AN- Woohoo! I posted again! I'm on a busy schedule with school and the concert season for my band coming up soon. Not to mention my entire family being sick, and the fact that I'm working on two other stories on ff.n, and another two that I hope to have posted soon. Ugh. I hate the Flu. Anyway, here's Chapter ten of The Ties that Bind. Enjoy!

Awsome shout-out to RoseoftheGate, my Beta Reader.

Quick-Demon- Thank you for reading faithfully and reviewing. It keeps me inspired. BTW, I'm just going to say; If anyone wants to read a good humor fic, Quick-Demon's fic "Presto Changeo" is an awsome read! I beta the fic and I have to read the chapters three times in order to stop laughing long enough to correct any mistakes.

iamari- I'm a big fan of your fics, and I just wanted to say thanks for reading mine!

and if anyone likes Star Wars fics, my friend, misunderstood15, has an awsome story called "The Unknown Life" and no one has read or reviewed it. I highly reccomend this fic. It's on my favorite story list if you want to read it.

Disclaimer- Does it look like I'm making money from this? No. Don't sue, 'cuz I only have a clarinet, a flute, and a stuffed tiger, and you can't have them! Ok, enough of my blabbing. ON WITH THE SHOW!

Chapter Ten

Alliances

Daniel listened raptly to all that was going on in the Great Meeting Hall, despite his slowly growing boredom. Hammond was discussing Earth's history considering Apophis and Anubis. He felt an involuntary shiver go down his spine. Two creatures I had desperately never wanted to see again. I wonder what possessed them to forge an alliance. When Hammond finished speaking, Anteaus rose from his seat and, clearing his throat, said, "Now that everyone has been brought up to date on Earth's history, we should adjourn for some refreshment before we continue. I, for one, desperately need to stretch my legs a little."

A chorus of "Agreed," followed this statement, and people began to shift in their seats. From the opposite side of the chamber, Kate spoke. "I could conduct a quick tour of the surrounding city of Kelpa if anyone would like to join me," She said. All the members of SG-1 accepted the offer, as did Maj. Sheffield and Anteaus. As they gathered by the door, Galdrona's voice echoed through the chamber. "Be back here in thirty minutes, everyone," he said. "That's the longest we can take." Everyone present acknowledged the order, and filed out of the room.

They all headed back to the turbolift that had taken them to the main chamber of the Great Hall. She selected a small symbol on the map projection, and it expanded to show not only the main floors of the Hall, but the lower maintenance and garage levels as well. She touched one of these with her finger, and the 'lift began its descent.

"So..." O'Neill said slowly, bouncing slightly on his toes. "Where're we goin'?"

Kate turned toward the windows at the back of the lift and pointed to a tall, multi-tiered structure made of a drab grey metal. Although its height was formidable, they could still see the top of the roof from their vantage point. Daniel recognized it as the building in his dream. He would remember that rooftop anywhere.

"That's the Denico Corporation building." Kate said. "We're going there first, because the rooftop has the best view of the Bondar Plains to the west. From there, you'll be able to see up to a hundred and fifty miles away, beyond the edge of the shield that protects the city. That's where Apophis and Anubis are concentrating their forces at the moment."

"A shield that protects the whole city?" Carter asked. "Wow, how do you manage that? The city is huge."

"We use a power source that I believe you call a Zero Point Module. There are four of them in the basement of the Royal Mansion, halfway between the edge of the city and the center. They power an area, including the shield, of about one thousand square miles."

"Four ZPM's?" Carter's eyes grew wide.

"Is...that a lot?" O'Neill asked.

"What's a ZPM?" This from Sheffield.

It took Carter a good thirty seconds to find her voice before she could explain. "It's an enormous power supply that was employed by the Ancients...and apparently is still employed by them. Just one ZPM could power the east coast of the United States for a hundred years...even if the ZPM was only running at half power."

O'Neill gave a low whistle. "And you guys need four?" He asked Kate.

"Only two power the city itself." She clarified. "Of the other two, one is used solely for the shield, and isn't activated until the city is in danger, and the other is used as a backup. We can direct the power from that one to wherever we need it, be it the shield, a laboratory, or a concert hall."

Having nothing else to say, O'Neill just responded with, "Cool,"

The 'lift stopped, and Kate led them to a hovercar garage. From there, they headed to the Denico building.

"This is an amazing view," Carter breathed. They were now standing on the roof of Denico Corp's building, looking out at the blue grasses of the Bondar Plains.

"Indeed," said Teal'c, who was standing very close to the edge. "What was the purpose of bringing us to this rooftop?" He asked.

Kate was staring intently at the plains. "You'll see in a minute, just watch."

Daniel, who was standing next to her, peered into the distance, straining to see the gliders in the air, strafing the ground. "I don't see-" His words were cut off, as a huge...something...fell out of the sky. It looked like a gigantic version of a blast from a staff weapon. It struck the ground, blowing dirt, debris, and bodies into the air. Kate sucked in a sudden breath, wincing noticeably and holding a hand to her temple. What was that? Daniel thought. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?" He asked, only loud enough for her alone to hear.

"I'll be fine," She said. Daniel just looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "I should be used to it by now," she went on, "But every time that happens, I can feel the pain of those who were killed. Any Sheni warrior within two light-years could, too."

"Huh?"

"Sheni warriors have a..." She paused, searching for the right word. "Sense of living beings. We can sense feelings, emotions, and occasionally, thoughts. With other warrriors, we can communicate telepathically, but only if the other person is willing. So when that weapon kills so many, I feel the surge of fear, and instant of searing pain, and then a void, where there once was a hundred lives."

Now it was Daniel's turn to wince. "I'm so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"

She sighed and shook herself a little. "No. I must deal with it on my own."

Daniel didn't like that idea, but there really wasn't anything he could do about it right now. He turned his attention back to the plains, where a column of black smoke stood out against the sky.

"Why is the area still smoldering?" Anteaus asked, speaking for the first time since they arrived on the roof.

Kate shrugged. "We don't know. It's a new weapon that we've never seen before. Anubis has a mothership in orbit, and these blasts are coming from an odd structure on the bottom of the vessel. Whatever it is, it's extremely accurate; they concentrate on areas that are heavily populated with our own people. Virtually no Goa'uld lives are lost, and many Melidians are."

Daniel gave her a puzzled look. "Melidians?"

"One of only a few kingdoms that remain of the Ancients." Kate clarified. "There are only three kingdoms, out of hundreds, left in the known universe; there's Melidia, our own, which spans half the populated planets of this galaxy; Onvar, which only has a population of a couple million; and Beriku, which is the smallest. They have a couple hundred thousand, population-wise."

"Are the Goa'uld attacking them, too?" O'Neill asked.

"Not at the moment. We think they're trying to get rid of the largest threat first, -that's us- and then they'll move on to the smaller kingdoms. We have the most manpower, and the largest military. Onvar has most of the technology research, and Beriku is a pacifist kingdom to a fault."

"I see," O'Neill glanced at his watch. "Shouldn't we head back to the Great Hall now?"

"Yes. Let's go." Kate stole one more, sad look at the smoky horizon, then headed down the stairs to the hovercar hangar.

"Welcome back, everyone." Galdrona said, standing behind the speakers podium. "We will now decide on a course of action to be taken against the Goa'uld. Melidian forces are being butchered by this new weapon, while gliders battle our own starfighters in orbit above Vedra, Xersia, and our own Chandomir. We need all the help we can get. That's why the envoy from Earth is here. General Hammond and his commanders have offered their help in knowledge, manpower, and whatever else they can spare." Galdrona nodded at an aged woman, and a man that looked a little older than Kate. They came forward to stand at his side and he introduced them. "These are Queen Delana of the Onvar, and Prince Galqi of the Beriku." The two nodded in acknowledgement of the two dozen people gathered before them. Galdrona continued. "Queen Delana has just arrived from the planet Tervos, and seeks to offer her assistance wherever it is needed in our research. Prince Galqi has likewise just arrived from the planet Berik, and is here in place of his father, King Haldros, whose is not healthy enough for space or 'gate travel." As the two monarchs sat at their respective places, Galdrona pressed a button on the surface of the podium, causing a holographic projection to appear in the center of the room. "This," He said, "Is an up-to-the-second readout of the battles going on around Vedra, Xersia, and Chandomir." Three planets materialized, roughly the same size. Galdrona pressed another button, and one of the planets grew to encompass the entire empty space between the podium and the first row of seats. "This is the current situation on Vedra. The areas you see in blue are areas that are not affected by the attacks, and are still undamaged. The yellow areas are where battles are currently being fought, and the areas in red are the regions that have been destroyed, or fallen into enemy hands."

Daniel blinked and rubbed his eyes. Almost a fourth of Vedra's land mass was reading as red, most of the rest was blue, and a thin, undulating line of yellow squished between them. This isn't good. If Apophis and Anubis can do this to the Ancients...an involuntary shiver ran down his spine, and a quick look at his colleagues showed that they were just as shocked. He watched as Galdrona pulled up images of Xersia, which had less red areas, but the yellow ones were much bigger. Then he pulled up the display of Chandomir. Most of the planet's land mass was blue, but hundreds of square miles at a time were turning yellow, then –a little more slowly- red. The city of Kelpa itself was a tiny blue spot in a sea of red, bordered by a thin, wavering line of yellow.

"As you can see," Said Galdrona, "Chandomir is taking the bulk of the attacks. This new superweapon that Anubis has is impossible for us to counteract. The only thing keeping Kelpa from being incinerated is the shield, which can only hold out for so long. With use of the Goa'uld ships that Earth is in possession of, we may be able to sneak a small contingent of soldiers onto the main craft in an attempt to find a weakness." He took a breath and looked General Hammond in the eye. "You said, general, that your leaders would need sufficient reason to help us before they could commit to our aid. Is this enough?"

Hammond stood. "Yes, King Galdrona, I most certainly think it is. What can we do to help?"

AN- Okay, people. Review! I might just run out of inspiration if you don't give the little button some love!