I'd like to express my thanks to Barbarossa Rotbart, mia66, Piper-Jacko06-Butterflygirl and SVU Chicky for their kind and encouraging words.

Hope everybody enjoys the new chapter, and I hope you're all having a great Holiday Season.

Stargate: SVU

Chapter Seven

"Where the hell is he?" Elliot asked, as he gazed suspiciously around the empty grounds of the park fountain.

"He'll show," Munch assured him, sitting casually on a bench. "But bear in mind, Elliot, that I usually meet with this guy alone."

Elliot stopped his anxious pacing back and forth. "You think he'll be too shy to meet with the both of us?"

Munch shrugged. "When I spoke to him on the phone, he appeared reluctant to meet just with me, at first. He sounded like he had a lot on his mind."

"Doesn't everybody these days?" Elliot muttered, as he resumed pacing. The heightened panic caused by the mass disappearances had by now reached a world-wide furor. It was the only news story that was being discussed on TV and the internet.

At first, Elliot ignored all the hoopla and maintained his own investigation into the disappearance of Olivia and Casey, determined to uncover a plot launched by a perp with a grudge who might had abducted them for reasons of revenge. But his leads--what little there were--kept turning into dead ends. He finally had to admit that Olivia and Casey may well have been a part of The Disappeared, as the damned media had now started to refer to them; people from all over the world who have been abducted from their locked homes, and who have all seemingly vanished without a trace.

Yet before Elliot could despair, Munch had suggested calling his spy friend, just to see if they could pick up any leads on that end. Elliot thought this was a long shot, at best. But since he was now at the end of his rope, he really couldn't think of a better idea.

"Here he is," Munch said, as he got up from the bench. "Let me go meet with him, first."

Elliot turned to see a guy standing by the fountain who looked more like an accountant than a spy. As Munch approached him, the spy warily gestured at Elliot. To which Munch replied with a wave of his hand, as if to say that it was all right. The spy appeared to think it over for a second before he nodded. Munch then gestured for Elliot to come over.

"This is Elliot," Munch said to his friend. "His partner, Olivia Benson, is one of The Disappeared--as is Casey Novak, our ADA. Elliot, this is Jerry."

Elliot was surprised; he'd almost figured the guy's name would be Bond, James Bond. "Hey, how's it going?" he said by way of greeting.

"Pretty rough these days, Elliot," Jerry replied. He glanced at Munch and added, "The case of The Disappeared has got Washington in a wild panic."

"That's comforting to know," Munch sarcastically said.

"If you're looking for any dirt about who's behind this, John, I'm just as much in the dark as everybody else," Jerry confessed.

"Does anybody know anything?" Elliot asked. "Does somebody, somewhere, at least have a wild guess as to what's happened to all these people?"

"The word I heard is that the government's got some people working on it--people who are specialists in dealing with weird sort of stuff," Jerry said. "All eyes in Washington are on a very important, super-secret, black-ops group out in Colorado right now. Hell, even the President is supposedly waiting on pins and needles just to see what these people will do."

"What super-secret black ops group is this?" Munch asked.

Jerry glanced both ways before he responded. "I don't know much about them--nobody does--but their cover story is the study of deep space radar telemetry. They're based in Colorado Springs, in the Cheyenne Mountain complex. Since The Disappeared crisis began, just about all the resources of the government has been funneled directly to these guys."

Jerry glanced at his watch. "Look, I gotta run. There's an office meeting I'm already late for."

"That's it?" Elliot said with a frown. "That's all you got?"

Jerry shrugged. "Best I could do on such short notice."

Munch waved his hand. "No problem. I owe you one."

"That's actually several you owe me, Munch," Jerry said with a smile, "but who's counting?"

After Jerry left, Elliot shook his head. "He's not saying that these deep space guys are behind Liv and Casey's abduction, is he?"

"What purpose would it serve for the government to perform a mass kidnapping like this?" Munch asked. "Especially one that's so mysterious, with the victims being taken from locked homes?"

"But these people in Cheyenne Mountain, they know what's going on, don't they?" Elliot said. "So maybe they're the ones I should talk to next."

Munch stared at Elliot as if he were insane. "What? You mean just go to these folks at Cheyenne Mountain and ask what they know about Olivia and Casey?"

"Sure," Elliot said with a shrug. "Why not?"

Munch just shook his head in disbelief. "Elliot, are you sure you should still pursue this?"

"To the very ends of the earth, if need be," Elliot firmly replied. "This is Olivia and Casey we're talking about here, John."

"I know. But we're now dealing with the big leagues," Munch said. "Whatever happened to Olivia and Casey, whatever's going on with The Disappeared, it's something that's way over our heads, and probably way out of our jurisdiction."

"That's never stopped me before, John," Elliot calmly said. "And it's as sure as hell not gonna stop me, now. You in, or out?"

After a thoughtful pause, Munch let out a heavy sigh. "I hear Colorado Springs is very nice this time of year."

Elliot nodded. "Then let's go!"

SG-1: SVU

"Yo, hold up!" Hailey called, as she and Satterfield ran across the vast hanger.

They were just in time. The hanger personnel had already loaded the downed teltac ship on the back of a massive flatbed truck, and were prepping it for transit to Area 51.

Hailey and Satterfield ceased running just as a captain stepped out in front of them, blocking their access to the truck. He was a tall and obnoxious-looking fellow who used his height advantage over the petite Hailey to loom over her. "What is it, Lieutenants?"

He spoke their rank as if it were a curse word. Hailey ignored the dig and gave him the proper salute, as did Satterfield. After glaring at them with disgust for a few seconds, the captain--whose name tag read Wolfforth--finally returned their salute.

"Sir, we need to go over the vessel once more before it gets shipped out," Hailey politely informed him.

"You're too late," Captain Wolfforth imperiously told them. "We're moving the ship out now. This teltac now belongs to Area 51, and I'm in command of the transfer."

After a furtive glance of disbelief at Satterfield, Hailey stepped forward and said, "Yes, sir. But I have been ordered by General Hammond to make another examination of the teltac's engines. Shall I call the general and inform him that you would not allow me to carry out his order?"

Wolfforth's eyes grew very wide at that, and Hailey knew she had him. "Uh, no, Lieutenant, that's all right," he quickly said. "You have permission to look it over. Take as much time as you need."

"Thank you, sir," Hailey replied, giving him another salute, before jumping onto the back of the flatbed truck.

"What a moron," Satterfield whispered. "If I ever get like that when I make captain, you'll straighten me out, right?"

"If you act like that when you make captain, I'll slap you silly," Hailey said, as she examined the blasted section of the engines. "Oh whoa, look at this, Satty."

Satterfield leaned forward. "That's where the blast occurred."

"Yeah, it took out the thruster." Hailey pointed. "But look, the hull's still intact. The explosion took place right over the hull itself. It didn't come from within the engine compartment."

"What does that mean?"

"It means the engine itself didn't explode; something on the outside of the hull caused the explosion which took out the thruster."

Satterfield frowned at her. "You mean she was shot down?"

"Or she was caused to crash deliberately," Hailey said, pointing, "by a bomb that was attached here."

"Wow," Satterfield muttered. "Sounds like it was set up to crash."

"Let's make sure by checking the engine compartment," Hailey said.

SG-1: SVU

"Are you sure about this, Doctor?" a skeptical Colonel Drumlin asked.

"Positive, sir," Janet told him. "The Jaffa had been dead for more than twelve hours already."

"Maybe they died in space," Major Lyman suggested, "before their ship crashed?"

"The ship had no cloak," Hammond told him. "If it were adrift in space for as long as those men had been dead, we would have seen it earlier. Besides, the F-22 pilots reported that it appeared to be operating under a pilot's control just before the engine exploded."

There was a moment of uneasy silence in the stargate control room, where they all stood. Janet glanced out the window and was pleased to see Sergeant Siler's team were packing up their equipment and moving it off the stargate platform.

"This whole situation just doesn't sound right," Hammond said. "Which is why I postponed my call to the Asgard and ordered Lieutenants Hailey and Satterfield to check out the teltac ship one last time."

"You suspect it's a set up," Janet said with an approving nod.

"That's what Hailey and Satterfield should either confirm or deny," Hammond said. He glanced up and smiled. "And, speak of the devil…."

Janet turned to see the young lieutenants had just ran into the control room, both out of breath.

"S-Sir," Hailey got out, as she snapped off a salute. "It was…as you suspected…sir…."

Janet shook her head. "You two really need to learn how to pace yourselves…."

Hailey paused to take a deep breath, and then resumed in a normal voice: "I would need to do more testing to make sure, sir, but it appears that an explosive device was placed by one of the main thrusters on the teltac ship."

"The teltac was deliberately set up to crash?" Drumlin asked, looking amazed.

"Yes, sir," Hailey replied. "At least that's what it looks like."

Sergeant Siler, who stood with his team in the gate room, had a satisfied look on his face as he regarded the newly repaired iris on the stargate. Then he glanced over his shoulder and called, "Ok, hit it!"

Sergeant Harriman, seated in the control room, hit the pad on the control panel. A broad smile spread across his face when Harriman watched the iris open up, finally freeing the stargate.

He turned in his seat to face General Hammond, who stood behind him, and said, "We're back in business, sir!"

"Dial up P3X-897, and get the MALP ready," Hammond commanded.

"Right away, sir," Harriman said. He began counting down the chevrons as each one locked on the stargate.

"I could do a more detailed analysis of the teltac ship, if you wish more concrete proof, sir," Hailey suggested to Hammond.

"There's no need, Lieutenant. This whole thing already smells of a set up," Hammond said with disgust. "And I'm willing to bet my pension that our new friend Neith is the one behind it. I don't think it's a coincidence that SG-1 and SG-12 happened to run into her forces right about now."

"Chevron seven, locked!" Harriman called out.

The stargate flared momentarily before the event horizon stabilized. Janet saw that the gate room crew had a MALP ready and waiting, as per Hammond's orders. Once the road to P3X-897 was open, the MALP began rolling up the ramp, where it disappeared into the shimmering surface of the worm hole.

"The MALP has arrived at P3X-897," Harriman informed them.

Everyone watched the collection of monitors in the control room, which showed the MALP's POV as it chugged past the DHD. The camera on the MALP then panned over the landscape, which turned out to be devoid of the multitude of Jaffa whom Hailey, Satterfield and Cullman had barely escaped from.

"They're gone!" Satterfield said, sounding surprised.

Hailey pointed at one of the screens. "The mothership's still there, though."

"General," Drumlin said. "Looks like there's no better time than now…."

Hammond nodded. "Very well, Gene. You and your Marines have a go."

"Thank you sir. Bobby, call everybody up; lock and load. We're going in 'hot.'"

"Yes, sir," Lyman said, as he quickly picked up a phone and called SG-3 to arms.

Drumlin glanced at the two junior officers in the gate room. "Lieutenants Hailey and Satterfield, I'd like for the two of you to join us. We could use your expertise."

"Yes, sir," Hailey said readily. After Drumlin left, she playfully punched Satterfield in the arm and quoted a line from Shakespeare: "Once more unto the breach…."

"Oh joy," Satterfield somberly replied, also quoting the Bard.

Janet watched as they left to get ready along with SG-3. She sincerely hoped there would not be any more causalities--yet the feeling of dread she had told her otherwise. Then Janet had an idea.

Hammond tried calling SG-1 through the communication connection on the MALP. When there was no response, he turned to Harriman and asked, "Are we being jammed?"

"No, sir," the sergeant replied. "There's just no response."

"Very well," Hammond muttered, sounding worried. "We should find out soon in any case."

"Sir," Janet spoke up. "This expedition will need a medic. I'd like to volunteer."

From the look of concern on Hammond's face, Janet expected him to deny her request. However, he surprised her by saying, "Very well. If Neith is behind the mass abductions--and I believe she is--we may also need a doctor over there to assess the condition of the abductees. Go get ready."

"Yes, sir." Janet nodded as she left the control room. She pushed all thoughts of the danger she faced out of her mind. Yet there was one fear that Janet could not avoid: 'I just hope Cassie doesn't kill me when I tell her!'

SG-1: SVU

Her Lord Empress Neith examined herself in the full length mirror with approval. She had changed out of the simple white dress she worn into an armored suit, complete with boots and gauntlets. Her raven black hair ran down past her shoulders. The medallion with two arrows crossed over a shield was on the center of her chest. She grasped a golden spear from the wall and left her private quarters.

When she emerged in the great hall, Neith was pleased to see Mo'at had assembled some of their finest warriors, all so they could hunt down the irksome SG-1.

'This will be fine sport,' she thought, with a smile.

All the Jaffa, including Mo'at, knelt before her with their fists crossed in front of their chest.

Neith held the golden spear up high over her head and said, "What do you live for, my darlings?"

"We live for the hunt, my Lord Empress Neith!" all the Jaffa said at once.

"Then the hunt shall begin," she proclaimed. "Forward!"

Yet when she turned around, Neith found herself staring at one of her peltac officers, who nervously bowed before her. "Forgive me, my Lord Empress, but you commanded to be informed when the stargate activated again. The commander of the staff cannon emplacements reports that it has just opened once more."

"And now a battle, as well as a hunt, begins," Neith said, as a slow grin crossed her features. "So much fun, so little time…. Mo'at!"

Mo'at quickly came around and stood before her. "Yes, my Lord Empress?"

She handed him the spear. "You are now the hunt commander. I want O'Neill's head on my trophy wall by nightfall. Make me proud."

Mo'at, accepting the spear, nodded. "It shall be my honor, my Lord Empress!"

"Come, boy," Neith gleefully said to the peltac officer. "Let's go watch as yet more Tauri Stargate troops fall helplessly upon our spears!"

SG-1: SVU

"There are never any back doors in this place!" Olivia said with a frown, as they came to another dead end. "What happens if there's ever a fire?"

"They die," Sam bluntly stated. "The Goa'uld aren't big on taking safety precautions, Liv."

"Why am I not surprised?" Olivia muttered with a shake of her head. They were now trapped inside the laboratory of the Royal Physician with a group of armed Jaffa blocking the only exit. "What else can go wrong?"

The response came in the sound of a crash from the next room.

"I think Nacre's awake," Sam said, with a look of dread. "We should have tied him up."

"Oh, jeez," Olivia muttered, as they both ran back into the examination room. So far, the Jaffa guarding the open doorway to the lab had no idea there was anything amiss, yet it appeared as if Sam and Olivia's luck in that regard had just ran out.

When they arrived in the examination room, they were alarmed to see the Royal Physician now stood woozily on his feet. When he saw the woman who assaulted him, Nacre pointed at Olivia and shouted, "Aiiieee! Someone help me!"

Sam darted over to the doorway of the lab just as a Jaffa warrior appeared there. She punched a button on a wall panel, and the door slid shut on the Jaffa before he could enter.

"Liv, give me the laser saw!" Sam cried.

Olivia stared helplessly at the collection of alien-looking devices on the table. "The what?!"

"The big thing on the very end, to your right…your other right, Liv," Sam patiently directed. "That's it!"

When Olivia handed her the laser saw, Sam turned it on and ran the laser straight over the control panel. There was a bright spark as the circuitry exploded.

"That should prevent them from opening the door on the other side," Sam said.

"For how long?" Olivia asked.

Both women flinched, taking a step back, when a violent pounding could be heard against the door. It sounded as though the entire cadre of Jaffa posted outside were now all at once attempting to gain entrance into the lab.

"Not that long," Sam replied, as she stared wide-eyed at the door, "because they sound real eager to get in…."

"You should surrender yourselves," Nacre told them. "And then perhaps Her Lord Empress Neith shall be merciful in how she kills you."

"Oh, yeah, that's a great option," Olivia said, nodding, her voice heavy with sarcasm. "But you're forgetting something, slappy…."

"What might that be?" Nacre asked smugly.

"You were just about to slice Sam's head open before." Olivia gestured at Sam. "And now she's the one with the laser saw. Care to give the good doctor a taste of his own medicine, Sam?"

Sam smiled broadly as she started up the laser saw. "Love to…."

Nacre's eyes grew comically large as Sam approached him with the laser saw running at full power. "Wait, you can't do this!"

"Sure we can," Olivia cheerfully replied. "Since we're trapped here with you, there's really nothing better to do than to make sure that you die before we do. Unless…."

Sam had Nacre backed up against the wall when he stared at Olivia hopefully. "Unless…what?!"

"Unless you can tell us of another way out of here," Olivia said, leaning in just over Sam's shoulder. Sam still held the laser saw up at a threatening angle, right in front of Narce's throat.

"There's no other way out," Nacre quickly said.

"Oh, come on," Sam said, shaking her head. "You mean there isn't even a vent, or--?"

"No, that door is the only way out of this lab!" Nacre insisted. "The lab was designed this way, with its own enclosed venting system, to prevent the spread of pathogens!"

Sam powered down the laser saw as she shook her head dismally. "Damn it, he's right, Liv."

"You sure?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah, it makes sense to contain the lab like this, just like he says," Sam said with a sigh. "Well, at least I got to finally play 'good cop, bad cop.' How was I?"

"Very good," Olivia commented. "Or, in your case, you were very bad. My partner, Elliot, usually plays that part in the interrogations. And you'd give him a run for his money."

Sam smiled. "Really? Cool!"

Both women turned their attention back to the door when the banging abruptly ceased, only to be replaced by muffled weapons fire.

"Sounds like they're now trying to shoot their way in," Sam said grimly. "Looks like they'll be coming in a lot sooner than we hoped."

Olivia glanced at Narce--then, when she saw Sam was also staring at the hapless Royal Physician, she asked, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Sam?"

"Yeah. I guess I'm still in 'bad cop' mode," Sam said, with a slight smile.

Nacre let out a shrill cry when the women grabbed him from the wall and thrust the man up in front of them as though he were a shield. Sam powered up the laser saw and held the hot plasma blade as close as she dared to his throat.

"They may just zat the three of us," Sam said, as they anxiously waited for the Jaffa to come storming in. "You realize that, right?"

"Yeah, but not before we slit little Nacre's neck," Olivia replied. "That should stop them dead in their tracks. I hope."

The firing stopped. Then the door was pried open by what appeared to be the blade of a knife that was stuck in through the slits.

Olivia, Sam and Nacre all braced themselves--yet instead of an onslaught of Jaffa, they found themselves staring at O'Neill, Daniel and Teal'c, who entered the room and stared back at them with equal surprise. Behind them the squad of Jaffa lay dead in the corridor.

"Hey, kids!" O'Neill said, smiling. "Long time, no see!"

"Sir!" Sam said, relieved. She shut off the laser saw and removed it from Nacre's neck. "It's good to see you!"

"Same here, Carter," O'Neill replied. He did a double take at the outfit that Olivia wore. "Why, Liv…you've gone native on us!"

"Not by my choice," Olivia replied, herself comforted at the sight of him, Teal'c and Daniel. "It's really great to see you guys, again."

Luanda and Liandra entered, and the girl, who was overjoyed to see them, gave Olivia and Sam a hug each.

When Olivia saw Liandra, she smiled at the woman and said, "I see you found your daughter. I'm very happy for you."

"And I am happy you were able to rescue Sam," Liandra replied, with a smile.

"Sam, this is Liandra," Olivia introduced them. "She's Luanda's mom. Liandra, this is Major Samantha Carter. You know her as the golden-haired woman."

"I'm pleased to meet you," Sam said, smiling. Her smile faded as she glanced at O'Neill. "So, sir, what's the plan?"

Before O'Neill could respond, Nacre solemnly said, "You should all just surrender yourselves to Her Lord Empress Ne--"

Both Olivia and Sam whirled around to face Nacre and--at the same time--said: "Shut up!"

Nacre cringed in response, holding his hands up as if to ward off an attack from either or both of the women.

"I take it he's the Royal Physician?" Daniel said, as he handed Sam a zat.

"Yeah, he is. Thanks," Olivia said, when she accepted the zat that Daniel gave her. "And he's an annoying little bastard to boot!"

"He was about to slice my head open with this laser saw--while I was tied down and still awake--before Liv came in and rescued me, sir," Sam said.

"Really?" O'Neill said, as he gave Nacre a hard look. "Is that a fact?"

Now Nacre cringed from the murderous glare at O'Neill gave him.

"O'Neill," Teal'c called from the doorway. "We should leave."

"Way ahead of you, Teal'c," O'Neill replied, as he still glared at Narce. "We'll take the good doctor with us. In case we run into any Jaffa, we'll throw him in front of us to use as a shield."

"This is outrageous!" Narce cried, as O'Neill grabbed him behind the neck and hauled him out of the lab. "You can not do--"

"Or I could kill you right here," O'Neill told Nacre, as he stuck his zat gun right in the Royal Physician's face. "What's it gonna be, Nacre old buddy?"

"Oh no, take me with you, please," Nacre said, holding his hands up while giving O'Neill a pleading look. "I-I could even help you!"

"That's more like it," O'Neill muttered, as they all resumed walking down the corridor.

Teal'c took point, walking slightly ahead of them, while O'Neill and the overly anxious Nacre were just behind him. Luanda and her mother followed, with Daniel, Olivia and Sam bringing up the rear.

"Sir, where are we going?" Sam asked in a whisper.

"Back to the slave quarters," O'Neill responded.

"Still want to free them, huh?" Daniel said. "No argument there. Those poor souls deserve it."

"Wait," Liandra called, just as they came to a junction. She pointed to the corridor to their left. "This way will take us to the slave quarters much faster."

O'Neill nodded his thanks to her as they all turned in that direction.

"We should all attack the Jaffa barracks," Luanda boldly said, as they went down the corridor, "and slit their throats open while they sleep in their bunks!"

"Hush, little one!" Liandra scolded her. "A true warrior knows when to pick and choose her battles."

"Yes, mother," Luanda respectfully said.

"A little parental guidance," O'Neill muttered, smiling with approval. "Just what we needed!"

Teal'c motioned for them to stop while he went ahead to scout out another junction in the corridor.

"When we free the slaves, you think any of them might be inclined to give us a hand?" Olivia asked O'Neill.

"That's exactly my thinking, Liv," he said.

When Teal'c waved the 'all-clear' back at them, they began running down the corridor once more.

"Because, God knows," O'Neill said to Olivia, "we could certainly use all the friends we can get at this point…."

SG-1: SVU

"All right, everybody form up, now!" Marine Sergeant Barman shouted at the troops assembled in the gate room. "Look lively, ladies, look live….uh, pardon me, doctor."

Janet, who stood in line with the Marines of SG-3, flashed him a smile. Dressed as she was in full combat gear, including a helmet, Janet probably would have went unnoticed had it not been for the fact that, at 5'2, she was one of the shortest people in the group. Only Lieutenant Hailey was even shorter than she was--yet she stood off to the side, away from the main group, with Satterfield. Both Lieutenants stared glumly at the glowing event horizon of the stargate, the tension in their faces obvious.

"Um, there's no need for you to stand to with the rest of the maggots, doctor," Sergeant Barman told her. Then a frown crossed his face when Barman realized what he'd just said. "Uh, my apologies, Major, I did not mean to imply that you, yourself, were a maggot…."

"That's quite all right, Sergeant," Janet told him, grinning, as she stepped out of the line of troops. There were eleven in all--twelve, if she counted Sgt. Barman. The usual number of SG-3 members were four, much like all SG teams. Yet Colonel Drumlin had come up with the inspired idea of calling in the reserve--or off-duty--Marines whenever there was a crisis situation, such as now. This effectively tripled SG-3's size, and it appeared as if they would need all the extra members they had. "I'd be honored to be associated with such a fine group of men and women as this."

Janet excused herself and went over to Hailey and Satterfield, who were both staring so intently at the stargate with such dread that it looked as if they were expecting it to attack them.

"Excuse me, Lieutenants," Janet said, patting the holster on her belt which contained her nine millimeter Baretta. "But, should we run into trouble, which end of the gun should I point at the enemy? The end with the little hole in it, right?"

The sense of dread that Hailey and Satterfield had was now replaced by an expression of sheer horror as they both stared wide-eyed at Janet.

"Kidding! I'm just kidding," Janet quickly told them. "I've been through basic training; I know how to handle a gun. Sorry, it's just that the both of you looked so anxious just now. I thought a little joke might help break the tension."

Hailey nodded, as her features relaxed with relief. "Thanks, doctor, I appreciate it."

"Glad you're coming with us," Satterfield said with a smile.

"Thanks," Janet replied. 'I just hope there won't be any need for my services,' she secretly hoped.

Colonel Drumlin glanced up at the control booth. "SG-3 is ready, sir!"

SG-1: SVU

General Hammond stared at the monitor one more time. The image sent from the MALP still showed the area to be clear. Yet he could not help but feel that he was missing something.

"Sir?" Sergeant Harriman prompted. "SG-3 is waiting for the go-ahead."

"So they are," Hammond muttered. "Very well. Gene," he said into the microphone. "Neith has a nasty habit of launching missiles, so don't stay out in the open any longer than you absolutely have to, understand?"

In the gate room, Drumlin nodded his head. "Yes, sir. Understood."

'Well, I guess this is it, then,' Hammond grimly thought. "Very well, SG-3, you have a go, and godspeed."

And yet as Hammond watched as Colonel Drumlin led his team up the ramp towards the stargate, he still couldn't shake the feeling that there was something very dreadfully wrong with this situation.

SG-1: SVU

Neith settled into her command chair in the peltac aboard her mothership. All eyes--both living and electronical--were now focused on the stargate in the valley below them. The stargate was still open, it's event horizon shimmering like a jewel.

Neith double checked the shield generators and was pleased to see that they were all working perfectly. The entire stargate was surrounded by a wall of inpenetrable force shields--the only opening was on top, which allowed the staff cannon gun crews ample room to hit their targets. Neith had ordered them to hold their fire until the entire SG team was on the stargate platform. She wanted all of them to be cut down at the same time.

'Glorious, simply glorious,' Her Lord Empress Neith thought, smiling, as she casually sat back and waited for the masscare to begin.

To be continued...