AUTHOR'S NOTE: Before you get to the story let me say that I have changed the way I spell 'Anubus'. The encyclopedia uses 2 'n's which is why I did too but a few people have convinced me to use the show's spelling from now on.
Now, enjoy the story.
*** *** ***
Kennedy sat at the table next to Bra'tac, quietly listening to the report Sam's father was giving.
"We've confirmed that Anubus has a base on Tartarus. But, a powerful sensor array prevents anyone from approaching the planet unnoticed." Jacob reported from his seat at the conference table. The stargate on Tartarus is inside the structure and has a force field protecting it."
"We need to know how Anubus created this new soldier, confirm what we believe his intentions are and ploys to stop him. Any ideas?" Hammond addressed the people at the table.
"Even if we could defeat the force field we'd have to assume that the stargate is heavily guarded." Sam pointed out.
"We must gain access to the planet by temporarily shutting down the sensor array." Teal'c offered.
"I agree. The question is how?" Sam asked.
"I will walk through the stargate." Selmak suggested catching everyone's attention especially Kennedy's who watched the man curiously.
"Selmak?" Hammond wanted to be sure.
"Yes." The tok'ra confirmed with a quick nod
"Come again?" Hammond asked.
"I wear the armor of Anubus' assassin. According to your account on Ramius' planet, it passed through the force field trap."
"But at what physical cost? We have no way of knowing." Bra'tac pointed out.
"The force field around that stargate has to be more powerful than the one we used." Sam also reasoned not liking the plan Selmak was proposing.
"I'm sorry. I have to agree with Selmak on this one." Jacob backed his symbiote up. At Sam's stunned look Jacob nodded recognizing Sam's worry and continued. "He'll keep me alive." He assured his daughter. "Does anyone have a better idea?" He asked at everyone's looks of uncertainty.
Everyone in the room including Kennedy looked at each other as if silently asking the others to say something.
"Are you sure you can pass yourself off as one of these guys?" The slayer questioned.
"I can be a very good actor when I want to be." The tok'ra smiled confidently. "Once I've deactivated the sensor array, a scout ship can then approach the planet. Radioactive isotopes taken before hand will allow us to move around freely without being detected by internal sensors inside the base." Jacob continued to explain his plan.
"What's your exit plan?" Hammond asked.
"The scout ship." Bra'tac offered. "During the mission I will conceal it in one of the many low lying chasms, powering down to further avoid detection."
Hammond looked to Sam, "Major, you have a go."
Sam just nodded with a look of apprehension at the thought of her first command.
*** *** ***
"Here we go." Sam said setting two boxes on the table in her lab.
Kennedy opened the smaller one first to reveal six, three inch long, trinium field tip arrowheads that were longer than normal due to the much gentler slope ending in a sharper than usual point. "Nice. Only six?"
"We didn't have much notice." The Major explained. "If they work we'll start on more. How about your other order?"
Kennedy opened the second, longer box to find what looked like an ice pick with an eight-inch long, quarter inch thick spike with a needle thin point coming out of a four-inch hard black synthetic handle. "Perfect." She picked up the 'ice pick' to get its feel.
"We still need to make sure they'll work before we try using them in the field." Sam reminded the slayer.
"What are we waitin' for then? Let's test these puppies."
*** *** ***
In the firing range, Sam and Kennedy set the mannequin wearing the warrior's suit against the wall. Kennedy then held up a paper 'Bulls-eye' target to the chest with one hand stabbing her trinium stake through the top of the target with the other, pinning it to the mannequin. "Well that works. "She happily said.
"But will the arrows?" Sam still questioned.
"We're about to find out." The slayer started walking way from the mannequin with Sam right behind her.
Hammond, Teal'c, Bra'tac and Jacob were waiting when they reached the firing area. Kennedy picked Scarlet up off the table by the grip with her right hand and took hold of the handle connecting the cocking arms with her left. Pulling back with the left and pushing forward with the right she easily drew back the four hundred pounds needed to cock the weapon; then set one of the aluminum shaft arrows she was using, instead of the normal wooden ones she used for vampires, in place. "Alright. Let's see what this does." She said to the group. Then took careful aim and fired.
The arrow streaked off too fast to track and slammed dead center into the bull's-eye and sank deep into the dummy. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" the small brunette called out excitedly.
"Very impressive" Teal'c concurred.
The entire group walked the fifty meters back to the dummy to see that the arrow was indeed through the center of the bulls-eye and deeply embedded several inches into the dummy.
"I think this qualifies as a successful test." Jacob remarked.
"I'd have to agree." Hammond added.
"With such a weapon we have balanced the advantage of Annubus' warriors" Bra'tac commented.
"Indeed." Teal'c let his impression show.
"Good, now let's go kick some alien ass." Kennedy said.
*** *** ***
Willow sat in the back of the plane watching Jack who had the pieces of his stripped-down weapon scattered out in front of him inspecting each piece to make sure it was in perfect condition before reassembling it when Willow grew tired of only having the dull roar of the planes engines to listen to and moved over to sit next to the Colonel. "We need to talk." The witch announced.
"Nothin' to talk about." Jack said simply without looking at her and blew some lint off the trigger mechanism in his hand then fit it into place in the gun's frame.
"Oh. No? We've done nothing except grate on each other's nerves since we met. We need to be able to get along if we're going to work together, not just to save Daniel but in the future too, and that means talking." She reasoned. "What I want to know is why you have a problem with me?"
"Me!" Jack spat and turned his head sharply to look at her. "I'm not the only one that's got a problem."
"Oh, I never said that I didn't contribute to this tension. We started off on the bad foot, and I admit some of that is my fault. I shouldn't have let your skepticism bother me so much. But, if I can get along with the rest of the team, then why can't we get along too?"
Jack sighed setting his now half assembled rifle down in front of him. "I told the General that I didn't care what you called yourself. That if you could help us fight the Goa'uld you could call yourself whatever you wanted. The truth is that it's been harder to accept than I thought."
"You still don't believe me?"
"It's just that we've met so many other, Ah --- RACES," Jack found what he thought was an appropriate word, "that also have advanced powers who have all refused to help and now here you are, helping, which is exactly what we always wanted and ---."Jack paused as if considering how to finish that sentence.
"Now it's to good to be true?" Willow guessed what Jack wanted to say.
"Somethin' like that. I can't help but feel that the other shoe will drop Especially since you're obviously still hiding something from us."
"What do you mean? What am I hiding?" Willow was getting defensive.
"Come on, Sam and Daniel told us what happened at the magic shop. How that other witch claimed you were the most powerful and famous witch alive but you wouldn't let her say why."
"Oh that." She dismissed with a wave. "I just don't think that you need to know every little thing about me. After all do you want to tell me about every mission you've been on? Of course not, because it doesn't have anything to do with the current situation. It's just needless information that I don't need to know. Unless there's something that might hurt me." Willow paused, "There isn't --- Is there?" she asked sharply.
"No."
"Good. The same goes for me. What I did isn't going to hurt us but it's not going to help us either."
There was a brief pause as Jack considered this. "But is what she said true? Are you really that powerful?"
"You're not going to let this go are you?"
"No."
*** *** ***
Sam, Teal'c. Bra'tac and Kennedy all occupied the Tel'tak's bridge as it flew through hyperspace. Bra'tac sat in the right hand seat while Teal'c stood behind the center control station. The slayer, dressed in combat fatigues and her long dark hair tied in a ponytail, stood behind the left chair, which was currently empty, looking out through the window at the hyperspace tunnel the ship was passing through.
"Amazing isn't it." Sam commented as she came up behind her. "Especially the first time you see it"
"What?" The brunette looked over her shoulder at the taller woman. "Oh, It's awesome alright. Never thought I'd get to see this; much less from aboard an alien ship along with two aliens and an Air Force officer." She replied and turned back to the window.
Sam chuckled, and then took out a hypospray. "We're almost there. Time to take your medicine."
This time Kennedy turned completely around to face the Major. "This is gon'na keep the sensors from seeing us?"
"Yes." Sam confirmed. "We've used it before. The effects should last eight hours but we need to take it now so it'll have time to get into our system."
"This isn't going to make me glow in the dark or anything is it." Kennedy seemed only semi joking.
"No." Sam smiled and let out a short laugh. "You won't even know it's there."
The slayer exhaled sharply then rolled up her right sleeve to the elbow and offered her arm to the other woman.
Sam held the younger girl's wrist as she pressed the hypospray to her forearm and administered the isotope.
*** *** ***
"What does this guy look like?" Willow asked the Colonel as they sat at a table at an outdoor cantina waiting for their contact.
"Don't worry, he'll find us." Jack answered then took a sip from the glass in his hands. A waiter came up and set two bottles of beer in front of them. "Estan bien?" he asked.
"Si' bueno, gracias." Jack answered
"Si' gracias." Willow also thanked the young man who turned and went back to work. "And you're sure this friend of yours knows where they are?
"Is that what he's calling me?" a stranger's voice came from Willow's left before Jack could answer. The witch was the only one to look up as a stocky man about the same age as Jack with thin hair and a short, scruffy beard wearing a pair of shades and a dirty light colored shirt sat down. "Are we still friends Jack?" he added. "You don't look happy to see me. I would have loved to seen your face when you heard my name."
Willow could feel the tension between them; no magic needed, and just watched the two men trying to get a handle on what was going on.
The contact then removed his shades before looking at Willow. "Who is this?"
"Hi, I'm Willow." She cheerily introduced herself and held a hand out to him.
The man ignored it.
"This is Burke." Jack answered Willow's inquiry.
"What is it Jack, you don't trust me? Think you need a bodyguard?" The new arrival accused.
"Wasn't my idea for her to come. She talked the General into letting her tag along." Jack rebutted. "So let's just get this over with. I've got forty-eight hours before my friend is killed. Just tell me what you know."
"O.k. all business all the time. I can dig that station. This was the last place Daniel Jackson was seen before he hired a guide named Rogelio Duran to take him into the jungle. A short time after that he was snatched by anti-Honduran extremists."
"And you know this how?" Jack questioned distrust apparent in his voice.
"Because this is how this particular splinter group does business. Last year they kidnapped a very important engineer working on the Coronas River Dam. Big American contract, insurance pays off and they finance a little war against the government with the ransom."
"This engineer, did he live?" Jack took another swallow of his drink.
"Yeah, he did; sometimes they don't." Burke cockily answered as he tilted his head.
Jack and Willow took a few seconds as that sank in.
"What about weapons?" Jack broke the silence.
Burke leaned in. "O.k. this is colorful. Honduras and Nicaragua are in the middle of a territorial dispute. I know what you're thinking, when are they not. So because of this anyone in the 'I hate Honduras ' fan club can seek shelter behind Nicaraguan borders and buy guns. What kind of guns, AK's, AK's for days. Nicaragua gets their stuff direct from Russia now. But back in the Eighty's they inherited all the old stuff from Cuba. How do ya like that?" Burke started to laugh as he continued. "They let us fight Cuba from their shores, we get our asses kicked and Cuba gives them the guns. Do you know we could get shot at by an AK-47 that was fired at the 'Bay of pigs' attack?" He leaned back and let out a hoarse belly laugh.
"You've been down here to long." Jack accused and downed another swallow.
"You think so? You know why I got this crappy posting in this stink hole ---."
"No, no." Jack cut him off "I'm not the one to blame" "Yes you are." The two men talked over each other. Apparently forgetting that Willow was right there.
"Are you going to try to blame me now---?"
"Yeah, I am. You could have stood up for me. Hillary left me. Do you know what happens when a friendly fire incident where one team member is killed and the other one doesn't vouch for him."
"I didn't see what happened to Woods." Jack raised his voice. "I told'em what I knew. I wasn't about to lie."
"I'm not talking about lying. I'm talking about my head. You, me, Woods. We were buddies. You knew me."
A silence fell over the two until the sound of Willow clearing her throat reminded them that they weren't alone. They both turned to the woman and shifted uncomfortably in realization that she had overheard the argument Willow just smiled also showing her discomfort at witnessing the exchange.
"I told them what I knew." Jack insisted with a calmer, quieter voice.
"Well, you didn't tell them enough. Now you're stuck here in my part of the world. You need me. And I'm calling you on this one."
"I don't think so." Jack countered and took another drink.
"I know how to get over the borders, I know were these rebels operate, oh yeah, I'm in charge."
"No. You're just the guide." Jack informed him.
"Just a guide? Is that what you think of me now?"
"That's right. You're not so gone that you don't understand the need for a clear chain of command are you?"
"Enough!" Willow's outburst stunned both men to silence causing them to look at the now standing girl. "This is getting us nowhere. I don't know what happened between you and I don't care. There are two people out there in that jungle and who knows what the men who have them are doing to them. So you two either quit your bellyaching and let's go find them or I'll leave you both here and do it myself. And you know I can Jack!" She was looking right at the Colonel now.
Burke sat back and laughed heartily breaking the silence. "Oh I like her, she's a pistol isn't she. Where did you find her Jack?" He got serious. "Alright. I'll take you in, if for no other reason than to see her keep you in line."