"Granger, Anotelli" Coburn called from the doorway breaking the silence that had fallen over the infirmary except for the occasional mumbled order from the doctors as they worked on the injured soldiers. "Go down to the commissary and pass the hat," he ordered. "We need how much gold in an hour, Daniel?"
"Two pounds," Daniel replied distractedly.
"Dr. Jackson?" Hammond asked as ushered them into the corridor outside the infirmary with the rest of Coburn's team trailing behind. "Colonel? What's going on?"
"Beiers over there started all this by raping a girl, sir" Coburn explained as he angrily motioned to one of the men the medical staff were working on. "Daniel got them to let our people go, but the girl..."
"They're going to stone her, sir" Daniel explained. "I've convinced them to let me buy her instead, but they'd only give me an hour to come up with the gold."
"Daniel," Hammond sighed.
"I know, sir" Jackson assured him as he rubbed the bridge of his nose under his glasses. "SG-1 can't keep bringing home strays. I want to bring her to the Mountain only long enough to get her medical attention."
"Then what?" Hammond asked.
"I'll take her to Kasuf," Daniel assured the general. "He'll take her in. We can't let her die, sir. Not for what Beiers did to her."
Hammond nodded his agreement as he removed the watch from his wrist, his rank insignia from the collar of his shirt, and the pen from his pocket and handed them to Daniel. "My contribution," he explained before turning away to the phone on the wall. A moment later an announcement went out across the PA asking base personnel to bring whatever gold items they could to the commissary to buy the life of the young native woman.
"Dr. Jackson," Harm called to the archaeologist as he too removed the gold from his uniform. Beside him Admiral Chegwidden was also removing the bits of yellow metal from his clothes. A glare from Rabb had Clayton sighing as he too began piling bits of gold into the hat Dr. Jackson was now using to hold the various items people were handing him.
"Daniel, you have a go to return to get the girl as soon as you're ready," Hammond told him. "Colonel Coburn, you and your team are to go with him. I see Klein's injured. Do you need additional personnel?"
"No, sir" Coburn replied before asking. "Sir? How are O'Neill and Carter doing?"
"They'll be stabilized enough for transport early tomorrow afternoon," Jacob answered wearily as he joined the group standing in the corridor outside the infirmary.
"Sir, request permission..." Coburn began only to be cut off by Hammond's raised hand.
"Teal'c will lead the mission to the Asgard," Hammond answered in anticipation of Coburn's request. "Volunteers only. Whoever goes has to understand what they're getting into."
"It's going to be bug central," Daniel murmured his agreement.
"I understand the danger, sir, but I still want to volunteer," Coburn told his commander as his teammates nodded or murmured their assent as well.
"Very well, gentlemen" Hammond said. "Spread the word. Anyone wishing to volunteer for this mission needs to be in the commissary in three hours. We'll brief then."
"We'd better get moving then Daniel" Coburn ordered the archaeologist knowing that Daniel would be going with Teal'c.
"Sirs, I'd like to volunteer to go along," Rabb said to the general and admiral in front of him.
"We both do," Chegwidden agreed.
"Gentlemen, I have no doubt you can handle yourself in combat, but..." Hammond began.
"But nothing. O'Neill saved my life once. I owe him," Admiral Chegwidden told the general. "I'm going. Sounds like they could use a few extra bodies."
"Will you follow Teal'c's orders?" Hammond asked. "Be very sure on this point because if you can't you'd be endangering the entire team."
"Why Teal'c if I may ask, sir?" Rabb asked. "I understand he's a member of their team, but wouldn't somebody with more experience..."
Hammond chuckled lightly. "Commander, how old would you say Teal'c is?"
"Mid thirties maybe," Rabb replied.
"Try one hundred and two as of next week," Hammond told him. "The symbiote he carries inside him gives him a long life. It heals his injuries and keeps him from getting sick. He's spent the majority of those hundred plus years in service to the Gao'uld as a warrior. He was First Prime to Apophis when he helped free SG-1 on their first mission."
"And just what is a First Prime?" Chegwidden asked.
"The equivalent of the Chairman of the JCS," Hammond answered. "He commanded all of Apophis' armies."
"I'll follow orders," Chegwidden decided as he eyed the big Jaffa who had resumed his watch by his friends' bedside. Rabb nodded as well.
Hammond considered the two men before him for a minute before motioning to one of the guards that had been trailing the visitors around the mountain. "These gentlemen need to be outfitted for off-world travel," Hammond told him. "Get them down to the quartermaster. Make sure they get instruction on off-world procedures as well."
"Yes, sir" the guard confirmed the order as he snapped off a salute to the general.
Three hours later Chegwidden and Rabb, now dressed in BDUs, followed General Hammond and Teal'c into the commissary. The two naval officers were taken aback by the large number of personnel waiting within, but Hammond just sighed. Daniel left the table where he'd been sitting with SG-3 to join them with a bemused and touched smile on his face, and even Teal'c raised an eyebrow at the large number of volunteers.
"Okay, listen up," Hammond ordered in a booming voice. "I think you all realize I can't send all of you on this mission. Teal'c, pick a team of ten to accompany you plus General Carter, Dr. Jackson, Admiral Chegwidden, Commander Rabb, and Doctor Williams."
Teal'c bowed his head at the general and waded into the crowd of people in the commissary. He made a complete circuit of the room noting each face solemnly. When he returned to Hammond's side he informed Hammond in a voice loud enough for all to hear, "ColonelCoburn, MajorPrine, LieutenantChavez, PrivateGoshen, LieutenantAnetolli, LieutenantHailey, CorporalGranger, EnsignSchaefer, SergeantBrooks, and StaffSergeantRogers."
Hammond nodded knowing it was a good mix. Teal'c would have the skills he needed if something happened out there, and if things went bad he hadn't chosen anyone whose loss would cripple the SGC. The disappointed soldiers who had not been picked milled around the commissary offering their good luck wishes to those who had.
"GeneralHammond, with your permission?" Teal'c asked with a slight bow of his head. Hammond nodded. "Your attention please," he said raising his voice to be heard over the milling crowd. All eyes turned to listen as the Jaffa warrior began to speak. "Even though you have not been chosen to accompany us on our mission, there is something you can do to help ColonelO'Neill and MajorCarter," Teal'c told them. "We have reason to believe the NID may attempt to kidnap the children." Teal'c said no more. He didn't have to. Heads were nodding around the room. As Teal'c motioned his newly chosen team through the door they could hear plans already being formed for round the clock watch on the babies.
General Hammond and Teal'c led the newly formed mission team into an empty conference room where they gathered around a conference table. General Hammond gestured for Teal'c to take command of the meeting
"DanielJackson, ColonelCoburn, and his team will go to the Hall of Wisdom tomorrow in advance of our bringing O'Neill and MajorCarter through the Stargate," Teal'c explained. "DanielJackson will make contact with the Asgard and confirm that Thor is in position to bring us to his ship."
Daniel jumped in and continued, "We'll then contact Earth where Teal'c and the rest of you will be waiting with Jack and Sam. We'll bring them through to the Hall of Wisdom and let Thor do his thing."
"Sounds simple enough," Rabb commented.
"What's the catch?" Chegwidden asked suspiciously.
"Thor's going to bring us to his ship," Daniel explained. "Which is on the front lines of their war with the Replicators."
"If the Replicators penetrate Thor's ship your chances of survival are..." Hammond paused trying to decide how best to describe it.
"Bad," Daniel supplied. "Very, very, bad." Daniel queued up the tape of the Replicators taken on the Russian submarine nearly two years ago. They watched mostly in silence as Daniel and Teal'c described what they might encounter from the creatures.
"Anyone having any second thoughts?" Hammond asked when the tape was over.
"Second, third, fourth" Hailey admitted as she swallowed convulsively, "but I'm not going to change my mind, sir."
Hammond nodded as he noted the stubborn determination on the faces of the rest of the volunteers. "Alright," he said finally.
"AdmiralChegwidden, CommanderRabb, and LieutenantHailey" Teal'c said, "I would like the three of you to stay close together." He said it with such a lack of inflection that it was nearly impossible to decide why he had given that order. The two naval officers took one look at the pixie like lieutenant and assumed Teal'c wanted them to guard her physically. The spunky young lieutenant assumed that she was to keep the naval officers from getting into trouble because of their lack of off-world knowledge. In reality both answers were correct. He handed both naval officers a slip of paper. "Memorize those symbols before morning," he ordered them. "If you are separated from us for any reason you will need to know these symbols in this order to return through the Stargate. Do not take the paper with you."
Chegwidden and Rabb both nodded as they tucked the slips of paper away.
"Your GDO code for this mission is 42917," Hammond told them. "Don't write it down. Memorize it right now. If you can't remember it, the second and third sets of coordinates on that paper are to safe worlds that we have regular contact with. You may have a bit of a wait, but someone will find you there within a few weeks. If you don't return within twenty-four hours that code will be locked out of the base computer. At that point your only option will be the safe worlds. Any questions?" he asked. "Get a good night's sleep," Hammond ordered when no one voiced any questions. "Dr. Jackson and SG-3 will leave at 13:00 tomorrow."
"General Carter," Dr. Frasier told the former general. "I thought you'd want to be near Sam and the babies so I've had a bed set up for you in the infirmary."
"Thank you, Janet" he told her. "And as the godmother of my grandchildren, do you think you could bring yourself to call me Jacob?"
"I'll try to remember," she assured him with a smile.