brayanamaya963: Thank you for your permission.
Yog-sothsoth: ?
Boyzilla: I can't even imagine how many Replicators voted for Hakuno just because of her Head Tilt! Moreover (I entrust this to you) the real reason for Oberoth's anger is not to have lost his title of High Councilor... but that after ten thousand years of good and loyal service, he lost just because Hakuno was... cute! What a slap in the face!
Author's note: as always, I warmly thank the readers for their continued support.
Trap on Kresh'ta
Kresh'ta orbit, Milky Way
A hyperspatial window opened in the cosmos, just above the blue ball of an oxygen-atmosphere planet. There came out a starship with a black hull. The central part of the ship was flat and heavily armored with a superstructure bridge and numerous antennas. On both sides of the central structure, side pods closed by large airlocks served as flight decks for space fighters. The bow looked like a long angular 'neck' terminated by other antennae.
It was a BC-304 manufactured on Earth using Asgard technology, and operated by United States Airforce crewmen. Registered as PB3865, the Battlecruiser was named Odyssey.
The Bridge,
In the command chair, Colonel Paul Emerson turned to the officer sitting next to him:
"Major Womark, place us in a stable orbit."
The young woman, with her hair cut short and combed to the back, nodded. In the half-light of the bridge, illuminated by the bluish light of the monitors, her face was tense.
She knew that the planet Kresh'ta had been chosen to host a meeting of the 108 main leaders of the Free Jaffa... and that Apophis' troops had attacked by surprise. Since then, they have controlled the Stargate, preventing rescue.
And if the rescue could not pass through the Gate it was necessary to use another method, hence the presence of the Odyssey.
Despite her anxiety, Catherine Womark answered with a firm voice.
"Yes, sir."
Her hands were on the controls. From a reverse thrust, Major Womark changes the course of the Battleship, transforming its trajectory into a curve.
Behind her, the officer in charge of the Sensors stood up.
"Commander, I'm picking up echoes from the surface. Just a moment, please..."
His hands were played at full speed on the command board. A beep was heard.
"Sir, I identify four Al'kesh and at least one squadron of Death Gliders! They're coming on us, heading 110°!"
Standing near the tactical board, a transparent panel on which circles were intended, a tactical officer pasted a red triangle near the orbit of Kresh'ta to symbolize a squadron of Death Gliders.
Colonel Emerson turned to the officer to his left.
"Major Marks, fire at will!"
"Yes, Sir!"
The Battlecruiser Odyssey maneuvered to keep away from the attackers, firing salvos from its Railguns. The golden projectiles blasted from several turrets and flew into the cosmic void targeting the Death Gliders. The crescent-shaped spacefighters maneuvered, swaying, abruptly changing course in skillful maneuvers. Nevertheless, sometimes a shot hit a fighter that disintegrated in a brief explosion.
The Al'kesh retaliated with the Staff Cannons of the ventral twin-tube turret. Golden plasma shots were as helpless as gnats crashing into the window of a car... The Asgards shield of a Battlecruiser was designed to withstand weapons of far greater power.
Simultaneously, the airlocks of the side hangars began to open. Four by four, the Tau'ri F-302 took off.
Like swarms of furious wasps, the two groups of fighters threw themselves on each other engaging in a high-speed fight, as acrobatic as deadly.
Colonel Paul Emerson turned to one of the officers seated behind one of the consoles lined up against the sidewalls.
"Beamed down the first landing party!"
"Yes, sir!"
Near the Stargate.
Dor'ur had been a Necropolis Guard, a member of Sokar's personal guard. Like all his fellows he had joined Apophis with relief... rare were the Jaffa masochistic enough to be happy to serve a god... no, a demon... as sadistic as Sokar.
His armor was heavier than that of the other Jaffa. His breastplate resembled the Roman Lorica Musculata, simulating the torso of a muscular man. His arms and legs were covered with chainmail. But the epaulets were topped with a sharp tip, and its traditional Jaffa skullcap had two horns! Since Dor'ur's armor was red as his long red cloak and he had a goatee... this Jaffa really had a demonic appearance.
He was the commanding officer of the planetary garrison and gave his orders.
"Scatter behind the columns, do not stay close to each other."
Dor'ur turned to a group of warriors that installed two anti-aircraft Staff Canons.
"Watch the sky, their Fighters can attack at any time."
He turned to a group of Necropolis Serpent Guards arriving at race pace.
"Don't stick together; you'd be an easy target too. Disperse, sit behind this dune, and there, on the other side... take the Chappa'ai (Stargate) under cross-fire. Remember, the Tau'ri can attack from behind through the Gate while we push back the landing troops that were Beamed down to Kresh'ta."
Dor'ur was about to say something else when he heard a slight shock at his feet, he looked down... and it took him a brief moment to recognize the black sphere in the sand in front of him.
His eyes widened with terror...
The next thing I knew, the grenade explosion was shredding him.
The Jaffa in red Chainmails dispersed, raising their Staff Weapons, and turning their heads from one side to the other... but they did not see their enemies. Nevertheless, the reciprocal was not true. Bursts of Assault Rifles and machine guns decimated the compact groups of Apophis warriors.
The bullets sparkled by ricocheting against their chainmails and Serpent Helmets before the warriors fell to the ground.
Several Jaffa hid behind the stone columns lining the paved road leading to the Jaffa encampment, halfway between the sea and the Stargate.
At the shelter, they responded randomly, firing in the direction from which the shots came... to a dune overlooking the Chappa'ai. But they saw no enemies! No one was on the dune! Were they attacked by ghosts?!
Courageous... fanatical even... the Jaffa were however very superstitious.
A wanted 'flaw' of their education, after all, only superstitious people would take the Goa'uld for gods.
Thrown by an under-rifle grenade launcher, at the end of a smoke trajectory, a grenade exploded in the middle of the columns mowing down several warriors. Coming out of a sphere of invisibility, several Marines in desert camouflage fatigue positioned themselves to flank the survivors firing with their M16.
The fight lasted another four minutes... no Jaffa surrendered.
Kulera sat in the sand, her forehead covered with sweat and her hands trembling.
There were good reasons the Alien was so exhausted.
She was a female Aturen. She looked a lot like a human, but her long hair was white interspersed with twigs and leaves, and her ears were pointed like those of the elves of legends.
Like the Nox of Gaia (who were their teachers), the Aturen were able to create a field of invisibility through a mental technique... even if it was very tiring.
Looking at the young woman with a little concern, Captain Selena Rodriguez pressed on the transceiver attached near her throat.
"This is Phoenix-1, Phase 1 complete, come in Odyssey."
Immediately, the answer resonated in his earpiece, almost as clear as if the correspondent had stood right next to it.
"This is Odyssey, Phoenix-1, received. Have you had any casualties?"
"No thanks to Kulera, but she is exhausted. It would be better if you Beamed her up!"
Kulera was extraordinary, capable of many wonders (such as healing the wounded by touching them) but she was viscerally pacifist. Although she wore the uniform of the SGC (a military organization), she had only a tranquilizer gun as a weapon.
Even if her life depended on it, Kulera could not kill another living being.
While the female Aturen disappeared in a dazzling light, the Marines deployed in a defensive formation among the ruins.
"Start phase two," cried Captain Rodriguez.
Under the protection of A'tir (a Free Jaffa with the symbol of Cronus on his forehead and armed with a Ma'tok Staff) and Oringo (a colossal Unas) Bervell the Tollan engineer placed on the ground a small box in metal similar to aluminum. The Tollan pressed a button and a ray of light went into the sky... sending a coded message to the Earth.
SGC, Cheyenne Mountain.
Walter turned to General Hammond, one hand on his earpiece.
"Sir, we received a message from Kresh'ta from a Tollan transmitter, it's Phoenix-1, phase 1 complete, and they're asking us to start phase 2."
"Thanks, Walter, you can start dialing the address of Kresh'ta." Leaning forward on a microphone at the end of a flexible tube, the old general pressed the switch. "Colonel O'Neill, get ready, phase two begins!"
The Stargate had begun to turn on itself, releasing jets of white steam. In a snap, the first chevron locked and lit up in orange.
Kresh'ta.
The first thing Jack O'Neill heard when he got out of the Stargate was the all too recognizable scream of a Death Glider diving to the ground. By reflex, he grabbed Samantha Carter by the hips and dived down the platform.
Two plasma balls fired by the fighter's Staff Cannons dug craters smoking in the sand just ten meters from them.
Daniel had jumped on his side and was already brandishing his P-90, shooting several gusts towards the sky... in vain. The Death Glider went up, and veered, back to the Gate. But an F-302 pursued the Goa'uld fighter and before it had time to fire a second time; the Tau'ri one destroyed it with a burst of its railguns.
"Uh... colonel? You can let me go now... I think."
O'Neill looked down to find that he was still holding Carter down.
"Oh... Sorry."
Jack got up just in time to greet Captain Rodriguez.
"My respects, Colonel."
"At ease, Captain. What's the situation?"
"Bad... the enemy holds both ridges on both sides of the valley and has installed Staff Cannons. Apophis' warriors have also fortified the Jaffa encampment and they resist all assault. In addition, an Al'kesh turns above us and regularly bombards our positions with plasma bombs."
O'Neill lowered his sunglasses and took a monocular from a pocket in his flak vest. He looked at the battlefield. It was the kind of confused combat that every soldier hated... palm trees laid by explosions, bomb craters, collapsed walls, smoking wrecks (an Al'kesh, a Death Glider, and an F-302) creating many obstacles that had to be avoided. The visibility was poor. Grey and black smoke stagnated on the battlefield.
At about ten points in the valley, Jack saw exchanges of fire between automatic weapons and Staff Weapons. Marines were running from one crater to another, hiding behind obstacles, nailed to the ground by golden plasma projectiles.
The valley was triangular with the sea at the base and the two ridges formed the last two sides, the Stargate at the tip. The Jaffa camp was in the middle of the triangle.
Despite the reinforcements that the Gate continued to bring, the Tau'ri could not advance. It was a trench war particularly costly to human lives.
O'Neill pointed to one of the ridges.
"The Odyssey has to Beam SG-1 right there!"
The southern ridge was a chaos of stalked piles of rocks and eroded stone formations covered with sand. Unlike the oasis in the valley, on the other side of the ridges, it was only dunes and rocks of yellow color. The Jaffa had an easy task to defend this place, it was a natural fortress.
Well sheltered behind the rocks they stood up at times, shot at the Tau'ri below, and sheltered again when their enemies responded.
Several times the Tau'ri had stormed the only possible path... a natural ramp passing just under an arch carved by the wind. Some ambushed warriors had simply rolled some Tor'kal (1) down the slope, so far the grenades had stopped every attack.
But it's not like the Tau'ri really have to climb this ramp to attack the warriors of Apophis.
A dazzling white light appeared between the rocks. Blinded, the Jaffa closed their eyes or protected themselves with their hands raised.
A group of four had just materialized in the middle of them. O'Neill, one knee down, shot two short bursts, killing a pair of Jaffa that seemed to dance as the bullets ricocheted on their chainmails.
Standing next to him, Daniel Jackson opened fire and shot a third Jaffa.
Leaning against the archaeologist, Sam fired with his P-90 dispersing several Serpents Guards... two of them were hit a third collapsed on the ground, without moving.
Corporal Randiger - from the Marines Corp. - the fourth man in their group, opened fire with his M16A3.
Surprised, blinded, but also afraid to shoot each other, the Jaffa warriors dispersed in all directions without retaliation.
A Serpent Guard released his Ma'tok Staff and took the Zat'nik'tel attached to his wrist to fire a blue lightning bolt that electrified the place where O'Neill had stood. But Jack had immediately rolled aside and retaliated with a burst of bullets that killed the opponent... But already another Jaffa was leaping at him with a knife in his hand. The P-90 spit out a few bullets before the firing pin hit the void.
In a quick gesture, the colonel drew his M-9 pistol and shot six times... killing his opponent just before he stabbed him.
Corporal Randiger and Sam had no time to worry about what was going on behind them, the Jaffa was still attacking from their side and only Daniel protected Jack as he switched magazines.
The archaeologist dived behind a rock while several plasma shots were digging holes in the stone. Colonel O'Neil straightened up and retaliated with several salvos in quick succession. As he ducks to the ground to avoid several Ma'tok's shots, Jack feels a presence. A Jaffa crawling between two rocks had just straightened up, holding a knife in his hand... but he collapsed wrapped by blue flash arcs...
Jackson had just shot him with his Zat'.
"Thank you, Daniel, I owe you."
"Oh, don't worry about that... it wasn't without ulterior motives...it took me years to tame a colonel. I don't want to start over."
There were only a few Jaffa warriors left alive on this side of the cliff. But, on Carter's side, some Jaffa left their shelters to launch a counter-attack.
Corporal Randiger used his grenade launcher; the explosion killed a group of Jaffa. But he paid dearly for this heroic act, a plasma projectile hit him and he fell back two meters, with a large smoking hole instead of the chest.
Sam fired several bursts killing three of the Jaffa who were running towards her. But the fourth threw a Tor'kal to her... The large sphere of wrought metal rolled among the rocks where Major Carter had sheltered and... a violent sound and an intense light came out of the grenade.
Samantha screamed in pain, staggering and blocking her ears. Disoriented and blinded, she could see nothing but white...
A cry of joy greeted this result. Several Jaffa stood up and began to run. They would be able to kill the enemies of their god!
The Jaffa who went up to the assault seemed to hit a wall... rhythmically shaken by bullets, they collapsed on the ground...
Another group of soldiers had just emerged from the beam of light of an Asgard Transporter.
Of course, SG-1 was only sent to create a beachhead. Nobody expected them to conquer alone this whole enemy position.
After a few minutes of gunfight, the final shots went out. Leaving Carter in the hands of a medic, O'Neill took an object quite similar to a pair of electronic binoculars in a holster on his belt.
He activated his transceiver.
"Odyssey, this is SG-1, you confirm to me that Teal'c is not in the Jaffa camp."
There was a moment of silence and then...
"SG-1, this is Odyssey, at least Teal'c's subcutaneous implant is not in the valley."
"Ok."
Taking the binoculars, Jack looked towards the fortified Jaffa encampment. The area looked like a volcano in eruption because of so many weapons that were firing simultaneously.
In the one-piece viewfinder, there were two colored templates that represented a circle with a vertical arrow pointing downwards. He superimposed them so that they coincided with the location of the camp. Then Colonel O'Neill pressed a button on the side of the binoculars-like device. There was a click.
For a few seconds, nothing else happened, and then a hiss was heard. A bright spot appeared high in the sky rushing straight to the ground.
The 'binoculars' were a laser designator and Jack O'Neill had just ordered the Odyssey to launch a missile at the target he had selected.
Although not a nuclear weapon, a cruise missile was no joke. The explosion shook the whole valley and rocks dislodged from the cliff fell below. When O'Neill got up to look at the Jaffa's fort he saw only a huge smoking crater surrounded by other smaller craters shrouded in smoke and a whirlwind of dust.
The destruction of the encampment had radically changed the course of the battle. The warriors of Apophis retained only one strong position, the northern ridge. Rather than attack immediately, the colonel preferred a cautious tactic to minimize casualties. First, the Tau'ri cleaned the last pockets of troops in the valley.
Meanwhile, the F-302s eliminated the Death Gliders.
Once the air superiority was acquired, the fighters dealt with the defenders by multiplying the strafing passes on the cliff. Simultaneously, the Odyssey Beamed down other Marines behind the Apophis' warriors. When the main force attacked from the bottom of the valley, the Jaffa were taken from behind by these reinforcements. Surrounded by an opponent both superior in number and armament, the Serpent Guards defended themselves courageously... but in vain.
SGC, Cheyenne Mountain.
O'Neill crosses the Stargate without ceasing to speak.
"... kick Apophis' ass. I'm not complaining. But we came to save Teal'c! And we found no trace of him."
Daniel - who he was talking to - shrugged his shoulders.
"The good news is we didn't find his body, nor did we find Bra'tac's."
Sam spoke in turn. She grimaced.
"We all know Apophis, he probably ordered them captured alive."
The three friends stopped at the bottom of the metal ramp, pushing aside to let pass stretcher bearers carrying wounded Marines.
They exchanged anxious glances understanding well that Apophis had obviously not acted out of kindness of soul... Teal'c and Bra'tac were to be tortured and filmed at length. The false god wants them to die by imploring his mercy and recognizing his divine status. The Jaffa revolt was essentially a propaganda war.
Major Carter sighed.
"Our only chance is the Tok'ra, they may be able to find Teal'c before... finally you know what I mean."
General Hammond had just entered the Gate room, he heard Sam's last words and spoke.
"Of course, we sent a message to the Tok'ra, and the High Council promised us all its support. Nevertheless, we may have been lucky. Among the corpses of the Free Jaffa we found a survivor. He is in the infirmary; Dr. Fraiser takes care of him."
The base infirmary was located at level 21. This universe of white-painted concrete, metal beds, and medicine-filled glass cabinets was led by a slender young woman with blond and curly hair who was humorous, courageous, and hardworking.
Smiling at the newcomers, Janet Fraiser guided them to one of the rest beds. A man in a coma lay there, connected by wires to medical instruments and by a pipe to a blood bag.
"I believe you know my patient, Colonel O'Neill"
The latter frowned slightly, but the burnt mark on the forehead of the Jaffa was easy to recognize.
"Indeed, it is Rak'nor of Chulak. What is his state of health?"
Dr. Fraiser nodded.
"He was hit by six 6mm bullets. Fortunately, his Chainmail saved his life. His Symbion managed to keep him alive. I operated on and extracted the bullets. Now he is saved and should wake up quickly."
However, the three members of SG-1 seem confused.
Samantha looked at Dr. Fraiser, her best friend on the base compound.
"Janet... I thought he was attacked by Apophis' warriors."
Reaching out, the Chief Medical Officer of the SGC took a metal basin containing six crushed bullets.
"Here are the bullets I pulled from Rak'nor's chest."
As Daniel frowned at the situation, a hesitant voice made them turn around. On the hospital bed, Rak'nor had opened his eyes.
"They wore your uniform; they were armed like you..."
Janet Fraiser reacted professionally, taking her stethoscope; she listened to the heart of Rak'nor.
"Don't strain yourself, you've just regained consciousness."
Nevertheless, Rak'nor ignores the advice.
"They came out of Chappa'ai, posing as members of SG-3 and asking to speak to members of the Free Jaffa Council... Teal'c arrived and he immediately recognized them as impostors... then they started shooting. They took us completely by surprise. I was hit... and I woke up at the end of the fight... to see Apophis warriors with the fake Tau'ri."
Jackson nodded, he understood that the members of 'SG-3' were.
"SGX, the fake SGC created by Apophis!"
The wounded Jaffa continued the narrative of the attack.
"They shot Teal'c and Bra'tak with Intar (2) ..." He turned to O'Neill. "They must be alive but... " He looked to the other hospital beds without recognizing anyone. "Are there any other survivors of the Free Jaffa Council?"
It was Dr. Fraiser who answered.
"I'm sorry Rak'nor... we counted 105 bodies of Free Jaffa."
The face of the survivor shriveled with anger.
"We must find Teal'c and Bra'tac! They are the only leaders able to unite the Free Jaffa now that the members of the Council have been massacred."
O'Neill agreed.
"Were you still conscious when they left?"
"It was the noise they made back to the Gate that woke me up. I looked at the DHD while they dialed the destination address but... I was very weak and I can't remember the symbols."
A few hours later, while O'Neill was knocking on General Hammond's door to give him his report on the Battle of Kresh'ta, the signal of the opening of a vortex resonated in the concrete corridors. As there was no alarm or red beacon, Jack paid no attention.
Sometimes there were up to four or five wormholes opening in a single day.
The general asked him to enter, he handed the report... and watched George Hammond turn a few pages and complain about his spelling... as always.
Then an officer knocked on the door and entered.
"Sir, Anise of the Tok'ra has arrived."
George Hammond laughed when he saw O'Neill's backtracking reaction.
"Given your reaction, I understand that Anise is not your favorite Tok'ra, Jack."
This was an understatement, although she probably saved his life by telling Jackson where to find Jacob when he and Teal'c were adrift in an X-301 Interceptor (3). Nevertheless, he remembered her mostly negatively because of the Atanik Armbands (4) affair and the Za'tark plot (5).
"I don't really have a favorite Tok'ra... other than Jacob Carter. But in the list of Tok'ra manipulators, double-crossers, with personal goals and their own little schemes, I place Anise in first position and the big winner of the derby... with three lengths of lead."
"Duly noted colonel, nevertheless it was I who asked her to come."
O'Neill looked at his superior officer as if he doubted his sanity, which forced Hammond to specify:
"I asked for scientific help from the Tok'ra and they sent me Anise."
"May I ask why, sir?"
Hammond got up and headed for the door. While walking, he answered O'Neill.
"Well since you are directly concerned, I authorize you to accompany me to the briefing room."
Anise was a Tok'ra whose host (Freya) was a beautiful woman with blond hair... and busty. She was dressed in a very showy and very low-cut red dress. She stood up at their entrance and smiled immediately.
"General Hammond, Colonel O'Neill, it's good to see you again."
"The reciprocal is true," George Hammond replied in his most diplomatic tone.
As he sat in his armchair, Anise turned to Jack, and spoke in a normal human voice, as it was the host speaking.
"I'm glad to see you healthy, Colonel."
Uncomfortable, Jack O'Neill sat down and smiled.
"Thank you, I'm fine but I worry a lot about Teal'c!"
The young woman nodded and answered with her Tok'ra voice.
"I'm here to help you."
The answer intrigued Jack.
"And how?"
Anise turned to Hammond, pointing to a metal crate, between two gray-clad Tok'ra, arms crossed, who seemed to guard the container.
"We brought what you asked us."
Jack turned to Hammond with an interrogative expression.
"And what did we ask?"
"A Memory Recalling Device" replied the general
"Oh?" Jack turned to Anise. "Well done." Then he looked at Hammond again. "And we need it for what?"
Anise approached Rak'nor with a tense smile. The Jaffa warrior was not one of those who liked the Tok'ra very much.
"I'm going to put the Device on your temple. You're going to feel a brief pain as it connects to your neural system."
Rak'nor simply nodded and grimaced as Anise placed the small metal disc. The Tok'ra took a small metal stick the size of a pen and activated the Memory Recalling Device with a circular motion of the control stick.
The young woman turned to another larger, more complex apparatus with a sort of swan neck terminated by an eye.
"I will now use the Za'tarc detector to stimulate your forgotten memory."
A ray of light came out of the 'swan neck' to touch the eye of Rak'nor.
With her hand, she then showed a Vo'cum, a semi-spherical holographic projector, posed as a table.
"Now let's look at what Rak'nor saw."
Slowly images appeared in the cone of light of the Vo'cum. They saw through the eyes of the Jaffa the arrival of the false members of the SGC. Teal'c warned his allies and drew a Zat' but several of the impostors shot him with non-lethal weapons.
The image blurred and disappeared, Rak'nor having been wounded.
Gradually Rak'nor returned to consciousness, the first images showed only feet as the Jaffa lay on the ground, but turning sideways he could look towards the Gate.
Teal'c and Brat'ac - unconscious- were dragged to the ground by warriors in red chainmail, and then a Necropolis Serpent Guard approached the DHD and dialed an address.
Rak'nor remained conscious long enough to see the activation of all the chevrons before passing out again.
Daniel had carefully noted the various symbols and showed them around.
"Does anyone know this planet?"
It was Anise who answered.
"This is the address of Cerberus. This world was until recently one of the main Ha'tak construction sites in Ba'al's domain... but it was recently conquered by Apophis. Cerberus is known to serve as a prison for the Jaffa rebels. Prisoners are forced to work on weapons systems and generators without protective clothing... Goa'uld larvae protect them from radiation emitted by the naquadah during its treatment but... even a Jaffa survives only a few months. Being deported to Cerberus is a sentence to a slow death. This planet deserves its name; it is the door of hell."
(1) Goa'uld grenade, similar to Tau'ri flashbang.
(2) Goa'uld weapon mostly used in training, fires a red beam that temporarily paralyzes. The Jaffa use Intar which looks like Zat' or Ma'tok staff in training. SGX uses Intar that looks like M-9 guns and H&K MP-5.
(3) Stargate SG-1 episode 12, season 4, 'Tangent'.
(4) Stargate SG-1 episode 03, season 4, 'Upgrades'.
(5) Stargate SG-1 episode 05, season 4, 'Divide and Conquer'.