Disclaimer: The only character I own here is Kelly Alia Tyler; all others are property of MGM and the Sci-Fi channel as far as I know. If anyone knows differently, please correct me soon. The concept of this story is entirely my flaky idea.
"Damned American drivers." I pout as I speed down the highway in my fancy, fully loaded, tricked out metallic silver Doge Viper after getting cut off by some station wagon. "When I turn fifty I'm gonna move back to Australia and take this car with me." I realize that I'm muttering to myself to keep the silence at bay, so I turn on my radio and hit 'search'. In this particular instance, I am on my way to Cheyenne to meet a colonel with the US Air Force. I see my exit for Cheyenne and I flip on my right indicator before I cut across the necessary lanes to get onto my exit.
An hour later, I am sipping lemonade, waiting for the quietly famous and mysterious Colonel Jack O'Neill as a man - probably forty-eight and six feet tall, with gray hair - comes in scanning the room, and takes the seat across from me.
"Colonel O'Neill?" I guess, keeping my voice low.
"Yeah." He says, looking at me surprised. "Who are you?"
"Kelly Alia Tyler." I say softly. "What precisely is all this about?"
"Depends, what do you know?"
"A lot of things. Narrow it down some."
"Let's see… multi lingual anthropologist with combat and extensive technological experience is who I was sent to pick up. Though I don't think my boss is gonna get all that worked up if I return empty handed."
"Bam, I'm yer girl. My specialties happen to include multiple languages, archeology, offense and defense strategy and execution, and medicine among other things. So what am I being recruited for?"
"Well then. I guess you can find that out when we get there." Colonel O'Neill says as we get up and go out to the parking lot. "Uhh…"
"I'm not leaving my car. I've put too much work into her." I say, as he looks between my spotless Viper and his beat up old Jeep.
"All right, hang on." O'Neill says as I spot another person in his Jeep. He walks over to the Jeep and starts talking to the other person. He is shaking his head as he walks back over to me, having parked at the farthest spot possible in the lot from the door. "All right if I ride with you?"
"Sure, just don't criticize my driving." I say, pressing a button on my key chain to deactivate my security alarm and unlock my doors.
"Okay." He says, as we get into my car. I start my car and head for the nearest gas station. We get that taken care of and I get some snacks since I hadn't actually eaten at the diner, we get back on track and Colonel O'Neill directs me to the Air Force base in Cheyenne Mountain. Security is no problem, nor is parking. Colonel O'Neill leads me through the base to a room, which I was supposed to meet the General. Colonel O'Neill makes the excuse of having business to attend to elsewhere, so he opts not to wait with me. As it turns out, I don't really need anyone to wait with me. A stocky, bald man who's most likely nearly a decade older than the Colonel walks in ten minutes later. Long enough for me to complete an inspection of the interior perimeter of the room, argue with myself as to what I'm doing here, and decide whether or not there's any chance I am going to stay.
"Miss Tyler?" The man asks.
"Kelly Alia Tyler. And you are?" I say, turning to face him fully.
"General George Hammond, US Air Force." He says, as I shake his hand firmly. "Glad you could make it."
"You're just lucky that I wasn't doing anything else at the time. Now, what is all of this about?"
"Well. We heard about your - talents - and thought you might just be interested in being of some assistance."
"Well… how the hell am I supposed to know if I'm interested or not if no one will give me any clue as to what you people do?"
"No one's told you anything?" General Hammond asks apparently amazed.
"Nothing more than my skills in linguistics, archeology, offense, defense, strategy, medicine, etcetera, will come in handy."
"Oh. Well… this is a highly classified US Air Force operation. I've been authorized to let you sit in on a mission briefing and you may accompany any one of our SG teams. I suggest SG-4."
"SG? Is that Si Gamma or something more bizarre?" I say cutting the kind General off and surprising him, as I think of a website I was exploring this morning.
"I suppose you could call it more bizarre. It's also something rather difficult to wrap a new mind around. It was the major find of an archeological dig in Egypt in the late 1920s - "
"Wait, I think I've read about this… Are you talking about the Stargate? Forget the explanations. I'm in. Permission to accompany your best team?"
"Now, wait just a minute. What do you know about the Stargate and how?"
"I've just heard some things. I ran across some of the theories set out by Dr. Daniel Jackson, did some research, and set it aside for a while during the time I was hunting down my runaway nephew. My knowledge on the subject is nothing reputable; just that an artifact later named the Stargate was discovered in Egypt. As for my resources… they aren't really special in this instance. A few conspiracy theory websites I found. It's a pastime."
"Researching conspiracy theories is a pastime?"
"Yes and no. I read most of them for laughs, but every once in a blue moon you find something accurate. Satisfactory?"
"Yes. Which team did you want to accompany?" General Hammond says.
"SG-1, if possible."
"Of course. Briefing's at two."
"No reason to use civilian time on my account. I'll be there at oh-thirteen fifty."
"I'll take you to meet SG-1."
"Thank you. Who exactly comprises SG-1, anyway?"
"Colonel Jack O'Neill, Major Samantha Carter, Doctor Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c."
"Ah." Is all I can manage to say, as we walk out of the room. General Hammond leads me a little deeper into the base as I try to recall ever seeing a picture of Dr. Jackson. 'Oh dear god, what have I got myself into this time? Please let there be someone with a nice smile and a good laugh.' I think silently to myself as we walk into a loosely crowded room and head straight for a table occupied by three men - one of whom being Colonel O'Neill - and one young blonde woman.
"General Hammond. Would you care to join us?" The big, bald, dark -skinned man asks, drawing the attention of the other three people at the table to us.
"No, thank you. Could I see all of you in the corridor for a moment?" General Hammond asks.
"Sure." The brunette guy says slowly. They all stand and I follow them as the General leads us out. We walk down the corridor and into what I take to be an empty lounge.
"What's going on?" The woman - whom I take to be Samantha - asks as Colonel O'Neill closes the door.
"I'd like you all to meet Kerry Tyler. She's been recruited to work with the SGC and has requested to work with you. You've all got some time before the briefing, so I suggest you get acquainted with Ms. Tyler. She's a little overqualified so I think she'll fit in just fine. You are all under orders to be on your best behavior for the next thirty-six hours. Understood?" General Hammond says. "Oh, and would one of you make sure she gets down to the infirmary before the briefing?"
"Sure thing." Colonel O'Neill says. General Hammond nods and leaves the room, closing the door behind him.
"Well, uh, let's get through introductions first." The woman says, breaking the nervous silence. "I'm Major Samantha Carter, you can call me Sam." She's about five ten, with short blonde hair, blue eyes, and smooth, fair skin and I decide right then and there that I like her.
"Well, that's rather a relief. My first name's actually Kelly, though."
"This big guy over here is Teal'c." She gestures to the tall, bald man.
"Nice to meet you. I've already met Colonel O'Neill." I say, inclining my head towards O'Neill after shaking hands with Sam.
"And I'm Dr. Daniel Jackson." The tall, broad, blue eyed, brown haired man says, extending a hand for me to shake.
"I've heard of you. I've read some of your work. It's a pleasure to meet you." I say, as we shake hands and it hits me that it seems like he hasn't taken his eyes off of me if he could help it since I walked in the room.
"Oh?"
"Yes, My sister thought I was insane for taking you seriously."
"Oh, well call me Daniel."
"Alright." I say, taking my grin down a few notches and shifting it to another gear.
"So what did General Hammond mean when he said you are overqualified?" Daniel asks, moving a little closer.
"I'm not sure, probably just that."
"So how overqualified are you?" Sam asks.
"I really don't know. From what I've been told I'm just qualified enough."
"So where are you from?" O'Neill asks.
"Australia. Queens land." I respond.
"Oh cool. Ever go diving on the reefs?" Sam asks.
"Oh, you have to go diving on the reefs when you're in Sydney, but the real big deal is to go diving on the reefs and wind up swimming from sharks."
"Whoa." Daniel says, as Sam and Jack just look at me in disbelief.
"Yeah."
"So you're from the outback?" O'Neill asks.
"What do you do?" Daniel asks.
"A lot of things, I was taught a number of different languages, defense and offense techniques, and a few different countries legal systems. I got interested in archeology, medicine, philosophy, and cooking later, so I learned those things as well. So you see, my options have always been very open."
"And that's all?" O'Neill asks sarcastically.
"Not even close, Colonel." I say smiling.
"Jack, please."
"Okay." I say, ignoring his snide tone. "I also picked up mechanics, and a few stealth techniques. Fifteen siblings, I'm a born negotiator, too."
"Fifteen siblings? One to sixteen, what number are you?" Sam asks completely astonished.
"Six. I have four older brothers, an older sister, a younger brother, and nine younger sisters."
"How many step parents?" Daniel asks quietly as if he hadn't really meant to interrupt.
"None."
"Can you name all of your siblings?"
"Sure, want me to?" I say, smiling as Daniel, Sam, and Jack nod for me to go ahead. "David, Scott, Richard, Johnathan, Angela, Tomas, Juliette, Carol, Malinda, Lilli, Deanna, Dax, Dae, Katherine, and Armedia. Anything else?"
"Not really." Sam says.
"No." Jack says begrudgingly.
"Uh, actually, yeah." Daniel says uncertainly seeming to lose a measure of his nerve. "It's nearly noon, Dr. Fraiser's probably waiting for you."
"That's true…" I say as I catch Sam throwing Jack Daniel a suspicious glance out of the corner of my eye.
"Why don't I just take you down there myself?" Daniel offers.
"Sure." I say, smiling a little as I see right through to his intentions.
"See you later, Kelly." Jack says, as Daniel and I head for the door.
"Back in a little while Jack." Daniel calls over his shoulder before closing the door behind us.
We walk down the corridor quietly for a little while covertly examining each other before coming to an elevator. Daniel presses the call button and we wait.
"I hope you don't think I'm being too forward or anything, but I have to admit something." I say as the elevator doors open in front of us my thick and quickly returning accent, mixed with my apprehension making my voice barely understandable to anyone but another linguist. It's already empty, so we step on.
"What's that?"
"You're much more handsome than I imagined."
"Oh… that's, uh… that's - "
"Totally inappropriate, something every girl says, very sweet, but incredibly bad timing on part of the universe, what?"
"Flattering." Daniel says with a smile and a slight good-natured laugh.
"Oh. Good, just as it was meant." I say smiling. Daniel presses a button and almost immediately we start going down.
"So what do you do for fun?"
"Depends on what's available. I do tend to read a lot, I like to open up my car sometimes, and I occasionally write fiction, but besides that, there's always music."
"Oh. Well, would you like to go to dinner sometime? Perhaps we could open up your car on the way."
"I'd like that." I say as the elevator doors open onto our floor. Daniel and I go "all business" as we walk the corridors to Doctor Fraiser's infirmary.
"Hello Daniel." A short, brunette woman just slightly taller than me says as he and I walk up to her.
"Doctor Janet Fraiser, this is Kelly Tyler."
"Nice to meet you Kelly." Dr. Fraiser says as we shake hands.
"Likewise Doctor. Anyway, I'm supposed to get poked, scanned, and stuck before the brief." I say.
"I'll just wait over there." Daniel says pointing to some chairs that probably is supposed to be the waiting area.
"Yeah, right this way, I just have a few questions for you while you get undressed."
"All right." I say, tossing Daniel one last smile as I follow Dr. Fraiser into the exam room.
"Full name?"
"Kelly Alia Tyler." I say. "A-L-I-A." I add as an afterthought.
"All right, date of birth?"
"May twenty first, nineteen seventy-one."
"Makes you twenty-seven, correct?" Dr. Fraiser asks, I nod in response. "Kelly, aren't you for - "
"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot I was supposed to be changing. My mind must have been other places." I say, adding in the back of my mind, "filthy, naughty places", and I pull the curtain and begin to strip.
"That's quite all right. Where were you born?"
"Ayr, Australia." I say, looking for a robe in my skivvies. "Where are the gowns?"
"Top left hand drawer on the patient's right hand side of the bed. How long have you been a US citizen?"
"Fourteen years. Moved to LA when I was thirteen."
"Are you allergic to any medications?"
"No, my only allergy is to large amounts of dust." I say, pulling a gown out of the drawer.
"Okay, any previous medical history?"
"Just the normal; chicken pox when I was four, maybe a cold every few years. No family medical history, either."
"All right, good. When was your last checkup?"
"Eight months ago."
"Ever been pregnant?"
"No"
"Drugs?"
"Only Ortho Tri-cycline." I say, pulling back the curtain after tying the gown I'd slipped into. "I drink occasionally, though."
"Okay, there are a few questions left, but you can fill those out yourself later."
"All right"
"Right now I just need you to step onto this scale over here." Dr. Fraiser says, and I walk over and I walk over and step onto the scale. "Stand up straight, please." I follow that direction, too, and she adjusts the scale, records my weight, and takes my height.
"So?"
"Five two, one twenty. That's good." Dr. Fraiser says, as I step off the scale. "How 'bout hopping up onto this exam table?"
"Sure." I say, padding over to the table.
"I've got to take a blood sample, so I need to know if you have a problem with needles?"
"No real problem, but don't go nuts." I say. "Dr. Fraiser, could I ask you something about SG-1?"
"Sure, what is it?"
"Do you know why they would need another member?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, I still don't know why I was recruited and given my choice of teams to go with. It's not like they don't have people to do what I do."
"Well, what do you do?" Dr. Fraiser asks, after listening to my heart and lungs. "When was your last trip to the gynecologist?"
"Last month." I say. "I do a lot of things, really, I was a registered nurse in Chicago, a bodyguard in Los Angeles, a linguist in Greece, and I've been a million other things, including an archeologist and an attorney. I honestly thought that the military already had people to do whatever I was in to do."
"Well, chances are that General Hammond heard of you and your talents somehow and decided to recruit you and see what you can really do."
"Hmmm… I hadn't really considered that since I don't really think I'm really that well known."
"Well, neither are we."
"Good point."
"All done. Stand up. Look straight ahead at the chart. Cover your left eye and read the seventh line of the chart."
"F, E, L, O, P, E, D."
"Alright, the next line down?"
"L, E, F, O, D, P, C, T."
"Good. Now I want you to read the same two lines covering only your right eye." I comply to the direction fully with hardly a thought. Instead, I have most of my mind focused on what I could possibly add to SG-1. Daniel is one of the best archeologists and linguists I've ever heard of, and much more experienced than me. Jack seems to be the leader of the group, not something that I particularly enjoy doing since I'm usually much more for just throwing in my own two cents. Sam seems to be the science and technology expert, so I assume I wasn't brought in to aid her since science requires more mathematical skills than I like to display. Teal'c, though, I have no idea what to make of him since he hasn't said one word to me so far. At least I won't get anyone confused, though. I run through the mental snapshots of them as Dr. Fraiser checks out my eyes and reflexes. Teal'c is a tall, muscular, dark skinned, bald man with a tattoo inlaid with gold on his forehead, and he appears to be around thirty-five, though I'm sure he's older. Jack is a shorter - six foot compared to nearly six and a half feet - man with steely gray hair, dark eyes, and a light tan. Samantha is a five foot eight, lean, light skinned woman with short, thick, blonde hair and big, blue eyes. Daniel, though… first word that comes to mind when I look at him is "do-able". Daniel is about six foot two, muscular, kind of pale, with blue eyes, brown hair, and wired framed glasses.
"Are you feeling all right?" Dr. Fraiser asks, as I refocus on her.
"Yes, just thinking. Why?"
"Just seemed like you were a million miles away." She says, sounding concerned. "We're almost done here, anyway. You can get dressed and fill out the rest of that form. I'm just going to get the drug tests."
"All right, can I borrow a pen?" I say, as Dr. Fraiser stands up. She hands me my chart and a pen before she leaves the room. I take off the gown and put on my skirt and stockings, then someone knocks on the door. "Come in." I call, heading for the curtain while turning to see whom it is.
"Ches' I - " Daniel starts, coming in and quickly closing the door just before I could pull the stubborn or jammed curtain, facing him. "Oh, I'm - I, I - uh… I shou-"
"Daniel, what is it?" I say, deciding to forget the jammed, useless curtain and, taking the embarrassment in stride. It's not like I'm not in shape, after all.
"Oh, uh… I was just curious as to, uh, what you drive."
"You don't remember your original question, do you?" I ask, clearly amused as I put on my shirt.
"Uh, no. How could you tell?" Daniel says as I tuck my shirt in.
"No offense, but you just don't seem like the car guy type." I say, pulling on my jacket. "Hey, don't worry about just now. I was the one caught topless."
"Oh, well all right." Daniel says, as I realize he's been staring at me for a little while as I slide my shoes on. "So what do you drive?"
"A silver Doge Viper. You alright?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I think so."
"All right." I say uncertainly. "Anything else?"
"Uh… no, I don't think so. I'm just going to sit down and try to recall that first question."
"Okay, I'm just gonna finish filling out this form." I leave him to his own devices as he leaves me to mine. I complete the form and Dr. Fraiser returns and gives me a little cup and directions to the ladies' room. I take the drug test, give the cup to the nurse at the desk, and return to the room. Dr. Fraiser draws some of my blood, sends it to the lab and tells me - basically - to get lost, so Daniel offers to take me to lunch, which I gladly accept.
"So did you ever remember that question?" I ask as we take the elevator up.
"Yeah, I was curious as to how many languages you're fluent in?" Daniel asks.
"Well, hmm… there's Italian, Greek, Maori, French, Egyptian, Hindu, and Russian, as far as languages I'm fluent in. I speak more."
"How many more?"
"Exactly a lot." I say, jokingly, smiling. "Name a couple you speak, I'll tell you whether I know them or not."
"All right, uh… Turkish?"
"Yeah."
"German?"
"Yeah." I say, as the elevator doors open on our floor and we walk out.
"Scandinavian?"
"Yeah, a little."
"Spanish?"
"No. Only enough to get me through downtown L.A., but I do speak Dutch."
"So you're a serious linguist?"
"Kind of. I'm not really a serious anything." I say, with a small smile and a shrug.
"Oh, so what were you doing before you got this call?"
"I was actually being fired for mouthing off when the call came in."
"Oh. I'm almost afraid to ask what you were being fired from."
"I was a nurse at a Los Angeles hospital." I say as we enter a cafeteria. "Before that I worked in a restaurant in Seattle."
"Oh, so you know food." Daniel says, as we get in line.
"Yeah, but I'm not picky." I say, taking a banana after Daniel hands me a tray. "So what about you? What else do you do?"
"Ah, not much, actually. It really depends on what's around. Like you, I read a lot. Part of my job is translations, despite that, I work on those a lot in my free time." Daniel says taking a sandwich.
"Ah, a man that likes a challenge. I can relate."
"Oh?" He says, as I look through and decide to take an egg salad sandwich.
"Yes, although I really think I'm more of a thrill seeker."
"You're kidding. What kind of thrill seeker?" Daniel asks, as he grabs two cups for coffee.
"Nothing too wild from my point of view. Roller coasters, rock climbing, bungee jumping, those are my big things."
"Bungee jumping? Have you ever gotten hurt?" He asks, paying the cashier for our food.
"No, not yet. My little brother is the truly insane one, though. He's a skydiver."
"So it runs in the family." Daniel says, looking for an empty table so that we can sit down and eat.
"Yeah." I say, as Daniel finds an empty table off in a corner and leads me towards it. "It's rather strange, but my dad was always the one to take us on the roller coasters, and my mom taught us how to fight."
"How is that strange?" Daniel asks unwrapping his sandwich after we sat down.
"Well, when I was growing up everyone I knew had the working dad and stay at home mom, very stereotypical, I know, but it only made me realize how exciting my parents make my life." I say, unwrapping my sandwich as he takes a bite of his. "So here I am, yammering on about my family, and I don't know anything about you. So. How 'bout telling me about yourself?"
"Well, I don't know. My life really isn't that interesting." He says after swallowing.
"That's the same attitude I hold towards mine. Why not tell me anyway, little heads up as to what to avoid altogether and what to get out in the open now-ish?" I say, before taking a bite of my sandwich.
"Well, ah… I'm from upstate New York, my parents were archeologists, and the most exciting thing I'd done before joining SG-1 was holding a seminar to present my theories. I started out with a full house, finished with one person."
"Ooo." I say, after swallowing. "Been there. Any siblings?"
"No, fortunately not."
"Do you wanna tell me why that's fortunate?" I ask, eating at my sandwich as he hesitates. "I know everyone says sibs are a giant pain in the ass, but it's always interested me when other people say it. Even though I've said the same on occasion."
"That's…" He says, swallowing hard, appearing very reflective. "That's fortunate because any siblings I might have had would have had to go through with my parents what I went through."
"Oh kay. I'm not sure I understand that, but I'm not sure I'm supposed to. We'll leave it if you want."
"Thanks." Daniel says, staring at his food for a minute before eating at it again. I shrug mentally and finished my sandwich.
"So, uh, who do you like to read?" I ask drinking my coffee.
"Oh, uh, you know, Weaver, Guevara, Stringfield. Their views and theories are really interesting."
"Yeah, well, I'm more into the authors that almost belong in an asylum. You know, the ones that write of vampires, and witches, and spirits and such."
"Ah, so you read for fun, not information." Daniel says after finishing his sandwich.
"Most of the time." I say, taking a swallow of my coffee.
"Umm… General Hammond probably has a confidentiality contract for you to sign, we should probably go see him soon."
"'Soon' as in 'forget the coffee' or 'soon' as in 'after the ten cent tour'?" I ask, mildly disappointed at the prospect of returning to business so soon.
"Ahh…" He says, checking his watch. "The former, I'm afraid." He half smiles at me as I take another deep swallow as if I had all the time in the world. I cast a glance at him and set the coffee cup down on the tray.
"All right, what's the deal around here?"
"Just leave it." Daniel says, as he and I stand up.
"About this contract, now is it"
"I don't really know anything about contracts, Kelly." Daniel informs me as we walk out of the cafeteria.
"Oh, all right. I'll deal later."
"Daniel, Kelly, wait up!" Sam calls from behind us. He and I stop in our tracks and turn to wait for Sam to catch up.
"Hey Sam."
"What's up?" Daniel asks.
"Hammond moved up the brief. Kelly, you've been officially cleared, all you've gotta do now is sign the confidentiality contract. Everyone else is waiting in the briefing room, let's go." Sam says, after catching up.
"Why'd he move everything up?" I ask as we turn around, presumably heading for the briefing room.
"I'm not sure." Sam says, as she pushes the elevator button. The doors open, four apparent soldiers get off, and we get on. Samantha, Daniel and I ride the elevator up a couple of floors silently, I use the time to think about what terms that might be in the contract I will agree to. I decide that I'll agree to anything, since money doesn't really matter, as long as I can leave if I ever decide to settle down. My mind just kinda wanders from there. The doors open and Sam leads us down the corridor a little and then into the briefing room, where General Hammond, Jack, and Teal'c are waiting for us.
"Let's get right down to business, shall we? Oh, Ms. Tyler, you just need to sign this." General Hammond says, after Sam, Daniel, and I come in and sit down. Sam was across from Jack, who was beside Teal'c, and Daniel was between Sam and I.
"All right, can I look it over, or do we have no time?" I ask as General Hammond looks around for something.
"Sure, we have a few minutes." Jack says.
"Good. Would someone hand it to me, please?" I say and Teal'c - rather surprisingly - slides it over to me. "Thank you."
"You are welcome, Kelly." Teal'c says, I nod and start looking over the contract. I don't read every word, but I quickly discover that there's nothing in the contract that I would find unreasonable. I do some double-checking through the fine print especially as Sam and Jack make small talk.
"Daniel, do you have a pen I could borrow?" I ask quietly.
"You're in then?" Daniel asks, handing me the pen.
"Yeah." I say signing by the x 'Kelly Alia Tyler'. "So what are we doing?" I ask a bit louder.
"You've signed the contract?" General Hammond asks.
"Yes." I say, biting back a few rather choice phrases that suddenly float into my mind.
"Good. SG-1 has been given a mission to go to P-5649. It was supposed to be a routine mission until the probe was disconnected. The last image recorded - was this." General Hammond says, clicking on a large monitor displaying the image of a bipedal, presumably human male, wearing armor and some sort of retractable snake-head helmet, both made of some kind of metal, holding a large staff-like weapon with the business end aimed at the camera.
"Oh, crap." Jack says as Daniel's jaw drops open. I admire his visage from this angle for a second and turn my sight back to the monitor.
"Okay, not good, but someone fill in the new girl" I say, realizing that I'm dressed totally inappropriately. 'Damn, I should have worn my jeans and boots' I think, frowning.
"That's a Jaffa. They're a race of hosts that serve the Gao'uld who are intent on either destroying or subjugating the entire Human race." Daniel explains quickly.
"Ah. How long have we been fighting them?" I ask.
"Well, we can't really declare open war, but we've been battling with them for about a year or so now." Sam says.
"Well, then. I certainly am dressed inappropriately for this, -- General Hammond, what else do we need to know?" I say, slightly perturbed and not hiding it well.
"Uh, just proceed with extreme caution and don't kill anyone that isn't shooting at you. Major Carter will fill you in on standard procedure and special protocols later." General Hammond says.
"Yes sir." Sam says, as Daniel squirms slightly in his chair.
"Do we have any indication as to why they're here?" Teal'c asks.
"No." General Hammond says.
"Might be a stupid question, but is this place populated by anything other than Jaffa?" I ask.
"We don't know." General Hammond says simply.
"Ah." I say, silently reviewing the information I've been given - which sums up to Jaffa serve Gao'uld, Gao'uld bad, we're fighting the bad.
"Dismissed." General Hammond says.
"Kelly?" Sam says, as everyone stands up and heads out, she touches my arm as I turn to go.
"Yeah?"
"Are you all right?"
"Yeah, just thinking. Ah, could you show me where I could get something to change into?"
"Sure, right this way." Sam says, leading me off . "So, how are you handling all of this?"
"Eh. I always suspected there was something - off, with the way ancient history was recorded. Besides, you spend three years in a Chicago emergency room, and see how much surprises you after that."
"Were you a doctor or a nurse?"
"Nurse. Law school kind of impeded med school."
"Law school, really?"
"Yeah, and what's worse is that my family did so much traveling that I became an international attorney." I say, as I follow her through a door. "I never could stay in one place for more than five years."
"I take it you want that to change."
"Yes and no. I wouldn't get upset if it did, but I'd most likely be able to deal with it if nothing changes."
"I can relate." Sam says, as I notice the shelves of clothing and stacks of shoeboxes. "What size are you?"
"Medium." I say, not too thrilled with the prospect of wearing the same outfit for weeks. Suddenly I was very glad that I had clothes in my car. "I don't suppose we have time to go get something from my car." I say, smirking. Sam just smiles at me as she hands me a black t-shirt.
We find green cargo pants and combat boots for me and I go to change my clothes as Sam tries to find a jacket and brush for me. "Sam, can I ask you something?" I ask, after removing my civilian garb and putting on the fatigues I am supplied.
"Sure, what?"
"What is the deal with Teal'c? I don't mean any offense, I just don't know what to make of him." I say, putting on my boots - well, that is, the combat boots I was given.
"He does take a little getting used to. He's just not very expressive."
"Ah. Kinda seems like he has a permanent wedgie." I say, coming out of the dressing room. "So what were you doing before the SGC?"
"I'm in the Air Force." Sam says, handing me a hairbrush. "You?"
"It's very strange: I open my mouth to tell my boss what I really thought of her as I was being fired and my cell phone rings."
"Why were you being fired?" Sam asks, as I brush my hair back into a ponytail.
"I was a nurse in an LA emergency room and I mouthed off too much, too often and at the wrong people, but damned if it didn't feel good."
"Really."
"I don't think anyone around here has to worry, though, back there the chief of staff, chief of surgery, and three of the ER attendings were full of themselves, and they treated their subordinates like crap. Residents and Nurses were transferring or quitting left and right, but I liked my job."
"Oh." Sam says, handing me a jacket and a backpack. "Everything's already in there. We still need to swing by the armory, so let's get going. What's that?"
"Huh? What?" I ask, Sam reaches around behind me and pulls my ten-inch knife from its scabbard tucked into the back of my pants. "Oh, that. I have a license for that. I carry it instead of a gun."
"What? How'd you - "
"I told security about it and produced proof that I had a license for it on my way in. Is that a problem?"
"Not with me. C'mon, let's go." Sam says, leading me out of the room to the armory where Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c are waiting for us.
"Hey Kelly." Daniel says, going straight for the semi-automatic as Jack goes for an automatic assault rifle.
"Hey." I say, turning towards him.
"Could you use one of these, Kelly?" Jack asks handing me a P-90.
"Yea, I can, I just don't especially like them." I say, measuring the weight of the gun and handing it back.
"Why not?" Daniel asks.
"Too unpredictable for me."
"So you're going unarmed?" Daniel asks, and I have to wonder if it's concern for my ability to protect myself, or if it's just some weird guy thing that's got him sounding sincerely worried.
"No, I'm taking my knife." I say neutrally.
"What do you think a knife will do against a Jaffa soldier?" Jack asks.
"You make it sound as if I'm dependant on a pocket knife!" I laugh.
"Well, aren't you?" Daniel asks.
"You want me to show you?" I purr, a little more amused, but no longer laughing.
"It really is a nice knife." Sam says, as Daniel puts his gun in a holster and Jack slings his sidearm over his shoulder.
"Okay, but no demonstrations." Jack says, and I slip my hand behind my back, pull my knife out of its sheath, and flip it over in my hand. The knife is remarkable. Mundane black hilt, then two double edged stainless steel titanium blades. Both blades are curved, but one is shorter and more curved than the other to give it smooth lines for a fluid cut. "Whoa."
"You know how to use that?" Daniel asks uneasily, his eyes completely focused on the knife.
"Yeah, I won't touch a weapon I don't know how to use." I say, carefully putting my blade away.
"Good. Are we ready to go?" Jack says obviously annoyed with me.
"As far as I'm concerned." I say. Teal'c opens the door and he, Jack, Sam, Daniel, and I walk out into the corridor, Daniel and I taking up the rear.
"How long have you carried a knife?" Daniel asks softly keeping his distance, but only a little.
"I've carried that knife for eleven years." I respond, just as quietly.
"Since you were… "
"Sixteen. The year before that my best friend was nearly killed five times. My mom gave me the knife and taught me to use it for my birthday."
"Wow." Daniel says, under his breath.
"What?" I ask quietly almost in a whisper.
"You're twenty-seven."
"Yeah, and?" I say softly, smiling a little as he comes closer and visibly relaxes.
"I just thought you were younger." Daniel says, as we come to a set of double doors. Jack, Sam, Teal'c, and Daniel all look at me as we come to a stop just outside of them.
"You ready?" Jack asks tonelessly.
"Let's rock." I say, smiling, remembering where I got that phrase.
Teal'c leads us through the doors, with me still bringing up the rear. The room we enter is absolutely gigantic. It obviously housed the huge, metal ring I immediately recognized as the Stargate by the inscriptions on it. The Stargate was stood up vertically with a ramp of metal grating leading into the center of the lower portion.
"Surprised yet?" Samantha asks me quietly, I laugh a little just before alarms and sirens start going off.
"Chevron five - engaged." A woman's voice says. I notice that five out of twelve lights are lit, and that the inner ring on the Stargate is rotating as everyone checks their packs once more. "Chevron six - engaged."
"Think you're ready for this don't you?" Jack asks.
"No, but I know I can handle anything." I answer putting as much superiority into my voice as he had in his.
"Chevron seven - engaged."
"Tylers don't die nicely." I whisper softly to myself closing my eyes for the moment.
"What?" Daniel asks.
"Just something I tell myself before I get on a plane." I say a bit more cheerfully, though not nearly enough to mask my nervousness.
"This is nothing like getting on a plane." Daniel says smiling a little.
"Chevron seven - engaged." There's a flash of light and what looks like a horizontal cold-water geyser. Another flash as the vortex retracts, and the center of the 'gate appears as a serene pool.
"Be alert." Jack says, just before he and Teal'c walk up the ramp and into the Stargate. Sam throws me a glance as she follows them, and Daniel escorts me up the ramp as Sam walks through the 'gate.
"Just like stepping on a boat." Daniel mutters beside me, as we step through the 'gate. Before I could think to blink I am standing outside in a fairly warm, wooded area.