Disclaimer: I SO own these guys. Not.
Summary: The title kinda gives that one away. Lots of questions.
Authors Note: Does anyone actually read these?
Rating: G – nothing bad here.
Chapter 2 – 20 Questions
We were all pretty much blinded in the first few minutes after stepping through into the press room. Flash bulbs and camera lights were shone at us, and people were yelling left right and center. It was very loud and confusing. I stood there, Carter and Daniel behind and to either side of me, Teal'c and General Hammond directly behind them. I waited. And waited. The questions were still being fired at us, the camera's were still running, the photographers were still taking photo's. Finally, after about five minutes, I'd had enough. I leant down towards the microphone, and there was an immediate hush.
"Have we all finished?" I asked them, sarcasm ringing through my voice. I stared at the gathered press, doing my best impersonation of Teal'c, when he was still First Prime. It seemed to work.
"Good. Here's how it's going to work. No shouting, no yelling, no interrupting and all mobile phones will remain switched off. That hands thing you had going is good, so we'll keep that going, but no screaming my name out. All questions will be directed at me. If I feel that I cannot answer it, than one of my team will address it. This question session will be held for one hour. After that, all questions will be fielded through the Pentagon. So ask wisely, people. Oh, and anyone who disobeys these rules will be obliged to enter the green room, and remain there until 1700 hours. This means, you won't get the scoop. Am I understood?" I stood back and waited to see the effect of my little speech.
Stunned silence, followed by a few angry mutters. But my threat of scoop denial had a lasting effect.
"Good. Now, first question." Arms were raised, and mouths opened to start yelling, but I saw all of them remember my directives, and almost simultaneously, they were shut again. "You." I pointed at one of them.
"General O'Neill, Susan from Chicago Sun."
"Go the Blackhawks." I replied, earning a smile from the middle aged brunette.
"Indeed. In the briefing, Janice mentioned that we have several alliances with foreign… races. Who are they, and what are the alliances to us?"
"The first we made was with the Abydonians, where the first Stargate expedition went. That was almost 9 years ago now. I believe SG-6, our diplomatic team, has prepared a briefing on all the alliances that we are currently party to, and we will distribute them shortly." Another hand went up, and I pointed to the owner.
"Do these… Abydonians have technologies or advancements that would benefit us?"
"No. They are a typical slave people, held back in their development and technologically inferior to ourselves."
"You say a typical slave people? What exactly do you mean?"
"The Goa'uld is a race of ….." I frowned, and turned to Carter for an explanation. She stepped forward and helped me out, bless her.
"The Goa'uld are a race of symbiotic aliens that lodge in the spine at the base of the neck and take hold of the hosts motor-control. Before they discovered human hosts, they traditionally embedded themselves in other, less…. prolific races. However, once they discovered our existence on this world, the Goa'uld cultivated us. Dispersed us across the galaxy, enslaving us and used us literally as breeding stock for their mature symbiotes. When we talk about slave people, we are talking about human beings that have been relocated and forced not only to worship the Goa'uld as false gods, but more often than not, they are either imprisoned on mining colonies, or used in experiments. Scientific, anthropological and cultural experiments. And there was one group of removed humans that were altered, irreparably. This group of people was selected as the 'womb' for the immature symbiote, and they were manipulated genetically to produce the ideal environment. They are called Jaffa." Carter stood back, having finished her explanation. I pointed at yet another reporter.
"Does the Jaffa speak English? Can he understand us? How long does he live? What kind of food does he eat?" Teal'c, I saw from the corner of my eye, gave the guy a grade 2 death glare. Nothing serious, but enough to get the reporter clearing his throat uncomfortably.
"Teal'c does speak English, and he can understand all that we say here today." Well, almost. Obscure Earth references may fly over his head, but he generally got the gist now. "His race generally lives twice to three times our own life-span. And his eating habits are none of your business."
"But he doesn't eat anything abnormal." Daniel blurted into the microphone after I'd finished.
"These…. Asgard that Janice mentioned. Who are they? What can they do?" One guy said after referring to his notes.
"The Asgard are part of a four fold alliance that protects and allows civilisations to advance, free of influence and manipulation. They also assist in…. keeping the Goa'uld under some sort of control. The Asgard themselves are your typical 'Area 51' Roswell Grey Aliens." I smiled. "It seems there was some basis for all those rumours. Well, the visitations, anyway. We've known them now for 7 years, and they've yet to even mention any kind of ….invasive probe tests to us." There was a brief chuckle at the lame joke, and I felt better. I was beginning to understand how to deal with these guys, and that would only make my job easier.
"So they're good?"
"Very much so. They're highly advanced, supremely intelligent and arrogant to boot." I replied. "They have some awesome weapons in their armory, and some kick-ass spaceships. Our main contact is a guy called Thor. Cute little guy, about this high." I measured to my waist. "A little irritating, a little condescending, but on the whole, a good guy."
"Did he take on the name of Thor because of the Viking God?" I looked at Daniel. His territory.
"Actually." Daniel took center stage, clearing his throat and pushing his glasses up his nose. "The Viking god Thor is the Asgard, taking on human form to reassure the Norsemen. We've found that throughout history, the gods that were associated with various civilisations invariably were either Goa'uld or Asgard. In some instances, as we've come to discover this past week, the Ancients themselves represented not gods, but benevolent higher beings. Like the Centaurs of ancient Greece. Or the Chinese Dragons." Daniel went on to explain his theory about Goa'uld and Asgard impersonations of our ancients gods. It was his favourite subject, and he was eloquent. Finally, the archaeological community would have to accept Danny's decade old theory about Egyptian Alien influences. "Along with a copy of the alliances we are currently involved in, there's a copy of the current gods that we know were aliens, as well as theories behind some suspected alien influences." Daniel finished, and stood back.
"General. Why were you chosen to head the first mission to… Abydos?" I tensed, an image of Charlie flashing across my inner eyes. I felt the others gather round me, felt Carter almost touch my arm, and took comfort.
"Because I'm the best." I replied, and grinned. They all laughed in reply. "In addition to that, someone had to, and I was there. Besides, I didn't have allergies, unlike a certain archaeologist I could mention." I shot a look at Daniel, who studiously ignored me. "Truthfully, I had been on retreat, considering retirement, when General West asked me to head a special team in a highly dangerous, possibly fatal mission. And he couldn't tell me where I was going, who was going with me, how long I'd be gone for or if I'd be coming back at all. What man could resist that kind of offer?"
"Was Dr Jackson or Colonel Carter on that mission?" The same reporter asked.
"Daniel was. Carter was still at the Pentagon, researching other uses for the Stargate, in case our mission failed. Or something like that." I pointed at a leggy brunette who's hair was taller than looked comfortable.
"Why did the government feel the need to keep this program a secret from the general populace." She had her pen ready, and looked a little uncertain when I started chuckling.
"You're kidding, right? This is the Whitehouse, isn't it? You are White House Reporters, yes? And you're asking me about a conspiracy theory?" I was jerked sideways as Carter moved forward, a slight scowl marring her forehead.
"Excuse me General. I believe this is something I can answer." She said between her teeth. Oops, offended her. Ah well, we'll live.
"The Government made a decision approximately 40 years ago, when the Stargate research program was re-opened, to keep any findings secret until all possible threats had been identified and possible benefits had been utilised. This policy was established because they felt, at that time, that any leaked information that was not entirely accurate would lead to panic amongst the general populace. You have to remember that this was 1969, and the fear of a communist regime was at its highest. Once we had the Stargate functioning and the teams in place, secrecy was paramount, as we'd discovered a serious threat to the safety of the entire world. Once again, the President and Joint Chiefs decided that it was prudent to assess the danger thoroughly before notifying the general population."
That's what I said, wasn't it? I stood back before the podium, then checked my watch.
"Two more questions, people, so make them good ones." I pointed at the first woman, Susan.
"What happens now? I mean, where do we go? What's going to happen?"
"Susan. That's three questions." I chided, then smiled. I looked to General Hammond, who stepped forward.
"At this moment, President Bartlett, Sir Andrews and Dr Du Vierte are flying into Geneva on Air Force One. They've organized a briefing for the full UN Council. Understand, we are going to hold you in seclusion until the meeting has finished. Once it is completed, you are free to break the story. We want you to mention the UN meeting. It is critical that you do." Hammond leaned forward, and looked over the crowd of press.
"We are working together on this, people. Sensationalism and over- stating this is something you're all going to have to hold back on. We are working on not only global unification, but Galaxy-wide unification. This is something that we never even realised was an issue before. We all need to work together, no more secrets, no hidden agenda's. Otherwise, the Goa'uld are going to turn up on our doorstep and find us bickering and wipe us clean out before we even know they're here." He paused, taking in a deep breath and filling out his chest. "I'm not exaggerating, people. The Goa'uld are a real threat and they're merciless. They will annihilate us without a second thought. World War II will look like a school yard argument in comparison to what the Goa'uld will do. They have done it before, and without anyone to stand in their way, the will do it again. I mean to stop them, and I will use any and all possible means to do so." Hammond pointed to one last hand that was held up hesitantly.
"Yes, son?" He asked, and I saw it was a young man, his face chalky white.
"What do you want us to do, sir?" He asked quietly.
"Your jobs. We want you to do your jobs. And just that. It's that simple. Report the facts. State the case. That's all. We're not holding back any information. We're not keeping secrets or telling you only what you need to know. Because we all need to know everything." He stood back and I went to walk forward and saw a flash to my left. I looked and saw Daniel disappear in a flash of light.
"My God!" Someone moaned from the press gallery. I leant forward, putting my hands up to calm everyone. It seemed they were all staring at the empty space that had been Daniel. And they all looked as white as ghosts.
"That's nothing to worry about, guys. That is the Asgard travel device. Think of Star Trak and 'Beam Me Up Scotty'." I told them. It didn't get a laugh, but I saw a few of them take a deep breath and nod their heads. Others were making sure that their camera's had actually gotten the footage of Daniel disappearing. I suppose it would make good news.
"There are aliens here? Now?" One of the press asked me.
"The Asgard have been orbiting Earth for the last three days. They have a …. cloaking device that allows them to hide their presence from detection and not just ours. Okay, the handouts on the Alliances et cetera are on the back table, and there are copies of file tape that you all will probably want to have a look at. You guys are going to be stuck in one of the White House rooms for the next two hours, until 1500, then you're free to go." I left the podium to Janice, and heard her briefing the press.
We walked into a spare office and I turned to Carter and Teal'c.
"Any idea's why Thor pulled Daniel from the *middle * of the briefing?" I asked them. Carter shook her head.
"I do not know, O'Neill." Teal'c told me.
"Great. That's gonna scare the living crap out of the public. People disappearing before their eyes. Aliens, a galaxy-wide war. What a way to start the year of."
"O'Neill, I believe that the year, as you measure time, has been going for quite some time."
"Don't nitpick, T." I grumbled.
"Jack." Hammond chided me. He'd just come from talking to some aide on the other side of the room. "Air Force One has just landed, and the President is on his way, along with Sir Andrews and Dr Du Vierte." He paused. "Any idea why Daniel left us, Col-General?" He asked me.
"No sir. I'm hoping he gets sent back real soon, so he can cure our curiosity." I replied.
"Perhaps the Asgard believed a demonstration was required to ensure the belief of the Tau'ri." Teal'c offered.
"It's possible." Hammond conceded. "Right now, I have a meeting. I want some sort of briefing as soon as Dr Jackson returns."
"Yes sir." I replied as he walked out the door. Seconds later an aide came in and guided us through the maze of offices and cubicles to another room for us to wait. The catch-cry of all military departments; Hurry up and wait. So we did.
After a few minutes, of intense waiting, I started looking around the room and found a stash of paper, which just begged my attention. I got a nice neat piece of paper, which I folded in half, length ways. I then opened it back up and folded two diagonals along the crease, forming a nice arrow kind of shape. Folded it back together again and then folded down a flap on either side, and voila, a very crude paper aeroplane. Which I then flew at Teal'c, who had his eyebrows raised, watching my folding with great interest.
"You want to have a go, Teal'c?" I asked the Jaffa, who nodded and grabbed a piece of paper. And then proceeded to fold. And fold. And fold some more. Within seconds, I could see the death-glider forming, but refused to believe my eyes. This guy was a down-right genius at origami. Teal'c finished the death glider silently, picked it up and thrust it gently forward. It flew in a perfect parabola towards Carter, who plucked it out of the air, her own face showing shock. Teal'c then picked up another piece of paper and folded, in all of a minute, a miniature Goa'uld mother ship. Following that came another ship. It was small, with two vertical panels on either side of a small spherical shape that had horizontal panels extending to join the vertical panels to the sphere. It looked vaguely familiar.
"Is that some other type of Gao'uld ship, Teal'c?" I asked, pointing at the ship.
"It's a tie fighter, O'Neill." He replied.
"Oh. Who owns them?"
"The Empire."
"Empire of what?" Teal'c shot me an incredulous look. I seriously had no idea who he was talking about. The Tollans? Those Navati people we'd met 18 months ago? Some other obscure race we hadn't met yet?
"Jack. That's a tie fighter from the Star Wars Trilogy." Carter said in between chuckles of mirth. I felt a flush of embarrassment, but that was quickly suppressed by the flush of …..something else. She'd called me Jack. Voluntarily. I shot her a look, my breath catching. She just smiled and sent the death-glider floating back towards me.
"How did you learn to do that, Teal'c?" She asked as I caught the paper glider.
"It is a skill that we learn as boys, Colonel Carter. To assist with our ability to visualise and re-create events, we are trained to create form from a variety of different products. Paper was one of my favourite forms of re-creating forms."
"Impressive." I muttered, feeling a trifle out-done.
"It is a small skill. One learnt at a very early age." Teal'c dismissed the praise, making me feel even smaller. And then Daniel appeared in the centre of the room and I was saved from disappearing altogether. Thank God.
"Guys."
"Where'd you end up, Danny-boy?" I asked, standing up.
"On Thor's ship, obviously, Jack." He replied a little tartly. "We have a bit of a problem." He started, then the world went white. When colour came back into our vision, we were standing on the main deck of Thor's ship, looking down on Earth. And that Earth was getting smaller by the milli-second.
"Dan-iel?" I grated from between my teeth. "What's going on? Why are we leaving earth?"
"That's what I was trying to say before Thor intervened. The Asgard are in trouble. They need our help. Or rather, more of our stupid idea's."
"And you didn't think it wise to ask us before kidnapping us?" I asked him.
"They kidnapped me too, Jack." Daniel reminded them. "And it's not kidnapping. Thor assured me that he would inform Hammond as we left, so that they would know where we were."
"Well, that makes all the difference." I replied sarcastically.
"What's the problem, Daniel?" Carter asked, cutting off my impending rant.
"Thor wouldn't say. He wants us to see it for ourselves, first."
"See what? Where?" I demanded.
"Well. Thor said you wouldn't like this, and I agree."
"Daniel." I grated out. "Where are we going?"
"They call it the…. Holaug Medih. It means …"
"Don't want to know. Where is it?"
"We don't know. You cannot see that region of space from Earth."
"Daniel, we can see millions of lightyears in every direc.………" I drifted off, and I'm sure my face lost all colour.
"Exactly." Daniel replied. "We're going beyond the known Universe."
Summary: The title kinda gives that one away. Lots of questions.
Authors Note: Does anyone actually read these?
Rating: G – nothing bad here.
Chapter 2 – 20 Questions
We were all pretty much blinded in the first few minutes after stepping through into the press room. Flash bulbs and camera lights were shone at us, and people were yelling left right and center. It was very loud and confusing. I stood there, Carter and Daniel behind and to either side of me, Teal'c and General Hammond directly behind them. I waited. And waited. The questions were still being fired at us, the camera's were still running, the photographers were still taking photo's. Finally, after about five minutes, I'd had enough. I leant down towards the microphone, and there was an immediate hush.
"Have we all finished?" I asked them, sarcasm ringing through my voice. I stared at the gathered press, doing my best impersonation of Teal'c, when he was still First Prime. It seemed to work.
"Good. Here's how it's going to work. No shouting, no yelling, no interrupting and all mobile phones will remain switched off. That hands thing you had going is good, so we'll keep that going, but no screaming my name out. All questions will be directed at me. If I feel that I cannot answer it, than one of my team will address it. This question session will be held for one hour. After that, all questions will be fielded through the Pentagon. So ask wisely, people. Oh, and anyone who disobeys these rules will be obliged to enter the green room, and remain there until 1700 hours. This means, you won't get the scoop. Am I understood?" I stood back and waited to see the effect of my little speech.
Stunned silence, followed by a few angry mutters. But my threat of scoop denial had a lasting effect.
"Good. Now, first question." Arms were raised, and mouths opened to start yelling, but I saw all of them remember my directives, and almost simultaneously, they were shut again. "You." I pointed at one of them.
"General O'Neill, Susan from Chicago Sun."
"Go the Blackhawks." I replied, earning a smile from the middle aged brunette.
"Indeed. In the briefing, Janice mentioned that we have several alliances with foreign… races. Who are they, and what are the alliances to us?"
"The first we made was with the Abydonians, where the first Stargate expedition went. That was almost 9 years ago now. I believe SG-6, our diplomatic team, has prepared a briefing on all the alliances that we are currently party to, and we will distribute them shortly." Another hand went up, and I pointed to the owner.
"Do these… Abydonians have technologies or advancements that would benefit us?"
"No. They are a typical slave people, held back in their development and technologically inferior to ourselves."
"You say a typical slave people? What exactly do you mean?"
"The Goa'uld is a race of ….." I frowned, and turned to Carter for an explanation. She stepped forward and helped me out, bless her.
"The Goa'uld are a race of symbiotic aliens that lodge in the spine at the base of the neck and take hold of the hosts motor-control. Before they discovered human hosts, they traditionally embedded themselves in other, less…. prolific races. However, once they discovered our existence on this world, the Goa'uld cultivated us. Dispersed us across the galaxy, enslaving us and used us literally as breeding stock for their mature symbiotes. When we talk about slave people, we are talking about human beings that have been relocated and forced not only to worship the Goa'uld as false gods, but more often than not, they are either imprisoned on mining colonies, or used in experiments. Scientific, anthropological and cultural experiments. And there was one group of removed humans that were altered, irreparably. This group of people was selected as the 'womb' for the immature symbiote, and they were manipulated genetically to produce the ideal environment. They are called Jaffa." Carter stood back, having finished her explanation. I pointed at yet another reporter.
"Does the Jaffa speak English? Can he understand us? How long does he live? What kind of food does he eat?" Teal'c, I saw from the corner of my eye, gave the guy a grade 2 death glare. Nothing serious, but enough to get the reporter clearing his throat uncomfortably.
"Teal'c does speak English, and he can understand all that we say here today." Well, almost. Obscure Earth references may fly over his head, but he generally got the gist now. "His race generally lives twice to three times our own life-span. And his eating habits are none of your business."
"But he doesn't eat anything abnormal." Daniel blurted into the microphone after I'd finished.
"These…. Asgard that Janice mentioned. Who are they? What can they do?" One guy said after referring to his notes.
"The Asgard are part of a four fold alliance that protects and allows civilisations to advance, free of influence and manipulation. They also assist in…. keeping the Goa'uld under some sort of control. The Asgard themselves are your typical 'Area 51' Roswell Grey Aliens." I smiled. "It seems there was some basis for all those rumours. Well, the visitations, anyway. We've known them now for 7 years, and they've yet to even mention any kind of ….invasive probe tests to us." There was a brief chuckle at the lame joke, and I felt better. I was beginning to understand how to deal with these guys, and that would only make my job easier.
"So they're good?"
"Very much so. They're highly advanced, supremely intelligent and arrogant to boot." I replied. "They have some awesome weapons in their armory, and some kick-ass spaceships. Our main contact is a guy called Thor. Cute little guy, about this high." I measured to my waist. "A little irritating, a little condescending, but on the whole, a good guy."
"Did he take on the name of Thor because of the Viking God?" I looked at Daniel. His territory.
"Actually." Daniel took center stage, clearing his throat and pushing his glasses up his nose. "The Viking god Thor is the Asgard, taking on human form to reassure the Norsemen. We've found that throughout history, the gods that were associated with various civilisations invariably were either Goa'uld or Asgard. In some instances, as we've come to discover this past week, the Ancients themselves represented not gods, but benevolent higher beings. Like the Centaurs of ancient Greece. Or the Chinese Dragons." Daniel went on to explain his theory about Goa'uld and Asgard impersonations of our ancients gods. It was his favourite subject, and he was eloquent. Finally, the archaeological community would have to accept Danny's decade old theory about Egyptian Alien influences. "Along with a copy of the alliances we are currently involved in, there's a copy of the current gods that we know were aliens, as well as theories behind some suspected alien influences." Daniel finished, and stood back.
"General. Why were you chosen to head the first mission to… Abydos?" I tensed, an image of Charlie flashing across my inner eyes. I felt the others gather round me, felt Carter almost touch my arm, and took comfort.
"Because I'm the best." I replied, and grinned. They all laughed in reply. "In addition to that, someone had to, and I was there. Besides, I didn't have allergies, unlike a certain archaeologist I could mention." I shot a look at Daniel, who studiously ignored me. "Truthfully, I had been on retreat, considering retirement, when General West asked me to head a special team in a highly dangerous, possibly fatal mission. And he couldn't tell me where I was going, who was going with me, how long I'd be gone for or if I'd be coming back at all. What man could resist that kind of offer?"
"Was Dr Jackson or Colonel Carter on that mission?" The same reporter asked.
"Daniel was. Carter was still at the Pentagon, researching other uses for the Stargate, in case our mission failed. Or something like that." I pointed at a leggy brunette who's hair was taller than looked comfortable.
"Why did the government feel the need to keep this program a secret from the general populace." She had her pen ready, and looked a little uncertain when I started chuckling.
"You're kidding, right? This is the Whitehouse, isn't it? You are White House Reporters, yes? And you're asking me about a conspiracy theory?" I was jerked sideways as Carter moved forward, a slight scowl marring her forehead.
"Excuse me General. I believe this is something I can answer." She said between her teeth. Oops, offended her. Ah well, we'll live.
"The Government made a decision approximately 40 years ago, when the Stargate research program was re-opened, to keep any findings secret until all possible threats had been identified and possible benefits had been utilised. This policy was established because they felt, at that time, that any leaked information that was not entirely accurate would lead to panic amongst the general populace. You have to remember that this was 1969, and the fear of a communist regime was at its highest. Once we had the Stargate functioning and the teams in place, secrecy was paramount, as we'd discovered a serious threat to the safety of the entire world. Once again, the President and Joint Chiefs decided that it was prudent to assess the danger thoroughly before notifying the general population."
That's what I said, wasn't it? I stood back before the podium, then checked my watch.
"Two more questions, people, so make them good ones." I pointed at the first woman, Susan.
"What happens now? I mean, where do we go? What's going to happen?"
"Susan. That's three questions." I chided, then smiled. I looked to General Hammond, who stepped forward.
"At this moment, President Bartlett, Sir Andrews and Dr Du Vierte are flying into Geneva on Air Force One. They've organized a briefing for the full UN Council. Understand, we are going to hold you in seclusion until the meeting has finished. Once it is completed, you are free to break the story. We want you to mention the UN meeting. It is critical that you do." Hammond leaned forward, and looked over the crowd of press.
"We are working together on this, people. Sensationalism and over- stating this is something you're all going to have to hold back on. We are working on not only global unification, but Galaxy-wide unification. This is something that we never even realised was an issue before. We all need to work together, no more secrets, no hidden agenda's. Otherwise, the Goa'uld are going to turn up on our doorstep and find us bickering and wipe us clean out before we even know they're here." He paused, taking in a deep breath and filling out his chest. "I'm not exaggerating, people. The Goa'uld are a real threat and they're merciless. They will annihilate us without a second thought. World War II will look like a school yard argument in comparison to what the Goa'uld will do. They have done it before, and without anyone to stand in their way, the will do it again. I mean to stop them, and I will use any and all possible means to do so." Hammond pointed to one last hand that was held up hesitantly.
"Yes, son?" He asked, and I saw it was a young man, his face chalky white.
"What do you want us to do, sir?" He asked quietly.
"Your jobs. We want you to do your jobs. And just that. It's that simple. Report the facts. State the case. That's all. We're not holding back any information. We're not keeping secrets or telling you only what you need to know. Because we all need to know everything." He stood back and I went to walk forward and saw a flash to my left. I looked and saw Daniel disappear in a flash of light.
"My God!" Someone moaned from the press gallery. I leant forward, putting my hands up to calm everyone. It seemed they were all staring at the empty space that had been Daniel. And they all looked as white as ghosts.
"That's nothing to worry about, guys. That is the Asgard travel device. Think of Star Trak and 'Beam Me Up Scotty'." I told them. It didn't get a laugh, but I saw a few of them take a deep breath and nod their heads. Others were making sure that their camera's had actually gotten the footage of Daniel disappearing. I suppose it would make good news.
"There are aliens here? Now?" One of the press asked me.
"The Asgard have been orbiting Earth for the last three days. They have a …. cloaking device that allows them to hide their presence from detection and not just ours. Okay, the handouts on the Alliances et cetera are on the back table, and there are copies of file tape that you all will probably want to have a look at. You guys are going to be stuck in one of the White House rooms for the next two hours, until 1500, then you're free to go." I left the podium to Janice, and heard her briefing the press.
We walked into a spare office and I turned to Carter and Teal'c.
"Any idea's why Thor pulled Daniel from the *middle * of the briefing?" I asked them. Carter shook her head.
"I do not know, O'Neill." Teal'c told me.
"Great. That's gonna scare the living crap out of the public. People disappearing before their eyes. Aliens, a galaxy-wide war. What a way to start the year of."
"O'Neill, I believe that the year, as you measure time, has been going for quite some time."
"Don't nitpick, T." I grumbled.
"Jack." Hammond chided me. He'd just come from talking to some aide on the other side of the room. "Air Force One has just landed, and the President is on his way, along with Sir Andrews and Dr Du Vierte." He paused. "Any idea why Daniel left us, Col-General?" He asked me.
"No sir. I'm hoping he gets sent back real soon, so he can cure our curiosity." I replied.
"Perhaps the Asgard believed a demonstration was required to ensure the belief of the Tau'ri." Teal'c offered.
"It's possible." Hammond conceded. "Right now, I have a meeting. I want some sort of briefing as soon as Dr Jackson returns."
"Yes sir." I replied as he walked out the door. Seconds later an aide came in and guided us through the maze of offices and cubicles to another room for us to wait. The catch-cry of all military departments; Hurry up and wait. So we did.
After a few minutes, of intense waiting, I started looking around the room and found a stash of paper, which just begged my attention. I got a nice neat piece of paper, which I folded in half, length ways. I then opened it back up and folded two diagonals along the crease, forming a nice arrow kind of shape. Folded it back together again and then folded down a flap on either side, and voila, a very crude paper aeroplane. Which I then flew at Teal'c, who had his eyebrows raised, watching my folding with great interest.
"You want to have a go, Teal'c?" I asked the Jaffa, who nodded and grabbed a piece of paper. And then proceeded to fold. And fold. And fold some more. Within seconds, I could see the death-glider forming, but refused to believe my eyes. This guy was a down-right genius at origami. Teal'c finished the death glider silently, picked it up and thrust it gently forward. It flew in a perfect parabola towards Carter, who plucked it out of the air, her own face showing shock. Teal'c then picked up another piece of paper and folded, in all of a minute, a miniature Goa'uld mother ship. Following that came another ship. It was small, with two vertical panels on either side of a small spherical shape that had horizontal panels extending to join the vertical panels to the sphere. It looked vaguely familiar.
"Is that some other type of Gao'uld ship, Teal'c?" I asked, pointing at the ship.
"It's a tie fighter, O'Neill." He replied.
"Oh. Who owns them?"
"The Empire."
"Empire of what?" Teal'c shot me an incredulous look. I seriously had no idea who he was talking about. The Tollans? Those Navati people we'd met 18 months ago? Some other obscure race we hadn't met yet?
"Jack. That's a tie fighter from the Star Wars Trilogy." Carter said in between chuckles of mirth. I felt a flush of embarrassment, but that was quickly suppressed by the flush of …..something else. She'd called me Jack. Voluntarily. I shot her a look, my breath catching. She just smiled and sent the death-glider floating back towards me.
"How did you learn to do that, Teal'c?" She asked as I caught the paper glider.
"It is a skill that we learn as boys, Colonel Carter. To assist with our ability to visualise and re-create events, we are trained to create form from a variety of different products. Paper was one of my favourite forms of re-creating forms."
"Impressive." I muttered, feeling a trifle out-done.
"It is a small skill. One learnt at a very early age." Teal'c dismissed the praise, making me feel even smaller. And then Daniel appeared in the centre of the room and I was saved from disappearing altogether. Thank God.
"Guys."
"Where'd you end up, Danny-boy?" I asked, standing up.
"On Thor's ship, obviously, Jack." He replied a little tartly. "We have a bit of a problem." He started, then the world went white. When colour came back into our vision, we were standing on the main deck of Thor's ship, looking down on Earth. And that Earth was getting smaller by the milli-second.
"Dan-iel?" I grated from between my teeth. "What's going on? Why are we leaving earth?"
"That's what I was trying to say before Thor intervened. The Asgard are in trouble. They need our help. Or rather, more of our stupid idea's."
"And you didn't think it wise to ask us before kidnapping us?" I asked him.
"They kidnapped me too, Jack." Daniel reminded them. "And it's not kidnapping. Thor assured me that he would inform Hammond as we left, so that they would know where we were."
"Well, that makes all the difference." I replied sarcastically.
"What's the problem, Daniel?" Carter asked, cutting off my impending rant.
"Thor wouldn't say. He wants us to see it for ourselves, first."
"See what? Where?" I demanded.
"Well. Thor said you wouldn't like this, and I agree."
"Daniel." I grated out. "Where are we going?"
"They call it the…. Holaug Medih. It means …"
"Don't want to know. Where is it?"
"We don't know. You cannot see that region of space from Earth."
"Daniel, we can see millions of lightyears in every direc.………" I drifted off, and I'm sure my face lost all colour.
"Exactly." Daniel replied. "We're going beyond the known Universe."