OK. Before you frickin' nail me to a wall. Let me first say that I am sorry for it being so damn long of a wait. But I had a reason kinda. All data on this story got erased from the flash drive I had it stored on. Thank god I had printed it off to let somebody read it that refused to read it on-line. So as of this point in time I am having to re-type everything for this story.
On another note I am looking for a beta/Co-writer for the sequel to How it all Started. I have the base idea for it done, but could use some advice.
Chapter 5: Rescue Plans
On a higher plane of existence, a few beings appear to be sitting around a table, facing each other, speaking of recent events. Mainly, the attack on their people, which resulted of the lost of almost everyone, but the talks were mostly about their plans.
Ever since the attack, and loss of the original council, a new group had taken their place with a man named Juventas as the new High Councilor. Juventas had called together a small group of some of the other ascended to discuss the problem at hand.
"Do we know how much longer we have?" One asked. Her name was Selene. She had short brown hair, and wearing a long white dress.
Another shrugged. His name was Helios, and he had brown hair, wearing an off-white jacket and slacks. "We can't be too sure, but we may not have much time. We may have to act now!"
"We have to be patience, Helios." A third one, her name was Minerva, said. She wore a short white dress and a long white coat, with blond hair and was known for her wisdom. "If we act before everything is ready, something will go wrong."
"But is everything ready?" The woman named Hera asked. She was dressed in a short white dress, and a long white coat, with black hair.
"Almost, but not quite." Helios admitted.
"I understand why we're doing this, but isn't there another way?" Her name was Luna. She was dressed in a short white dress with long blonde curly hair.
"No, there isn't." The man that seemed to be the leader of the small group, named Thanatos, said. His wardrobe consisted of white slacks, a shirt and a long white coat.
"How is the plan going so far?" Selene asked.
"The one called Jack O'Neill has been warned, but it was too late." Thanatos frowned. "However, we should move onto the next phase of the plan."
Just as Thanatos finished, they felt the presence of someone entering into the room. Everyone turned towards the entrance, and saw a woman with long brown hair, and a white dress. "How is everything going?" She inquired.
"Everything isn't going according to plan, but we still might be able to succeed." Luna replied. "We're currently still unsure of what he is planning, but we know it involves Daniel Jackson."
The woman, commonly known as Ganos Lal thought back to her last encounter with Daniel. It wasn't long ago. "Then what do you intend to do?" Ganos Lal inquired with somewhat vague interest.
Luna smiled. "We have decided that one of us must return to human form," she revealed.
"But we haven't decided of whose it going to be." Minerva responded.
Minerva's statement was answered almost immediately. "Me." Everyone turned and watched as Caelus entered the room, still dressed in the same manner when he visited O'Neill. "I will go."
"Are you sure?" Helios asked.
"Yes. I haven't been so sure, since I came here." Caelus replied.
Everyone knew that Caelus wanted to go more than stopping the one who attacked them. He didn't like the non-interference rule, but they suspected that there was more to it than that. He was more out of place then many others that had ascended like himself, like Daniel Jackson, Oma Desala, and even Moros, who was also known as Merlin. None of them was in favor of the rule of complete non-interference.
Caelus was believed to be the worst. He interfered with the lower plains many more times than any of the others, preventing the deaths of many, among many other things. He was punished for what he did, but managed to keep from being discovered from the most serious times he interfered.
"Perhaps we should..." Luna tired to suggest something but was cut off by Caelus.
"No. I have made my decision. I will go." Caelus said making it perfectly clear that he was going, and no one else was going to change his mind.
Hera nodded in agreement with Caelus' decision. They knew Caelus enough and that nothing was going to change his mind. "Then it's agreed. Go to Stargate Command, and do whatever you can." Hera said.
"When you go back, we can't help you ascend, again." Hera informed Caelus. "You'll be on your own."
"So, if I die before the plan is completed, we're doomed?" Caelus casually asked.
"Indeed. The fate of everything rests in your hands, Caelus." Selene said.
Caelus stood there for about a few seconds, a little unease. "No pressure, huh?" Caelus shrugged. "One last thing, if you don't mind my asking. Why don't we just go and stop him? Forget the rules!"
"Because it goes against our belief," Thanatos said as if he was stating the obvious. "Even though the Ori are gone. If we were to interfere, then we would be no better than them."
Caelus dropped his head. "You know, I'll never understand these rules, or why any of you don't do anything for that matter," Caelus sounded exasperated. "But don't worry, I've got everything covered." Caelus started to glow a bright light, then faded away.
Stargate Command
It was silent in all of Stargate Command until the Stargate became active. "Incoming wormhole." Walter announced.
General Landry came down the stairs from his office and into the Control Room. "What have we got, chief?" General Landry asked.
A second later, an IDC transmission code came through, identifying an SG team was coming back. "Receiving IDC transmission, sir. It's SG-3." Walter replied.
"Open the Iris." General Landry ordered.
Walter placed his hand on a hand scanner, and the Iris opened. Moments later, SG-3 came through the event horizon. As soon as they cleared the ramp, the Gate shut down. General Landry had already left the Control Room, and entered the Gate Room.
"Colonel Reynolds, report. Please tell me you have good news." General Landry wanted to hear good news. Ever since the disappearance of SG-1 and Kim's team, they had nothing but bad news, and it kept coming like a flood of water during a storm on an island.
The Colonel shook his head. He had none to give. "We didn't find them, sir. There wasn't a sign of a struggle or a fight. If they were taken, then they would have been taken by surprise. Right now, they could be anywhere." Then Colonel Reynolds paused for a brief moment. "But that's not all."
The General didn't like the sound of that. "What else was wrong?" General Landry wasn't sure how much worse it could get.
"According to the MALP that was sent earlier, there was a settlement, quite a ways from the Stargate. When we got there, it was ruins." Colonel Reynolds reported.
That was the report General Landry didn't want. The best thing he could come up with is that Ba'al was up to something, and wanted SG-1, manipulating the MALP's sensors, but he wasn't sure what Ba'al would want.
"Hank." Someone called General Landry from behind. The General turned to O'Neill standing just inside the Gate Room. "It took a while, but the tech geeks have managed to track them through the Locator chips." O'Neill said.
'Finally, some good news.' General Landry thought. "Where are they?"
"That's kinda the problem." O'Neill replied.
Several minutes later, O'Neill, General Landry and SG-3 was sitting around a conference table in the Briefing Room with a scientist wearing a white lab coat, a balding head, but with some brown hair and a beard, wearing glasses, and standing at the head of the table, reading out of a folder of the planet in question.
"According to reports from the Tok'ra, it's a stronghold and the gate is impenetrable," the scientist known as Dr. Bill Lee informed. "We don't have any way of bypassing the defenses."
"And with the Odyssey undergoing repairs, we don't have a way to rescue them." General Landry said. "We have to wait until repairs are finished."
"It's more complicated than that, sir." Dr. Lee said with haste. "Among the reports that the Tok'ra provided, the planet also has a powerful sensor array, and it's also reported that it's been modified to track the unique energy signature from the core that the Asgard provided us. There is a chance that we could rescue them, but not until the ship is destroyed."
"Then how do we get there?" General Landry asked.
"The sensors would detect the unique energy signature from the Asgard core," Dr. Lee started again. "But the Jumper doesn't have the same energy signature, and we've modified it enough that it should go undetected."
"I think the operative word here is 'should', Doctor." General Landry said. "Can you guarantee me that we can get to this planet without being detected?"
"Well, sir... I'm not sure." The scientist admitted. "But there is at least less than ten percent chance of being undetected."
Things aren't as good as the General had hoped, but it was a start. "Now, where did they take them?"
Dr. Lee turned to the screen on the far wall, and pressed a button on the remote in his hand. On the screen, stars and planets started appearing, and soon the map of the entire galaxy was complete. One of the planets was glowing, showing a gate address.
"This is it." Dr. Lee pointed to the planet on the map, which was highlighted. "P4J-386, however the gate is heavily guarded, with some kind of shield. We should gate to the closest planet, here." Dr. Lee presses another button, and the closest planet was highlighted on map. "P4J-390, then it should only be a quick hyperspace jump."
"Then I better get going." O'Neill stood and started towards the door.
"Don't worry, sir. SG-3 has your back." Colonel Reynolds stood, along with the rest of his team.
O'Neill didn't turn around, or even stop but just kept going. "We leave in twenty minutes, Reynolds. Gear up."
General Landry shook his head. "You heard the man. You have a go." The General and commander of the SGC went to his office.
Twenty minutes later, the Jumper lowered in to the Gate Room. The Stargate already activated, with P4J-390 as their destination. O'Neill had made sure that enough ammo and C-4 was packed up for a small army, and he planned on using it on anyone that got in his way.
"All set?" O'Neill asked Colonel Reynolds in the seat next to him.
"Yes Sir!" The Colonel replied.
O'Neill sighed, and then took a deep breath. "Alright."
O'Neill had uncertainties about this mission. Especially of what lay ahead and who was behind the ambush, but most of all, why they wanted his friend. With a grim look on his face, O'Neill flew the Jumper into the event horizon, unsure of what was going to happen, and of the surprises they would definitely encounter.