AN: Ah... finally, an end to all the confusing time-jumping @_@ I even confused the hell out of me ;), just a little flick back in time to see what happened whilst Daniel was gone... Gomen minna...  Anyhow, if people would like me to drop in a list of times and the corresponding chapters, do let me know :)  I'm not Schuldich to read minds, so even if that's all you ask for, please review and ~tell me~

Rating: R maybe PG-13 (R in standing with ff.net's policy of picking the highest rating)

Disclaimer: SG characters are (c) MGM (thankie to Morrigan for that :p).  FF8 characters are (c) Squaresoft, original characters are mine – ask nicely and I might let you play with them, s'long's you don't break them...

Warnings: SxS Maybe angst (I do like to torture my characters sometimes :p), language (prob nothin u ain't heard b4, but still...)

~Chapter Thirty-Four: The Difference Between Us~

Daniel returned through the stargate to a scene of organized chaos, and promptly forgot about General Hammond's strange behaviour.  He didn't, however, forget that there were two G'ould mother-ships racing to threaten the Earth.  But there was no time to give out this information.  They were already under attack...

***

True to her promise to herself, Harena's army of monsters, summoned from across the Centra continent, had fallen upon the excavation site like a tidal wave.  But the SeeDs had been prepared long in advance of her arrival, and had constructed defences with the aid of their GFs.  Wide cracks forced the forward impetus of the earthbound monsters to halt, forced their forwards charge to break whilst they manoeuvred around the obstacle.  As for the airborne monsters, such as the dragons, and the lesser monsters such as the blood-souls and jelleyes, there were enough snipers to cope with their attack.  It seemed absurd, considering the massive physical damage their great bodies could take, but even a Ruby Dragon could not survive a bullet piercing its eye and ripping into its brain.

And so, like the attack against Esthar, the wave of monsters that should have flattened all before them was halted in its tracks.  But, again like the attack on Esthar, that was not the end.  No.  Once more magic roared and steel shone in the dying afternoon light.  The hiss and groan of magic filled the air, along with the slick whisper of steel on flesh, cut with the whiz and whine of bullets as the snipers continued their deadly work.

They were holding.  Barely, but they were blocking the relentless advance.  That was all that mattered to Harena, and to Yarege.  This was not the real battle.  The real battle would only come when they met on the field, to fight each other to the death...and rebirth.  It mattered little to either that what was reborn would still not be them, merely tainted by their actions.  A goddess would arise, but whether she arose to bring the Armageddon that Ultemecia had failed in, or to preserve the peace that Rinoa had once briefly sought, depended on the victor.

Truth be told, all the extra fighting was merely to distract the mind, to try and create a weakness, a vulnerability that could be exploited.  For Harena the weakness created was in the control of the monsters, but for Yarege it was the desire to protect the SeeDs that fought a battle they were doomed to lose as darkness began to fall.

***

Colonel Jack O'Neill sighed as he watched Daniel step through the stargate back to their own, familiar world.  He couldn't help but wonder what they were to do in the hours that would undoubtedly pass before reinforcements – or not, as Hammond decided – arrived.

"If you wish, I can spare Seifer and Squall until the afternoon.  They can protect you if you wish to explore this area of this world."  Yarege's glance clearly included Sam in her offer, and Jack barely hesitated before answering.

"Alright."  He was suspicious though, Yarege could see it.  He was wondering if she wanted them out of the way so that they didn't see something in the excavation site.

"No."  Jack looked startled, still not used to having thoughts he believed private answered.  "I merely thought you might wish to know why there are so many mercenaries.  Why the loss of a comrade has not visibly affected them.  Why that young woman sacrificed her own life for someone she didn't even know."  Yarege shrugged.  "You can ask Squall and Seifer whatever you wish.  They will answer truthfully.  We have nothing to hide."  Jack glowered, trying unsuccessfully to hide his thoughts, which were currently irritated at her habit of lifting thoughts.  Something he strongly resented as an invasion of his privacy.

"So?  We going?"  It was the blond breaking in impatiently.  He looked as though he was itching to use the strange bladed weapon at his hip.  The blond in question arched an eyebrow, and Jack suddenly realised he had been staring at the man who was probably half his age.  He wondered what he'd seen to age his green eyes – truly jaded if one knew what to look for – what he'd done in his, as yet, brief lifetime. 

"More than you want to know."  During his pondering, a brunette had silently appeared behind them, and Jack had to control himself before surprise made him physically jump.  He turned, eyes narrowed, to glare at the newcomer.

"Don't tell me you read minds as well?!"  He moaned, not missing the slight quirk of Carter's lips.  Behind him the blond sniggered.

"No, Squall's just ~very~ good at reading body language."  Jack opened his mouth to ask how the brunette had been able to read his expression from behind, then closed it, realising that he probably didn't want to know the answer.  Squall...  Hmm, so that made the blond Seifer.  With a small sigh of resignation, he gestured for the two men to lead the way.

"Lead on Macduff..."  He muttered, not caring that it was a misquote.  It was when both the blond and the brunette turned to look curiously at him, obviously not understanding the reference, that he finally realised what had been niggling at the back of his mind.  They both bore a scar across the nose, the brunette's a mirror image of the blond's.  Their lips quirked upwards in a similar smirk as they both realised what he was staring at, but turned away without comment, leading the way up a series of metal steps to the surface.

***

Sam didn't know what she'd expected the surface of their world to look like.  Futuristic cities, majestic in their elegance, hosting towers and spires that could only have been created by sorcerous means.  Ruins, silent testament to the conflicts ravaging the planet and creating a need for so many mercenaries.  Or a world like their own, seemingly peaceful, but with so much political intrigue and backstabbing that a mercenary would never be unemployed.  Whatever she had expected, it was not what she saw. 

There was nothing.  As far as the eye could see the landscape bore no signs of human occupation.

"Where..."

"Is everyone?"  The blond finished with a smirk.  "This continent's pretty deserted.  Besides the excavation, the only inhabited area is on another island south-west of here.  There's a structure to the south, an old temple, but that's only inhabited by monsters now."

"So, what happened to this place?"  Idly she noticed that Jack was staring around, as if he too could barely accept that such an expanse of earth had no plants growing in it, no population.  This time it was the brunette who spoke.

"The lunar cry.  The first time Lunatic Pandora was used, it was used here, and the impact of the monsters broke the continent apart, destroying the power of the sorceresses and scattering the Centra people."  There was a pause.  "We should move.  They'll begin constructing the defences soon."  Seifer chuckled.

"Not something you want to be in the way of."  The blonde took up the lead once more, and it was not lost on either Sam or Jack that Squall took up the rear.  Neatly bracketing them.

"You don't know what you're on guard against."  Again the brunette demonstrated his formidable ability to read the body language of others.  Even without being able to see them.

"So."  Jack asked after a few minutes walking in silence.  "Why are there so many mercenaries?"  There was a brief pause, then the blond answered.

"Because of things like this."  He stepped aside, allowing both Sam and Jack to see what they had run up against.  Jack heard Squall curse softly behind him, a word he didn't recognise, but the tone of voice was a clear enough interpretation.  "Squall, I hope to Hyne you brought the GFs with you."  There was a snort from the brunette.

"Someone has to remember everything you forget."  Jack didn't really pay any attention to the brief exchange.  Already enough had been mentioned that he had no concept of – such as the lunar cry, and Lunatic Pandora – for him to realise that, short as their sojourn there was likely to be, he had little hope of understanding.  Needless to say...

"What the hell is that?"  It was a measure of the gravity of the situation that neither the brunette or the blond took their eyes off the creature as they responded.

"A Ruby Dragon" 

"This may feel...odd..."  The blond added right on top of the brunette's words.  Nothing seemed to change, and then Jack O'Neill made a mistake he would rue for the rest of his life.  He looked down.  And down.  And down.  The endless blackness of space – minus the stars – was opening up beneath him.  It did begin to feel odd, as the blond had warned, a light sensation beginning to capture his limbs.  Slowly, as if moving through treacle, he looked at an arm.  There was a gasp, and it took a moment for him to realise that it was he who had gasped in disbelief. 

"I can see through my arm..."  He slowly stated.  Jack's mind had already decided that the blackness around him was too much to cope with, and was quite successfully ignoring it by concentrating on this new, and disturbing, fact.

"Sir, I think we're *outside* the space-time continuum..."  Carter's voice was as full of wonderment at the fact.  O'Neill didn't really care.  The space-time continent had never seen fit to throw him a break, so why should he care if he were outside it?  He didn't even know what it was.  "That would explain the feeling of unravelling...  There's nothing here to support our existence..."  Jack threw an uncomprehending and exasperated glance in her direction.

"If we can't exist here, how come we've not faded completely."  Carter shrugged.

"The Guardian Forces exist here.  This is where they send us when summoned, otherwise their attack would kill us."  It was the brunette who answered.  Sam was frowning.

"There's life outside the continuum?"  She shook her head.  "That's impossible."  Jack couldn't help it, he snorted in amusement.

"Considering everything we've seen, and in some cases *done*... I don't think we can really define 'impossible'." 

"Don't worry if you fall over when we get back."  The blond's words cut off any reply Carter made to Jack's comment.  Suddenly their limbs were feeling heavy again, too heavy as gravity returned once more.  As Seifer had warned, both Jack and Sam lost their balance as the ground reappeared beneath their feet.  They looked up in time to see the Ruby Dragon's corpse – or what was left of it – shimmer and vanish.

"What the hell?"  Jack's voice trailed off as he pushed himself upright and stalked over to where the Ruby Dragon had been.  There was nothing but the bare earth...and some sort of crystal shard...  He bent down and picked it up, almost dropping it in surprise as some sort of current made itself known.  But it didn't hurt, not like an electric shock.  It felt almost greasy, a feeling that made his skin crawl, and his brain urge him to drop the crystal and rub the stain it would surely leave from his hands.

Carter had joined him, and he gratefully passed the crystal over to her, automatically rubbing his hand down his trousers, despite seeing that there was no stain or taint left behind.  There was a chuckle, and Jack looked to see that Seifer was laughing quietly at their amazement.  Even Squall was half smiling.

"You're telling me that, dragon..." – he was still digesting the fact that they had been face to face with a real, live dragon – "became *that*."  Jack gestured at the crystal that Carter was now holding up to the light.  The brunette nodded.

"You mean you don't have *any* monsters on your world?"  That was the blond, Seifer, who now looked as surprised as Jack felt.  He shook his head.  "None?"  The blond seemed unable to comprehend the idea.  "What about magic?"  Again Jack shook his head silently.  "But...how do you heal yourselves in battle?"  It was Jack's turn to frown in confusion.

"I don't think they do."  Squall noted quietly.  "What's the population of your world?"  Jack shrugged, turning to Carter.

"Um...well over five billion..."  Both Squall and Seifer drew in a low hiss of breath. 

"Five billion?"  Seifer repeated, somewhat numbly.  "How in hell do you fit five billion people into a world?"

"Well, what's the population here?"  Sam asked, finally tiring of the crystal.  She kept a hold of it however.

"At a guess?  Since the toll of the last sorceress war, I'd say not more than four million."  It was Sam and Jack's turn to gasp air in surprise.

"That's nearly one hundredth the population of America alone!"  Sam burst out.  "You mean that's how many people on this entire planet?"  Squall nodded.  "What's the life expectancy?"  The brunette shrugged.

"For a SeeD... twenty-five.  A city dweller... forty-five.  Farmer... anything from twenty-five to thirty-five.  Depends where they live."  There was a long, stunned silence.

"That young?"  Sam whispered, more to herself than any of the others.  A life expectancy of only twenty-five short years.  The blond and brunette must be fast approaching that she thought, looking them over briefly.

"Here.  Let me show you a trick with that crystal."  Seifer held out his hand towards Sam, oblivious to the brief frown that flashed across O'Neill's face.  Squall however, was all too aware of the frown, and all too aware of what it meant.

Seifer, don't even pretend to make a move on her before I can hint to our friend here... he sent a brief mental image of Jack O'Neill, that we're together, and you're no real threat.  Seifer's expression didn't even flicker, but his hand lingered over the crystal no longer than was absolutely necessary to retrieve it.  Frowning in unfeigned concentration, the blond waved his free hand over the top, briefly hiding the crystal from view.  Suddenly his hand was full of silvery bullets, ten or so Jack estimated, watching the blond's every move like a hawk.  As Seifer brought his other hand to help cup them, the bullets stopped shifting, but the air above did not.  It was almost as though the bullets were giving off extreme heat, except the blond didn't appear to feel anything.

"What kind of ammunition ~is~ that?" 

"Pulse ammunition."  Jack jumped when the answer came from behind him.  "Put it away Seifer.  You can give it to Irvine when we get back."  Seifer huffed, but obediently dumped the bullets into a bag.  A bag that seemed no fatter for its new cargo.

"Not like my gunblade takes that stuff.  Not like yours needs it..."  He muttered.  Squall rolled his eyes.  Both men suddenly jerked upright, as if coming to attention.

"You have to come back."  They stated in unison.  Sam and Jack frowned at each other.  As suddenly as they had straightened, both returned to their usual, more casual, stances.  Seifer shook his head, as if dispelling a sudden dizziness.

"Damn.  Hate it when she does that."  He muttered.  Then he grinned and clapped his hands.  "Well kiddies.  Time to go back.  We're wanted on site."  Jack glowered, muttering under his breath.

"Ignore him.  He treats everyone as if they're still five."  Squall stated blandly, shooting a warning glare at his lover.  Seifer winked, completely unrepentant.  There was going to be a fight, and he was determined to enjoy what could be the last few hours of his life.

"We're going back so soon?"  Carter queried.  Surely it had only been a few hours since they left?  Seifer chuckled.

"It's noon already.  Look at your shadow."  Carter glanced down, and saw that the blond was right.  Their shadows were next to nothing, the sun high overhead.  How had it gotten there so fast?  And without them noticing?  Unless...

"How long were we outside of time?"  She wasn't sure, but Sam thought the amused eye Squall turned on her was also vaguely pleased that she had figured it out.

"About four hours.  It's not normally that long, just a few minutes, but I think the GFs wanted to study you."  Silence fell at that point, and no one saw fit to break it until they were once more descending the metal steps into the heart of the excavation site.

***

The silence of the group on its return allowed both Jack and Sam to consider the things they had seen.  Despite only being away from the excavation site for a little under six hours, the massive earthworks – that were clearly the defences mentioned by Squall as they had left – had been completed.

Almost 1000 yards from the excavation site lay a series of great ditches and crevasses that put the lines of Torres Vedras (1) to shame with their sheer scope, and easily so in terms of the amount of work done and the space of time in which it had been done.  The earthworks though were not, like the lines of Torres Vedras had been, designed to stop the enemy dead.  Merely to stall it, or break an army's charge.  Halting the attackers in their tracks – however temporarily – had been left to the second line of defences, a scant 200 yards from the excavation site.  It was, compared to the first line, almost insignificant, consisting of a long raised mound – its sides sheer and unscalable – running the entire length of the excavation site's open north-east side.  At several points there were channels – passes almost – cut into the defence.  Jack guessed that these passages were to funnel the attackers, limiting the number that were free to attack at any one point.  Against an enemy that could think, was capable of independent action and had artillery support – in other words, an army – it would never have worked, but Jack had a cold, sickening feeling that it was not such an army the mercenaries were expecting to face.  If he was correct in his thinking, it would also explain why the sorceress, Yarege, had only requested their aid at the stargate...

***

Lunch went without incident.  Sam had been cornered by the madman with the red and white ruff – a doctor he assumed – and they had both begun discussing topics that went straight over Jack's head.  They had wandered off together, still deep in discussion about – as far as he could tell – space-time and the GFs – whatever they actually were.  That left him alone with Squall and Seifer...

"So, um, what's with the scars?"  He finally asked – wishing he'd followed his intuition and left well enough alone when the temperature dropped several degrees.  Seifer looked up sharply, whilst the brunette next to him casually stood and turned away – ostensibly to return the tray – hiding a grin at the blond's discomfort.

"History."  Seifer answered tersely after a moment, also standing to return his tray.  Ok.  Jack thought.  So he now knew to leave that subject alone...

"History."  He heard himself echo, and immediately damned his curiosity – and the fact that his mouth seemed able to bypass his brain.

"Yes.  History."  The blond snapped, turning to face him.

Now, now Seifer.  Play nice with our guests.  Squall thought admonishingly to his lover.  Seifer audibly ground his teeth, fingers dancing on the hilt of Hyperion.

And what do ~I~ get out of 'playing nice'?  He demanded.

Don't worry.  The mental purr from Squall made him shiver.  I'll make it up to you later.  He then turned, swatting Seifer on the ass – making the blond jump in surprise – and sauntering out of the cafeteria, ignoring the somewhat stunned expression on O'Neill's face.

Damn straight you'll make it up.  Seifer muttered mentally, wondering when the hell Squall had become so forward.  His lover's only response was a quiet mental laugh.  "You have a problem with same-sex relationships?"  Seifer demanded of the still-surprised O'Neill.  Jack shook his head quickly.  He didn't think he had a problem, but wasn't about to admit it if he did.  He had no desire to see the weapon – a gunblade he thought it had been referred to as – at Seifer's side in action.  At least, not if he was the target.  "The scars were...an accident."  Seifer grudgingly conceded, glaring at O'Neill as if to challenge him into further inquiry.

"An accident."  Jack nearly groaned aloud.  Not only was he turning into a parrot, he was turning into a suicidal one!

Fortunately, before the scene could get ugly – or gory – Yarege materialised at the table.  Literally.  For a few moments there was absolute silence in the cafeteria, and Jack suddenly realised that he could hear noises.  Some were unmistakably gunfire, others more ambiguous, but all were in the distance.  When he finally realised that what he could hear was the fighting at the first line of defences, Seifer was gone, and Yarege was regarding him with a faint smile.

"Yes.  It has begun."  She confirmed his thoughts.  "Daniel will return soon, a matter of hours, but you will need that time to plan your positions."  This was military talk, strategies.  This was something he understood.

"Do you know how many Daniel is bringing back?"  Yarege inclined her head, muttering cryptically under her breath.

"More than I had hoped, yet less than I had expected."  Jack barely caught the words.  "Eight."  But they suddenly made sense.  "Harena must be attacking on more fronts than I had realised."  It was the first time that Jack had heard Yarege actually mention the name of the enemy's leader.  He wondered why.  "She already knows where we are.  Calling her attention to our position is no longer of account."  Well, that accounted for that.  "You should also plan your retreat in advance."  She continued, moving swiftly on as if to prevent him lingering on the subject.  Jack blinked.

"If you know we can't hold them, then why..."  Yarege held up a hand, stopping him dead.

"To hold would cost lives.  Besides, I only need the G'ould advance delayed until some of the SeeDs are free to aid you."  She cocked her head at him, appraising.  "You have never managed to defeat a G'ould one-on-one when it was their weapons against yours in a 'fair' fight."  Jack had to concede the point.  After all, the G'ould had the advantage of vastly superior technology...but, was the sorceress saying that...  "Yes.  Squall and Seifer – and most SeeDs for that matter – are capable of defeating a G'ould."  Jack decided then and there that an alliance between the two worlds had to be made, but surprisingly Yarege made no comment on the thought.

"Is an alliance between our worlds possible?"  He vocalised the thought, wondering if she had, perhaps, been concentrating on other matters and missed it.  The amused look she gave him spoke to the contrary.

"Plan for the moment.  The future must wait until we see if there will be one."  It was a gentle reprimand, and O'Neill knew it.  He was committing the greatest sin a soldier was capable of – arrogance - assuming that the war's conclusion was both foregone and favourable.  "Now, I will take you to the stargate, where Samantha Carter already awaits Daniel's return."  Jack nodded absently, mind already turning over various scenarios of the upcoming fight.  First he would deal with the initial attack – one that would be prepared for hostiles on the other side – then he would consider how they would retreat before the waves of Jaffa that they could not hope to hold forever.  But before all that, he would have to explore the layout of the facility...

AN: (1) The lines of Torres Vedras were a series of defensive earthworks constructed by Wellington during the Napoleonic wars.  At the time the French believed they had the British army on the run, and indeed this was the case, however, having driven them out of Spain completely, and within a day's march of Lisbon, they were confronted with the lines of Torres Vedras, behind which the allied army had retreated.  This was the furthest point of retreat for the British forces during the entire Peninsular war, and were only ever used once in the autumn of 1810.  The lines still exist today.

AN: woo *wipes brow* another chapter finally finished... Well, onto the next one ne? ;p  I honestly ~am~ trying – being the operative word o.O – to update with more frequency... unfortunately the muses are being a tad reluctant *grimaces*  please RxR and let me know that I'm not half-killing myself for no reason *puppy eyes* please?