Field Test Three

After running for a considerable distance, the team stopped and Harper put up the binoculars. He watched the approaching Replicators for several seconds.

"No luck," he said. "They've turned, and they're still headed our way. Someone must still have an electronic device that's running."

All the team members searched through their pockets and checked for any electronic items. Their search was unsuccessful.

"I don't understand it," said Carter. "My wristwatch is mechanical. I don't have any other electronic equipment that's radiating a signal."

"Colonel Carter," said Teal'c. "Do you not still possess the Asgard communication device?"

"Well yes," said Carter, pulling out the communicator and looking at it, "But I don't think it's radiating a signal."

"It is my understanding," said Teal'c, "That every radio receiver radiates a signal in the band for which it is tuned."

"I don't know," said Carter, "I don't think it operates in the conventional radio band like our portable transceivers."

"Perhaps," said Teal'c, "The Replicators have methods of detecting Asgard communications devices, whether they operate in the radio spectrum or not."

"All right," said Carter, placing the communicator on the ground, "We'll leave this here and see if the Replicators track it. Harper, what direction do you recommend?"

"Let's be bold," said Harper. "If we head back in the direction of one three five degrees, we should pass the Replicators on their way to come and get us."

"Interesting," said Tyr. "These moves remind me of the Earth game of chess."

They ran in a different direction.


As Thor approached the Replicator's ship, the defense screens of the Samantha Carter began to glow red, then orange, under the onslaught of stray subatomic particles and high energy photons reflected from the Replicator's shields. The Asgard ship slowed, and finally was within range. The High Guard ships broke off their attack and remained in a hemispheric defense formation to prevent the Replicator's escape. Thor aimed the weapon of the Ancients and activated it, sweeping it back and forth across the ship of machines.

The Replicator's shield glowed a dull red, but there was no other effect. The Replicator ship began to increase its altitude, heading for deep space. Without its shield being stressed to the limit, the Replicator became bold. A bright orange beam stabbed out from the ship, slicing through a small High Guard ship like it was soft jelly. Thor switched off his weapon and backed his ship away from the escaping Replicator ship.

"Admiral Tanaka, this is Thor," said Thor over the communications channel. "Have the fleet resume the attack while I analyze the problem. This may take a little longer than I had anticipated."


"Let's stop for a while," said Harper, panting. "We need to see if this is working."

The team thundered to a halt. Teal'c and Tyr glanced at each other, but neither was breathing hard...or at least that was the impression they gave. It was hard to hide it, however, when they could all see their breath in the cold air. Harper viewed the Replicators for several seconds.

"It worked," he said. "They're still heading the same direction they were five minutes ago."

Harper danced around in a circle. "We did it!" he shouted.

"Watch it, Harper," warned Carter. "We don't know if the Replicators can sense vibrations in the ground or the air. You might be attracting them in our direction."

Her words were prophetic, for at that moment every Replicator in the column stopped dead. There was silence on the tundra as the dust of their passage subsided. The four team members were also silent, frozen for the moment, waiting to see what would happen. After a short time there was movement among the machines. Near the head of the column, a pillar appeared, rising ten feet from the ground for a few seconds, and then subsiding back down. There followed a rapid flowing of something toward them, more rapidly that any Replicator could move. The material on the ground ceased to flow when it had moved within a few feet from them, and the pillar rose up once more. But this was not a ten-foot pillar as before. It took on human form.

Before them on the tundra stood Major Samantha Carter in full SG-1 field uniform.


Urban Renewal Three

The Lancers wanted blood. The tale of Melodie's ordeal had spread quickly through the ranks. With each telling the tale of the androids's abuse had become more harrowing. Most of them had seen her, wrapped in the thermal blanket, being escorted by McGrady to the Gremlin; donations of spare articles of clothing had followed immediately.

Nobody would ever mistake the Lancers for members of a church choir. They fought hard and played harder and more than one of them had purchased the favors of a dockside prostitute. But the Lancers were more than just bloody-minded warriors; the Lancer Corps had a strong code of chivalry. What had been done to Melodie dishonored every tenant of that code. The fact that Melodie was an AI did not enter into the equation; they were the guardians of the Commonwealth and somebody had violated one of their charges. That somebody was going to die.

Dylan was in the mood for some blood as well. Dr. Jackson's questions had him unsettled. A simple firefight would be welcome. And from looking at the surroundings he might soon be getting is wish.

While the area they had found Melodie had resembled a war zone, the area they were in now was a war zone. From the size of the holes in some of the buildings and in the street more than just handguns and torches had been in use.

"What sort of insanity seized these people?" asked Trance as she surveyed the surroundings.

"Politics", replied Rommie her voice oozing with contempt. "Arzawa had a democratic government gone mad. Three political factions all of whose members were more interested in obtaining and retaining power than they were in governing. Each party demonized the other two, claiming that the other two parties would destroy the planets way of life if they were elected. Of course they pitted species against species and rich against the poor. Throw in the fact that there was no truly independent source of news, all of the media outlets were owned by one or another of the parties and served purely as propaganda vehicles, and the fact that each party had it's own private army of thugs whose purpose was to intimidate, or worse, any one who dared speak against the status quo and you have a civil war waiting to happen. When the news of the invasion came out the planetary government commandeered the one ship that was in orbit about the planet and fled. That's when things fell apart."

Dylan called the column to a halt. They were not too far from the civic center and from where the previous drone had been fired upon. "Dylan to drop ships. Send up an Odin I want some eyes in the sky."

The Odin was a surveillance drone used by the Lancers. While it was relatively slow moving it had a capability that Dylan suspected he would soon be using. It could illuminate targets for the projectiles fired from his drop ships 155mm mass drivers. The Odin was quickly in the sky, and not too surprisingly it was fired on as it loitered near the civic center. Dylan had it climb until it was out of firing range and made a decision. He would give the folks holed up in the civic administration center one chance to surrender, and if they didn't he was going to make an example of them. But first he needed some information about exactly who was in there.

"Trance, I want you Dr Jackson and three Lancers to find someone to talk to. I want to know who is in the civic center, what sort of weapons they have and do they have any prisoners." He had picked Trance and Dr Jackson because even in Lancer armor they did not look very intimidating and Trance could charm a turtle out of its shell when she put her mind to it. If anyone could establish a rapport with the citizens it would be her.

An hour later they were back, with a family of six in tow, two parents, what Dylan assumed to be the grandmother, and three children. Trance did the introductions.

"Captain this is the Ruiz family. I promised them we would keep them safe if they helped us with information. Mr. Ruiz this is Captain Dylan he is here to put an end to the fighting. Why don't you tell him what you know about the situation."

It turned out that Mr. Ruiz had been a policeman. He had participated in the early attempts to keep order, but when the situation finally collapsed and the political armies came out and commenced a general three-way war, he along with most of the rest of the surviving officers had deserted to protect their families. After Dylan had reassured him that every military man has to know when a battle is lost he relaxed a bit and told what he knew.

As Rommie had surmised when the government abandoned the planet, the remaining leaders of the various political factions had decided to settle things with bullets rather than ballots. The police and Home Guard had tried to contain the situation but had been overwhelmed. The victorious faction represented the Social Democracy Party. They had taken over the civic administration center and the police headquarters. Ruiz estimated that there were approximately 250 gunmen in and around the civic administration complex and that they had taken several dozen hostages taken to keep the local population under control. He also offered the opinion that the gunmen were not well trained and that their weaponry appeared to be black market obsolete military surplus.

"If they hadn't managed to stir up the population into city wide rioting before they struck we could have handled them."

After thanking Mr. Ruiz and praising his family for their bravery, Dylan sent them to the rear and let his troops know how he was intending to proceed.

"We're going to march up there in plain view, with the Commonwealth banner flying and playing the "High Guard Anthem over the Gremlins loudspeakers. We'll halt just outside of the compound and give them one chance to surrender. Any one who doesn't surrender dies." Harsh but he had no use for the kind of scum that were forted up in the administration center and a stern example early on would discourage anyone else from thinking they could profit from the situation.

"Not exactly a subtle approach", said Rommie There was a questioning tone in her voice.

"This isn't about subtle it's about letting the residents of this city know that the High Guard is here and in charge.

His plan wasn't as rash as it appeared. Mr. Ruiz's analysis of the gunmen's equipment and training had confirmed what he had deduced from reading reports on the planet. While they might have some smart ammunition all High Guard units and personnel were equipped with jamming devices that could defeat the sensors of smart ammunition.

There was still the possibility of a lucky shot, but that was why they were wearing body armor. Now he had to let his artillery batteries know what was going on.

"Dylan to south base. I will have a fire mission for you shortly, cluster ammunition on the areas indicated." He transmitted the coordinates of the civic center to the drop ships. "Wait for my order."

"This is south base. Roger cluster ammunition on indicated areas. Locations have been received. Awaiting your order."

As the column headed towards their target, music blaring and banner unfurled people started coming from out of the ruins of their homes to watch. Which was precisely what Dylan wanted.

The civic administration center was actually two buildings in more of less the center of the city. At eight stories tall they were actually among the taller buildings in the city. Prime City city planners had built out rather than up. The buildings had been damaged but not as heavily as the surrounding buildings. There were also numerous wrecked vehicles in the streets surrounding the complex.

When he was close enough that he was confident that he could be heard, he used the Gremlin's public address system to address the thugs who had taken over the buildings. "This is Captain Dylan Hunt of the Commonwealth High Guard. This city is now under martial law. You have one minute to surrender and leave the civic center. This is your one and only warning."

Unsurprisingly a shot rang out from the building. Gremlins are versatile vehicles, despite Dylan's distaste for them. One of the items they carried on board was a counter sniper mechanism. The device could track the sound of a gunshot and indicate the direction the shot came from. With two or more Gremlins triangulation could be achieved and the location of the sniper could be pinpointed. The device would then paint the location on the heads up display on the visor of the Lancers' helmets so they could return fire. It did, they did and the sniper died.

It was show time.