The little ship came out of hyperspace exactly where Mitchell and Talon wanted it to. And precisely where they'd expected the Goa'uld mother ship to be, there it was. Mitchell noted this with satisfaction, and reached for the communications toggle. Talon would demand the surrender of the ship, and the Goa'uld and Jaffa aboard her, but they both knew there was no way the arrogance of the Goa'uld was going to let him surrender.
Immediately, they were hailed, and told to identify themselves.
"I am Talon. Surrender your vessel and you Jaffa and I will allow you to live to serve me."
It was practically a routine, by now, although Mitchell knew better than to allow herself to become complacent.
"You dare!"
Of course they dared. How could they not? She had the smallest little spaceship in the universe, really, but it was so deadly that there was really no comparison.
"Surrender. This is your only chance."
A blast rocked the little ship slightly as the Goa'uld gave his opinion of his only chance, but the shields on the craft held firm, and Melony wasn't even shaken in her Command chair. She flipped the weapons toggle, and brought her shield-breaking weapon to bear, instantly bringing down the shields of the offending ship. Her hand was moving over to touch the firing mechanism of her main cannons, when every proximity alarm on the little ship suddenly went ape shit around her, blaring warnings left and right.
Mitchell fired at the mother ship, knowing she couldn't allow a distraction at that critical moment, but even while the other ship was breaking apart into a million pieces of scrap, she was already turning towards her tactical display, checking to see what was happening around her.
As she watched, both on the display, and out of the forward view screen, a dozen more mother ships suddenly materialized around them, all of them with their shields up, and all of them with their weapons already locked onto the little craft.
"Well, I guess we know what the Goa'uld think of your petition to become a Major system lord," Mitchell said, reaching for the toggle for the shield- breaker once more, and hoping the shields were as good as they'd been telling everyone they were. She and Talon hadn't actually gotten around to testing them with anything too big.
[indeed]
A volley of fire rocked their little ship, and this time Melony was knocked out of her chair.
.......................
"Unscheduled off-world activation!"
The alarms were sounding all over the lower levels of Cheyenne Mountain, and security teams were sprinting for the embarkation room, even as Jack and Teal'c headed for the Command center. They'd been walking down the hall anyways, and were fairly close, so they entered just in time to hear the technical sergeant at the main computer identify the incoming signal as a Tok'ra ID.
"Open the iris," Hammond ordered, turning to Jack and Teal'c, and motioning for them to follow him. Like they needed any invitation, since Jack was well aware the Tok'ra probably knew more about what was going on with Melony Mitchell than Jack and he hadn't heard a word from her in more than two weeks.
They entered the embarkation room just in time to see Jacob Carter emerge from the gate, and the three of them walked over to greet him as Hammond ordered the security teams to stand down.
"Jacob."
Hammond shook hands with his old friend, genuinely pleased to see him. He was just as worried about Mitchell as everyone else was who knew about her crazy plan, and he hoped that Jacob had some news for them.
"George, it's good to see you."
"You, too, Jacob."
Carter turned to Jack, who nodded a greeting, but didn't offer his hand.
"Any news on Colonel Mitchell, Jacob?" O'Neill asked.
He nodded, "It's all bad, though, Jack."
That wasn't what he wanted to hear, and Jack's expression was bleak, but he nodded. Hammond looked just as serious, and he turned to look at O'Neill for a moment.
"Let's go to the briefing room."
They headed for the door, and O'Neill stopped just long enough to have one of the techs summon Sam, Daniel and Brad Anderson to the briefing room as well. If it was bad news, Brad had a right to hear it, and Sam would want to know her dad was on the base. And since everyone else was coming, Daniel might as well be involved, too.
.......................
Jacob waited in the silent room until everyone that had been summoned had arrived and taken a seat. He'd given Sam a small smile, thinking to himself that his daughter was looking pretty tired, and that if George didn't do something to get her to take a break, then he was going to take matters into his own hands. Of course, the news he had to share might very well make her stop what she was working on anyways.
"What news do you have, Jacob?" Hammond asked, when Brad Anderson had taken a seat next to Jack. Both men looked incredibly tense, and for the same reason.
"Melony's missing."
Jack raised an eyebrow. "I thought you guys couldn't keep track of her in that ship of hers, anyways. How do you know she's missing?"
He hesitated, as if trying to figure out how to soften the words, but when Jack scowled, waiting, he shrugged.
"Last week, Talon and Melony sent a Jaffa with a petition to one of the Major system lords, demanding that he be confirmed in the rank of Major system lord. Apparently, the system lords are far more afraid of her taking over the mantle of any kind of rank than Talon had assumed they'd be. They fear that if given too much power, Jaffa will flock to her banner, so to speak, leaving her with an army that even they couldn't deal with. They didn't even consider allowing Talon to join their ranks, instead deciding that they needed to get rid of what is obviously a threat to all of them."
"That's so unlike them." Jack's sarcasm was intended to hide his concern, but the look on his face was bleak. "What happened?"
"About 12 hours ago, the system lords successfully ambushed Melony's ship." Jacob said. "The ambush was put together among only the system lords and their first primes, and the location was kept a secret. They put out bait that was far too good for Melony and Talon to resist, then waited close by with a dozen mother ships until she showed up and fell for it."
"And she did?"
If Jack looked bleak, Brad Anderson looked even worse.
Jacob gave him a sympathetic look, and nodded.
"The ship emerged from hyperspace, and Talon delivered their ultimatum. Right before the bait mother ship was destroyed, the rest of them came out of hyperspace as well, and surrounded her. They didn't even give her a warning."
"Bastards."
Jacob nodded his agreement.
"She took a lot of them down with her, Jack." As if that was any consolation. "We had an operative on one of the ships – luckily it was the ship that was the furthest from the battle. Apparently she used that shield dropping device on them, and set off some sort of huge explosion – we assume a self destruct device – that took out every mother ship there except for two."
"Did your operative see her ship explode?" Sam asked, intently.
Jacob shook his head.
"The blast from the initial explosion, and then the firestorms from the secondary explosions as the mother ships went up disrupted the sensors on our operative's ship. All he knows is that when the smoke finally cleared – so to speak – 10 mother ships had been destroyed, and Melony's ship was gone. Presumably disintegrated."
"But her shields might have held." Sam said.
"The ship was gone, Sam."
"But it might have-"
Jacob shook his head. He looked haggard and tired, as if the loss of Mitchell was just as devastating to him as it was to the SGC, and Sam remembered how her father had told her the Tok'ra couldn't afford to lose Talon. And now they apparently had.
"We'd have heard from them, Sam." He gave Jack another look, but no one could read his expression. "You'd have heard from her."
Jack knew it was true.
Immediately, they were hailed, and told to identify themselves.
"I am Talon. Surrender your vessel and you Jaffa and I will allow you to live to serve me."
It was practically a routine, by now, although Mitchell knew better than to allow herself to become complacent.
"You dare!"
Of course they dared. How could they not? She had the smallest little spaceship in the universe, really, but it was so deadly that there was really no comparison.
"Surrender. This is your only chance."
A blast rocked the little ship slightly as the Goa'uld gave his opinion of his only chance, but the shields on the craft held firm, and Melony wasn't even shaken in her Command chair. She flipped the weapons toggle, and brought her shield-breaking weapon to bear, instantly bringing down the shields of the offending ship. Her hand was moving over to touch the firing mechanism of her main cannons, when every proximity alarm on the little ship suddenly went ape shit around her, blaring warnings left and right.
Mitchell fired at the mother ship, knowing she couldn't allow a distraction at that critical moment, but even while the other ship was breaking apart into a million pieces of scrap, she was already turning towards her tactical display, checking to see what was happening around her.
As she watched, both on the display, and out of the forward view screen, a dozen more mother ships suddenly materialized around them, all of them with their shields up, and all of them with their weapons already locked onto the little craft.
"Well, I guess we know what the Goa'uld think of your petition to become a Major system lord," Mitchell said, reaching for the toggle for the shield- breaker once more, and hoping the shields were as good as they'd been telling everyone they were. She and Talon hadn't actually gotten around to testing them with anything too big.
[indeed]
A volley of fire rocked their little ship, and this time Melony was knocked out of her chair.
.......................
"Unscheduled off-world activation!"
The alarms were sounding all over the lower levels of Cheyenne Mountain, and security teams were sprinting for the embarkation room, even as Jack and Teal'c headed for the Command center. They'd been walking down the hall anyways, and were fairly close, so they entered just in time to hear the technical sergeant at the main computer identify the incoming signal as a Tok'ra ID.
"Open the iris," Hammond ordered, turning to Jack and Teal'c, and motioning for them to follow him. Like they needed any invitation, since Jack was well aware the Tok'ra probably knew more about what was going on with Melony Mitchell than Jack and he hadn't heard a word from her in more than two weeks.
They entered the embarkation room just in time to see Jacob Carter emerge from the gate, and the three of them walked over to greet him as Hammond ordered the security teams to stand down.
"Jacob."
Hammond shook hands with his old friend, genuinely pleased to see him. He was just as worried about Mitchell as everyone else was who knew about her crazy plan, and he hoped that Jacob had some news for them.
"George, it's good to see you."
"You, too, Jacob."
Carter turned to Jack, who nodded a greeting, but didn't offer his hand.
"Any news on Colonel Mitchell, Jacob?" O'Neill asked.
He nodded, "It's all bad, though, Jack."
That wasn't what he wanted to hear, and Jack's expression was bleak, but he nodded. Hammond looked just as serious, and he turned to look at O'Neill for a moment.
"Let's go to the briefing room."
They headed for the door, and O'Neill stopped just long enough to have one of the techs summon Sam, Daniel and Brad Anderson to the briefing room as well. If it was bad news, Brad had a right to hear it, and Sam would want to know her dad was on the base. And since everyone else was coming, Daniel might as well be involved, too.
.......................
Jacob waited in the silent room until everyone that had been summoned had arrived and taken a seat. He'd given Sam a small smile, thinking to himself that his daughter was looking pretty tired, and that if George didn't do something to get her to take a break, then he was going to take matters into his own hands. Of course, the news he had to share might very well make her stop what she was working on anyways.
"What news do you have, Jacob?" Hammond asked, when Brad Anderson had taken a seat next to Jack. Both men looked incredibly tense, and for the same reason.
"Melony's missing."
Jack raised an eyebrow. "I thought you guys couldn't keep track of her in that ship of hers, anyways. How do you know she's missing?"
He hesitated, as if trying to figure out how to soften the words, but when Jack scowled, waiting, he shrugged.
"Last week, Talon and Melony sent a Jaffa with a petition to one of the Major system lords, demanding that he be confirmed in the rank of Major system lord. Apparently, the system lords are far more afraid of her taking over the mantle of any kind of rank than Talon had assumed they'd be. They fear that if given too much power, Jaffa will flock to her banner, so to speak, leaving her with an army that even they couldn't deal with. They didn't even consider allowing Talon to join their ranks, instead deciding that they needed to get rid of what is obviously a threat to all of them."
"That's so unlike them." Jack's sarcasm was intended to hide his concern, but the look on his face was bleak. "What happened?"
"About 12 hours ago, the system lords successfully ambushed Melony's ship." Jacob said. "The ambush was put together among only the system lords and their first primes, and the location was kept a secret. They put out bait that was far too good for Melony and Talon to resist, then waited close by with a dozen mother ships until she showed up and fell for it."
"And she did?"
If Jack looked bleak, Brad Anderson looked even worse.
Jacob gave him a sympathetic look, and nodded.
"The ship emerged from hyperspace, and Talon delivered their ultimatum. Right before the bait mother ship was destroyed, the rest of them came out of hyperspace as well, and surrounded her. They didn't even give her a warning."
"Bastards."
Jacob nodded his agreement.
"She took a lot of them down with her, Jack." As if that was any consolation. "We had an operative on one of the ships – luckily it was the ship that was the furthest from the battle. Apparently she used that shield dropping device on them, and set off some sort of huge explosion – we assume a self destruct device – that took out every mother ship there except for two."
"Did your operative see her ship explode?" Sam asked, intently.
Jacob shook his head.
"The blast from the initial explosion, and then the firestorms from the secondary explosions as the mother ships went up disrupted the sensors on our operative's ship. All he knows is that when the smoke finally cleared – so to speak – 10 mother ships had been destroyed, and Melony's ship was gone. Presumably disintegrated."
"But her shields might have held." Sam said.
"The ship was gone, Sam."
"But it might have-"
Jacob shook his head. He looked haggard and tired, as if the loss of Mitchell was just as devastating to him as it was to the SGC, and Sam remembered how her father had told her the Tok'ra couldn't afford to lose Talon. And now they apparently had.
"We'd have heard from them, Sam." He gave Jack another look, but no one could read his expression. "You'd have heard from her."
Jack knew it was true.