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Chapter 7: Times, they're changing...

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Part 5

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"Assaulting a Chappa'ai from both sides had been a time-honored tactic. If it was at all possible, any wise leader of warriors would attempt it. What happened at Moloc's Throne World was familiar and a taste of things to come.

The core of the plan was simple. Heru'ur would lead a fleet in Ra's name to stop Moloc's madness once and for all. My Lord would engage the mad god's Ha'taks in orbit and deploy assault transports to strike at the Chappa'ai. At the same time, Perun's forces would smash through the Chappa'ai, using combat transports to lead the charge.

That would be an example of what would soon be known as combined arms use. It would be yet another innovation that should have been obvious, that Perun made a staple of war."

Karrok, First Prime of Heru'ur

"It was a great honor when Prime Vasil chose us to train as what would later become known as mechanized infantry. We were among the first in the galaxy, indeed the first Jaffa, to pioneer that new way of fighting a war.

We would put our newfound training to the test sooner than any of us anticipated."

Jek'il, Perun's Custodes

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Slavna Zemq
Perun's Domain
Milky Way galaxy

Jek'il checked up the straps holding him secure in his gunner's seat. He did it just in time, too, because a moment later, the order to advance came over the commlink attached to his right cheek.

The transport's anti-gravity engine came to life with a familiar whining sound.

"Here we go!" The driver gleefully exclaimed, and the transport shot forward, pushing Jek'il back into his cramped seat.

The young Jaffa worked the turret's controls, feeling exhilaration. Being here, training in a new way of war created by their God, was an incredible honor. That his commander chose him to test a weapon imbued with Perun's sacred knowledge and magics was unthinkable! Yet here he was!

The other three combat transports in the squad had an open weapon station, with the gunners protected by sheets of armored metal. They had a simple sight mounted above their dual-staff weapons to aim with.

Jek'il, on the other hand, had a fully enclosed armored bubble to keep him safe. He also had a staff cannon and two of the so-called twin-linked staff weapons to lay down fire at Perun's enemies. As if that wasn't good enough, magic provided clear vision and a way to aim his weapons, all hovering in front of the Jaffa.

He knew this was the standard weapon of the larger and more expensive assault transports, which wouldn't fit through the Chappa'ai. At least four of those would see testing by the Black Legion, with Tel'tak and Al'kesh deploying them to a nearby training zone.

Jek'il swung the weapon left and right, looking around. Two more transport squads flanked his own. All twelve vehicles advanced much faster than a Jaffa could sprint, heading towards a nearby forest. The exercise aimed for the combat transports and thein Jaffa to come to grips with an enemy fortified there and make them rethink their stupid choices.

"Suppressive fire." The unit commander ordered. Jek'il heard him loud and clear, thanks to the wondrous commlink. There was no longer a need to scream to be heard. Even better, a commander could easily lead groups of warriors out of sight or hearing range using those things!

Or, in this case, a commander who wasn't in the same vehicle had no issue giving orders to everyone.

Jek'il did as ordered and opened fire. The Int'ar-type weapon he was in charge of belched real-looking plasma. The explosions caused by his Int'ar were much less impressive than real cannon blasts.

Jek'il knew that those were, in fact, concussive blasts that couldn't permanently harm someone in full armor. Like the Jaffa acting as the enemy today.

That was good. There was no point in wasting Jaffa's lives when their God's magic could make the exercises realistic enough without the danger of dying.

Jek'il pressed the second trigger and the twin-linked weapons laid down a less accurate but impressive amount of fire. Any smart Jaffa would keep their heads down in the face of such a barrage!

The transports soon reached the edge of the forest and suddenly stopped. If it wasn't for the straps holding Jek'il in place, he would have smashed his face through the magic floating in front of him and into the controls behind it.

"Out, out, out!" The Jaffa in charge of the warriors inside the transport barked, and the nine mechanized Jaffa charged out.

Meanwhile, Jek'il kept firing to keep the opposition's heads down.

The other transport weapons fired at will as well, unleashing enough Int'ar "plasma" to shred the forest if it was real.

Here and there, a particularly brave or foolish Jaffa poked their head to shoot back, only for their fire to harmlessly splash over armor or fly wide. A couple of shock grenades rolled out of the forest, attempting to slow down the advancing Jaffa. Light and magic rolled over Perun's finest, washing over their armored forms without apparent effect. However, the magic was enough to knock out two gunners because they didn't wear the heavier assault armor. You couldn't wear something so bulky and fit into a gunner's seat.

A brave Jaffa jumped out of the bushes and threw a shock grenade at Jek'il's transport. It bounced off its front and detonated right in front of his weapon station. The magic in front of the young Jaffa distorted for a heartbeat. Then it cleared, showing a clear view of the outside world.

Jek'il grinned and shot the enthusiast before he could get back into cover. Int'ar rounds slammed into his target's armor, sending him stumbling to the ground. Soon, the heavy armored Jaffa of the mechanized force charged into the forest, forcing Jek'il and the remaining gunners to cease fire.

The transports pulled back a bit, creating a secure perimeter, where wounded Jaffa could retreat if necessary, and waited.

When all was said and done, the exercise was a success that exceeded expectations. That, of course, meant more training in the coming days. More complex ones as well.

Jek'il couldn't wait!

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CC FOB Alpha
Krepost
Milky Way Galaxy

Prime Gorski enjoyed his rotation as acting commander of Chappa'ai Command. Being the one in charge of a secret fortress, which was out of sight and mind, had various advantages. That way, Gorski could train his Space Wolves without the danger of spies sneaking up on them. This allowed the Prime to prepare his Wolves as he wished for one of their primary jobs – assaulting and capturing enemy Ha'taks.

With no missions scheduled for the foreseeable future, except for the odd scouting trip, Gorski had the time and manpower to spare. He used those assets to build a mock-up mirroring the interior of a standard Ha'tak. Then, his Wolves could test various methods of taking a capital ship while facing better than anticipated opposition. Namely, their fellow Jaffa blessed by Perun.

Today, the Prime had to sadly let one of his deputies run the exercises. He had other projects to oversee.

Thanks to the fabricators captured in the major raids CC ran, they had an industrial base rivaling that back home. This allowed them to produce various prototypes for testing and build their own vehicle variants based on those undergoing testing on Slavna Zemq.

Of particular interest was what Perun himself dubbed Katusha. The concept was deceptively simple. Get the body of a combat transport, remove the troop compartment and use the freed space for a weapon emplacement.

The weapon itself was something Gorski hadn't ever seen or heard of. Despite Perun's reassurance, he had been doubtful of the relatively primitive concept behind the weapon itself.

The test emplacement was a simple row of rails containing a single weapon, a rocket. Jaffa were working on building a more complex and deadly weapon emplacement. It would be a box-shaped device with at least four rail lines stacked upon each other. For at least four times the firepower compared to this prototype.

The weapon itself was simple as well. The warhead was the same type of plasma charge that Al'kesh used. CC could produce them in bulk thanks to captured equipment.

The rest of the rockets were odder. They used a staff weapon, a liquid naquadah power-cell, as a fuel source to power a tiny engine. Perun used the same kind in the relatively rare scouting machines he created. The same kind that the CC used to send through the Chappa'ai to check if it was safe for Jaffa to go through and begin scouting in earnest.

Those were expensive and relatively hard to make. That was why there were ongoing projects to figure out a better way to launch the rockets. The downside of that was that, while likely much cheaper, the weapons wouldn't be guided.

One project looked at using energy provided by the vehicle or a power source on the rocket themselves to use the rails to launch the missiles. Another looked at trying to make a small yet cheap engine that would be worth sending on a one-way journey.

"We're ready, Prime Gorski!" One of the Jaffa engineers, as Perun dubbed them, announced. They were Jaffa brothers and sisters who excelled in learning previously forbidden magics.

That was a double-edged blade. These Jaffa did what no Jaffa had been permitted before, creating new equipment for the Jaffa to use. However, they were too valuable to risk in open combat, so their days as warriors were over for most of them.

"Begin the test," Gorski ordered.

A nearby Jaffa pressed a button. What followed was less than exciting. Gorski could barely hear the launch. He was at a safe distance in case a plasma charge malfunctioned, making the whine of the anti-gravity engines little more than a whisper.

The rockets rapidly vanished in the distance, then the horizon lit up with explosions.

"It works. Now it remains to see how well the rockets did." The same engineer noted.

"Let's go see," Gorski ordered and headed towards a nearby waiting transport. If nothing else, those things saved a lot of time walking around, allowing Jaffa to spend more time training, studying, or even relaxing. That practically made the investment in time and material to design and build them worth it. Marching was all excellent. Jaffa should train for it, just in case. However, Gorski could now see it was a significant waste of time if you had a better alternative.

Time was an essential resource when there were many new vital things to learn, like how to best utilize indirect fire weapons.

Proper air support would be better. Having the independent capability when it wasn't available could be lovely, Gorski decided when he saw the targeted area. While accuracy left much to be desired, a limited amount of guided, more expensive weapons could account for essential targets. Besides, a single launch from a crude prototype apparently had the same firepower as an Al'kesh bombing run without needing a bomber.

Even if nothing else changed, a single boxy launcher, when those were ready, could almost rival the firepower of a squadron of Al'kesh during a bomber run. That was going to be a compelling advantage, one that Perun's enemies wouldn't enjoy at all, Gorski decided.

"Get us back to the base," The Prime ordered his driver. He would have to shift more resources to the Katusha project. Like many things Perun introduced, Gorski was sure that what he just saw was merely scratching the surface of what was possible.

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Part 6

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Lockheed Martin signs up a contract with the US government to further develop next-generation aircraft. The Air Force requires more of the Advanced Tactical Fighter program than the negotiated development of the F-22 project could account for. Rumors persist about possible material-science breakthroughs and advancements in other fields that the Air Force wants to incorporate into the program.

In a surprising move, Congress rapidly approved a bill increasing funding for the ATF program. The approval happened soon after Congress approved multiple bills with unusual haste, raising many questions...

Air Force Magazine

In a surprising move, the United State Army and Marines announced a joint program to increase the protection of their vehicles. Pentagon insiders cite lessons learned in Somalia and during various peacekeeping operations after the Gulf War.

Military Review

The US Navy announced a program to acquire new potent long-range SAM systems to protect carrier battle groups and naval installations better. This program, in combination with new developments announced by the other branches of the military, makes for the most significant increase in the military budget since the end of the Cold War.

Naval Aviation News

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23 July 1996
Area 51
The United States
Milky Way galaxy

For a second time, being expendable benefited Jack O'Neill as far as the Stargate Program was concerned. Project Giza, the Green Commission's bastard child, or whatever the brass called it today.

Even better, he got to be the first human to test an alien spacecraft.

There were younger test pilots with more recent flight experience. Of course, there were. However, they were yet to be read into the program; honestly, most of them were more balanced and valuable than him. At this time, anyway.

Jack wasn't going to complain. The project gave him a new lease on life at a time he had been seriously considering ending it all. And if an accident happened, well, that would be fine as well.

Meanwhile, Jack was determined not to throw this opportunity away. He did all he could to focus on the task, push his issues out, and be as professional as possible. It was dull and frustrating.

It also meant he was about to test an alien spacecraft. Jack kept repeating that fact to himself as a mantra. Surprisingly enough, doing so helped him center himself in the present.

That was how Jack ended up walking around a Death Glider with its wings folded up. The alien machine almost looked like it was about to get up and walk out into the desert to scare the UFO enthusiasts.

That would be undoubtedly cool and different.

Jack finished his tour and checked up his flight suit one last time. If everything went as planned, he might even get permission to take the spacecraft out for a brief spin!

Looking at the large groups of assorted scientists and engineers huddled over piles of advanced-looking equipment was a clue about things to come. While his efforts tonight might be useful, the exercise would likely be tedious.

"Colonel O'Neill, please board the craft. We're ready." Captain Carter's voice rang above the nerd's muffled muttering.

"Finally! It's about time!" Jack exclaimed and rapidly walked to the short ladder leading into the Death Glider's cockpit.

He got in and sat, shifting to make himself more comfortable.

The seat and available free space in the cockpit was more than Jack expected. The consensus was that Jaffa pilots were larger than average. Which meant the cockpit had to offer more space to accommodate them. There was even a new theory that the alien snakes had non-human hosts who were larger and needed the space to fit in the first place.

"Colonel, you can now power up the craft!" Carter announced again.

"There goes nothing," Jack muttered. He had read the translated manuals.

The few buttons on the control panel were for emergency use only. One would try to manually activate an auto-pilot and bring the Death Glider back to its carrier.

Considering there were no such carriers for light years around, it was good that Perun's people had disabled that function. According to the manual, otherwise, the Death Glider might attempt to reach the nearest Goa'uld held system its computer knew about. At sub-light speeds, which would take a lot of time.

That was also an anti-theft measure, which Perun's people generously disabled. Hopefully, the Death Glider wouldn't try to fly home with Jack on board. That wouldn't be a good way to go. It was also one of the primary reasons why he was the pilot testing the craft. Just in case Perun's people lied or just fucked-up while preparing the vessel.

Jack put his hands on the red sphere in front of him. According to the manual, that would be all he needed to control the craft. He had to think about what he wanted to happen. The mere implications of that technology were staggering, and not for the Air Force.

'Switch on. Come alive. Come on!' Jack thought in frustration when initially, nothing happened.

The sphere lit up with soft red light. Jack's hands tingled. The sensation went up his arms and neck until he felt a prickling in his brain. The previously dark control panel lit up.

Jack could feel the ship come alive around him. It wasn't quite as if he was the ship. However, they were connected. It was almost as if the Death Glider was an extension of him, a new limb he didn't know how to use.

There was a vague sense that the ship was busy checking itself, likely running diagnostics to figure out if the engineers put it back together right. Jack felt a sense of completion and readiness, followed by the experience of a second heart starting to beat.

It took all the Colonel's willpower not to yank his hands away from the sphere. Somehow he knew this was the ship's powerplant awakening and powering up. The craft vibrated once, and the engine came online with a quiet whine.

The canopy closed up of its own accord, and Jack could see. It was like he had dozens of eyes all over the ship, looking in all directions. At the same time, he could see through the canopy with his two eyes, making for a weird experience.

The engineers and scientists apparently agreed if their agitation was anything to go by.

"It's all right! I just turned it on as planned!" Jack said, and to his surprise, he could hear his voice echoing throughout the hangar. "This thing has loudspeakers! Neat!"

Jack kept looking around and grimaced when he felt a bit dizzy. He wasn't accustomed to something like that.

"This thing has 360-degree camera coverage, and I can look in all directions simultaneously! It's both awesome, and it quickly grows disorienting." Jack kept speaking.

"Colonel, pop up the canopy if you can hear me!" Carter shouted back.

"I hear you loud and clear, Captain," Jack answered. He had to think about it, and the canopy popped up. The panoramic picture cut off as soon as it happened. That let him see through just his two eyes.

For some odd reason, that was even more disorienting than suddenly seeing everything around.

"Just the control system I've experienced so far and the view it gives will be a game changer. Probably that will be worth everything we've traded to Perun." Jack happily announced.

He couldn't wait to test this thing on an actual flight!

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