The elevator opened on Level 19 and two officers were shown to the door leading to Ambassador Calan's office and their escort left. Knocking, they entered. Seeing a man sitting in the back of the office, the first officer spoke up: "We're looking for Ambassador Calan."
"You found him," Calan replied, turning slightly in his chair.
"We are here conducting an investigation and we have some questions we need to ask you."
He was cut off by Calan holding up his hand with one finger raised. Universal 'wait a sec' sign. Reaching over, he pressed a button on the wall.
After turning back to them, "the real question will be how the two of you got in here."
Klaxons started sounding and an announcement of 'Intruder Alert! Intruder Alert! Level 19, Office 27.' was repeated several times.
"Don't do anything foolish, and keep your hands visible. Security will be here in a moment and they tend to be jumpy in situations like this" Calan stated calmly.
The woman looked at the man with a 'What did we get in to now?' look as heavily armed security personnel quickly entered the office and took the two officers in to custody.
"Take them to holding, I'll be there shortly with the General." Calan told the SFs.
"You can't do this!" exclaimed the man. "I'm an Marine Officer!"
"Actually we can, Sir," stated the burley SF. "Please don't resist."
A short later: Calan, the General and Jack were discussing their 'guests'.
"So," O'Neill reported, "their identities check out, Lieutenant Commander Gayle Atkins, USN and Major Foster Markie, USMC. They are assigned to the Navy JAG (Judge Advocate General) office in DC. Security said that their fingerprints do match the ones on file with the DoD and FBI."
"But how did they get placed on the access list?" Hammond wanted to know. Furious that they were still being hassled by the NID. They had instituted new procedures only a few months previously. Only the General could grant access with the President's concurrence. In his absence, O'Neill and Calan could grant temporary 'limited with escort' access.
"I guess, we can try talking to them." Calan said. "If they are somehow legit, they shouldn't have any problem telling us what they are doing and how they got here."
General Hammond picked up the phone: "Have the officers brought to the briefing room," he said. Then stepped over and pressed the button closing the blast door over the windows.
Once they arrived, "Airman, you may remove the handcuffs, but stand by in the hall."
"Yes, Sir."
Still pissed, once the two officers were released Hammond order them to sit down.
"You are facing very serious charges starting with unauthorized access to a restricted facility. Now, what are you doing on my base and how did you get in?"
"General, with all due respect, we are not authorized to discuss that with you." LtCdr Atkins stated.
Hammond's face got even redder as his anger rose. Jack's eyes narrowed thinking they had pretty much confirmed they were really NID. Calan asked, "then who sent you here?"
"Admiral Chedwiggen ordered us here." Foster replied.
"AJ Chedwiggen?" Hammond asked surprised.
"Yes, Sir." was the response.
Picking up the phone, General Hammond dialed the main number to the Pentagon: "Office of Rear Admiral A.J. Chedwiggen, JAG" he requested.
After a few moments he was connected and finally had the Admiral on the line. "AJ, George Hammond."
"George, long time." AJ replied.
"AJ, I need an explanation. I have two of your officers here in front of me that are facing a lot of serious charges including unauthorized entry to a restricted area. They won't tell me why they are here. They will only tell me is that you sent them." Hammond stated coldly.
"What? Who?"
"A LtCdr Atkins and Major Markie."
"They're supposed to be investigating sexual harassment charges against a unit commander, not sneaking in to restricted areas. George, where are you?"
"Cheyenne mountain."
"Oh shit. George, I can't talk to you about the case." AJ replied.
"Fine, I'll call the CNO then." Hammond said then hung up.
[CNO: Chief of Naval Operations. The Admiral in charge of the Navy. Also the Navy's member of JCS.]
Getting up from the table, he walked in to his office and picked up the red phone. Pressing the speed dial button for the CNO.
"General Hammond for the CNO." he said.
"Sir, General Hammond. I have two officers from Navy JAG here facing a number of charges for unauthorized entry into the SGC and Admiral Chedwiggen tells me he can't speak to me about it."
After a few moments, "Yes, Sir. I'll be waiting a call."
Calan had come in to the office, "relax George," he said softly. "You don't need to get your blood pressure up and have Dr Frasier mad at you." he joked.
"You're right. Just when we thought we had the rats all rooted out, these two come waltzing in here. That's what has me really mad."
"Look at it this way, at least we know our system works. No one seems to know that all access is now confirmed with the President first. Or, that you, Jack and I always talk to each other on any additions or removals from the list."
Returning to the briefing room, the General and Calan sat down. Jack continued to stare at the two officers.
In a couple of minutes the phone rang. "Hammond... go ahead and transfer the call."
"George?"
"Yes, AJ."
"I'm sorry, George. But I had a memo supposedly signed by the CNO directing me to send the two officers out to investigate you. The CNO has informed me that he never issued that order."
"Very well, AJ. Now I just have to decide what to do with your officers."
"Put them on the next plane back." AJ replied.
"Sorry, but it isn't that simple." Hammond replied. "I have to report this to the President." Hammond said.
Gayle and Foster's eyes shot wide and and they heard the Admiral exclaim through the phone "The President?"
"Yes, for now we'll be keeping them here."
"Are... are they with you? Can I speak to them?" AJ asked.
"I'll put you on speaker. Go ahead." Hammond said after he pushed the button.
"Commander, Major" Gayle and Foster heard Admiral Chedwiggen through the speaker, "Your investigation has been terminated. Give General Hammond and his people any assistance they may request until this is sorted out. Is that clear?"
"Yes, Sir." they both responded.
"George, again I'm sorry. There will be an investigation here to find out where the forged memo came from."
"Thank you, AJ. I'll let you know what happens with your officers." Hammond said ending the call.
At that moment, the klaxon started blaring, "Unscheduled off world activation" sounded. "Security team to the Gate Room. Medical Team to the Gate Room." General Hammond shook his head, "What now?"
Jack started to head to the control room "Colonel, stay with our guests. Get them escorted to VIP quarters for now," as he headed to the Control Room.
"Yes, Sir." Jack replied.
Calling in the airmen from outside the door, Jack ordered, "Watch them." Moving close to the door that led to the control room, Jack listened.
When he was sure it wasn't an attack, "Let's go, the corridor should be cleared out by now." Looking at the SFs, "No handcuffs, VIP quarters. Escorts at all times outside of there, for now."
"Yes, Sir," the SF acknowledged.
Shortly after being shown to the VIP quarters, Gayle looked at Foster, "What did we get in to this time?"
"I don't know, but if the President has to be informed, it is definitely serious."
"Might as well relax. At least we had a descent breakfast. I'm not looking forward to eating in a mess hall until this is resolved."
Looking around, Foster said, "It might not be too bad. I mean, compared to the the drab gray concrete of the rest of the base, these quarters aren't too shabby."
"We'll see. At least there is TV," Gayle replied.
Around noon, there was a knock on the door. Foster went and opened it, seeing Colonel O'Neill and three others with him.
"Thought you might be getting hungry." Jack stated.
Foster turned to Gayle "Hungry?"
Nodding, she got up to followed Foster and the four members of SG-1.
Before they left the room: "Rule number 1," Jack stated. "Don't ask what we do here, what goes on, or what anything is. Rule 2, don't look in to any open doors. There shouldn't be any, but if you see one... just don't. Rule 3, if the alarms sounds and we run off, you stay put until the SFs tell you to move. They will escort you back to your quarters. Any questions about the rules?"
"No, Sir." they both replied.
"Good. I'm Colonel O'Neill, that is Captain Carter, Dr Jackson and Teal'c." he said pointing them out.
Arriving at the commissary, and following SG-1's example, they grabbed a tray and went through the line.
"I have to say, this at least looks better than I was expecting." Gayle said.
"The food is good. All officers are required to eat at least one meal per day when on base..."
"When they remember to eat," Jack interrupted Carter with a smile.
Continuing, "Yes, Sir. We end up eating most of our meals here, Ma'am." Sam told them.
As they went through the line both Gayle and Foster were amazed at the quantity of food Teal'c took. "You either have an amazing metabolism or you work out a lot every day." Foster commented.
"Both." Teal'c replied.
Sitting at the table, Gayle finally asked "Has there been a decision made about us?"
"Not yet," was Jack's reply. "But there should be by this afternoon. We just got your records to review."
"Review?" Foster asked.
"Rule number 1," was Jack's only response.
Later that afternoon, Gayle and Foster were brought back to the briefing room. This time all of SG-1 were present. Jack presented them with non-disclosure agreements to be signed. After that was completed, General Hammond started.
"After reviewing your records, background investigations and clearances; conferring with the President, Ambassador Calan and SG-1," General Hammond paused. "A decision has been reached concerning the two of you."
"The CNO has already informed Admiral Chedwiggen of the decision. He isn't happy but he'll learn to live with it. I'll call Admiral Chedwiggen later and try and smooth things over. You may not be completely happy either, but the order comes from the President." he let that hang in the air for a moment.
"Effective today, you have been reassigned to this command. Welcome to the SGC."
"Sir?" they both blurted out.
"As Ambassador Calan has pointed out to me in the past, and again today with the two of you showing up, we are somewhat hamstrung when it comes to military legal issues. We've had to rely on the Legal Department assigned to NORAD for a number of issues and they are not cleared to know what goes on down here. Therefore their usefulness is lacking. The President agrees and has ordered your transfer." The shock on their faces was clear.
"Colonel O'Neill, call me if you need me," the General said getting up and heading to his office.
O'Neill then spoke up. "The day after tomorrow we'll fly you back to DC for a few days. You can turn over any files you may have and get what you need for a few weeks until your personal and household items can be shipped. You'll need someone to act as your representative to handle any issues with Household Goods and the Transportation Management Office. Both of your records indicate you are single, if you don't have someone that can do that for you we have an officer at the Pentagon that can take care it. Carter?"
"Right now," Sam started, "we'll give you a quick overview of what we do here. I'm Captain Samantha Carter. I have a doctorate in Theoretical Astrophysics and I'll cover the technical aspects of the program here at the SGC. Daniel will cover history; Teal'c will cover the Goa'uld and self-defense training; and, Colonel O'Neill will cover tactics. Teal'c and the Colonel jointly will cover weapons training with you. Since you are both JAG, you'll also be working with Ambassador Calan. He will familiarize you with the treaties that we currently have and those we are working on."
The two officers stared at her with a total lack of comprehension of what was going on. 'Technical? History, weapons and tactics? What's a Guld?' Turning, she said "Daniel."
Getting up, "Um, hello again. My name is Dr Daniel Jackson. I hold doctorates in Anthropology, Archeology and Linguistics. In 1928 on the Giza plateau..."
As Daniel finished giving them the basic history of the Stargate, the klaxon started sounding. "Off-World Activation. Security Team to the Gate Room. Medical Team to the Gate Room," came across the PA system.
"Right on time, Daniel." Jack grinned. Standing up he pressed the button raising the blast door and motioned the two newest members of the SGC to come to the window. Before them the Stargate was locking on to the final chevron and with whoosh, a wormhole was formed and settled back on to itself. They also saw all of the heavily armed security personnel that had flooded the Gate Room, ready for any action.
Picking up the presentation Sam started "what you are seeing is the event horizon of a stable worm hole. Through the Stargate we travel to numerous planets throughout the galaxy. We have met a number of different races and a lot of humans that were originally taken from Earth as slaves by the Goa'uld."
Four people emerged from the Star Gate then, one limping and being supported by two others. "That is SG-11 and they are returning from a planet we have a trade treaty with. Don't worry about the injury. He twisted his ankle playing a game with the local kids. That's what the unscheduled activation was earlier today. They called to let us know about it." Daniel said.
"Trade treaty?" Foster asked.
"Yes," Calan spoke up having come in. "as you know already, I am Ambassador Calan. I represent His Royal Highness and the Country of Bahrain. I am also the designated representative of a number of other countries including Egypt to the SGC. We have treaties with a number of worlds. I work mostly with the diplomatic teams, but you'll find me involved in a lot of other areas of the SGC also."
Later, in the VIP Quarters, "The Admiral must be pissed." Foster said.
"I doubt he's mad at us. He just followed what he thought was a legitimate order. Besides, now that I know about this place I doubt I could go back to doing the same old thing," Gayle told him.
"Yeah, I know what you mean."
"Any preference on bedrooms?" Gayle asks.
"No. I'm going to watch some TV for a while. Just close the door so I don't walk in on you."
"Alright," Gayle said. "See you in the morning."
The next morning came early. Foster had fallen asleep on the couch in front of the TV and was stiff even after a hot shower. Answering the knock at the door, he let SG-1 in. "Come in, I'll wake Gayle." Going over to the bedroom door that was closed and knocked on it. He heard a faint 'I'm up already.' "SG-1 is here," and then turned back to SG-1.
"So,..." he said.
"Sleep on the couch did you?" Jack asked with a snicker having noticed Foster's stiff movements and the rumpled look of the couch.
"Yes Sir."
"Don't worry about it, we'll get it worked out of you. Or Doc Frasier will. Go put on more than shorts and a t shirt though. They frown on that in the commissary."
Shortly they were all seated in the commissary eating breakfast. As they ate, Sam explained, "the way the commissary works, you have a choice of paying you rations allowance monthly – which is what most of us do since we eat almost all our meals here. Or, settling up at the end of each month for just the meals you eat. That's done on the honor system, but I wouldn't want to be the one caught cheating."
"Yeah," Daniel said. "That only happened once that I know of. I think he's still in Antarctica."
They were taken on a tour of the SGC after breakfast. Then a briefing from General Hammond on what he expected from them and what they could look forward to in the way of work load.
"I'll have our recruiter find you a couple of legal assistants. No, you can't have anyone from JAG Headquarters. Being this is a joint command, don't be surprised if they are Air Force or Army. They will, however, be qualified. But, we'll see what Gunny Anderson turns up. That may take a few weeks, which shouldn't be a problem seeing how you'll be tied up going through the training program and have to make at least one off-world trip."
"We get to go through the Gate?" Gayle asked.
"Yes. Most civilian personnel and enlisted personnel it is optional. I require it of all officers and senior staff, even if only once. That way everyone in leadership positions has a better grasp on the mission of the SGC and what occurs when going through the Stargate." General Hammond stated.
"All personnel, including civilians receive weapons, combat, self-defense and advanced first aid training. Only those personnel not assigned to regularly go on off-world missions avoid the tactics training. You'll be quite busy until we can get you some legal clerks."
"Then there is the investigation into how you got on base. I'll be assigning one of the senior officers to do that since it would be a conflict of interest for you."
"I'm guessing we don't use NCIS?" asked Gayle.
"No. They are not cleared and as this is a joint staff command wouldn't be used anyway. There is an Air Force CID unit with NORAD. But again, they are not cleared. We do all of our investigations in house. If there is a need for outside assistance, we go through our liaison at the Pentagon," Hammond told them.
"I expect you to assist in this investigation if requested by the officer I assign. However, If something comes up that might cause a conflict of interest, bring it to me and I'll make the decision."
"Yes, Sir." they responded.
"We don't have much of a disciplinary problem here. But when issues do arise, we need personnel that have the proper clearances; and, know what they are doing."
"We do quite a few 'Line of Duty' investigations due to the high numbers of injury."
[Line of Duty investigations are a review and, if needed, a formal inquiry in to the facts pertaining to how a service member became injured. These are done primarily to document the circumstances of injuries which could in the future cause or contribute to a person to be medically discharged/retired. I've not only dealt with a lot of these but was the subject of two of them.]
"No problem, Sir." Foster stated.
"Then there are our previous and on-going treaty negotiations. Since Ambassador Calan joined us we have our own State Department liaison that is cleared for the SGC. You'll also meet him at some point."
Gayle and Foster had made the trip back to DC and returned. Having turned over all of their open cases and files and faced the Admiral. He wasn't happy about losing them. But he knew it wasn't their fault. He wished them the best of luck and if they needed any help to let him know.
Returning to the SGC they were each assigned standard quarters until they could each find a place in town. That at least eliminated the need to jump in to a lease where they might not be happy.
The training program beat them up mentally and physically. Being lawyers they'd never needed anything past the basic skills they had acquired when they entered service. Now they received a full-on program meant to make them in to warriors, too.
Gayle was definitely at a disadvantage as Navy officer training is very different from what the Marines and Army receive. Wrapping her mind around small-unit tactics and leadership instead of fleet employments. Self defense was the most physically challenging though. With Teal'c as their instructor, they often found themselves getting 'up close and personal' with the mats in the gym. But it was getting better.
"Do not become discouraged in your perseverance Lieutenant Commander Atkins," Teal'c said. "There will always be another that is more skilled. You are making good progress."
"I'm glad you think so Teal'c," Gayle told him.
"The objective is to continuously improve your skill in battle. The others that I instruct have received much more training. While I am quite skilled compared to most, Ambassador Calan regularly bests me in training."
"The Ambassador beats you?" Foster said surprised.
"Yes, I am his student. It is important that you learn from each training session and each match. "Each time you train you learn. You must learn in victory and in defeat. This is what the Goa'uld do not understand. They learn neither from victory nor defeat. It will be their undoing."
"Thanks, Teal'c," Gayle tells him.
"Wow," Carter said as Teal'c walked over to his next student. She had come in to workout too. "Praise from Teal'c? It took me several months before I received that from him."
"Praise?" asked Foster.
"Yeah, duh. He said 'You are making good progress.' Add to that he spoke more than a few words to you. I'd call that praise," Sam told them.
"Don't take Teal'c lightly. He was First Prime to Apophis. In relation to earth, that's equivalent to being a Infantry Division Commander that leads the battle from the front – not directing movement from the rear. Teal'c used to have thousands of Jaffa under his command. When they went in to battle, his was usually the first face their enemy saw."
They were finally cleared to make their first off world trip. It was to be to Teal'c home planet of Chulak. Stepping through the gate they were amazed at the sight. Not far from the Gate they met Master Bra'tac.
"Greetings," he proclaimed to SG-1 and Teal'c. "Ambassador Calan is not with you?"
"No, he could not make it this time. Master Bra'tac, this is Lieutenant Commander Gayle Atkins and Major Foster Markie. New additions to the SGC and our legal advisors. They will be working with Ambassador Calan," Daniel introduced them.
"Welcome to Chulak. It is good that you have come at this time with representatives of The Calan. Come."
"The Calan?" Foster asked quietly.
"Later," replied Jack.
As the town comes into view, you can see the training area occupied by many Jaffa. Seeing SG-1 everyone stops their training and a cry goes up. They all shout at the same time 'Shol'va!' They then give a slight head nod towards Teal'c and resume their training.
Teal'c is actually smiling as Jack and the rest of SG-1 look at him. "What was that all about?" asks Jack.
"The Shol'val'a was here not two days ago," states Bra'tac. "Thanks to The Calan and Teal'c, Shol'val'a came and all of us have been cleansed and healed of the Goa'uld. Those wishing it provided with Companion symbiotes. The women and children have been healed. Never again will our offspring require a symbiote to survive!"
"She didn't relocate you?" asked Sam.
"The offer was made, but our choice is to stay and fight the Goa'uld with the Tau'ri," Bra'tac declares.
"I am happy the Shol'val'a has come Master Bra'tac. The removal of the last Goa'uld from our home is indeed a great victory."
"It will be a pleasure to report this to General Hammond." Daniel said.
"Hammond of Texas is well?"
"Yes, he sends his continued support of our people." Teal'c tells him.
Bra'tac grinned and nodded his head. "Hammond of Texas is an honorable man. Can you stay?" Bra'tac asks.
"Only for a short time, we have other commitments. This trip was the first through the Stargate for our newest members." Sam tells the man.
"May they observe the training? They are new to fighting and may learn from watching the younger ones spar."
"Of course, Teal'c. They are your students?"
"They are."
Turning to Gayle and Foster, "Teal'c was once my finest student, now he teaches me the tactics of the Tau'ri. You could not do better. Listen to him and learn," Bra'tac states proudly.
Sam and Daniel took them over to observe the young Jaffas sparring. "My god they're good!" stated Foster.
"Don't forget," Sam says. "They have been training and sparing since they were big enough to pick up a training staff. You've only been training for a few weeks."
"Why do they call the Ambassador The Calan?", asks Foster.
"They hold him in very high respect." Daniel tells them. "Just like his sister, Shol'val'a. Both can not be 'taken' by a Goa'uld and have fought against the Goa'uld for millenniums. The Free Jaffa treat Shol'val'a as a savior. She has freed thousands of Jaffa from the Goa'uld. Resettled them away from Goa'uld controlled territories and generally watched out for them."
They stayed and observed the young Jaffa until it was time to head back to the SGC. It had been a productive visit. Jack and Teal'c had gotten some new intel from Bra'tac while Gayle and Foster picked up a few pointers from the training.
It hadn't taken too long to find their spy. For an organization with a middle name of 'Intelligence', the NID generally made poor choices in their operatives. This one was a SF transferred in just before the security overhaul from when Calan joined the SGC.
It was a toss up as to who was madder. General Hammond or the recently appointed SGC Security Officer. She had been recruited out of Eglin AFB. And, because she was new and the Security Officer with complete access to the database, she had immediately become the prime suspect.
The spy had been the one to escort Gayle and Foster down to Calan's office. Taking them there, he'd figured they wouldn't run in to anyone and raise an alarm. Having him on video doing that promptly brought him under the microscope.
Notes - I hope you are enjoying the read. Let me know, it does help.
I know, many are fans of JAG and would have preferred to see Harm and Mac. But I didn't steal them for a number of reasons. First, I didn't want to deal with 'demoting' them - they are to senior. I wanted the ability for the characters to grow. Second was the relationship- ain't going there. Third, as Gayle and Foster (appropriate name for a lawyer right?) are not that senior, in the event of any future courts-martial I'll have to bring in someone of appropriate rank as the Military Judge.
Although you can, and most do, refer to a Lieutenant Commander as simply Commander, I didn't want to confuse anyone on Gayle and Foster's ranks yet. They are equals. While familiar with each other they are only friends and will stay that way. The 'relationship' between Harm and Mac never cut it for me. I don't care how professional you can be at work, if you are on opposite sides of the table it will transfer to your private life and relationship.
SG-11 is one of the teams hardly ever mentioned. They are an archeology/engineering/scientific team per Gateworld website. If you're curious, I use Gateworld for most of my SG specific information and research. And, I have 4 established SG Teams (21-24) per Gateworld without any specific associated purpose to play with, too.