Author's Note #1: To all of my faithful reviewers, thank you so much! It is always encouraging to see your reviews appearing in my email.

Author's Note #2: A second chapter in a week-and-a-half, wow! Don't expect the next chapter to come so quickly. It is only half written, but hopefully I can make some good progress on it this week and over Thanksgiving break.


April 1999
SGC, Earth

The first clue that something was amiss was when the Stargate began to dial in on an afternoon on which no SG teams or team members were due back and no visits from any of earth's allies were expected. Within moments, however, the concerning situation was resolved when Sergeant Harriman received an IDC.

"It's Teal'c, sir," he said to General Hammond, who had quickly come down from his office when the alarms went off.

"He's early. He's not supposed to be back until tomorrow," replied the General, a look of concern mingled with surprise crossing his face. SG1 was on stand-down that weekend, and Teal'c had taken the chance to return to the Land of Light to visit his wife and son, whom he rarely had chances to visit due to his work with SG1 and the SGC's fight against the Goa'uld. For him to return early, something must have happened, but what?

General Hammond hurried down to the gateroom, as the Sergeant opened the Iris. Teal'c came striding through the wormhole a moment later and made straight for the General.

"General Hammond, I must speak with you at once," said Teal'c in his usual straight-forward and too-the-point manner.

"Very well. Let me call for Colonel O'Neill and Captain Carter, and then we can debrief," General Hammond replied, guessing that the Jaffa's news should be heard by the other permanent members of SG1, as well.

Though roughly eight months had passed since Dr. Jackson had been forced to flee earth to escape from the NID, finding a replacement for him was still a work in progress. The SGC's archaeologists and linguists had been rotating through the team for months, but O'Neill, Carter, and Teal'c had never been satisfied with the possible replacements for their missing friend. The longest candidate had lasted for seven weeks, and the General was still trying to find a good solution for this personnel problem. Everyone kept hoping that Daniel would be able to return soon, thereby avoiding the problem altogether, but the political climate had not changed enough to make such a return a possibility.


Off-duty through they were, neither O'Neill or Carter had returned home for the weekend, too caught up with tasks at the SGC, and both reached the conference room within about 6-7 minutes of the summons over the PA system.

"What's up, T?" O'Neill asked, strolling into the conference room with his hands pushed deep into his BDU pockets, "How was the visit?" Carter was a few steps behind him.

"My visit was pleasant, O'Neill," the Jaffa replied from his seat at the conference table, "but that is not why I have returned early. During the midday meal today, Drey'auc told me of news sent to her by a messenger, one of Master Bra'tac's students."

Teal'c paused long enough for O'Neill to prompt him, "What's the news? Apophis still enjoying Sokar's company?"

"Of Apophis himself, there was no news," said Teal'c, "but several of his most important words, including Chulak, Saqqara, and Kawawn have all fallen."

"We know from the Tok'ra that, with Apophis gone, there's been a power vacuum," Captain Carter added, "Apophis still has loyal Jaffa but not enough to keep control of all of his worlds in his absence."

"More Goa'uld infighting," said O'Neill, rubbing his hands together with a gleeful grin, "Let them kill each other off. Less work for us to do."

Hammond brought the discussion back on track, "Did Bra'tac say which Goa'uld it was who conquered Chulak and Apophis' other worlds?"

"It was not a Goa'uld who did this," Teal'c said, finally coming to the reason for his unexpected return, "That was the news, and this is why I have returned."

"Did anyone escape with news?" Carter asked, her mind running on overdrive.

"Four Jaffa made it through the Stargate on Chulak before it was overrun by the invaders. No Jaffa escaped from the other worlds. One of those who escaped was one of Master Bra'tac's Jaffa. He came to the Land of Light, hoping that Drey'auc would pass the news on to me. The news he brings is convoluted and … confusing. He spoke of stranger monsters appearing from thin air, who were untouched by staff blasts; of other Jaffa disappearing; of ships falling from the sky."

"Appearing and disappearing out of thin air," Captain Carter said slowly, remembering when Thor's ship had arrived at Cimmeria to save the inhabitants from the Jaffa of Heru'ur, "that sounds like beaming technology."

"And warriors untouched by weapons' fire, personal shields such as in a kara kesh," Teal'c added.

"It couldn't be the Asgard, could it? Roswell Greys are strange but not exactly monster-worthy to the Jaffa," questioned Carter.

"It was not the Asgard," replied Teal'c, "from what the messenger was able to see before he was forced to flee when the gate was overrun, neither the warriors nor the ships that appeared above Chulak matched any descriptions of the Asgard whether of legend or what we ourselves have seen."

"How old is this news? Has there been any word from Bra'tac or the Tok'ra?" Asked General Hammond.

"A few days old, at most," said Teal'c, "I have not seen Bra'tac since the incident with Hathor on P4Z-326, and he spoke nothing in this vein then."

"Our meetings with the Tok'ra are still largely of the 'don't call us, we'll call you' variety," Carter added, "Dad hasn't been by since the incident with the Reetou in January."

Through all this O'Neill had sat quietly without commenting. He had propped his chin up on one hand and was starring off into the distance, listening but thinking.

"Thoughts, Colonel? You're being unusually quiet today," prompted the General.

"It's the 'Forgotten," said O'Neill quietly, still starring off into the distance.

"Pardon?"

O'Neill suddenly straightened back up, his gaze snapping to the General out of a thousand-yard stare. "Lya mentioned a new mysterious race called the 'Forgotten,' when we found her not long after Maybourne drove Daniel away. She gave us some cryptic message about the 'Forgotten' and a 'reckoning with the Goa'uld,' and now eight months later, Apophis got his behind kicked in absentio out of the blue by a race no one has ever heard of or seen before. Does no one besides me make the connection? It must be them."


Next Time on Ripples in the Deep:

Chapter 13: Strike Two - After cleaning house in Apophis' territory, Sujanha and the Furlings, on the advice of the Tok'ra, turn their sights to Sokar and his realm. The atrocities of his reign are revealed in part during the capture of Netu. During this period, Daniel learns several surprising facts about the Ancients during a visit to the Ancient battleship found on Saqarra, and Daniel also meets a surprising relation of Sujanha.

Interlude IV: Sha're - Imprisoned by the Furlings for her own safety and that of their people until they can find away to free her, Sha're awakens one night while Amaunet sleeps. Talking with one of her guards, Sha're learns much of what has taken place in the preceding months which Amaunet has hidden from her.

Chapter 14: Strike Three - The Furling conquest of the Goa'uld 'Empire' continues. But will danger threaten the Furling advance when three of the most powerful and feared Goa'uld form an alliance to oppose the Furlings?