Chapter 2
Welcome to the SGC
After landing, Merlin realized that he might not be flying for awhile, which was rather discouraging. He sighed deeply, perhaps he could work towards his doctorate while they finished building him an aircraft capable of earth and interspace travel. Designing a training program specifically cried 'boredom' to him, and it was clear that it might be some time before he was actually actively piloting anything against the enemy.
He was already mentally planning ways to keep himself busy, but the minute he climbed into the vehicle that would take him to his new post he promptly fell asleep.
When the vehicle stopped, Merlin opened one eyes and groggily said to the airman, "Don't tell me we're already there."
"Yes, sir, we are."
"I told you not to tell me that," he replied.
"Sorry, sir."
The captain jumped out and waved him off without a backwards glance. He was hoping that this was not going to be a post without any humor, but it already seemed as if nobody was going to understand his sarcasm. He'd be at a loss to say anything.
He approached the guards hoping that this would be quick as it was rather hot outside and he was completely uncomfortable in his full uniform.
"Well, sir, you are a bit early."
"Early?" He replied. How could he possibly be early when he was supposed to get there ASAP?
"Yes, sir, they aren't expecting you for a few hours."
He thought to himself, 'Don't tell me they are going to make me wait out here for a few hours!"
"Berkely is going to call down to General Hammond and see what he wants to do."
"I see," he replied, putting his baseball cap back on and turning around to look back out at the road.
"You're a pilot?" The man said, nodding at his hat which had a very impressive set of wings embroidered on the front.
"Yes, I am."
"Don't you have any gear, sir," another asked him.
"Nope, just my hat and sunglasses and some stuff in this bag," he replied talking about the backpack he had slung over one shoulder.
"They lost it on you, sir."
Merlin turned back around, "It is back with my last post near Iraq, they are shipping it out to me."
"Hey, sir," said the man Merlin assumed was Berkely, "They are coming up for you now."
'Goody,' he thought, giving a rather saccharine smile.
* * *
The tunnels were all nondescript and a drab grey color. The airman escorting him hadn't said word one to him other than a very formal greeting and a 'follow me, sir'.
Merlin had been in many hair-raising, deadly situations, but he had never quite felt like this before. He felt anxious and tense and on alert. Every corner he turned, he felt inclined to completely inspect the hallway. He was simply waiting to turn the corner and have to confront the one person he had never really cared to see again. The irony of it was amazing. Of all the posts, he had to be sent to this one, and he thought some reg would save him from that slim possibility in the first place.
He was beginning to wish that he had taken a job where he could just tell his boss that he quit and then proceed to walk straight out the door to never look back. He should have stayed in academia. He sighed, he could not deny that he loved his job and that he loved to fly. This, effectively, had quashed his idea of somehow getting himself discharged; he would much rather face a bullet or an explosion than his own father. What he would not do, however, was give up his flight suit and his ability to tear through the sky.
Heaving a rather caustic sigh, that sounded much more like a growl, he dropped his bag, hat, and sunglasses on the floor against the wall before knocking on the door in front of him.
His heart was pounding so hard as his mind tried to will his father not to be in there with General Hammond, that he did not clearly hear the response to his knock.
When he opened the door to see only one man in the room, and that man was in no way lean and lanky like his father, he was visibly relieved. So relieved, in fact, that he gave the most snap-happy salute he was sure he had ever given in his entire career.
"We weren't expecting you for another hour or two, captain. This has all been rather expedited. I was just faxed a few things from your file last night, haven't even had a chance to really look at it yet. How in God's name did you get here so fast?"
"They lent me a fighter and gave me a refueling itinerary, sir, and I was on my way."
"Is that right? You came from a long way then, as I said, I haven't had a chance to look at your full file."
"From Iraq, sir, straight off a mission and to the Pentagon."
"I'll be, that's a damn long trip." Hammond said, putting his fingertips on his desk, shaking his head slightly.
"Yes, it is."
"How are things there?"
Merlin could not help but smile slightly, "Hot, sir."
The General also smiled, "Why don't we sit down."
"Thank you, sir, but I'd rather stand. I've been sitting for a long, long while."
"Oh yes, right, well... I was told that you would have the rest of your file for me."
The corner of his lip raised a little, "Yes, I do, but it is in my bag. Excuse me for a moment."
The General took the moment to flip open the file and read the captain's full name again, which he had forgotten.
'Captain Charles Jackson O'Neill. Hmmm,' he thought to himself.
"Here it is, sir," he said, holding out three manilla envelops and a plain file to Hammond.
"Well, Captain O'Neill, what did they tell you about this assignment?"
"As you said, General, everything was rather expedited, so I am afraid I got the Cracker Jack version of everything. As I understand it, the United States military is making special aircraft capable of space flight and inter-atmospheric slight, and I am supposed to be trained to fly it and help induct a more formal training program in the future."
"That's correct, son," he said, supressing a little bit of a chuckle.
Merlin cocked his head to the left, wondering what he had said that was funny.
"I'm sorry, captain, it is just that most when asked that question assume that I am asking them what they have heard of the Stargate Program itself, not their particular assignment," he said, chuckling further.
"Well, sir, there are aliens and frankly I am not in the least bit surprised. I did my master's thesis on the speculation that aliens build most ancient landmarks in Egypt. About the program itself, I hear that the gate was found in Egypt and that it creates an artificial wormhole through space, deconstructing matter and reconstructing it on the other side."
"Well said. Honestly, I am surprised that you know what that jabber means. Most do not."
"I've been told that I am not like most, sir," he answered, smiling. Merlin was beginning to like this man. He could definitely work with him, but that didn't mean that he wasn't still tense about his father's eventual arrival at this meeting or even at a later time.
"That's why you are here, son. From what I hear you are a real presence with other pilots and have natural leadership, despite your age, which is exactly what we need. We have a rather cocky bunch of pilots who were already selected and are already here. My second in command, Colonel O'Neill, has been trying to manage them and keep them on a day to day schedule in addition to his other duties. This has been quite difficult."
"Understandable, sir," he answered, but his voice had definitely dropped at the mention of his father.
"We are hoping to bring in another captain ASAP, but for now I am hoping that you can micromanage them under the Colonel's supervision. Down the road, one of the two of you will take over the command position and a promotion, once things are further underway."
"Yes, sir," he answered, although he was being much less vocal than he had been. In the back of his mind, he was wondering how General Hammond had not made the connection yet. He had probably not even thought of it as a possibility with that reg being set against it.
"I have planned a briefing for later tonight, but I'd like for you to meet the Colonel before then. SG-1, the Colonel's team, just returned for a mission a few hours ago and we are due to debrief. If you'll come with me, I will introduce you two."
Merlin's stomach knotted up. He had thought he was going to be able to avoid it for at least a few hours, and now he knew that the bomb was due to go off in less than five minutes and there was absolutely no defusing of it.
His body was completely tensed up when he walked into the debriefing room behind the General.
"We are just waiting for Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c, sir," a female voice announced before Merlin made it all the way into the room.
"All right, while you're all here-."
Suddenly Merlin's mouth dropped open, "Dr. Jackson!"
Daniel looked up from the photograph he was looking at and stood up, nearly knocking over his chair.
"C.J., wow, I, well this is a surprise," he said smiling, as he held out his hand to Merlin.
"Nice to see you again, Daniel."
General Hammond was looking from one to the other before saying, "You two know each other?"
The Captain smiled, "Yes, sir, Dr. Jackson supervised my Master's Thesis. I worked for him on a dig for a year and a half."
"My, my, small world," Hammond said.
"That is so crazy," Sam put in, smiling warmly.
"This is Captain Samantha Carter," the General said, holding out a hand towards her.
"Nice to meet you, captain," Merlin said, shaking her hand.
"Captain Carter, this is Captain-."
"Well, sir, what did I miss?" Colonel O'Neill said, walking through the open doorway with a sly grin on his face. "Where's Teal'c?"
General Hammond turned around, "I was just about to introduce Captain Carter to Captain-."
"CHARLIE!" The Colonel roared, the frown line between his eyebrows deepening.
* * *
To Be Continued...
A/N sorry to leave you all hanging... what do you think?
Thank you Rhia, SciFi Fan Gillian, and Aru for leaving me reviews! I also write Harry Potter fanfiction which has such a massive following, I didn't know if anyuone here would review me, lol. I am glad that you three took the time to leave me a review. As a reward, I have updated much faster than I usually would. Enjoy!
After landing, Merlin realized that he might not be flying for awhile, which was rather discouraging. He sighed deeply, perhaps he could work towards his doctorate while they finished building him an aircraft capable of earth and interspace travel. Designing a training program specifically cried 'boredom' to him, and it was clear that it might be some time before he was actually actively piloting anything against the enemy.
He was already mentally planning ways to keep himself busy, but the minute he climbed into the vehicle that would take him to his new post he promptly fell asleep.
When the vehicle stopped, Merlin opened one eyes and groggily said to the airman, "Don't tell me we're already there."
"Yes, sir, we are."
"I told you not to tell me that," he replied.
"Sorry, sir."
The captain jumped out and waved him off without a backwards glance. He was hoping that this was not going to be a post without any humor, but it already seemed as if nobody was going to understand his sarcasm. He'd be at a loss to say anything.
He approached the guards hoping that this would be quick as it was rather hot outside and he was completely uncomfortable in his full uniform.
"Well, sir, you are a bit early."
"Early?" He replied. How could he possibly be early when he was supposed to get there ASAP?
"Yes, sir, they aren't expecting you for a few hours."
He thought to himself, 'Don't tell me they are going to make me wait out here for a few hours!"
"Berkely is going to call down to General Hammond and see what he wants to do."
"I see," he replied, putting his baseball cap back on and turning around to look back out at the road.
"You're a pilot?" The man said, nodding at his hat which had a very impressive set of wings embroidered on the front.
"Yes, I am."
"Don't you have any gear, sir," another asked him.
"Nope, just my hat and sunglasses and some stuff in this bag," he replied talking about the backpack he had slung over one shoulder.
"They lost it on you, sir."
Merlin turned back around, "It is back with my last post near Iraq, they are shipping it out to me."
"Hey, sir," said the man Merlin assumed was Berkely, "They are coming up for you now."
'Goody,' he thought, giving a rather saccharine smile.
* * *
The tunnels were all nondescript and a drab grey color. The airman escorting him hadn't said word one to him other than a very formal greeting and a 'follow me, sir'.
Merlin had been in many hair-raising, deadly situations, but he had never quite felt like this before. He felt anxious and tense and on alert. Every corner he turned, he felt inclined to completely inspect the hallway. He was simply waiting to turn the corner and have to confront the one person he had never really cared to see again. The irony of it was amazing. Of all the posts, he had to be sent to this one, and he thought some reg would save him from that slim possibility in the first place.
He was beginning to wish that he had taken a job where he could just tell his boss that he quit and then proceed to walk straight out the door to never look back. He should have stayed in academia. He sighed, he could not deny that he loved his job and that he loved to fly. This, effectively, had quashed his idea of somehow getting himself discharged; he would much rather face a bullet or an explosion than his own father. What he would not do, however, was give up his flight suit and his ability to tear through the sky.
Heaving a rather caustic sigh, that sounded much more like a growl, he dropped his bag, hat, and sunglasses on the floor against the wall before knocking on the door in front of him.
His heart was pounding so hard as his mind tried to will his father not to be in there with General Hammond, that he did not clearly hear the response to his knock.
When he opened the door to see only one man in the room, and that man was in no way lean and lanky like his father, he was visibly relieved. So relieved, in fact, that he gave the most snap-happy salute he was sure he had ever given in his entire career.
"We weren't expecting you for another hour or two, captain. This has all been rather expedited. I was just faxed a few things from your file last night, haven't even had a chance to really look at it yet. How in God's name did you get here so fast?"
"They lent me a fighter and gave me a refueling itinerary, sir, and I was on my way."
"Is that right? You came from a long way then, as I said, I haven't had a chance to look at your full file."
"From Iraq, sir, straight off a mission and to the Pentagon."
"I'll be, that's a damn long trip." Hammond said, putting his fingertips on his desk, shaking his head slightly.
"Yes, it is."
"How are things there?"
Merlin could not help but smile slightly, "Hot, sir."
The General also smiled, "Why don't we sit down."
"Thank you, sir, but I'd rather stand. I've been sitting for a long, long while."
"Oh yes, right, well... I was told that you would have the rest of your file for me."
The corner of his lip raised a little, "Yes, I do, but it is in my bag. Excuse me for a moment."
The General took the moment to flip open the file and read the captain's full name again, which he had forgotten.
'Captain Charles Jackson O'Neill. Hmmm,' he thought to himself.
"Here it is, sir," he said, holding out three manilla envelops and a plain file to Hammond.
"Well, Captain O'Neill, what did they tell you about this assignment?"
"As you said, General, everything was rather expedited, so I am afraid I got the Cracker Jack version of everything. As I understand it, the United States military is making special aircraft capable of space flight and inter-atmospheric slight, and I am supposed to be trained to fly it and help induct a more formal training program in the future."
"That's correct, son," he said, supressing a little bit of a chuckle.
Merlin cocked his head to the left, wondering what he had said that was funny.
"I'm sorry, captain, it is just that most when asked that question assume that I am asking them what they have heard of the Stargate Program itself, not their particular assignment," he said, chuckling further.
"Well, sir, there are aliens and frankly I am not in the least bit surprised. I did my master's thesis on the speculation that aliens build most ancient landmarks in Egypt. About the program itself, I hear that the gate was found in Egypt and that it creates an artificial wormhole through space, deconstructing matter and reconstructing it on the other side."
"Well said. Honestly, I am surprised that you know what that jabber means. Most do not."
"I've been told that I am not like most, sir," he answered, smiling. Merlin was beginning to like this man. He could definitely work with him, but that didn't mean that he wasn't still tense about his father's eventual arrival at this meeting or even at a later time.
"That's why you are here, son. From what I hear you are a real presence with other pilots and have natural leadership, despite your age, which is exactly what we need. We have a rather cocky bunch of pilots who were already selected and are already here. My second in command, Colonel O'Neill, has been trying to manage them and keep them on a day to day schedule in addition to his other duties. This has been quite difficult."
"Understandable, sir," he answered, but his voice had definitely dropped at the mention of his father.
"We are hoping to bring in another captain ASAP, but for now I am hoping that you can micromanage them under the Colonel's supervision. Down the road, one of the two of you will take over the command position and a promotion, once things are further underway."
"Yes, sir," he answered, although he was being much less vocal than he had been. In the back of his mind, he was wondering how General Hammond had not made the connection yet. He had probably not even thought of it as a possibility with that reg being set against it.
"I have planned a briefing for later tonight, but I'd like for you to meet the Colonel before then. SG-1, the Colonel's team, just returned for a mission a few hours ago and we are due to debrief. If you'll come with me, I will introduce you two."
Merlin's stomach knotted up. He had thought he was going to be able to avoid it for at least a few hours, and now he knew that the bomb was due to go off in less than five minutes and there was absolutely no defusing of it.
His body was completely tensed up when he walked into the debriefing room behind the General.
"We are just waiting for Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c, sir," a female voice announced before Merlin made it all the way into the room.
"All right, while you're all here-."
Suddenly Merlin's mouth dropped open, "Dr. Jackson!"
Daniel looked up from the photograph he was looking at and stood up, nearly knocking over his chair.
"C.J., wow, I, well this is a surprise," he said smiling, as he held out his hand to Merlin.
"Nice to see you again, Daniel."
General Hammond was looking from one to the other before saying, "You two know each other?"
The Captain smiled, "Yes, sir, Dr. Jackson supervised my Master's Thesis. I worked for him on a dig for a year and a half."
"My, my, small world," Hammond said.
"That is so crazy," Sam put in, smiling warmly.
"This is Captain Samantha Carter," the General said, holding out a hand towards her.
"Nice to meet you, captain," Merlin said, shaking her hand.
"Captain Carter, this is Captain-."
"Well, sir, what did I miss?" Colonel O'Neill said, walking through the open doorway with a sly grin on his face. "Where's Teal'c?"
General Hammond turned around, "I was just about to introduce Captain Carter to Captain-."
"CHARLIE!" The Colonel roared, the frown line between his eyebrows deepening.
* * *
To Be Continued...
A/N sorry to leave you all hanging... what do you think?
Thank you Rhia, SciFi Fan Gillian, and Aru for leaving me reviews! I also write Harry Potter fanfiction which has such a massive following, I didn't know if anyuone here would review me, lol. I am glad that you three took the time to leave me a review. As a reward, I have updated much faster than I usually would. Enjoy!