A/N: Thanks for reading the previous chapter and for the reviews. This chapter is based off of the episode Icon (SG1: S08xE05) and Seeing Red (BtVS: S06xE19). Please read and review. Enjoy.
Willow's Apartment, That night, 2100 hours
"You have the keys right?" asked Willow as she stood behind Faith
"Yea" she replied as she put the key into the hole and turned it, unlocking the door.
"Hey Kiddo!" said Faith as she called for Dawn while she walked into the apartment followed by Willow, who had closed the door behind her.
"Looks like she went out" said Willow.
"Yeah" said Faith, "maybe she did"
Willow then went to sit on the newly fixed couch with Faith sitting right next to her.
"Are you really alright Red?" asked Faith as she placed her head on Willow's shoulder.
"Yea" replied Willow as she in turn lay her head on top of Faith's, "I'm just tired, I think that stunt took a lot out of me"
"Can't believe you did it though" said Faith, "to throw a shield around yourself to defend against the stray blasts, and then to project your telepathy through the wormhole to the other side, to look through Sam's eyes to see where everyone was located, then to erect another telekinetic shield around us so that we can come home relatively unharmed and to telekinetically block the rest of the stray blasts until Big-G and the others could get the shield and the iris closed"
"I can't believe I did it either" said Willow
"Wanna have something to eat?" asked Faith
"Nah" said Willow as she kissed the top of Faith's head, "I just want to take a nice hot shower and then go sleep"
Willow then slowly got up and walked towards the shower. She walked for a while before she stopped, turned around and walked back to the living room.
"Hey" said Willow as Faith turned to look at her, "Come on, I'm waiting on you"
Faith grinned as she got up, put her arm around Willow's shoulder and walked into the shower together.
"Hey what do you know?" said Willow thirty minutes later as they left the shower and headed back to Willow's room, "looks like Dawn's back"
"You should really talk to her" whispered Faith
"I know" said Willow as she put on some pyjamas.
"Since when do you wear PJ's with rocket pictures on them?" said Faith as she tried her best not to laugh.
"Yeah, and this is coming from someone who just wears a tank top and shorts to bed?" said Willow with a smirk.
"Hey" said Faith as she stepped up to Willow and give her a peck on the cheek, "I haven't heard you complain yet, just so you know."
"True" said Willow as she turned to face Dawn's door.
"Go" said Faith, "talk to her"
"You sure?" asked Willow.
"Yeah" said Faith.
"Alright then" said Willow as she walked over to Dawn's room and knocked in the door.
"Dawnie?" said Willow as she knocked on Dawn's door softly.
"Willow?" said Dawn as she opened the door.
"Hi" said Willow as she waved nervously at Dawn.
"What happened to you the other day?" asked Dawn.
"Umm…. Can I come in?" asked Willow, "we need to talk"
"Yeah… ok…." Said Dawn as she opened her door fully to let Willow in.
"You know I was hurt really badly in that lab accident" said Willow as Dawn nodded her head, "Well I must have had some residual trauma, so they sent me overseas to a specialist to see what was wrong with me"
"Yeah" said Dawn, "that Colonel Carter person told me about it after I came back and found you were gone"
"Willow" continued Dawn as she sat down on her bed, "I know you asked for my forgiveness"
"I know" said Willow as she sat down next to her on the bed.
"I can't" said Dawn softly, "I'm sorry but I simply can't let it go just like that"
"I know" replied Willow, "it was foolish of me to think that you would forgive me so soon after what happened"
"The councillor's been trying to get me to ask you to come to our sessions" said Dawn.
"Do you want me to come?" asked Willow.
"I don't know" replied Dawn.
"If you want me to come" said Willow, "you just have to ask"
"Thank you" said Dawn softly.
"How's Buffy doing?" asked Willow although she knew that her best friend was still a sore topic between them.
"She's doing better" said Dawn, "Faith took me to see her last weekend. She was asking about you, like how you're doing and such"
"Oh" said Willow
"She's been seeing a councillor there too, as are the rest of the Scoobies" said Dawn.
"Yea" said Willow, "it was a condition of their prison terms"
"I see" said Dawn as she just looked at her fingers.
Willow slowly took a hold of Dawn's hand and slightly squeezed. She was happy that the younger Summers sister didn't take her hand away.
"Do you still play chess?" asked Willow softly.
"Sometimes" said Dawn.
"I have a set in my room" said Willow, "I play with Colonel Carter sometimes and my ex-roommate when she used to stay with me"
"That's good" said Dawn
"You still leading with your knight?" asked Willow as Dawn managed a smile.
"Maybe" said Dawn as she finally looked at Willow.
"I love you Dawnie" said Willow as she gave a peck on Dawn's cheek.
"I wish I could say the same Willow" said Dawn softly.
"I understand" said Willow. She knew that she was feeling hurt but she did everything she could not to show it.
"Can you stay here? With me?" asked Dawn
"Sure" said Willow as the two girls sat back on the bed and leaned against the wall.
Dawn slowly put her head on Willow's shoulder as they simply just sat there on the bed in silence as Dawn closed her eyes and fell asleep.
"I still love you" whispered Willow as she kissed the top of Dawn's head.
Willow looked up and saw Faith looking on at the both of them and smiled.
Faith: "Good night Red"
Willow: "Good night, get some rest. Big day tomorrow"
Faith: "Can't believe we'll be meeting the Big Guy. Well, you met him already. So scratch that, I can't believe I'll be meeting him"
Willow: "He's a teddy bear"
Faith smiled at Willow before she went to Willow's room to get a good night's sleep.
Briefing Room, SGC, 1300 hours
"Looks like the President just met up with General O'Neill" said Colonel Carter as she put down the phone in the briefing room.
"Yea" said Willow as she put on her dress blues, "I can feel the excitement throughout the base, kinda overwhelming"
"Well" said Daniel, "Excitement's always a good thing do you think?"
"True" replied Colonel Carter.
"So the Big Guy wants to meet SG1 first before he starts the rest of the tour around the base?" asked Faith
"Yeah" replied the Colonel.
"Indeed" said Teal'c, "as the SGC's first line team, that would be most appropriate"
"Yep" said Colonel Carter, "and then after the tour, he'll be making a short speech in front of the entire base including all the SG teams"
"Ma'am" said Willow as she stood up, "I just received a telepathic burst from General O'Neill, the President just got out of the elevator on this level"
"I guess it's time" said the Colonel as she put on her dress blues.
"They're just three minutes away" whispered Willow as she moved to stand beside Colonel Carter with Daniel, Teal'c and Faith standing close by.
After a few minutes, General O'Neill walked into the bunting covered briefing room accompanied by President Hayes and his secret service escorts.
"Mr. President" said General O'Neil, "may I present to you SG1"
Colonel Carter and Willow immediately stood at attention and saluted their commander-in-chief.
"At ease" said the President smiling as he returned their salute.
"Sir" said the General as he led the President in introducing everyone, "Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter"
"Lt. Colonel" said the President as he smiled at the Colonel, "it's a pleasure to finally meet you, Jack keeps on saying that you are one of the greatest natural resources that this country has to offer; and I am glad to say that he has been right on the money. I just want to say that you've done a hell of a job"
"Thank you Sir" said the Colonel as she flashed that million dollar grin she was well known throughout the base for.
"Sir" said the General as he motioned towards Willow, "You know Captain Rosenberg"
"Captain" said the President smiling, "so can you tell me what number I'm thinking of now?"
"Not fair Sir" said Willow with a smile, "the number you're thinking of keeps on changing but at last count, I think you went through fourteen different numbers"
The President then turned to General O'Neill and gave a wide grin.
"I'm glad you're doing well Captain" said the President after he turned back to look at Willow, "I read about what you did yesterday, about how you helped get the rest of SG1 home safely, especially after your recent ordeal. That was a fantastic job and I'm really glad that you're on our side."
"Thank you Sir" said Willow as she smiled at the President.
"Sir" said the General, "Dr. Daniel Jackson"
"Ah, Dr. Jackson" said the President as he shook Daniel's hand.
"Mr. President, Sir" said Daniel smiling
"You know" said the President, "After I found out about the Stargate program, I actually went and bought the book you wrote before you went on that first mission to Abydos. It made for some interesting reading."
"Thank you Sir" said Daniel although on the inside he was confused whether 'interesting' meant he was a visionary or he was just nuts at the time he wrote the book.
"But it looks like what you wrote about in your book, did in fact happen" said the President smiling, "it's simply amazing that you had insight into this, even before you knew the truth about what's out there. And for that fact alone, and your contributions to the program since that time, you should be very proud of yourself"
"Thank you Sir" said Daniel as the President shook his hand.
"Sir" said the General, "Teal'c of Chulak"
"Teal'c" said the President as he shook the Jaffa's hand as Teal'c slightly bowed his head in respect.
"President Hayes" said Teal'c
"Teal'c" replied the President, "You have made a huge sacrifice in helping us fight against the Goa'uld. All I can say is thank you, and I hope that once the war with the Goa'uld is over, that both the humans of Earth and the Jaffa would continue to have a valued relationship"
"Indeed" said Teal'c, "I do believe that day will soon be upon us"
Faith looked on nervously as the President continued to talk to Teal'c as she slowly started to get worried about what the President would say to her. She kept on thinking nightmare scenarios about how he could chew her out in front of SG1 or say that she wasn't good enough to be part of the SGC and the Stargate program. She took a quick glance at Willow who was smiling at something the President had told Teal'c, and then she noticed that she gave a wider smile when Willow glanced at her.
Willow: "Easy Faith, nothing to be nervous about"
Faith: "It's the President of the United States for crying out loud"
Willow: "I know. I told you, he's a teddy bear"
Faith: "I just hope he doesn't tell me to leave the program or something."
Willow: "He won't tell you to leave the program Faith. But I suspect he will playfully scare you a bit"
Faith: "You sense something?"
Willow: "Trust me; he has a weird sense of humour"
Faith: "Oh boy"
Just then Faith noticed the President shake Teal'c's hand again before walking towards her. She saw him stand in front of her with his hands to his side and smile.
"Mr. President" said the General, "May I introduce Faith Lehane, the newest member of SG1"
"Miss Lehane" said the President as he shook Faith's hand, "welcome aboard"
"Thank you, Mr. President… Sir…. Mr. President" said Faith nervously which made the others look at Faith and smile at her nervousness.
"I have to be honest with you" said the President, "I wasn't too sure about you when Jack said that Captain Rosenberg recommended your participation into the SGC"
"Oh" said Faith.
Willow: "Just hold on Faith"
"But" said the President as he gave a big grin at the Slayer, "with the positive reports from Jack and the other members of your team and your instructors on the base, I've got to say that I'm really happy that I've been proved wrong"
It was then that Faith looked on in surprise.
"What you have done so far" said the President, "including defending this base, and by extension, this planet and the other human populated worlds is simply amazing. You should be very proud of yourself. I'm glad to say that General O'Neill's and Captain Rosenberg's recommendation to have you in the program has been indeed the correct choice. I need you to keep up the good work"
"I will" said Faith as she grinned at the President.
"Good job" said the President as he shook Faith's hand again before he was led away by General O'Neill.
"Th.. thank you" said Faith
"This way Sir" said the General as he led him down the metal stairs, "next stop, the Control Room. The heart of the SGC"
After the President left the briefing room, everything seemed more relaxed with the two officers more at ease even though they still had their dress blues on. Faith moved to the window facing the Stargate where she stood for a while unmoving, still thinking about what the President had said and smiled inwardly.
Commissary, 1500 hours
Once the President had completed the tour of the SGC, he made a speech thanking all the men and women, both military and civilian, for their contributions to the program and to the protection of the planet. After about fifteen minutes of the speech, every one moved to the commissary where a buffet was laid out for this special day.
As they sat down at their regular table, SG1 could see that the president was mingling among the rest of the SG team commanders and shaking hands with the team members.
"You wouldn't" said Faith
"Why not?" replied Willow
"I'd like to see this" said Colonel Carter as she leaned forward
"Come on Faith" said Daniel, "it won't hurt to ask him"
"Indeed" said Teal'c as the President walked towards SG1's table.
"Mr. President Sir" said Willow as she stood up, "would it be alright if I asked you to take a picture with us?"
Willow saw the President stare and her and the other members of SG1 who were seated behind her before giving them a wide grin, "of course, I thought you'd never ask"
The President then turned around and called for General O'Neill, "Hey Jack!"
"Sir?" said the General as he ran over to SG1's table.
"We're taking a picture together" said the President as he sat between Colonel Carter and General O'Neill with Willow and Faith standing right behind them. Daniel standing next to Willow and Teal'c, with his trademark hat, standing next to Faith rounded out the picture of SG1.
"Thank you Sir" said Willow after one of the President's secret service escorts took the picture on Willow's camera.
"No problem Captain" said the President, "I do expect a copy though"
"Of course sir" said Willow
Briefing Room, 0900 hours, Three months later
Since the President toured the SGC, things have gone really well and really fast for Faith. General O'Neill had recommended that she be intensively trained in basic tactics, advanced armed and unarmed combat over at the Alpha Site under the tutelage of Colonel Pierce and SG3's Colonel Reynolds, who was conducting a three month training exercise for new Marine recruits to the SGC, the Alpha Site and SG3.
While Faith was nearing the end of her intensive training at the Alpha site, Willow and the rest of SG1 was to go on a mission to the Rand Protectorate on the planet Tegalus.
"Carter?" asked the General
"Well Sir" said the Colonel, "from what we've been able to get from this Commander Gareth, the Stargate was actually thought to be a harmless museum piece. So you can imagine how shocked the local tour group was when they saw the Gate activate and a MALP come out from the wormhole"
"I take it that they want to meet?" asked the General
"Yes sir" said Colonel Carter
"Alright then" said the General, "You leave in an hour"
"Yes Sir" said the Colonel as she and the others got up and started to leave for the locker rooms.
"Jack" said Daniel just as Colonel Carter and Teal'c had left, "I need to talk to you and Willow"
"Daniel?" said the General as he motioned the two of them to join him in his office, "What's up?"
"Actually" said Daniel as he looked at both his friend and Willow, "It's about Dawn"
"Dawn?" asked Willow concerned, "did anything happen to her?"
"No" said Daniel as he looked at both the General and Willow, "As you know, Dawn is doing a double major in Psychology and Linguistics"
"Really?" asked Willow, "I knew about the Psychology, but she also decided to do linguistics?"
"You didn't know?" asked Daniel surprised
"I did suggest it when she came here but she never told me she was doing a double major" said Willow
"And?" said the General as he glanced at Willow as she looked down at the floor
"Dr. Kincaid, one of her professors who also happens to be a good friend of mine, told me that she was able to translate some ancient Sumerian tablets they had found in a dig"
"So?" asked the General
"Jack" said Daniel, "she managed to translate something that's been taking him weeks, by the way, in a matter of days"
"She's always been smart; I'd actually call her a genius" said Willow, "able to pick up new languages at the drop of a hat"
"What are you saying Daniel?" asked the General, afraid of where this conversation was going.
"Jack" said Daniel, "I need her on my team"
"No" said the General
"Come on" said Daniel.
"Do you remember why she's in the position she is in?" said the General as he glanced at Willow.
"Sir" said Willow, "Daniel's right, she's super smart especially in the language department. I have no doubt that she'll be able to help Daniel a great deal and eventually she'll be an asset to this program"
"You're serious?" asked General O Neill, "are you sure you're not saying that just so that the both of you can have something in common? Such as working together in the same location?"
"Sir" said Willow before she was interrupted by Daniel.
"We don't show her the Stargate or any of the classified section of the base" said Daniel, "we could give her some office space up in NORAD which she could use during her summer breaks or whenever we have an urgent thingamajig that needs translating. You can even put guards on her the whole time she's here"
"How about a compromise?" said the General
"You compromise?" said Daniel smirking
"I've been known to" said the General
"Sir?" said Willow.
"If you want her to be a member of your team, then do it" said the General, "but she's not allowed in this mountain"
"Jack" said Daniel
"Sir" said Willow, "maybe Daniel could pass on any translating that needs to be done, as long as it doesn't involve the Ancients or the Goa'uld languages; basically just the Earth languages that need translations, to Dawn through this Dr. Kincaid?"
"Daniel?" asked the General
"Well" said Daniel as he thought about Willow's proposal, "I do have a large collection of ancient Egyptian and latin texts that need to be translated"
"She's great at that" said Willow, "plus it'll keep her busy"
"Alright then" said the General, "as long as Daniel's happy"
"Not super excited" mumbled Daniel, "but it's the next best thing I guess. I'll call up Dr. Kincaid when we get back from the mission"
"Alright" said the General as he looked at the archaeologist, "Daniel, off you go; I need to talk to Red alone"
"Alright" said Daniel as he looked at Willow in confusion as she shrugged, "See you at the Gateroom Willow"
"Sure Daniel" said Willow as she saw Daniel walk out the door and head to the locker rooms. Willow then turned and faced the General.
"Sir?" asked Willow as he motioned at her to take a seat.
"The President received a request from Miss Chase and Agent Reed from the BPRI" said the General as he leaned forward on his seat and rubbed his temples.
"Oh, something tells me I'm not going to like this one bit" thought Willow to herself
"They, through Agent Barret and Major Davis, made a request for this Tara Maclay to be given an early release to their custody" said the General as he handed her Tara's personal file.
"I see" said Willow
"She'll still be on probation" said the General as he noticed Willow's unease, "it's just that it's going to start earlier than expected"
"And the President's agreed with this?" asked Willow
"I'm sorry, Red" said the General, "but he felt that with the supernatural threats still out there and with the SGC having its hands full, the BPRI needs at least one person with a high level knowledge of magic to train the others"
"There's something else isn't there Sir" asked Willow
"They also want Faith and you" said the General, "Agent Reed's been gunning for you to join up with the BPRI"
"Is that an order sir?" asked Willow as he stared at the General
"No" replied the General.
"Then I have to refuse, Sir" said Willow, "this is where I belong"
"Funny" smiled the General, "Faith said exactly the same thing"
"I sense a 'but' coming Sir" said Willow.
"With the President unwilling to let the others go off after a short stay in minimum security" said the General, "the BPRI has requested that Faith help to train the potential slayers that are of age for a few days every month"
"What did she say Sir?" asked the General
"She said that she'll talk to you first before making a decision" said the General
"Yes Sir" replied Willow as she got up, and then sat down again.
"Red?" said the General
"I apologize Sir" said Willow
"What for?" asked the General confused
"You were right about Dawn" said Willow, "she doesn't like me Sir, well actually it's slightly better now, but I can still sense the dislike for me coming from her no matter how much she hides it. I thought that if she knew that the work we did was important even if it was just translating some ancient language; If we had something like that in common with each other then maybe, just maybe she'd be on the road to forgiving me"
"You know it doesn't work like that Red" said the General softly, "even if the both of you work at the same place, there is absolutely no guarantee that her feelings will change"
"Yes Sir" said Willow, "I know, I guess it was just wishful thinking"
"Red" said the General, "You know I'm not good at any of this emotional stuff so…"
"I should go to the locker room and get changed?" said Willow smiling.
"Exactly" said the General with a grin as Willow got up and walked towards the door.
"Red?" said the General, making Willow turn around again, "It'll be alright eventually"
"Yes Sir" said Willow
Briefing Room, SGC, Six months following first contact with Rand Protectorate
The mission to the Rand Protectorate on Tegalus had gone off on the wrong foot right from the beginning of the mission. With the Stargate being viewed as a religious artefact known as 'The Great Ring of Avidan', the more religious sections of Rand society began to stir up trouble, claiming that the activation of 'the great ring' and the emergence of SG1 was evidence that the old gods would be returning.
During Daniel's talks with Commander Gareth in the first month, SG1 was told that many of the religious peoples of the Rand Protectorate saw the Stargate as the place their ancient gods drew power from and, the place where these 'gods' would eventually return and reward the faithful.
"So our coming through the Stargate gave them the ammunition they needed?" asked Daniel
"Yes" Commander Gareth had said.
SG1 had also found that the Rand Protectorate and its neighbouring country, the Caledonian Federation were at a state of Cold War but the arrival of SG1 through the Stargate had caused hostilities to flare up once again. The rise of another extreme religious faction, led by someone called Soren, had drawn the ire of both the Rand and the Caledonians.
"I need to go back" said Daniel as he walked through the hallways of the SGC with the General. He had tried to broker a deal between the Rand and the Caledonians since the activation of the Stargate and the eventual arrival of SG1 had put the relations between the two old enemies at a knifes edge.
"This is our fault" said Daniel, "and we need to fix it"
Although the General did not want Daniel to go alone, Daniel eventually managed to convince him that going alone would be a sign of peace, that he would be better able to explain to them that the so called gods were really Goa'uld and that they were not coming back or else it was very likely that the fanatical group led by Soren would cause a revolt resulting in mass casualties from all sides. That was what had happened about two months ago; ever since then, there was a coup-de-etat in the Rand protectorate with the fundamentalists led by Soren having taken over the command bunker where the Stargate was relocated to. Now not only was the Stargate under enemy control, but Daniel was listed as Missing in Action after the Caledonian Federation attacked the Rand Protectorate in retaliation for a Rand bombing on Caledonian territory that was orchestrated by Soren.
"Sir" said Colonel Carter as she sat at her usual place in the briefing room, "we've already tried to convince Soren to allow SG-9 back to the planet to search for Daniel"
"And?" asked the General
"They refused Sir" said Willow, "something about more civil unrest if they see more off-worlders"
"That's a bunch of B.S" said Faith who had her hands tightened into fists on the briefing table
"Indeed" replied Teal'c
"I guess it's time I met this Soren guy huh?" said the General
It was a week later, that Soren and two of his people had come to Earth to conduct talks with General O'Neill.
"Welcome to Earth" said General O'Neill as the three guests walked up the stairs to the briefing room.
"It is a great honor" said Soren, "I bring you greeting from our great country, Avidan"
"Hold on" said the Colonel, "You changed the name?"
"Yes" said Soren, "it speaks more to the beliefs of our people"
"Ok" said the General as he motioned everyone to take a seat, however it seemed that Soren and his two assistants were more comfortable standing.
Willow: "He's here for our weapons technology"
O'Neill: "You sure?"
Willow: "He's practically screaming it. And it gets even worse"
O'Neill: "How much worse can it get?"
Willow: "He wants to use the weapons to take over the Caledonian Federation"
O'Neill: "Great!"
Carter: "So you're saying that offering humanitarian aid won't be enough?"
Willow: "No ma'am"
Faith: "Anyway to find the layout of the bunker?"
Willow: "To do that, I'll have to reach into his mind and get the layout"
Faith: "Will it hurt him?"
Willow: "Not if I dig slowly"
O'Neill: "Do it Red"
Willow: "Sir?"
Willow and the others glanced over at the General while he was making small talk with Soren, Willow had to make sure that the General was being serious.
O'Neill: "Do it Red, without causing him any pain. I want the layout of the bunker and I want the radio frequencies that they aren't monitoring. We need our archeologist back"
Willow: "Yes Sir"
After a chat with the three of them, the General and SG1 saw them off through the Stargate. After they had walked through the event horizon, Colonel Carter began to monitor the frequencies that were either not being monitored by Soren's forces and the radio frequencies that Daniel could be using in case he was with the Rand forces. In the meantime, Faith, Willow and Teal'c went to the Colonel's lab to draw out the plans for the Command Bunker that Soren was using. After everything was done, SG1 met with the General in his office two hours later.
"I've got the plans Sir" said Willow as she lay down a computer drawing of the Rand command bunker's interior, "they're pretty well armed and they have people all over the place"
"Looks like they've got the Stargate fully covered" said the Colonel as she pointed out the enemy defensive positions near the Gate, "maybe ten of Soren's forces in their Gateroom"
"Stun grenades through the event horizon?" said Faith
"Could work" said the General, "but they'd be able to get reinforcements pretty quickly"
"O'Neill" said Teal'c, "We would require a two pronged attack. A coordinated attack with the forces of the Rand and a force from the SGC"
"Which means we still need to contact Daniel" said the General as he tightened his hands into fists out of frustration, "Damn it!"
"Carter" continued the General as he leaned on his table with both hands and looked at Colonel Carter, "I want that gate dialled every hour on the hour. Use all of the frequencies that Red found to send a message to Daniel. Send it in Goa'uld if you have to. I want a message through. I'm betting that he's trying his best to contact us as well"
"Yes sir" said the Colonel as she ran to the Control Room.
"Teal'c" said the Colonel, "I want you to practice breaching techniques with Faith and Red; get SG3, SG5 and SG12 to join you. I want them ready once Daniel contacts us and once we have an effective plan of attack"
"Very well, O'Neill" said Teal'c as he turned to face Willow and Faith, "Willow Rosenberg, Faith Lehane let us go now"
"Sir" said Willow as she looked at the General, "We'll get him back"
"I hope so Red" said the General
Willow nodded her head as she turned and left the General's office to join Teal'c and Faith as they were on their way to join the other three SG teams.
It was by sheer luck that ten hours later, the scanning of the Rand Protectorate frequencies bore any fruit.
"General O'Neill to the Control Room" said O'Brien's voice over the P.A system, "General O'Neill to the Control Room"
SG1 was having dinner at the commissary when the call came in and immediately left their table and sprinted all the way to the control room, with Colonel Carter reaching the radio console first before anyone else.
"Carter?" said the General
"Looks like he found us Sir" said the Colonel and a familiar voice sounded over the radio.
"Hey guys" said Daniel over the radio, "Hello….. anyone there"
"Daniel" said the General.
"Jack" replied Daniel.
"Enjoying your vacation are you?" said the General as Willow and the others behind him smiled.
As he was speaking with the General, Daniel had inserted some Goa'uld terms in the English sentences he was transmitting. Teal'c nodded in recognition of what Daniel was talking about.
"Daniel Jackson's plan is similar to ours" said Teal'c, "a Jaffa tactic of using a two pronged attack on the Command Bunker using the Rand forces with whom he has allied himself and a team from the SGC"
The call with Daniel was disconnected after Teal'c spoke with him in Goa'uld about a time and method of attack. Daniel said that he would contact them in two hours to confirm the plan after talking to the leader of the Rand forces, Jared Kane.
"Alright guys" said the General as he looked at SG1, "I want everyone ready to go in four hours"
"Yes Sir" said Colonel Carter and Willow as they ran to the locker room along with Fait and Teal'c.
"O'Brien" said the General as he tapped the gate technicians shoulder, "Get SG3, 5 and 12 up here. I want them ready to go in four hours as well"
"Yes sir" said O'Brien as he spoke in the microphone to relay the General's orders.
Four hours later, Gateroom, SGC
It was finally time for the SG teams in the SGC and the Rand forces in the Rand Protectorate to make their incursion into the Command Bunker.
"Willow" said Colonel Carter, "Can you see how many are there on the other side?"
"One moment ma'am" said Willow closing her eyes as she transmitted her telepathy through the wormhole until it reached the other side and used one of Soren's people on the other side to scout how many people there were, and their positions.
"Ma'am" said Willow once she withdrew back to the SGC and opened her eyes, "there are a total of eleven armed ndividuals. Five of them seem to have high calibre weapons pointed at the Stargate, with the others being under cover in a horseshoe formation"
"Put up a telekinetic shield immediately once you're through" said the Colonel, "Understood?"
"Yes ma'am" said Willow as she gripped her weapon tightly and made sure to switch all safeties off.
"Captain Rosenberg and Teal'c will be going ahead, followed by Faith and myself. SG3, 5 and 12 will be right behind us. Daniel's team should be through in a few minutes. We'll secure the Stargate and eliminate all hostiles" said the Colonel as she turned around and spoke to the others.
"Yes ma'am" said Willow as she and Teal'c threw in two stun grenades each through the wormhole's event horizon.
"Think they went off?" asked Willow as she looked at Teal'c
"Let us find out Willow Rosenberg" said Teal'c as Willow went through first and immediately set up a telekinetic shield in front of her and Teal'c who had come through a split second after her. There was only minimum resistance as Willow and Teal'c took them down in a few bursts of firepower.
"That was close" said Willow as the others walked through the Gate.
"SG 9 and SG 12 will secure the Gate" said Colonel Carter, "SG1 and SG3 will meet up with Daniel's team"
"Willow?" said the Colonel as she looked at the red head.
"Yes ma'am" said Willow as she telepathically searched for Daniel, "Found him ma'am, looks like his team is under heavy fire"
"Let's move out then" said Colonel Carter
Willow: "Daniel, we're here. Coming to your location now"
Daniel: "Good to hear from you again"
Willow: "Yep, just hang on"
It took less than thirty minutes before the combined forces of the Rand soldiers led by Kane and Daniel, along with the SGC's forces were able to retake the Command Bunker from Soren, who was eventually killed by Kane himself.
The Rand forces in the immediate vicinity were brought into the bunker to arrest the rebels and restore order. After the other rebels in the city were informed of Soren's defeat, they immediately surrendered to Rand security forces. Eventually, the Rand forces were able to retake the missile silos that the rebels had taken over and used to bomb the Caledonians. Jared had re-established communications with the Caledonian commander to inform them that the Rebels were taken down, and that all silo's and weapons caches had been secured, and in turn the Caledonians should step down their alert levels.
"Daniel" said the Colonel as she and SG1 approached the tan jacket wearing archaeologist.
"Sam" said Daniel, "What took you?"
"Hey, we were only a few seconds after you" said the Colonel as she gave a hug to her friend.
"Daniel" said Willow as she smiled and nodded.
"Willow, Faith" said Daniel and he hugged the two young women.
"Daniel Jackson" said Teal'c, "It is good to see you again"
"Likewise Teal'c" said Daniel, "six months is really a long time"
"Tell me about it" said Willow, "Dawn's been bugging me for more stuff for her to translate, had to tell her that you were missing somewhere in South America"
"Nice" smiled Daniel as he looked at Sam, "So… home?"
"Yep" said the Colonel, just as Jared Kane walked up to him.
"Dr. Jackson" said Kane
"Jared" said Daniel, "it's partly our fault that this happened, we promise you that we will help you rebuild"
"None of this is your fault, Dr. Jackson" said Kane, "You need to do anything"
"We'll help you rebuild" said Daniel as he looked at Kane with a face full of resolve.
Kane nodded his acceptance as he left to secure the Command Center.
"Lets go home" said Daniel as he left with the others for the Stargate.
"Hey" said Willow as she walked alongside Faith behind the others.
"Hey" said Faith.
"You alright?" asked Willow
"Yea" said Faith
"How many?" asked Willow
"Took down three" said Faith
"It was something that needed to be done" said Willow as she looked at Faith
"I know" she replied
"Oh hey" said Willow with a smile, "you have that training session with the potential slayers next week at the BPRI"
"Yep" replied Faith with a smile, "You're coming too right?"
"Yea" said Willow, "the General wants me there, as well as Major Davis who'll be doing an audit. You know, making sure that nothing untoward is going on"
"You mean like experimentations on demons and such" asked Faith as she recalled what Buffy had told her the Initiative was up to.
"Yep" said Willow, "and Dawn's excited about meeting Tara again"
"Yea" said Faith, "she played a huge role in Dawn's life, especially after Buffy's mom passed away"
"I kind of guessed that" said Willow, "I need to visit her"
"Who?" asked Faith just as they arrived at the Rand Gateroom
"Mrs. Summers' grave" said Willow
"Ready guys?" asked the Colonel as they waited for Willow and Faith at the event horizon.
"Yes ma'am" said Willow before all the SGC teams went through the Stargate for home.
One Week later, Alternate Reality
"You bitch" said Warren Mears angrily as he barged into Buffy's backyard as she was talking with Xander, and pointed a gun at her, "did you really think that you could do that to me, huh? Did you really think that you and your red headed whore could keep me in jail?"
"What?" said Buffy standing up, just as Warren shot wildly at Xander and her before he ran away making even more wild shots. It was blind luck that the first few shots that were aimed at Buffy missed as she went to push Xander out of the way. Ironically, it was the bullet heading for Xander that had pierced her shoulder and started to create a red spot on her white shirt that Xander was now trying to put pressure on.
At the same time as the commotion in the backyard, Tara was in Willow's room talking to her girlfriend; her soul mate. Suddenly there was a crack and Willow heard something break before noticing the red spot that was growing on Tara's chest and the red that sprayed over her own white coloured shirt. Both of them looked at each other in surprise as Tara held her hand out and point at Willow's shirt.
"Your shirt" said Tara before she fell forward
Willow ran to her soul mate and did everything she could to wake her up.
"Tara? Baby?" said Willow as she grabbed her shoulders before pulling her limp body onto her lap, "Baby? Come on, get up" continued Willow as she cried in anguish.
Willow felt the life leave Tara's body as she sat there helpless while she rocked back and forth holding her dead body.
She suspected who had done this and who was responsible. And one way or another, they would pay the price for the death of the love of her life.