non corporeal being now."
"Really?" Giles said, "I mean, wow, that's, um, fascinating."
Daniel leaned forward.
"You wouldn't believe what I now know after I ascended," he whispered conspiratorially.
"I can believe, um, quite a, uh, lot," Giles said nervously.
"I know of the cosmic struggle, what Anubis is doing even now, of what the Initiative has done, what Adam is planning to do," Daniel leaned again forward, "And what you have done to me, Rupert. I remember it all again."
"Oh dear," Giles muttered as he reached for his glasses and cleaning cloth, "I was afraid you would."
"Relax, Rupert," Daniel said reassuringly, "I understand why you did it. And your prophecy did come true. Even though you stole most of my life, I did die of some stupid accident within less of a year anyway. So I forgive you."
Giles stopped polishing his glasses.
"You do?" he said surprised upon which Daniel shrugged. .
"No need to bear grudges once you learn the mystery of life, the universe and everything," Daniel smiled, "Besides, why bear a grudge towards someone when he's most likely going to die."
"Well, thanks I guess, of sorts," Giles replied, then something clicked in his mind, "You know what Adam is planning?"
"Like I said, once you ascend its like the fog gets lifted on everything," Daniel replied.
"Then tell us!" Giles asked, "Tell us what he plans to do so we can stop it."
Daniel looked away uncomfortably.
"It doesn't work like that," he said uneasy.
"Yes it does," Giles said, "you talk, I listen, an exchange of information takes place."
"I can't," Daniel said evasively, "I, um, we are bound by strict rules of non-intervention."
Giles looked upwards and rolled his eyes.
"It can never be easy, can it?" he muttered dejected.
"I want to help," Daniel said, "really I do. But the moment I break the rules, so can They."
"Then why dangle this particular titbit in front of me?" Giles said accusingly as he stood up, "Why waste my time at all?"
"Because forgiveness is a powerful force?" Daniel replied smiling uncomfortably.
Giles put his glasses back on.
"Look, Doctor Jackson, I find this whole exchange very much intriguing. And if I had the time I would love to have stayed and chatted about your new nature. But unfortunately I am hard pressed for time. And if you cannot help me defeat this…, this Adam, then maybe we should talk another time."
"I'm afraid there won't be another time," Daniel replied regretful, "This is all I'm permitted to do."
"Then I bid you farewell and a nice..., um, afterlife," Giles said as he was about to walk away."
"Wait," Daniel said and pointed to the coffee table, "You're forgetting your, um, little plastic bag of, uh, magical something."
Seeing the bag of powder lying on the table Giles suddenly remembered why he had re-entered his home in the first place.
"Thanks," he said shaking his head, "sometimes I can be so forgetful."
Then he picked up the bag, switched off the light and left his home.
"Glad to have been of service," Daniel said as he began to sport a big grin.
x
x
"And there he is," Xander said as he saw two SUV's drive up to Giles' home. As the two vehicles halted Riley stepped out of the lead car, soon followed by more men. Who, while all in civilian garb, had the unmistaken look of soldiers about them.
"Just in time," Xander said as behind him Giles emerged from his home and closed the front door.
"They do teach us to be punctual in the military, you know," Riley said as he pulled a duffel bag from the car.
"And to bring your own goon squad with you as well," Xander said as he eyed the soldiers.
"I thought it might be helpful to bring some extra help with us," Riley said.
"Burns not coming?" Xander asked.
"He got his orders to carry out," Riley replied as he walked past the car until he was in front of Xander, "Are we done playing 20 questions?"
"They were just two and a remark," Xander said, pretending to be insulted.
"So, where's Faith?" Riley asked as he looked around if he could see the missing Slayer.
"I'm here," a voice called out from above, next thing Faith somersaulted down from Giles' roof and landed next to them.
"Why were you up there?" Riley asked surprised.
"Now who's playing 20 questions," Faith grinned.
"It's her way," Xander said, "Probably picked it up from Pickles in the wilderness. He likes to hang out in strange places."
"Hey, it's good for thinking," Faith protested.
"See?" Xander said pointing towards Faith, "I rest my case."
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Willow asked Giles as he joined them. Giles at first didn't seem to hear her, as he was sunken in his thoughts, then he looked up.
"Oh, um, uh, yes I did," Giles said as he put a small packet of powder in his cardboard box, "Are we, um, ready to go?"
"Portal's been ready for at least five minutes," Willow said pointing a shimmering swirl in the air five meters away.
"And now that the US cavalry has arrived we're finally ready to go," Xander said.
"Then, um, let's go then," Giles said.
"Game faces, people," Faith said as she walked towards the portal, "We're going back in."
x
x
"Crap, that feels awful," one of Riley's soldiers said after he emerged on the other side of the portal in Cleveland.
"Like twisting your innards," another said.
"Sorry," Willow said apologetic, "There's this phase differential thingy that's hard to get the hang off. And then there's the different harmonics of the Sunnydale and Cleveland Hellmouths to take into account."
"At least we're here," Riley said as he looked around the dark parking lot they had emerged into, "Where are we?"
"By the looks of it the parking lot of the Ramada Inn motel," Xander said and pointed towards one of the cabins to the side, "that was our room."
"Ah, great," Willow said as she closed the portal and was about to start walking towards it, "I left some stuff in there I'd like to…."
"Wait, Red," Faith said as gripped Willow by her shoulder, "Why's the light still on?"
Faith was right as the lights were on in their room.
"She's right," Xander said, "I specifically remember turning the light off."
"Let's find out," Riley said as he pulled forth a gun and began to give hand signals to his men, who like a well oiled machine began to sneak up to the cabin. As soon as they reached the cabin they gathered in two groups on each side of the door.
"On three," he whispered, then he did a silent countdown using his fingers. Then the soldier opposite him kicked in the door and Riley stormed into the room.
Only to find Spike sitting on the bed watching television, then giving them an incredulous look.
"You could have just knocked."