SG-1 would return to Earth via the Stargate, and the Brinisi would bury the gate and destroy all records relating to its use. Crichton and his alien friend would either accompany them to Earth or remain behind as they chose. Since they were not due to return for four more days, and after much prodding from both Carter and Jackson, O'Neill relayed a request to the local authorities to do a bit of research.
The Brinisi governing body decided that since the humans would have no way to return, they could collect and take with them what data and artifacts they wanted. Whatever was left behind would be destroyed before the gate was moved to some suitably isolated and secret location and permanently buried. The humans had explained that the gate itself would be nearly impossible to destroy.
--------------------
The recent guests of Brinisi security were now housed in fairly luxurious accommodations. Someone in the government had apparently taken it upon himself to make up for the previous few days. Crichton and Aeryn shared a room as always and were grateful for the opportunity to spend some time alone after their recent incarceration. O'Neill and Teal'c occupied themselves with exploring the city and at least trying to lay the groundwork for possible future contact with some polite, but very reluctant officials. After a fruitless day of this, O'Neill had essentially shifted into tourist mode and Teal'c took to meditating. Carter and Jackson spent almost all their time at the gate site. They were sometimes joined by Crichton, who was torn between his natural curiosity about the gate and a desire to make the most of some quiet time with Aeryn.
The day before their intended departure, Crichton woke next to a still sleeping Aeryn. He paused for a moment to admire her beauty and to thank who or whatever had brought them together. Getting to this point had involved six kinds of hell, but he would do it all again for her.
He kissed her on the cheek and gently nudged her shoulder. "Hey, rise and shine, sleepyhead."
It didn't take much. A lifetime of conditioning meant that when Aeryn woke, she was instantly alert.
"You feeling alright, sweetheart? You're usually up way before me."
She smiled her most radiant smile at him. "I'm fine, John. Just feeling, I don't know .... content. No one wants to kill us for a change." Lifting herself up to rest on an elbow she continued, "and for once, it feels safe enough that I'm not worried about you." She punctuated that by gently poking him in the chest.
He was about to lean in to kiss her and say something about not having to worry about her either when the chime outside their door sounded. They both got up and quickly threw something on. Crichton answered the door and was surprised to find a shaken Sa'di standing before him. He invited her in.
"It's good to see you. I tried to contact you a couple of days ago, but no one could find you. How are you holding up?"
Her face looked ashen, as if she hadn't slept since the day Celas had died. "I'm alright, John. It's just so hard to believe he's gone."
Aeryn said nothing. She eyed Sa'di suspiciously, but didn't want to make her uncomfortable. Something about the woman had always struck her as wrong, but if she was mistaken, she didn't want to add to her apparent distress. She knew how she would feel if she ever lost John, although somehow, she also knew instinctively that what the woman before her had felt for her dead companion was nothing like what she shared with John. She couldn't quantify it further, but having seen the two of them together, she knew that something just didn't feel right.
She had shared her concern with John early on, but apparently he didn't see it. Of course, even after everything he had been through, she knew John was just a little too trusting. It could be inconvenient, but Aeryn was actually grateful for it. That openness to others was a quality he had lost for a time. It was a great relief to her that he was beginning to find it again.
"They won't even let me near the portal any longer. Those off worlder scientists are the only ones allowed on site now. I thought maybe if you said something to the authorities, or maybe you could let me come along with you. I just want to see the portal again and take a little something to remember Celas by."
"That shouldn't be a problem, Sa'di. Aeryn and I were planning to head out there in a little while anyway. Why don't you tag along. We're just going to get some breakfast first. Meet us back here in about an arn and we'll see what we can do."
She smiled weakly. "Thank you, John, I'll be back in an arn. I knew I could count on you."
After showing her to the door, Crichton turned around to find a scowling Aeryn Sun.
"Crichton, sometimes you can still be a frelling idiot. The Brinisi want everything connected with that gate destroyed after we leave. I don't think they're going to appreciate that woman on site and taking souvenirs. Remember that we are free and free to leave on their sufferance only."
"Come on, Aeryn. What could it hurt. She just wants to come to terms with her loss."
With an exasperated sigh, Aeryn just decided to let it drop. There was no arguing with him about some things.
"So, you want to head to that little caf,?"
Instead of an answer, Crichton was greeted with a very mischievous grin. "We have an arn, John, and I'm not really hungry anyway."
He grinned back. "You know, I'm not very hungry either".....
--------------------
Crichton somehow managed to talk Sa'di past the guards, not that it really surprised Aeryn much, but she had been hoping that he might not be able to pull it off. It wasn't just a matter of not trusting Sa'di. After all, what could she do anyway? It was more a matter of not offending the Brinisi, something John was blithely ignoring.
When they joined Carter and Jackson in the gate chamber, they were surprised to find the two humans in an absolute frenzy.
"John, you are not going to believe this. Daniel and I were looking through some of the records that were uncovered with this gate, and we found something I'm still having trouble accepting."
Jackson jumped in, "The Brinisi weren't able to translate any of the material they found with the gate. You said that you and Celas essentially guessed how the coordinate system worked. It turns out that some of the oldest documents are in something similar to a variant Goa'uld dialect I've studied, and I can make some of it out. One thing in particular caught my attention. It was labeled...I think the closest translation is 'Bringer of Death'.
Carter continued, "The Brinisi scientists probably never noticed, but some of the metallic disks they found have microscopic etchings on them. The ones with the documents Daniel found have detailed schematics for something. We've been pouring over it all morning, and I think I know what it is."
"I explained to you how the wormhole between two gates only operates in one direction. Well, if this thing is accurate, there might be a way to open a bi-directional wormhole between two gates that are in close proximity to one another, and by close, I mean essentially in the same room. We always assumed that if two gates were near each other, only one could be used to dial out at one time, and one or the other would activate by default if someone was dialing in. We have two gates on Earth, and we've observed some strange interactions, but we never guessed anything like this."
There was silence. Carter and Jackson already knew where this was going, and realization was beginning to dawn on Crichton. Sa'di, with practiced ease, had managed to blend into the scenery, and no one took notice of her. It was Aeryn who broke the silence.
"Who the frell cares? What does it matter if you can open a two way wormhole between two points in the same room?"
"You can turn a system like that into a weapon, Aeryn."
Carter smiled. He was obviously as quick as he had ever been. Aeryn just looked at Crichton in confusion.
"Sebaceans have had FTL drives for a while now, right?"
"Yes. Millennia."
"Well, the Hetch drive and Starburst allow you to travel faster than light by taking an object out of normal space. You basically take a shorter path through a higher dimensional space. Do you guys have anything that can approach the speed of light by conventional means? Just starting from a standstill and accelerating?"
Aeryn thought about it for a moment and said, "No, I don't think so, not without some ridiculous expenditure of energy."
"Sam, I'm guessing you've got the details worked out. Care to give as a quick rundown," John said.
"If you can get a massive object, and it doesn't have to have much mass at all, traveling at near the speed of light, and fire it at a target, the destructive capacity would be unimaginable."
She addressed Aeryn, "With your level of technology, or even the level of the Goa'uld, or for all I know the Asgard, there's no way to produce a practical relativistic projectile weapon. The problem is that you need to keep feeding energy into the thing over a long distance to keep it accelerating. You have the AG technology and even we have the ability to produce a hard enough vacuum, but you can't accelerate the projectile over a straight path for a long enough distance. Even if you could get to a reasonable fraction of the speed of light, you would need the projectile to be enormous to have any real effect. However, kinetic energy blows up asymptotically as you approach the speed of light. So if you can get to truly relativistic speeds, say greater than .99c, you only need a small mass."
Now Aeryn was beginning to see where this was going. Carter continued.
"Suppose you have two gates aligned over a distance of a few feet and can produce a bi-directional wormhole between the two. It would be easy to encase the whole assembly in a gravity free vacuum using your level of technology. You place a charged mass between the two gates and create a strong magnetic field. The projectile accelerates, goes in one gate, out the other then back into the first, ad infinitum. The magnetic field only has to be maintained over a short distance, and you have basically created an infinitely long 'barrel' for you projectile. You can accelerate the projectile for as long as you need. The wormhole physics dictate that you don't lose momentum as you enter or leave the gate, but there is a 5 microsecond lag regardless of how fast something is traveling into the gate. That means that when you're ready to fire your projectile, you just turn off the forward facing gate."
Aeryn was now visibly taken aback. "You could use a single ship to devastate a planet from orbit with something like that." John translated for the group.
"Or defend against a space borne attack," said Carter. "We need to get this back to Earth. It could just be the first effective weapon we've had against the Goa'uld."
"You're thinking of actually building this thing?" John was incredulous.
"There's a real threat out there, John. We can't afford to be idealists."
Aeryn agreed instantly. "Your world has enemies, John. You know as well as anyone what things are like out here. Something like this might make all the difference."
John simply nodded his head. He knew they were right, but he didn't have to like it.
No one noticed Sa'di listening quietly to the conversation.
--------------------
As he waited for the tech to replace his cooling rods, Scorpius reflected on the precarious position in which he now found himself. He had proved useful to High Command over the cycles, first as an experiment, the first ever Scarren/Sebacean hybrid to survive infancy, and then because of his unique scientific and organizational abilities. Peacekeeper technology had stagnated over the centuries to the point where a soldier plucked from half a millennium in the past would have felt perfectly at home in the present. Scorpius had displayed the type of novel thinking that might inject new life into the Peacekeeper military and provide a much needed advantage in the escalating conflict with the Scarrens and the nebulous but growing mess with the Nebari.
It was his ability to innovate combined with a calculated ruthlessness that had allowed him to survive and advance this far. Yet these were exactly the qualities that had made him countless enemies over the cycles. Most of these had been dealt with quickly and quietly, but recent criticism had started to come from people who could not be eliminated in such a cavalier fashion. High Command was not please with his progress in wormhole research, and there were those who complained that three full cycles and countless resources had been wasted on a pipedream.
Scorpius knew that they were right. However, to admit it would be tantamount to handing them his head on a platter. In the two and a half cycles since he had obtained the theoretical information on wormholes from Crichton's brain, he had come to realize that Peacekeeper technology was very far indeed from being able to turn the equations into anything practical. Yes, he could trigger a wormhole. That alone had mollified High Command for a time and allowed him to keep his skin intact. Controlling the endpoint was another matter altogether.
The energy expenditure needed to do it was astronomical and well beyond anything the Peacekeepers could generate. The hints had always been there. When he had first extracted information on Crichton's meeting with the Ancients over three cycles ago, he had learned that they only had the energy reserves to create one more stable wormhole, hence the deception to learn if Earth would be a suitable home for them. At the time, Scorpius had no idea how much energy was involved, but now he did. The past cycle and a half had simply been a series of holding maneuvers to forestall his execution for just a little longer.
That is until half a cycle ago, when word of the Brinisi portal device had reached him. He knew it was unlikely in the extreme that such a device could function, but he had managed to convince High Command otherwise, and they had sent a disruptor to infiltrate the Brinisi team working on the portal. A few days ago, everything had changed. Scorpius had been informed of their agent's unexpected report of the Brinisi success.
Now he was in command of a task force approaching Brinisi space. The Peacekeepers had avoided conflict with the Alliance to which the Brinisi belonged simply as a matter of convenience. There was nothing there worth the effort of taking. The existence of the working portal changed everything. Scorpius was now in command of five carrier groups with over 1000 prowlers and 100,000 assault troops. They expected heavy losses during the initial attack, but that was inconsequential. Scorpius had enough force under his command to overwhelm Brinisi planetary defenses and take the capital city. He could prevent land based reinforcement of the capital from space and by air. Conquest of the planet wasn't an issue. He just needed to hold the capital city until he had what he needed.
The disruptor's report had also included an interesting extra detail. Scorpius had an appointment with an old friend.
--------------------
All four members of SG-1 had gathered in Crichton and Aeryn's room to discuss their unexpected windfall. It was decided that the information on the weapon would not be shared with the Brinisi. They didn't need anything complicating their departure and they needed to get the specs back to Earth without delay.
It was Aeryn who remarked that the six people gathered were not the only ones who knew about the weapon.
"We'll just have a talk with Sa'di in the morning. I'm sure we can convince her to keep quiet about it for a while. By then, it won't matter anyway."
"This was a mistake, John. We should not have let her out of our sight until we were ready to depart, no matter how unlikely it is that she might cause a problem"
"Aeryn, you saw how exhausted she was. She's not in any shape to do anything even if she wanted to."
"You two know, her. Do you trust her?"
Crichton turned to O'Neill and repeated essentially what he had just said to Aeryn. "She's harmless."
O'Neill glanced at Aeryn and saw immediately that she wasn't quite so ready to dismiss the threat posed by the Brinisi scientist. Still, there was nothing to be done now. She had left the portal site, apparently unobserved by anyone, before O'Neill and Teal'c had arrived. That in itself was a little worrying.
"Alright. We'll just hope for the best there. So, Dr. Crichton, have you and Officer Sun decided whether to come with us tomorrow?"
Crichton looked to Aeryn before answering. She had said yes, but he wouldn't commit to anything without checking just one more time. Aeryn responded with a slight nod of the head and the faintest trace of a smile.
"Yeah, we're going with you."
"You remember the conditions we outlined earlier? Those are not negotiable. You also understand that with the Brinisi gate buried, this is a one way trip?"
He answered quietly, "Yes. Aeryn and I stay on your base for a while. Then no contact with anyone from my past. I'm going to ask you again. Do I have your word that Aeryn will be safe, that she won't be treated as someone's science project?"
"Don't worry, Crichton, contact with aliens is old hat to us now. I guarantee you she'll be safe."
Carter added, "He's telling you the truth, John." She turned to Aeryn and continued, "You will both be safe. I promise you that."
Carter's oath obviously meant something to Crichton, but Aeryn was surprised to realize that it was starting to mean something to her as well.
With that, the four gate travelers left Crichton and Aeryn and returned to their respective quarters.
"I guess we need to leave word for the others when they get back. I wish we had time to say goodbye."
Aeryn laughed unexpectedly, "As strange as it sounds, I think I'm going to miss Rygel and Chiana the most. They may get us into more trouble than anyone else, but you always know where you stand with them. Then there's Pilot ....," she trailed off.
Crichton realized that in spite of her attempt to lighten the mood, Aeryn was troubled. She was, after all, leaving the closest thing she had ever known to a home. "Are you really sure about this, Aeryn."
"I'm sure, John, and I am eager to see your Earth."
"I really wish you could meet my dad. You would like him."
Aeryn hesitated for an instant and then asked almost in a whisper, "Do you think he would have liked me?"
John put his arm around her and leaned his head against hers. "He would have loved you. Just like me .... well, maybe not just like me." He was quiet for a few microts then continued, "At least we won't have to worry about him badgering us about grandkids. I remember what he put my sister through when she got married."
Aeryn instantly pulled away and looked at him wide-eyed. "Married .... Children .... John, we never talked about anything .... I mean I always assumed, but .... I ...." She was babbling now.
Crichton shut her up with a quick kiss before continuing in a gentle but serious tone. "If we're going to Earth, maybe we should start talking about those things, don't you think?"
That hadn't gone quite according to plan, and despite his calm demeanor, Crichton was terrified as he waited for a response from Aeryn. The word 'relief' didn't begin to describe what he felt as Aeryn started to break into a conspiratorial smile.
Before either of them could say anything further, they heard a series of massive explosions.
--------------------
Aeryn and Crichton ran outside to find that they were among a large crowd looking around in total confusion. There was a second and third round of explosions from the direction of the city center and the local military base, and this time Aeryn noticed the flash and streak that preceded each.
She turned to Crichton and said with preternatural calm, "John, those are frag cannons. There's a Peacekeeper ship in orbit."
He looked at her in confusion until the words sank in. Just when things were beginning to look good and he was ready to drop his guard, they were back. He should have expected it. It was almost too much to deal with.
Now wasn't the time to indulge in that sort of thinking, and Crichton was trying his best to focus. They needed to act, but the only thing he could think to ask Aeryn was, "Why?"
"No frelling idea. They've never had any interest in the Alliance before. It doesn't matter now. I recognize the pattern. The cannon fire was directed at the military base, and probably power and communications centers. That means they've already overwhelmed orbital defenses. The next step is landing ground forces."
No sooner had she said this than they saw at least 20 marauders with prowler escorts beginning descent.
Aeryn began explaining almost mechanically.
"There should be at least five landing forces like that coming down at various key points. They're going to keep doing that in rotation. That's about 1000 Peacekeepers in each wave. I'm guessing they have total air superiority already and the prowlers will keep the local ground forces busy until they build up sufficient strength to start moving. The Brinisi won't be prepared for something like this."
She sounded like she was reciting from a manual, and Crichton simply stared at her as if she had lost her mind. Aeryn broke from her reverie long enough to get a good look at him. What she saw frightened her. He had that haunted look again, the look she hadn't seen since Scorpius had manipulated him through the chip.
Aeryn was now furious, not at him but at the circumstances. She would not allow him to go through that again. Pulling her after him, she headed toward the quarters occupied by the other humans.
"Come on, John. We need to get moving now." She knew from experience that the best thing for him now was to force him to react to the situation.
They were met halfway to their destination by SG-1 heading in the opposite direction.
"What the hell is going on?"
Aeryn looked to Crichton and was relieved to see that he was starting to come out of it. He answered O'Neill. "Peacekeepers. Aeryn says it's an invasion."
"Why now? I thought you said they didn't bother with this place."
He got nothing from either Aeryn or Crichton. It was Jackson who supplied a likely answer. "The gate. You don't suppose they found out about the gate somehow?"
They had no evidence to support it, but everyone knew that he had hit upon the correct explanation.
Crichton turned to Aeryn again, "Stargate .... wormhole .... that means it's Scorpy up there."
Aeryn now had a target for her rage, and found that it was accompanied by an intense feeling of protectiveness for John. "Don't worry, John. He won't get to you again. I'll see to that."
"O.k., people, we can reminisce about old friends later. Right now, I think it's time to move our timetable up. We head to the gate now."
No one questioned O'Neill.
As they made their way through the city to the sound of sporadic weapons fire, Aeryn was again impressed by the humans. They moved quickly and without breaking formation when no cover was present and methodically from point to point when they had cover. When they advanced in areas of likely contact with the Peacekeepers, they did so in stages, always covering one another as they advanced. Weapons were held at the ready, but there was none of the mindless swaggering that she had so often observed even in Peacekeeper Commando troops. These were professionals of a sort she had often wished as comrades in the old days. Even the Archaeologist knew what he was doing.
Aeryn and Crichton held back, keeping pace with the humans but trying not to get in their way. As she occasionally glanced at him to mark his progress, Aeryn smiled inwardly at that fact that she was impressed with John too. He had certainly come a long way from the naive alien she had met almost five cycles earlier. He didn't move like the humans ahead of them, but he made a passable soldier now, and passable was all she wanted. She never wanted him to become so immersed in the day to day matter of survival that he lost some of those qualities that had drawn her to him in the first place.
--------------------
Elsewhere, a lone Brinisi woman approached the temporary headquarters the Peacekeepers had set up in what remained of the military base. She walked up to the sentries without the slightest hesitation. The young Peacekeeper in charge of the guard detachment started to speak.
"You .... turn around before we decide ...."
He was abruptly cut off. "Shut the frell up, boy, and address me as Commander. I want to see your commanding officer. Now!"
--------------------
After what seemed like an eternity, and having avoided contact with the Peacekeeper patrols that were probably scouring the city by now, Aeryn, Crichton and SG-1 were almost at the gate site. It was then that they encountered their first surprise of the evening.
"Sa'di? What are you doing here?"
"John! There are soldiers everywhere. They've been rounding people up, anyone connected to the portal project. I thought you might be coming here. I didn't know where else to go."
"Do you know if they've captured the gate yet?"
"No. Some of our security forces are still in the sector. They haven't made it this far. John, if you're going to leave through the gate, take me with you. I know I can never come back, but there's nothing for me here anyway."
Crichton turned to O'Neill. "She wants to go with us. She understands that it's a one way trip."
"Fine. We don't have time to discuss it now anyway. We keep moving."
Aeryn said nothing. There was no time for an argument now. However, she didn't take her eyes of Sa'di for an instant.
--------------------
As they approached the portal site, O'Neill was suspicious. Their crossing through the city had gone far too easily. Part of that could be attributed to the Peacekeepers themselves. They seemed to be spreading through the city in a haphazard fashion and without any really coherent plan. The squads were easily avoided, since they seemed to expect little or no resistance and behaved accordingly. Still, they had been far too lucky.
The same thought occurred to Aeryn as she continued to watch Sa'di. As they got closer to their objective, something else started to become apparent . Sa'di was far more physically fit than her demeanor indicated, and more suspiciously still, she moved like a soldier. At least she did for a short time. At one point, she glanced at Aeryn and smiled. After that, she began to stumble occasionally and hesitate as they crossed open ground. Aeryn wasn't sure what was going on, but she decided she would find out soon enough.
The sounds of fighting were becoming more evident. The Brinisi had apparently concentrated a defense in this region. As they approached the temporary structure housing the portal, O'Neill and Teal'c made a careful survey of their surroundings. They found nothing and decided to proceed.
Once inside the gate chamber, Carter and Jackson began collecting everything they could find. Their first priority was to recover everything relating to the relativistic weapon to supplement what they had already gathered over the past few days. To their surprise, they found most of those items missing. They searched frantically, but failed to find anything new. Having little choice, they took as much of the remaining material as they could carry, regardless of content.
Aeryn had realized from the moment they entered the building that something was wrong about Sa'di's behavior. Only now was she beginning to see what it was. She had essentially attached herself to Jackson and had, in turns, tried to remain close to John and Carter as well. This train of thought had barely crystallized when Carter activated the Asgard device, and the gate came to life.
Just as they were about to make their escape, Aeryn saw Sa'di make an unnatural twisting motion with her wrist and then heard a familiar whine. She yelled for everyone to get down. Whether they understood the words or not, they got the point and dropped. Two small explosive devices at opposite ends of the room went off simultaneously, spraying the room with miniature flechettes.
Aeryn was the first to recover. She looked first for Crichton and then around the room and was amazed to discover that no one had been injured. A moment later, she also realized that they were not alone. Two Peacekeeper commando teams had entered from opposite ends of the chamber and had them covered. No one spoke until a familiar voice sounded from the far entrance.
"Hello, John. Have you missed me?"
Aeryn recognized the speaker without needing to turn around. She instinctively placed herself between Crichton and Scorpius. Before anyone had a chance to do anything further, they were all surprised by weapons fire coming from the opposite entrance.
Captain Preval and a contingent of Brinisi security had appeared out of nowhere and were firing at the Peacekeepers. Aeryn spun around to find Crichton, but saw that Sa'di, who had been now placed herself between him and Jackson and the rest of the group, had pushed him away from the gate. She appeared to be pushing them out of the line of fire of the Peacekeepers. She tried to get to John, but the gunfire separating them intensified and effectively separated her, O'Neill, Carter and Teal'c in front of the gate entrance from Crichton, Sa'di and Jackson.
SG-1 fired back at the Peacekeepers separating their group, and killed two, but they were outnumbered, and the Brinisi were clearly on the losing end of the engagement. Sa'di urged Crichton and Jackson towards the control room, which had its own exit. There was no choice left, O'Neill ordered his people through the gate. Aeryn had no intention of leaving Crichton behind, but she was given no choice as Teal'c and Carter dragged her struggling towards the gate. The last thing she saw was Crichton looking back at her from the control room. Jackson and Sa'di had already exited and he was just about to follow. She had a clear view of his face, and what she saw was fear. Not for himself, she realized, but for her.
She screamed his name before disappearing with the others through the wormhole.
--------------------
As they left the control room, Sa'di turned to the two humans and said, "Follow me. I know a quick way out of the building. The Peacekeepers won't have it covered, and the ones in the portal room are too busy to follow."
Moments after their departure, all weapons fire in the control room stopped. The dead 'Brinisi' and Peacekeepers, at least those who hadn't been killed by the humans, got up and filed out of the chamber. Lt. Braca escorted a frantic looking Captain Preval to Scorpius.
Scorpius smiled his death's head smile. "Captain. Thank you for your cooperation and for the use of the uniforms."
"You said I could rejoin my family if I helped you. Take me to them."
"Of course. You may join them now. Lieutenant."
Braca stepped back a fraction, raised his pulse pistol and fired once at the base of Preval's skull.
"Sir, should we pursue Crichton and the others?"
"Yes, Lieutenant, but stick to the plan. Send out a few units, make it exciting for them, but make sure you don't catch anything. It shouldn't be difficult to manage. Commander Calis is transmitting her position to us continuously. I really had hoped to detain the other human scientist, as well as capture the gate triggering device, but this deception was a calculated risk, and we must make due with what we have. Let us hope that Crichton will suffice and that Calis' plan doesn't prove a complete waste of time."
"Sir."
--------------------
Aeryn found herself moving backwards through a long tunnel with dimensions that seemed just beyond her perception. The slightly unreal sensation lasted for only a moment until she was thrown onto her back, staring at the portal. She jumped to her feet frantically looking for the control room where she had just seen John.
The room was not where it had been just microts earlier and as the disorientation passed, she realized that she was no longer in the same place. This must be Earth, and John was still on Brinisa.
Aeryn was flanked by Carter and Teal'c with O'Neill slightly ahead, but they were not alone. A half dozen soldiers dressed slightly differently than the SG team had rifles trained on her. Two other soldiers were at either side of the room, manning a pair of larger weapons. O'Neill ordered them to stand down, and they lowered their weapons.
As soon as she had her bearings, Aeryn walked up to O'Neill and began demanding that the gate be reactivated and that they return to rescue John. She didn't realize that she was screaming at him, but after a few seconds, she did realize that he didn't understand her. Then it dawned on her that no one would understand her, so she began gesturing towards the gate trying to make her meaning as obvious as possible.
O'Neill spoke to her evenly. "I know you want us to go back, but we can't. They're going to have the other gate covered now. The Brinisi were already losing the fight when we left. If we go back, we walk into an ambush."
Carter continued. "Aeryn, I know you're worried about John, but we saw him escape. Don't forget we lost someone back there too. There's nothing we can do just now, but we will figure something out."
She saw the sense in what they were telling her, but she didn't have to like it. Aeryn decided that panicking now would serve no purpose. Just then, an older man with no hair approached them.
"Colonel, you're a day early. Where is Dr. Jackson, and who is this?"
"General, we ran into some trouble. Daniel's still on Brinisa, that's what the locals call the planet we just left. This is Aeryn Sun; she's a friend. It's a long story."
The general looked appraisingly at Aeryn, nodded and turned back to O'Neill.
"Very well. Get cleaned up and have your team assemble in the conference room in 30 minutes." Turning to Aeryn, he said, "Ms. Sun, welcome to Earth. I look forward to hearing of the circumstances of your arrival."
Aeryn had come to attention almost by force of habit. She could only manage, "Thank you, sir." There was nothing else to say.
Hammond glanced at O'Neill for an explanation.
"She understands us. We can't understand her. Part of the long story, sir." Hammond just nodded again. The explanation would have to wait.
"Ms. Sun, we're going to have to ask you to undergo a routine medical examination." Noticing that Aeryn had tensed visibly and that she had shifted her arm to allow ready access to the weapon she carried, Hammond added, "You have our assurance that you will not be harmed in any way. This is standard procedure and we guarantee your safety."
Carter continued as casually as she dared, "You can trust us, Aeryn. Come on, I'll take you to the medical bay. You won't need your weapons."
The look Aeryn gave her left no doubt as her opinion of that idea. "It's standard procedure, Aeryn. We can't have unauthorized people walking around the base armed." She still hesitated.
"The faster we get all of this over with, the faster we can figure out what to do about Daniel and John." Aeryn had no argument for that. She would risk walking unarmed to her own dissection, but she wouldn't risk allowing her hesitation to put John in any further danger. She handed her pulse rifle and the pistol strapped to her thigh to one of the soldiers who approached. Carter led the way, and Aeryn followed.
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Crichton and Jackson followed Sa'di as they made their way through one of the more crowded quarters of the city. They had no idea how they had managed to elude the Peacekeepers and assumed that it was just an enormous bit of luck. Perhaps the Brinisi security forces had kept them tied up in the portal chamber just long enough to let them escape.
Sa'di turned to the two men and said, "We need to blend in better. You two look totally out of place. I know a few people around here. I can find us someplace to stay for the night, and I'll see to getting you something else to wear."
It didn't seem too strange to either human that the Brinisi woman had essentially taken charge since their escape. After all, this was her city and her people. Crichton did notice that she was far more assertive than he had ever seen her, but he knew that people sometimes reacted unexpectedly under pressure. He didn't dwell on this for long, since his thoughts were elsewhere.
In short order, Sa'di brought them to a small house near one of the cheaper commercial districts. "I have some friends who live here. Wait outside while I see if they can hide us for the night." She hesitated. "These are good people. I don't like putting them in danger, but I suppose we don't have a choice."
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She entered the small building while Crichton and Jackson hid in the alley behind the house. The middle aged man and woman waiting inside immediately stood at attention. She would have shot them on the spot for conspicuous stupidity if she had had the luxury. These were ordinary soldiers. There hadn't been time to plant anyone competent.
She spoke in a whisper. "Sit down, you frelling idiots, and act casual. It's lucky I didn't bring them in with me. Remember, you are to treat me as a friend." As an afterthought, she added, "You will minimize contact with the humans. Frell this up, and I'll have the two of you begging for the living death before this is over."
The two Peacekeepers who had been conscripted for this very strange duty blanched but obeyed without question. Sa'di went back outside and motioned for the two waiting humans to join her.
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While waiting to be examined, Aeryn took the opportunity to look over the medical facility. She had often called Crichton and his people primitive, in all seriousness in the early days, then only when she was angry at him, and later mostly as a matter of playful teasing. This had always been in light of his early unfamiliarity with her world and with the limited exposure to his technology that Farscape 1 had afforded. Now she was suffering from information overload. Part of her wanted to shut it all out, and part wanted to absorb as much of John's world as she could.
The medical equipment told her a few things. She was hardly an expert, but a number of things were obvious even to her. She knew from Crichton that the Peacekeepers were far ahead of humans in many aspects of medical technology. Disease was almost unknown and genetic screening meant that the average Peacekeeper was more physically fit. However, it was clear from her surroundings that humans were more interested in treating the individual than in maintaining a healthy population. Everything here was designed for the patient, a fact she noticed only because it was at odds with her own experience of Peacekeeper medical science. The welfare of the individual had never been a concern in her old life. More than four years with John had changed her perspective on that. It was reassuring to see that, at least where their own people were concerned, other humans felt the same.
Of course, she wasn't human, and she wasn't sure if those rules applied to her. She was beginning to trust Carter, mostly because John had trusted her, and she felt an affinity to O'Neill. He reminded her of the one or two good commanding officers she had come across. Teal'c was a mystery, but he claimed to be an alien, and that too was reassuring in its own way. Still, she was fully prepared to be strapped down and dissected at any moment, and her guard remained up.
A woman wearing a white coat introduced herself. "Hello, you must be our guest. I'm Dr. Fraser. We're just going to run a few routine tests. Nothing to worry about."
Carter said, "I'm going to get cleaned up. You'll be fine with Janet. I'll be back in a bit to take you to the briefing." Not knowing what else to do, Aeryn nodded nervously as she prepared to leave. She noticed that the two armed guards who had escorted them here hadn't budged.
She sat patiently through what seemed like a routine physical of the sort she had been subjected to countless times as a soldier. She was reluctant to have her blood drawn at first but relented once Fraser explained what was involved. As a final step, she was asked to wear a strange gown and placed inside a cylindrical machine for a few microts.
After the examination, Carter returned as promised to escort Aeryn to the conference room where Hammond, O'Neill and Teal'c were waiting.
"Major Carter, Officer Sun, please be seated. Colonel O'Neill has already given me a brief overview of your mission. As I imagine you already know, we cannot mount a direct rescue operation through the Stargate. These Peacekeepers undoubtedly have the Brinisi gate under heavy guard now."
Aeryn started to protest immediately, insisting that they had to get to John. It took her a few moments to realize that, once again, no one understood her.
"Officer Sun, I understand your concern for Dr. Crichton, but I will not send my people on a suicide mission, not for him and not even for Dr. Jackson. I assure you that we intend to do something about this situation, but we need to do something rational."
Aeryn was fighting an internal struggle on three fronts. First, there was the increasing frustration of not being able to convey anything beyond the level of "yes" and "no", then there was her natural inclination to do something, anything right now, and finally, there was an ingrained instinct to obey or at least listen to someone in authority. Eventually, she gave in to the last and decided that it would be best to listen for now.
"Major Carter, this weapon the Colonel described. Can you give me a threat assessment."
"Sir, I don't know if the Peacekeepers can put the thing together in the first place. For one thing, I brought some of the schematics with me so whatever they have is incomplete, and we know that they have no experience with gate technology. Even if they can get it working, I suspect it poses no immediate threat to us, since they have no way of getting to us. However, there are a few other factors to consider. The existence of such a weapon may attract the attention of the Goa'uld. We don't know if they have any presence in this region of space, but we can't exclude the possibility. We also need to consider what it would mean for us if we could get our hands on this technology. This might be our first effective weapon against Goa'uld."
"Thank you, Major." He turned to O'Neill. "Colonel?"
"Sir, I think we need to find a way to get back there and get whatever Carter needs to build this thing. Barring that, we need to make sure no one else gets their hands on it. And while we're at it, we find some way to get Daniel and Crichton back."
The last sentence was the only thing that interested Aeryn. The small part of her that wasn't consumed with worry about John was analyzing what she had just witnessed. These people were like John, but also quite different. They were practical in a way that she had not come to expect from him. They wanted to rescue Jackson, maybe nearly as much as she wanted to get to John, but the weapon took priority.
"So now the question is how do we get back." O'Neill looked around the table hoping for a response. When no one spoke, he offered, "Maybe the Tok'ra? It's about time that alliance did something for us."
"The Tok'ra will be of no use, O'Neill. Their vessels would require years to travel to Brinisa."
"There might be another option, Teal'c. We know that Brinisa was part of the gate network at one time. If we could find a nearby planet with a gate, we could use it as a staging point for a raid. We would need to contact the Asgard, but it might just work."
"Thank you, Major. That's worth looking into immediately. Contact Thor and start searching for a feasible planet. I'll need to get presidential approval before we can make a proposal to the Tok'ra."
Hammond then turned to Aeryn. "Officer Sun, you were a Peacekeeper and you know how they operate and what we can expect. Your assistance would be invaluable. It's unfortunate that we have no way to communicate with you effectively."
"I may have an idea about that, Sir."
"Major?"
"One of the devices we recovered from Machello. Daniel thought it was a Goa'uld translation device, but he never got around to examining it. Teal'c or I might be able to get it functional."
"Very well, Major, contact Area 51 and have it transported here."
Most of this meant nothing to Aeryn, but she did gather that she might soon be able to do something more productive than shake her head.
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Crichton and Jackson were treated to a simple but filling meal by their hosts. Crichton had withdrawn from the others, still trying to come to grips with his separation from Aeryn. He had sworn after what happened with Crais and Talyn that he would never let her out of his sight again. This time, it was no one's fault, but he wouldn't let himself accept that.
When he could get a hold of Crichton, Jackson tried repeatedly to engage their hosts through him, but all he got in response to his questions were single syllable answers. He didn't blame them. These people were putting themselves at tremendous risk, and he had no right to expect civility on top of everything else.
Sa'di had been out for a number of hours, gathering food and a change of clothing.
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"Remind me again why I agreed to this deception, Commander."
"Sir, you know as well as I that the use of this gate as a transportation device has limited strategic value. Whether you can adapt the technology to your wormhole research is uncertain. However, this relativistic weapon has immediate and profound implications."
Scorpius continued to look at her with that hideous expression. It took some effort on Calis' part not to react. Every fiber of her being screamed that the creature before her was an abomination. Addressing it as a superior was almost more than she could tolerate. After all, she was a Sebacean and a Peacekeeper. Not only that, but among the elite, hand picked from childhood for special service. She believed without reservation in the superiority of her people and in her own superiority over this half-breed. Still, duty dictated that she obey it for now.
"I would suggest once again that forceful extraction of the details of this weapon is dangerous. It didn't work with Crichton the first time, and it may not work with Jackson. We are under no immediate time constraint. The city is secure and will remain so. Give me a few weekens, and I may be able to get the all the information we need. If it becomes necessary, we can always take the humans into custody and employ more forceful methods."