Another chapter done, and I hope you will like it. Developing the long-term plot for this fic is a difficult process, and I still have a lot to go through. On another topic, one of the biggest problems I faced was just how much power plasma generators generate. My research in the topic was inconclusive, so for my fic at least, depending on size, plasma generators provide from 50% to 500% of a ZPM.
Chapter 9
"Home at last. Right this way, and stay close to me. The factory defenses don't like unescorted visitors." Willow led her new acolytes towards the factory annex.
"How do the defenses know we're not intruders?" Dr. Lee asked curiously.
"Every member of our group has a special broadcaster that allows them to enter the factory perimeter unharmed. Once here, there are also cameras and DNA scanners to ensure no intruders are attempting to breach the facility. The grounds are also consecrated, of course." Willow replied.
"Is everyone here?" Willow was a bit surprised when everyone from their group had gathered to greet the new people.
"We felt it best to introduce them to the whole group." Xander grinned.
"Alright, then I guess introductions are in order. This is Alexander Harris, Grey Knights Terminator-Chaplain. Next is Elizabeth Summers, Ordo Malleus Inquisitor. Daniel Osbourne, Techpriest, Amy Maddison and Jenny Callendar are our sanctioned witches. Rupert Giles is Buffy and Faith's Watcher. Faith Lehane is the third Vampire Slayer in our group along with Buffy and Kendra." Willow began.
"She is also the newest Battle Sister novice. In a few months, it might be a good idea to have her begin training with power armor." Xander grinned. Faith had really begun to embrace the Imperial Cult, as it helped her regain her purpose in life.
"And last but not least, Cordelia Chase, our Commissar-in-training. I'll introduce you to Kendra once we go into the factory. Now, Drs. Bill Lee, Lindsey Novak, Jay Felger and Chloe Angstrom." Willow concluded the introductions.
"Oz, would you mind taking them to their quarters?" Willow turned to her second. Oz just nodded, and the quartet followed him out of the room.
"So, did I miss anything?" Willow asked curiously.
"The others will fill you in. I'd rather not hear about the event again." Buffy spoke first.
"What happened?" Willow was really curious now.
"Well, first, we found out who the Big Bad is in this town. Turns out the Mayor is not just another corrupt politician." Xander sighed.
"Did you kill him?"
"No. Dealing with demons is while difficult, rarely complicated. But sorcerers are another matter altogether. We need to determine what he intends to do before we can move against him. It may be possible that killing him will unleash all manner of trouble for us." Xander sighed.
"Alright, so what's this event Buffy mentioned?" Willow asked again, and noticed a very mixed reaction from the group. While some giggled, Giles and Ms. Calendar blushed.
"Well, after you left, Snyder had us sell candy bars to raise money for the school's marching band. Only it turned out that the candy was enchanted to make any adult that ate it to act like a teenager." Amy continued.
"It was a downright mess, and it gave us a lot of trouble trying to figure out just what the hell was going on. Turns out the Mayor hired our old friend Ethan to cook up the spell so he could gather some babies to sacrifice to a demon." Xander said with a growl.
"Still, we managed to figure it out, saved the babies, barbequed the demon and cost the Mayor some henchmen. Sadly, Ethan managed to get away, but Buffy wasn't very happy with him so he lost an arm while he was running away." Xander concluded.
"But what is this event Buffy didn't want to listen about?" Willow was almost burning up with curiosity.
"Oh, right. Well, when we noticed the trouble, she went to Giles' place to discuss it with him. However, when she got there, she found these two," Xander pointed to the two sheepish looking adults in the room "in bed with Buffy's mother."
Willow's eyes nearly fell out of her head and her mouth was so wide open it was a wonder her jaw didn't fall off.
"I'll be in the factory." She managed to stammer out after a few minutes.
"Welcome to our little Factory-Cathedral." Willow said proudly as she led her new adepts into the factory. All of them wore white robes, and had breather masks on their faces, as this level had a lot of toxic fumes due to the smelters and the chemicals used to cool the metals.
"This level is the smelting area. This is where we produce the alloys we use in construction, as well as cast all parts we need. For now, this is where you will work. You will also spend time learning all the proper rites and procedures expected from a member of the Adeptus Mechanicus. I do not expect perfect devotion, but you will need to demonstrate you have mastered the most important topics. Once you have passed this stage, you will move on to the sub-level into the secondary manufactorum." Willow pointed to the massive cargo elevator in the middle of the factory.
"There you will monitor the final assembly of all equipment, and also learn how to properly use a mind-impulse unit. Only when you have mastered this skill will you be allowed to serve into the primary manufactorum." Willow instructed them.
"Will we be learning about Imperial technology as well?" Dr. Lee asked.
"All Mechanicus data will be at your disposal. A word of warning, though. Do not attempt to provide this data to others without my express approval. If you do so, even unwittingly, you will be considered a traitor at worst and a spy at best. Either way, the punishment is execution." The masks hid their reaction to Willow's warning, but she could guess that they took her very seriously.
"The final section of the factory is the raw material storage facility. As you can see, all materials are clearly labeled and organized. Now, this is the most important part. Before you approve anything for use in the factory, you must first check its manifest and ensure that it has been stamped with the Aquila Imperialis. This means that the material has been consecrated by Xander, and can be used for manufacturing. Under no circumstances are you to use unsanctified materials. Faith is our only shield against the demonic hordes that seek to destroy us, and we cannot allow their taint to infect our work lest it corrupt and destroy all that we strive to protect." Willow warned them.
"You're getting pretty good with that sword." Buffy grinned as Faith cut a vampire in two halves. The blessed blade caused the two halves to ignite, and the remains turned to ash in seconds.
"You and Xander are good teachers." Faith shrugged as she turned off the sword and holstered it in the sheath on her back.
"That was indeed adequate work." Both women turned around to see a woman in a business suit standing behind them.
"And you are?" Buffy frowned.
"Mrs. Gwendolyn Post. Ms. Lehane's new Watcher." The woman's tone practically oozed arrogance, and Buffy found she disliked it a great deal. Still, she had a lot of memories of dealing with much worse people in the Imperium, so she held her tongue in check.
"Very well. Follow us. I'm sure Giles will want to talk with you." Buffy shrugged.
Giles was quite surprised when he was told a new Watcher had arrived in town, especially without being informed beforehand.
"Call Travers. I thought I told him that the Watchers were not to take action in this town without my approval." Buffy reminded Giles.
"That won't be necessary. I was not due to arrive for a few more days. I am sure you will be informed properly." Mrs. Post cut in.
"I still want to talk with Travers. Sending another Watcher here is a very unsubtle hint, and I won't stand for it." Buffy, like any Inquisitor, did not take attacks on her authority lightly.
"What do you want this time, Summers?" Quentin Travers sounded quite annoyed. He disliked Buffy for her headstrong and willful attitude, which was extremely bad even before she gained the memories and skills of an Inquisitor.
"I am curious why the Council has sent a second Watcher to Sunnydale without asking us if such a person was necessary, or even wanted in the first place?" Buffy's tone was calm like a simmering volcano.
"We did no such thing. Giles is doing well enough on his own." Travers was confused.
"I have a Gwendolyn Post here claiming that the Council sent her as Faith's new Watcher." Buffy replied.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Post was looking around carefully for some way to escape without drawing attention. However, from the way both Giles and Faith were both watching her that would be quite difficult. And the woman didn't like the way Faith kept fingering her chainsword.
"Well, I'm glad we cleared that up. I apologize for bothering you, Mr. Travers. Have a nice day." Buffy hung up the phone.
"So, is she on the level?" Faith asked.
"No." With that, Buffy drew a dagger and threw it at the woman, hitting her right through the heart. She would have used her bolt pistol, but refrained from it since they were in the library.
"Travers said they kicked her out years ago. I guess they conveniently forgot to tell most people this fact." Buffy sighed. "I'll take her out. Faith, get a mop."
That was one of the reasons she disliked killing humans. Vampires at least had the common courtesy to turn to dust when you killed them.
Meanwhile, the work in the factory was progressing quite well. With four more people to oversee the smelters, they could produce a lot more metals, and thanks to the six naquadah generators that had recently arrived, the constructor's usefulness increased a great deal.
"I wish we could repair this thing. The ability to produce assembled components will aid us a great deal." Oz commented as he watched the machine create another roll of elektro-fibre, only this time, there was much more than usual.
"We simply don't have the knowledge. Using the machine is one thing, we can simply communicate with it using lingua-technis, but to read the schematics contained within the constructor, we need to understand the language of its creators." Willow replied.
"Why don't we ask the SGC for help? I believe Dr. Jackson to be quite the linguist." Oz suggested.
"Perhaps we will ask them one day, but not just yet. Buffy insisted we reveal as little as possible until they have proven they can be trusted." Willow sighed and turned back to the control interface to continue her work.
"Something bothering you, Dr?" Xander walked into the kitchen to find Dr. Lee staring solemnly at a cup of tea.
"Call me Bill. It's nothing, really. I just need time to adjust." The man sighed.
"Yes, I daresay what you've learned by coming here must weigh heavily on your mind." Xander took a seat and poured himself some tea as well.
"It took a while to get used to the fact that we could travel to other worlds and that aliens were real, and now I learn that there are even more things out to get our kind. Why is this planet so bloody important?"
"I cannot say. Perhaps it's just pure chance that this world is such as it is. That is something only the God-Emperor could answer, or perhaps, he'd be just as stumped as we are." Xander grinned. "The point is, it doesn't matter why, it's what we do about it is what counts."
"You make one hell of a preacher, Xander, you know that?" Bill grinned.
"I've been told that a few times. If you ever need to talk, you can always come to me." Xander grinned back.
"I also noticed your armor is a bit different than usual. Why's that?" Bill asked.
"Well, Willow felt that my armor should reflect my dual position in our group, so that's why the helmet is designed as a Chaplain helmet. It's a bit unusual, but nothing more than what we usually face." Xander shrugged.
The SGC quickly got a return of their investment of the naquadah reactors in the form of a shipment of over a dozen sets of armor, which were quickly distributed among the combat teams.
It was also a small surprise when they noticed that one of the suits was different, and there was also a smaller box with a letter to General Hammond taped to it.
As the general read the letter, O'Neill opened the box to reveal a folded flag and four medal boxes.
"What is this all about, sir?" The Colonel turned to his superior.
"Our friends in Sunnydale felt they should show their appreciation for our work. The special suit of armor is meant for you, Jack. To quote the letter, 'it would be an insult to Colonel O'Neill's rank and position to use anything less than full carapace armor.'" Hammond grinned.
"What about this stuff?" O'Neill nodded towards the box before him.
"Firstly, the medals are for SG-1. 'For exemplary performance in the line of duty and the protection of Holy Terra from alien invaders SG-1 is awarded the Star of Terra.'" Hammond read from the letter again as O'Neill and his team opened the medal boxes.
The medals were a simple four pointed gold star around a circle in which stood the symbol of Terra, a black circle around a cross.
"What about the flag?" O'Neill unfurled it, revealing a light tan cloth framed by gold. In the center was drawn a sword pointing down and splitting a serpent in two halves. On the top was written "1st Terran Regiment," and below the symbol was written "Serpentslayers."
"They have also offered the SGC an honorary commission as an Imperial Guard regiment. I guess we really impressed them." Hammond grinned.
"What should we do with it, sir?" O'Neill asked.
"Hang it in the briefing room. Our allies have honored us, and we should respond properly." Hammond replied.
"You're saying we don't need to develop new technology?" Hammond looked at Major Carter curiously.
"That's not what I said, General. I said we don't need to spend resources on developing new military technology. Our allies in Sunnydale already have the knowledge on weaponry superior to anything we've encountered so far, with the possible exception of the Asgard. And unlike anything we could develop, their weapons have been field tested for thousands of years. And it's not just weapons, they have the knowledge to build fighters and even spaceships, they just lack the facilities to do so. But, from what I've been told, they are constantly expanding their facility. In a few years, we would have access to space superiority fighters better than anything we could cobble together. That's why I propose we divert our resources in aiding the Sunnydale group and into other avenues of research like the archeology department." Carter concluded.
The General did not say anything for now as he observed the people occupying the briefing room at the moment. There were few military officers present, as this was a meeting with the scholars of the SGC, which, depending on the topic could end up being more critical than any military discussion, and as such had his undivided attention..
"I still find some of the weapons the Imperium uses as too barbaric. It might leave the wrong impression in some people." Hammond commented.
"Well sir, when you take into consideration what sort of opponents the Imperium has had to face, such weaponry is actually necessary. Enemies that make the Goa'uld look like saints. I don't like it any more than you do, but their use may make the Goa'uld think twice about fighting our teams." Carter responded.
"Alright major, how do you propose we aid our friends in California?" Hammond sighed after a few moments.
"We've already started by producing the servitors that they gave us the designs for, and we can also provide more raw materials and funding. In the future, we may be able to do more, but for now, that's it." Carter replied.
"Very well. I will discuss your proposals with my superiors. Dismissed." Hammond concluded the meeting.
Their newest allies had caused him a lot of trouble, but at the same time, the benefits were obvious to even the SGC's most extreme critics. The knowledge of a group possessing advanced technology in the US was met with a lot of debate on just what to do with them. Still, they managed to silence a lot of people by providing the SGC with weapons and armor that they felt would certainly turn things around on the Goa'uld.
The sole issue for the general was the fact that all the weapons and armor were heavily adorned with Imperial iconography. The Aquila and the winged skull featured prominently on everything they were given. Hammond had discussed the matter with them several times, but his talks bore no fruit. He was told, time and again that the symbols were there for a reason, and they would stay where they were.
Another topic on his mind were the prayers they were taught for the use of Imperial technology. Much to the confusion of his men, the prayers actually had an effect. While he was a religious man, he found the zealotry of their latest allies a bit unsettling. He made a note to discuss his worries with them when he had the chance.