Alright, another new chapter done, mostly a filler to set the opening for the new season. So, read and enjoy.
Chapter 32
"I am saddened by your mistrust, General Hammond. If you had contacted us sooner, Dr. Jackson's condition might not have ended in tragedy. I'm surprised Jack didn't try to contact us anyway." Harry sighed as he was briefed on the latest first contact made by SG-1. While they had discovered another relatively advanced world, it was also revealed that they were experimenting with a an unstable naquadah isotope and in an accident at the research facility, Daniel Jackson was exposed to lethal doses of radiation.
"Despite my protests, the Pentagon felt that the existence of naquadriah should be kept secret from the Imperium for the moment." Hammond replied. It didn't do them any good, as Harry had arrived a day later to inquire about the incident and pay his respect to Daniel, and the less said about the state of SG-1 the better.
"I have discussed the topic with the Techpriests, and they say that the substance is of little use to us. They did ask for some samples merely for scientific curiosity." Harry shrugged. It felt good to tell his former superiors that he could actually afford to ignore such a discovery now. "What is of a much greater concern to me is the fact that we have a planet full of humans who are considering the use of a WMD without fully understanding the consequences of such an act. Therefore, I will ask you that you introduce me to this world."
"What do you intend to do?" Hammond frowned.
"Teach them the folly of infighting when there are far greater threats in the galaxy." Harry replied calmly.
"Very well. I will send Colonel O'Neill to accompany your delegation." Hammond sighed.
"Excellent. Send him to New Cadia in two hours." Harry smiled.
Upon their arrival they were greeted by the weapons of a dozen guards, and while Jack was obviously a bit nervous about the greeting, Harry simply oozed calmness while his two Celestian bodyguards raised their own far larger weapons at the suddenly nervous soldiers. The situation was made even tenser when Willow floated through the Stargate on her throne, followed by two heavy combat servitors.
"Colonel O'Neill, we were quite clear you were no longer welcome on this world, especially after your influence turned Jonas Quinn into a traitor." The base commander was far from happy to see them, even if he was nervous about Jack's companions.
"While your animosity towards the Colonel is understandable, his presence is necessary to facilitate an introduction. Allow me to introduce myself. Inquisitor Harry Maybourne of the Ordo Xenos of the New Imperium and Fabricator General Willow Rosenberg of the Adeptus Mechanicus. As allies of the SGC we are always interested in meeting new human worlds." Harry began calmly.
"You are allied with them?" The man asked suspiciously while pointing at Jack.
"They are a valuable ally, but hardly our only one. The New Imperium is currently the strongest and most advanced human government in the galaxy." Harry shrugged.
"I will inform First Minister Valis of your arrival. I must ask that Colonel O'Neill departs our world." The man said after a few moments. Harry simply nodded, and soon enough, O'Neill left while Harry and Willow were led to a conference room to await the leader of Kelowna.
"I have to admit that the reports by SG-1 about your experiments have me worried. I really don't think you understand the destructive potential of this weapon." Harry brought the topic on the naquadria issue after a few minutes of small talk and explanations about the Imperium.
"Based on the reports we received, the weapon you consider could lead to casualties in the tens of millions if deployed on a densely inhabited area. Even used in a barren region, the long-term consequences of such an action could cause severe damage to your world. However, with our help, we could perhaps eliminate the reason for its use completely." Willow added.
"What do you propose?" Valis asked.
"We help you broker a treaty with your rival nation. The Imperium is prepared to offer this world a great deal if peace can be achieved. Resources, technology, even settlement rights on other planets under our control." Harry replied.
"The other nations don't know about the Stargate. Revealing it could cause them to attack us." Valis stated.
"We can always bring a ship to this world and park it in low orbit. It is in your best interest to broker a peace treaty." 'Whether you like it or not.' That last part was left unspoken, but Valis understood it quite clearly.
The other two governments of Langara were greatly surprised when they received a request by Kelowna for a joint summit, but that was nothing compared to the revelations the diplomats received when they were introduced to Harry.
After several days of debate, a peace treaty was finally reached. The three nations would unite under a single government, disclose the existence of the Stargate and the Imperium, while the Imperium would provide food and other resources as well as help Langara catch up to the rest of the Imperial worlds. The public disclosure of the situation was met with mixed reactions by the general populace of Langara. While some were relieved that the threat of war was finally lifted from their heads, others saw the Imperium as nothing but conquerors, here to lay claim to their world with empty promises.
When an announcement was made that Harry would appear to welcome Langara as the newest ally of the New Imperium, the Langarans that opposed the alliance saw this as an opportunity, and just as Harry began to speak, large sections of the crowd began to shout against the alliance, and it was quite clear that a full-blown riot was about to break out. With unexpected calmness, Harry simply pressed a small button on the beaded rosary hanging from his right wrist and remained standing on the podium.
The crowd was just about to storm the stage when some of the people noticed something shining in the sky. A few seconds later, more and more people stopped to look as the large square was bathed in golden light. In less than a minute, the entire city had fallen silent as Faith stopped her descent just above the crowd, her golden aura glowing like a sun above the crowd.
"This is not the way." Her soft voice echoed in the silent square, and more than one man bowed their head in shame. "You are confused and angry that you have been lied to, and that is understandable. If a man works, he must know what for. If he fights, he must know what for. If he dies, he must know what for. I am here to reveal to you this purpose. The purpose of not just Langara, but all of humanity."
And so, she told the crowd of the God-Emperor, His works, and of mankind's Divine Purpose. When she finished, hours later, every last man, woman and child in the crowd raised their arms and cheered, along with practically the entire planet considering this event was broadcast on radios all over the world.
"I will never cease to be amazed of the power His Saints possess. They were ready to spill blood, and one speech from you and even Larry would not doubt their piety." Harry grinned once they were back on New Cadia.
"I merely showed them the path. They were the ones who saw it as the true way and embraced it in their hearts." Faith shrugged.
"Another heavily militarized planet will be great asset to our forces. Once they catch up to a higher tech standard and we replace their outdated equipment with Imperial tech, I fully expect to gather several Imperial Guard regiments from that world." Harry added.
"And we are thus one step closer to our ultimate goal." Faith grinned and headed towards the chapel to speak to the priests about her schedule. Her presence always helped sway the undecided and grant succor to the faithful.
Some time after, and in a region well outside Imperial influence, a single Asgard ship stood opposed by a pair of Ha'tak in high orbit of a planet. As Thor watched his shots dissipate on the Goa'uld shields without effect after his warnings went unheeded, he cursed the fact he couldn't arrive in one of the newer or even one of the refit ships as he rushed towards his escape pod, but not before he sent a message.
With the Asgard ship destroyed, the Goa'uld moved to claim their true prize, Thor himself.
Two Jaffa stood next to the ring platform when the seven foot long escape pod appeared. Just as they moved to open it, sections of it began to unfold and shift. In seconds, what was a seven foot long oval pid was now a humanoid robot with Thor safely inside. As his arm mounted autocannons cycled into a ready state, the Jaffa could swear, just before a stream of bullets turned them into mush, that the Asgard had a smirk on his usually impassive face.
When the Sword of Vengeance arrived two hours later, they were greeted by the remains of one Ha'tak and the disabled hulk of the other.
"A most impressive victory, Supreme Commander." Lord Admiral Parsy complimented Thor once he was transported to her ship.
"Thank you, Lord Admiral. It has been far too long since I have personally fought in battle. Our newest combat armor performed far beyond our expectations. Now, would you be so kind as to provide us with a ride home?" Thor asked. He had informed the Imperials that the planet he was protecting had a research outpost of the utmost importance to the Asgard, and the Imperium was quick to come to help them evacuate it.
"By all means. Bring all reactors to full power. Charge the hyperdrive and set course for the Ida galaxy."
Weeks had passed since that day, and things were going well for the Imperium. Its influence has spread on many worlds, with millions ready to fight in its name. More ships were almost ready to join its fleets, and every day, more and more Jaffa renounced the lies of the Goa'uld and embraced the Emperor as their one true god. However, things would soon take a turn for the worse.
In Colorado, Dr. Frasier nearly had a heart attack when her daughter collapsed in the middle of dinner and began screaming. Fortunately, after a few moments, the teenager calmed down, although her face was pale and troubled.
"Something terrible has happened. I need to speak to Xander immediately." Cassandra tried to stand up, but her mother kept her from moving.
"You're not going anywhere, young lady. You just had a seizure and you want to go clear half across the country?" Dr. Frasier's tone was adamant.
"It wasn't a seizure. There was a pulse of energy from the Warp. It was like a flashbang going off in front of your face. If you're worried, you can come with me. I promise the first place we visit will be the medicae." Cassandra gave her mother a pleading stare.
When they arrived in Sunnydale, Cassandra was surprised to find Dawn and Xander already with the medicae. After a quick checkup, she was given a clean bill of health and could finally get to the reason behind her arrival.
"We all felt it. Even some of the more psychically attuned members of our force felt something. Something has occurred in the Warp, and Giles said that his scrying revealed the traces of a spell of incredible power. I'm not sure exactly what has happened tonight, I am certain it can be nothing good." Xander sighed.
"What do we do now?" Cassandra asked nervously.
"We'll have to work harder than ever now. It doesn't matter what it is we're facing. It will not find us unprepared." Xander replied.
In LA, detective Kate Lockley was on her way back to the precinct to end her shift when she received a call for backup from a patrol car. Since she was rather close, she changed her course to the incident scene.
"What's the situation?" She asked the two officers standing at the mouth of a small alley.
"We got a report about strange noise in this alley. When we arrived we found two dead hobos. One had a broken neck, the other had his chest completely caved in. When we moved further, we found a naked girl cowering behind a dumpster. When we approached to help her, she screamed 'Stay away' and tried to punch Martin. He's lucky he dodged it, her punch dented the dumpster like it was made of tinfoil." The cop reported.
"Stay here. If I don't call back in fifteen minutes, get out of here and forget you were ever here." Kate suspected something mystical was afoot here, and if so, she didn't want to see two good cops lose their lives.
"Hi there. Don't worry, I won't hurt y… Buffy?" Kate's words froze in her throat the moment the cowering girl raised her head to look at her. Even though they had never met, Kate knew what the girl looked like. She even managed to attend her funeral.
"What's Buffy?" Kate was broken out of her reverie by a confused voice.
"It's your name. Your full name is Elizabeth Anne Summers, but your friends call you Buffy." Kate replied quickly. It seemed Buffy had lost her memory for some reason.
"Are you my friend?" Buffy asked nervously.
"I am friends with your friends. I can take you to them if you want." Kate hoped Buffy would accept her offer. She knew what she was capable of, and even without memories she didn't think she stood a good chance of surviving if Buffy decided she was a threat, and if by some chance she was unfortunate enough to actually kill Buffy, putting the next bullet in her own head would be the smartest thing she could do.
"Ok." Buffy nodded after a minute and stood up. This revealed that she was clutching a metal box emblazoned with the Imperial Aquila.
"What's that you have there?" Kate asked as Buffy pressed the box into her chest, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"It's for the red Martian." She said firmly.
"Alright. Here, you can have my coat." Kate took off her jacket and handed it to her. Buffy took it and put it on but Kate noticed she made sure she kept her distance from her and never let go of the box.
"Alright, stand back and give her some space. She's doesn't remember anything so she was probably just confused and scared. Fortunately, I recognized her. She was reported missing over two months ago. She has some friends here in LA that will be real glad to see her alive and well." Kate informed the two cops.
"What should we say we found, ma'am?" One of them asked.
"Nothing. The girl has some very powerful enemies. People that can make you disappear so thoroughly even your own mother will deny she ever heard of you, so I'd advise you to go home and forget all about this." The officers were confused, but since she was their superior, decided it was for the best if they obeyed.
Kate's mind was working overtime, trying to make sense of the situation. She had no idea what had happened to Buffy or why she was here, but she knew that her return would cause a shitstorm of epic proportions.
"Please stay here and I'll go get your friends." Kate left Buffy in the lobby of the hotel that Angel Investigations used as their base and went to find Cordelia and the others.
"This better be important, Kate. I don't want to interrupt…" Cordelia's complaining ceased the moment she saw Buffy, sitting nervously in one of the chairs in the lobby, still covered only by Kate's coat.
"Buffy, you're back." She whispered as tears welled in her eyes. Without any more words, she rushed forward and embraced her friend in a tight hug. The hug lasted only a few seconds before Cordelia realized Buffy was completely naked beneath the coat.
"Come on, you need some new clothes. I feel so dirty." Cordelia shook her head and dragged Buffy towards her room. "Wesley, contact Sunnydale and tell Xander to bring Dawn and Willow here."
Ten minutes later, the two girls returned to the lobby only for Buffy to be impacted by a brown-haired missile.
Buffy looked down at the girl that was currently latched like a tick on her chest and was doing a very good job of soaking her shirt through, her mind straining to figure out just who she was.
"I know you, but I don't know why." Buffy finally spoke after a minute.
"I'm your sister Dawn. You don't remember me?" Dawn's voice broke when she heard her sister say that. Xander's revelation about her origin troubled her greatly, and now she feared that whatever spell gave Buffy the memories of her sister was now broken.
"I can't remember a thing. But you are important to me. I can feel it." Buffy smiled and put her arm around Dawn.
"We still need to verify she really is Buffy." Willow warned the group. "I brought a device that can help us determine it. All I need is a blood sample."
"Are you the red Martian?" Buffy noticed Willow's red hair and walked up to her.
"I guess I can be called that as well." Willow nodded. Happily, Buffy handed her the metal box she was holding. Willow took it and handed it to Xander to hold while she tested Buffy. After a tense fifteen minute wait, Willow confirmed that she was indeed genetically identical to the DNA data they had in their database. This helped the crowd to relax, and Xander offered to help her investigate the condition of her mind while Willow began to tinker with the box Buffy gave her. The lock was a simple AdMech code, and inside it, all she found was a data storage device and three bio sample containers.
"By the Omnissiah." She gasped when she accessed the data in the device.
"What is it?" Xander turned to her.
"This device contains data for a number of production patterns that will be useful to us, but more important is what's inside these." Willow replied and opened the vial, extracting a glass tube from the metal casing.
"That's a gene-seed." Xander exclaimed.
"To be exact, it is a gene-seed extracted directly from Leman Russ." Willow's words shocked them into silence.
"And the others?" Xander whispered.
"Sanguinius and Guilliman." Willow said. "There is also an implantation method that works a lot faster and with a ninety-five percent for success, but only when used on candidates with specific traits. On others, we'll have to use the standard method. There's also a note saying that the flaws in Sanguinius's sample have been corrected."
"You know what this means, don't you? It means we're still not ready." Xander cursed. 'Haven't we prepared enough, my Emperor?'
"I will make preparations for the production of armor and equipment and we'll organize genetic testing across the Imperium to identify candidates for the improved process. What is Buffy's condition?" Willow asked.
"As far as I can tell, her memories are not lost, she merely cannot access them. I can help her a little, but her recovery will take time. It could be months before they're back." Xander sighed. He hated to see his usually confident friend so weak and confused.
"In that case, we should get back to Sunnydale. I'm sure Buffy would like to get some rest. We can all catch up once she starts to remember us." Willow suggested, and with a yawn, Buffy confirmed it, so with a quick goodbye, the quartet left in a flash of light.
The news of Buffy's return spread throughout the New Imperium like wildfire and further galvanized its inhabitants, causing celebrations on many worlds while the priests and missionaries milked this new miracle for all it was worth.
"How goes the testing for the new Space Marines?" Harry asked Novak. As Magos Biologis, she was put in charge of testing the entire population of the New Imperium, a daunting task considering there were millions of people now living under its banner.
"Slow. There are too many people to test and too little testers to do it. A further complication is the fact we're actually doing two tests. The first is the standard test the Space Marines use, and the second is the one for the new method." Novak replied.
"How many have you identified so far?" Harry nodded in sympathy for the Magos.
"Close to a hundred, and at the current rate, we expect to locate at least a thousand candidates amongst the human and Jaffa population." Novak explained.
"The Jaffa are viable subjects as well?" Harry was surprised by that bit of news.
"Yes, but only young Jaffa who have yet to carry a symbiote. And my final headache are the Cimmerians. They insist that they alone be given the honor of joining the Sons of Russ." Novak sighed.
"Can they provide enough candidates?" Harry asked.
"Well, we have identified around thirty candidates for the new method and around thirty for the old one, and we're still barely half-way through the planet's population." Novak replied.
"In that case, grant their request, but I want them to understand that all mutants that the process creates will be their responsibility to destroy. We'll direct the candidates from the other worlds in the other two chapters." Harry ordered and Novak nodded and stood up. "I should get back to work, then."
. While the testing was proceeding, Willow was busy establishing production sites for their equipment and training, while Xander was busy writing copies of the Codex Astartes as well as helping the Techpriests determine the best ways to perform the procedures since they were something the Chapters did themselves under the oversight of their Apothecaries and Tech-Marines.
Taking a quick break, Willow also made a visit to Pylea, now tied to Earth with a permanent portal to talk with Magos Lee.
"What do you think, Bill?" Willow asked the cyborg after handing him a data crystal.
"It will take time, and I'll need some special equipment. We'll have to push the demon scum harder in the mines if we want to meet our quotas and this project, but they breed fast enough for our needs and the rapid maturation tanks we've constructed work rather well with their physiology, even if it does shorten their lifespan considerably. And with the explosive implants they all have, we can exterminate them all if they try to rebel." Bill replied.
"I'll get you the equipment and the more complex parts in time. Just make sure you complete the project. And Bill, I want no word of this project leaving Pylea." Willow warned him.
"Saving it for a surprise, huh? Don't worry, ma'am. No one will know about it until it's complete." Bill assured her.
AN And Buffy is back in action, with some new toys for the Imperium as well. Of course, her return will not be without consequences, ones that will be much more severe then what they were in canon.
On another note, here's a short snip about an idea that's been stuck in my head for over two months, insisting I write it.
Harry stood before a great mass of people as well as floating camera drones broadcasting his words to many others. He smiled a bit under his immaculately trimmed beard while the lights from the camera drones brought the very faint lightning bolt shaped scar that was prominent on his forehead in sharper focus.
"My children, hear me. I know you are scared, for yourselves and for your brothers and sisters, for your families and your children. But remember, when the GDA sought to crush us, we stood firm and fought them back. When the Turian Hierarchy invaded Shanxi, it was we who fought them back. When the Batarians launched the Skyllian Blitz, it was we who fought them back and it was we who sacked Adek and freed those they had kidnapped." Here, he paused as the crowd erupted in cheer. "When the whole galaxy turned their backs to the Quarians, we stood by their side, and together as brothers and sisters we fought the geth and retook Rannoch. And now, when the Reapers are finally here, while the SDA and the Citadel Council cower in fear, we will show these soulless machines that the Brotherhood of Nod cannot and will not be defeated. Remember, one vision, one purpose."
"Peace through power! Peace through power! Peace through power! Peace through power!" The crowd cheered in frenzy when he finished.