So, it has been awhile since I was able to last update the story, but never fear I will eventually get it finished…eventually!
Thanks for the reviews, glad to see people are still reading despite the delays between the chapters.
Chapter 17
Jack took a quick inventory of personnel once they were returned to the briefing room. Both SG1, minus Major Carter, and the Sanctuary teams with the addition of Jacob were accounted for. The remaining SG teams that had accompanied them were nowhere to be seen. The alarms for the base were going off indicating a breach of security, which Jack took as an announcement that they had returned. Jack glanced at the clock on the wall.
"Daniel, why don't you stay here with Dr. Magnus and her team and Teal'c and I will go see if we can find the General…and the other SG teams."
"That's fine Jack, I can keep them entertained for a while. I'm sure they have lot of questions from the last day and a half. I know I do." Daniel replied to Jack's order/suggestion.
Jack and Teal'c headed out of the conference room and down the stairs to the gate room, figuring that was a good place as any to start.
"Well, it could be a few minutes or longer I guess, anyone want coffee or water while we wait?" Daniel indicated the sideboard where beverages were usually set up. "Humm…well let me call for something for us. It looks like no one has been in here all day." Daniel picked up the phone and called Sgt. Harriman to put in a request. He was not so politely informed that there would have been drinks if he had been able to get into the room to do so.
Turning back to the group that had set themselves at the table he gave them a sheepish smile. "It turns out that when we left, Thor did not lower the force shield around the room, so for the last 36 hours or so, only General Hammond has been able to get in here. Someone will bring something to the door for all of us."
Daniel made himself comfortable in his usual seat and waited for the questions to begin.
"Okay, I will start." Will stated when no one from his team spoke up. "You made an off-hand comment about you being the one that deciphered the gate, but that the program to travel to other planets was Sam. How did you initially become involved?" Will wanted to know how a civilian became part of what appeared to be the most respected team on the base.
"Well, that's a bit of a long story." Daniel laughed to himself thinking back to his first meeting with Katherine. "So for starters, I am a linguist as well as an archeologist…bit of a disgraced one if you look me up on the internet. My theory back in the day was that the great pyramids were landing pads for alien spaceships. It was during a lecture almost nine years ago that I was trying to convince the community of this. By the time that I was done, I had emptied the room and there was only one or two people that stayed to the end, though they didn't believe me either."
"I could see how that theory would not be widely accepted. People close their eyes and ignore the very world around them in favor maintaining the status quo. Most people feel the same way about abnormals. Even seeing them with their own eyes, they make up excuses. We run into it all the time." Helen agreed with him.
"That's it exactly." Daniel replied. "Following the lecture, I was approached by a woman named Katherine who said that she believed what I was saying and asked if I wanted a chance to prove it. I almost turned her down thinking she was having one over on me, but I was out of money, and pretty much ousted from the archaeological community. So later that night, I called her and accepted. The next day I was brought here and given some hieroglyphs to translate. Took almost a week before I was able to come up with the answer and we opened the stargate for the first time or at least the first time we knew about, but that is another story."
"Okay, so I get that they needed your expertise, but how did you get them to let you stay? And on SG1 of all teams?" Will knew how hard it was to be the outsider and to not have people accept you because you saw something in the world that they didn't. It was one of the reasons that he was not in the FBI anymore.
"Well, that is the second part of the story. Jack and his team were brought in. Their mission was to go through the gate and determine if what they found on the other side was a threat. If so, report back and additional measures would be taken. At the same time, they decided that I was no longer useful, and I was basically told to take a hike. I convinced them that the team needed me to go with them because there had to be a symbol on the other side that I didn't have here, and the team would need that to dial the gate to get home."
"But it all worked out in the end, you obviously made it back." Ashley spoke for the first time since returning to Earth.
"Yes and no. There was most definitely a threat, but not when we first arrived. We met with the local tribe and made friends. I got married, Jack taught them about chicken, and we had a good first night. There was a major language barrier and we ended up using hand signals to get our point across most of the time."
"Wait. How did you end up married on your first night?" Will asked
"Well, Katherine gave me a neckless for good luck before we left. Turned out it was the symbol for Ra, which was their god. They assumed that I was sent by him and gave me the leaders daughter as a gift." Daniel held up his hand before anyone could state the obvious like Sam had when she first found out. "I tried to refuse but in doing so it would have left her in disgrace since they thought I was refusing because she was not good enough. So, I played along. As it turned out, she was the key to getting us all home since I had no idea where to find the symbol we needed." He paused trying to figure out a quick way to get through then next part. "It all went to hell the next day though. Ra decided to pay a visit to the planet, I was killed then brought back to life, the rest of the team was captured and eventually broke out. We started a rebellion and set off a nuke on the alien ship killing Ra and starting our fight with the Goa'uld. I was able to dial the gate to get the team home, but ultimately decided to stay behind."
"You know how crazy that sounds right?" Ashley asked. "I mean, I have to believe you given where we are and all and what I have seen for the last two days, but if you had told me that a week ago, I would have told you to see a shrink."
"We haven't even hit crazy yet." Daniel laughed "That was just the first mission. We have been doing this for the last seven years. Some of the things that we have seen and done would blow your mind."
"But you said you died and were brought back. How does that even happen?" She wanted to know.
"Oh, that's easy, it is all in how advanced your technology is. I have died five or six times now, give or take. After the first few you kind of stop keeping track. But luck has been with us, and it has not stuck, for any of us. I'm not the only one that has died around here. But my turn, how did you become part of the Sanctuary team. You have been with them less than a year if memory serves." Daniel returned the same question he had been asked.
"Oh, that's easy, Magnus ran me down with her car." Will and Ashley laughed.
"Well, that was not my intention for our first introduction, but you did get in my way. And we barley brushed by you, what a few bruised ribs and a concussion?" She smiled at him.
"So anyways, I wake up in the hospital, and the next thing I know she is offering me a job. Not just that though, a chance to finally get answers to questions I had been asking since my mother was killed by an abnormal when I was a kid. I witnessed the attack, and after years of no one believing me about what I saw, I finally changed my story to one that fit in with the world view. This past year has really opened my eyes that's for sure. Helen and Ashley could tell you stories about some of their more harrowing adventures. Mine have all been tame so far."
"Tame? Have you already forgotten about almost being eaten just before we were called here? I would think that would stick out in your memory." Ashley reminded him.
"Well I didn't die, so comparatively, I think he wins." Will laughed.
"And you didn't die because…" she lead him to finish the statement.
"Because you saved my ass. I did thank you for that if you will remember." Daniel watched the two going back and forth with the banter. It was a reminder of some of the lighter times with his own team. To him it meant that even if Will didn't realize it yet, he had become a dynamic part of the Sanctuary team, and he had found a place he was accepted. Will was pretty sharp though or maybe he was too close the situation and Daniel only saw it so clearly because he himself had been in the same situation seven years ago. Making eye contact with Helen while the other two continued on they shared a smile in acknowledgment of the acceptance.
"Okay Daniel, back to your story, because since you're here it obviously can't end with you on another planet." Will wanted to know more about what happened to bring him back.
"Well, part of the story is profoundly personal, and I would rather not share that. But essentially, Apophis, another Goa'uld, came through the gate here about a year later. Since it was assumed that the gate only went between Earth and Abydos, the military figured they had to come from our side. Sam joined the team for the next trip, and I showed her a list of gate address proving that the gate went to thousands of planets. The problem was that the map didn't account for millions of years of the planets moving and the addresses listed didn't connect. I returned with the team back to Earth and Sam was able to create a computer program to calculate the stelar drift of the planets and using the map we were able to start exploring other planets."
Jacob had been sitting quietly talking mostly with Selmac but listening to most of what was being said around the table. He know that the story didn't quite have the successful conclusion that Daniel was portraying, but he understood not wanting to share the whole story with everyone. For the last twenty minutes or so Selmac had been pushing him to talk to Helen alone. They were introduced on the ship but there were to many people around to really get past a casual greeting. They were convinced that there was something else going on and they wanted to find the underlying cause of it so that Sam didn't end up hurt more than she already was.
"Dr. Magnus, do you mind stepping into the Generals office. The kids here can keep themselves entertained, but I think we should talk." Jacob had waited for the refreshments to arrive and thought it was a great time to pull her away.
"Yes, given the circumstance, I believe a conversation between us is warranted." She stood from the table and started to follow Jacob. "Please continue everyone, we will be back shortly." She made eye contact with Will, knowing that he would want to know about the conversation later.
They entered the office, both taking the seats in front of the desk and facing them toward each other.
"I'm not really sure where to start." Helen spoke up first.
"That's fine because I do. Who are you? Why is it that the President decided to give you, of all people, unrestricted access to a program that is so far beyond classified I don't even have a name for it?" He leaned slightly forward in his chair. "They could have done a quiet investigation after learning the information from Thor. But instead, the Presidents first reaction was to bring you here and tell you everything about the stargate."
Helen was caught off guard. That seemed to be happening a lot of late she realized, but given the circumstance, she figured she was due.
"Well, that's not what I thought we were going to discuss, but we can start there. Did anyone tell you what I do?"
"Not really. Just that you work with abnormals, whatever those are, and that the President knew who you were immediately when Hammond informed him of the situation yesterday."
"So, for clarification what I do is just as much of a secret as the Stargate program. The major difference is that it was created by my father in the mid 1800's, and I continued it when he died. I am the head of the Sanctuary Network which is comprised of twelve facilities across the world whose mission it is to find and if possible, protect abnormals from the human population while at the same time protecting the world from some of the more dangerous abnormals by restricting them to one of the Sanctuary facilities. We operate with accords from the major governments across the world and we share information. I am called in when an abnormal has gotten so out of hand that it could potentially become public. When Henry was elected, he was briefed about the Sanctuary the same as he was about the Stargate Program I would imagine. We met on a few occasions to ensure that my operation would continue without interference. He even had a brief tour of the NY Sanctuary just because he didn't believe at first."
"So that's it? A couple of meetings and a tour of one of your sanctuaries and he hands you the Stargate on a silver platter? I was an Airforce General, I spent most of my time in black ops and this government does not just arbitrarily let a relative stranger in on our most closely guarded secret." Jacob insisted.
"I don't know what else to tell you. My best guess is that he needed my corporation and I, like your government, do not invite people into my world without a damn good reason. Before yesterday, there were exactly five people that knew the truth of my history. Even my own daughter believed that I was just another abnormal. I have told this team more in the last thirty-six hours than I have any other soul in the last 130 years. Was it because they shared their secret first or because once I knew Sam was my daughter, I felt she needed to know that her life was going to change in ways she can't even comprehend yet."
"Maybe she can't right now, but I can, and I can help her through it. I know what she is going through."
"Do you? You chose to become Tok'ra, you may not have known everything there was to know, but you knew about the longer life spans and what you were getting yourself into. Ashly is knowingly choosing this life. I am choosing not to have the abnormality removed from my DNA, even knowing what I know now. But Sam never got to make that same decision; it was made for her. According to Thor the process is irreversible. Whether it was activated at birth with a time delayed effect, or it was activated recently, doesn't matter, there is no going back for her."
"And you think that you are better equipped to help her through it is that it? She is my daughter, not yours." Jacob said heatedly. He opened his mouth to say more but instead his head dropped and when he looked up his eyes flashed. Between Sam and Janet she knew that the flash was Selmac taking control. Given that they had not officially met yet she was once again caught off guard. She hated that, she very much liked to be in control.
"I will apologize for Jacob's behavior, he had no right to say what he just did about Sam not being your daughter. That was not fair of him, and he said it without thinking."
"Thank you for saying that, but I'm sure he is disagreeing with you even now. But other than the contribution of my DNA, he is right. I didn't give birth or raise her, and he did. Raise her that is. I know that for all intents and purposes, I am not her mom. But without me, she would not be here. I have every right to get to know her. It's no different than a man finding out years later than he unknowingly fathered a child, and the information was kept from him."
*Damn it Selmac give me back control!* Jacob yelled in is head.
*Not until you have calmed down and gotten your temper under control. I have a feeling that this woman is going to be part of our lives for a very long time, and I will not have Sam put in the situation where she has to choose.*
"Your right, but he can sometimes be very stubborn, and it may take him time to come to the same conclusion." She told Helen while continuing to have a conversation with Jacob. The Tok'Ra were nothing if not multitaskers at having multiple conversations at the same time.
*It's not like she wouldn't chose us if that's what your worried about.* Jacob wanted to know if this was the reason for the 180 from their conversation in the briefing room. Selmac had agreed that there had to be something else going on and had in fact pushed Jacob into a conversation with Helen that he was not ready for.
*No that is not what this is about. Because if it came down to it, she would choose you, but do you not think that she would come to resent you eventually for having forced the issue? We need to get along…* Jacob interrupted her.
*We don't if Anubis wipes out the planet, then it would be a non-issue.* Jacob smirked in his mind at Selmac. She promptly smacked him upside the head.
*First that was mean spirited and cruel, gfvc and I have come to expect more from you. But do you really believe that if it came down to it, Sam would not find a way to save these three people? She would do no less for them then she would for Mark and his family. Regardless of her relationship to Helen should you try to sabotage it, she will want a relationship with her sister.* Jacob mentally hung his head knowing that she was right. Regardless of how this affected him, or how much he wanted this to not be happening, Sam was going to need all the support she could get, regardless of the source.
*Just to drive the point home, in case you still don't get it, the woman sitting across from you is the only reason that you will not have to live through burying your daughter. You should be on your knees thanking her, not hoping that the planet is wiped out just to get rid of her.*
*Okay, Okay! Your right. Can you keep talking to her, I need time to think.*
*That's fine, but while you're thinking, start figuring out how to phrase your apology, because she deserves one from you.* Selmac left Jacob to his thoughts now that he was no longer fighting for control. It fundamentally went against everything she believed in to stay in control when he was not consenting. If he had pushed the issue, she knew that she would have taken the back seat to the conversation, hoping to have some sway over how things progressed. She was glad that she didn't have to watch him damage a relationship she knew he would regret later.
"So tell me Dr. Magnus, how is it you came by your longevity if you are not an abnormal like you inferred a few minutes ago." Selmac knew that they had missed out on part of the story coming into it late in the game, using one of Jacobs favorite phrases.
"I just assumed that Sam or Jack told you."
"When we talked to Sam, we spent more time reassuring her than asking for details, and Jack refused to say anything other than you were Dr. Carter and that was how you were to be addressed when anyone other than SG1 was present."
"Okay, that's fair. I'm not sure then what you know and what you don't know. So how about I start at the beginning, and you can ask questions as we go. Before I start, so I don't have to do this again, Jacob is aware of what we are discussing right?"
"I have not suppressed him, if that is your concern."
"I'm still not one-hundred percent on how the relationship works with the Tok'Ra."
"He is a bit distracted, but later when he is ready, I will show him our conversation. A good way to describe it is that I will push the memory of our conversation into his conscious mind. It is how one of us can sleep but still know all the important things that happened during that time."
"That is fascinating, and I would love to sit down with you at some point to learn more about the relationship and how it works, but for now let me tell you my story and hopefully that will help you both to understand a little better." Helen started her story with Selmac from the time she was contacted by Henry up until they had arrived on the new Tok'Ra home world. Amazingly, she found herself sharing more of her history with Selmac then she had previously with the SG team. Selmac was listening intently with a knowing look of sympathy that no one else she had met understood. She really hoped that she could get along with Jacob, because she was already partial to Selmac.
As it turned out, it didn't take long for Jack and Teal'c to learn of General Hammond's location. When they returned to the gate room Jack turned off the alarm to the base and was informed by Sgt. Harriman that General Hammond was in the 14th floor conference room conducting a mission brief with SG9 who had just returned from P3R 233. Jack didn't even have to ask why the briefing was happening there because he was also informed that since Thor had not removed the barrier to the conference room and the Generals office, no one else was able to get in to do their jobs.
Jack had started to make a comment about it not being his fault when he thought better of it. Sgt. Harriman was like a doctor; you did not want to get on his bad side. But as it turned out he didn't have to go looking for the General after all. He was right in assuming that the base alarm was a great way of letting the General know they were back. When it initially went off, General Hammond immediately called the gate room just to be safe and passed a message for SG1 and company to meet in the briefing room in an hour. He looked at his watch trying to decide what to do for the next forty-nine minutes. He knew that it really was not fair to leave Daniel alone, but he could not bring himself to go sit across the table from relative strangers trying to make small talk. Daniel was better at that anyways.
Before they could leave the control room, Sgt. Harriman passed on a message that Daniel requested food and drinks be brought in. He figured that was a good a reason as any for them not to immediately return and he said he would take care of it. After a quick discussion with Teal'c it was decided that they would stop by the commissary to order the food and request that it be delivered and the swing by the infirmary to let Doc Frasier know they had returned, that Sam was missing and presumed safe, and they were to meet back in the briefing room at 1900 hours and her presence was required.
He didn't like that Sam had run off like that given the circumstances, but her parting comment about a way to defeat Anubis made him less resistant to the fact that he had to explain to the General that not only did she not return with them, but he had no idea when she would return or what her plan was. Granted, she had a lot on her mind, but she was usually better at keeping him informed. He had a mental pause and remembered finding her in the lab after at least six hours without a break and realized that maybe she didn't keep him as informed as he thought, only when he needed to know and pushed the issue, or it needed his approval as her commander. Come to think of it, there was a lot that she did on the science side that he didn't look to closely at. He decided to start paying more attention in the future.
Jack ordered the food from the commissary and he and Teal'c made their way up to the infirmary. With any luck, Janet would still be updating charts from SG9's most recent post mission physical and didn't immediately head down to meet them since she was one of the few that could bypass the force shield around the briefing room. As it turned out they were in luck, and she was sitting in her office.
"Col. O'Neill, Teal'c glad to see your back in one piece." She was trying to not to make it obvious that she was looking for Sam. "How did it go? Were you able to get Jacob?"
"We didn't run into any additional problems Doc. We dropped off the rescued Tok'Ra, picked up Jacob and proceeded back here without incident." He didn't really want to explain twice about why Sam was not there and he was hoping that she would not bring it up.
"Well I'm sure talking with her dad helped. What did Jacob have to say?"
"I don't really know. I didn't want to discuss anything about the situation with so many people around. Thor went to great lengths to make sure this information did not get out and is doing his best to protect Sam."
"I can understand that. I have a few more minutes here, why don't you guys head up and I will be right behind you." Janet suggested.
Jack looked at his watch. They only had about fifteen minutes before the General would meet them. He figured it would be a short brief since the two people that were supposed to brief him were missing.
oooo
"Well Thor, do you think this could work?" Sam was anxious to see if he agreed with her or not.
"I have sent the DanielJackson on a recon mission as you requested. We should start receiving information very soon and we will know more. However;" he held up a finger "all of this is not possible if we can't figure out how to make your abilities temporary. For that I believe we are going to need Helen as she created the original serum."
"So what your telling me is she created something a hundred years ago and with all of our technology we can't replicate it." Sam was flabbergasted. They had been working on this one component for a while and no matter what they tried it failed.
"That is correct."
Sam sighed, she knew that everyone was going to have a million questions for her given the way she ran out of the room, but she was not ready to answer them. No matter how well her plan came together, it wouldn't work without the serum, and they could not proceed.
"Okay, is she still in the briefing room?" Thor walked to a console across the room and moved a crystal.
"She is. Do you want me to bring her onboard?"
"Well, that is probably not the best idea. We don't need her team thinking we took her without her permission, given what they were told yesterday. How about you send me down to get her consent and then you can just bring us back up."
He gave her a slight nod. After a few seconds he walked over to her handing her a white glowing controller.
"Press this button when you are ready to return. Please be sure that you are touching anyone you want to bring back with you."
"Thanks Thor." She paused. "For everything." With that parting remark she felt the familiar feeling of the Asgard beaming technology and less than a second later found herself back at the SGC.
Other than a startled reaction from some of the people in the room, most didn't react. Teal'c raised an eyebrow and an incline of his head at her unexpected arrival. She glanced around the room noticing right off that her dad was seated next to Helen at the table and not with the members of SG1. With a perplexed look she turned her attention to her two commanding officers.
"Sir's" Sam said in acknowledgment of her two superior officers.
"Maj. Carter, I hope that you have a really good explanation for not returning with the rest of your team." General Hammond demanded.
"Yes sir, I do. However, not all the pieces have come together yet to make the plan viable. For that I need Helen's assistance and about twelve more hours on Thor's ship." She paused. "With your permission sir and her consent."
"Not even a hint Carter?" Jack wanted to know. "I mean a plan to defeat Anubis is huge."
"Sir, I understand your curiosity, but it is a multifaceted plan. It all hinges on one element that Thor and I can't figure out. That's why I need Helen's help." Sam glanced at Helen. "I didn't want to panic your team by just transporting you to Thor's ship without your permission. I would understand if you were not comfortable with that given everything, but we could really use your help."
Helen did not respond for the first few seconds, quickly weighing her options. So far, the people before her have proven themselves trustworthy. They had not forced any decisions on her, despite how badly they needed answers that only she could provide.
"I'm willing to come and help any way that I can, but I would request that Will and Ashley be sent back to the Sanctuary. The President was right when he said that this was about me, and they were only here because I would have refused otherwise."
"Magnus," Helen held up her hand.
"Will, I need you there to run the Sanctuary in my absence, and Ashley needs to meet with Angelo to take care of a few things." Will looked like he was weighing his options for the best outcome to the conversation but instead of arguing with her he just nodded his head in agreement.
"That can be arranged. Once we are on the ship, I will ask Thor to send them back." Sam turned to the two remaining members of the Sanctuary. "It shouldn't be more than a few minutes, so please be ready. Thor is not big on warnings." She gave them a smile. Sam turned to General Hammond. "With your permission that is sir."
General Hammond gave a nod of his head. "That is acceptable." He turned to Will and Ashley "I shouldn't need to remind you that you both signed a non-disclosure agreement."
Sam grabbed a paper from the desk table. Quickly scribbling on it then tearing it in half she handed one part to Will. "Here is the information to contact us at the base should you need anything." The other she handed to Ashley. "Here my personal number. I would like to get to know you better, so if you're interested, please keep in contact."
"I'm assuming that the sooner we leave the better?" Helen Inquired.
"Time is of the essence, yes." Sam turned her attention back to General Hammond. "Sir you may want to contact the president. If everything goes as I hope, he will want to be present for the briefing tomorrow morning." Sam glanced at her watch, doing quick calculations in her head. "How does 0800 sound sir? If we can't come up with a solution by then it won't matter."
"Carter, with three brilliant minds working on whatever this problem is you'll will figure it out. But twelve hours is pushing it for a world saving plan don't you think?" Jack pressed.
"Time is relative Sir." She said with a smirk before walking the few steps to Helens side. "With your permission General?" With his nod of approval, she placed her hand on Helen's arm and pressed the button to trigger the beam technology and returning them to Thor's ship.
oooo
The next morning found Sam and Helen back in the briefing room of the SCG. Helen was dressed in black fatigues, her long brown hair hastily tied up in a knot at the back of her neck. She was leaning back in the chair with her hands resting on the arms and her ankles crossed watching Sam move around the room hooking up projectors and setting up whiteboards. They had arrived about an hour early so that Sam could get everything set up and General Hammond could make arrangements for the President to make the meeting.
Sam ran her hands through her longer than normal hair. The thoughts in her head going a mile a minute, knowing that the fate of the planet literally depended on getting this plan approved. With Helens help everything came together, a plan that had been forming for years the more they traveled off world and met more advanced civilizations.
Spread on the end of the table where Sam was working was about a dozen file folders that she had been working on over the years in her down time. Each advanced civilization that had technology that could help them on the course they were hopefully about to embark on. They all had one thing in common; none of them were willing to trade any of that technology with Earth.
Sam was so focused on the task at hand that she failed to notice others moving into the room. First SG1 followed by her dad and Janet and then General Hammond, Thor, and the President.
"Alright people, we are on a limited schedule here, so let's get started." General Hammond said as he got a seat at the table. "Major Carter notified me this morning that they were successful in whatever it was that they were doing and given the nature of the information, she wanted to brief us all at the same time. Major, if you would."
"Yes sir, thank you."
Sam waited for everyone to take their seats. Thor nodded to her as he sat in his seat brought down from his ship.
"First, let me say that I appreciate your patience over the last eighteen hours. Second, this has the potential to be a long briefing, so there is a note pad set out for each of you so that you can write any questions you have, and we can go over them at the end."
"Like General Hammond said, I am on a tight schedule given that the white house thinks I am in a meeting with the Joint Chiefs. I have about an hour before I have a series of meetings that I was unable to reschedule."
"Yes sir, which is why I have placed a clock outside the forcefield and one just inside. With Thor's assistance, we have set up a time dilation field, a TDF, just inside the forcefield. We have as much time as we need."
"Time is relative huh Carter?"
"Yes sir."
"I'm not sure I understand what you mean." The President stated looking around the room.
"About a year ago sir, Thor requested our help with the replicators. They had devised a plan to trap all the replicators on their home planet and turn on a TDF. In essence sir time on the planet would pass more slowly than time in the rest of the universe. While a few hours would pass on the planet, thousands of years could pass to the rest of us giving the Asgard time to find a more definite way of dealing with them. We have done the same thing here, so we literally have as much time as we need."
"Any chance you used this device on Thor's ship over the last twenty-four hours?" Col. O'Neil wanted to know.
"Since I went to talk to Thor yesterday, it has almost been a year and a half." Sam took the stunned silence around the room to start the actual briefing. "Once I was able to lay out a small portion of the plan to Thor, he sent the rest of you back here and we took a road trip…so to speak." Sam used the control in her hand to bring up the first of several slides she had prepared.
"This is a star system on the edge of the galaxy. It is currently uninhabited," Sam clicked to the next slide "given that this asteroid belt passes through the solar system causing extinction level events on all the planets that pass through it, which is all of them and it happens once a year." Sam clicked to the next slide.
"We started by blocking its current path and setting the TDF around the system and set it so that several years would pass while we collected mineral samples. The original idea was to destroy the asteroids as they approached the planets with a laser grid, but it turns out they are comprised mostly of raw Naquadah and with the scope of this project we are going to need as much as we can get our hands on. It is currently being collected and taken to one of the planets so we can begin refining it. Given my time limit even with the TDF, we decided to hold off on further testing until we got approval to move forward." She paused giving them a second to digest the information.
"What we were able to determine is that out of the six planets five are habitable. Once the planets were given the chance to recover, we began seeing trees sprouting, brush and in some places snowcapped mountains. We set the TDF to a higher rate for the system and returned to Earth. The hope is that the planets recover on their own. If this does not happen, then the Asgard are prepared to terraform them for us."
"To what end Major?"
"As we all know, Anubis will eventually make his way to earth to enslave some of us and destroy the rest, we can all agree on that right?"
"It is the most likely scenario." Teal'c responded.
"The Tok'Ra agree. Once he is done with consolidating or destroying the remaining Goa'uld he will come here. How long we have before that happens, I do not know." Selmac surprisingly was the one to speak up, not Jacob.
"So, the plan is to what? Abandon Earth and move to the other side of the galaxy?"
"No Sir, not at all."
"Can we all please stop asking questions and let her finish!" The President demanded.
A chorus of "yes sirs" and "sorry sir's" rang out around the table.
"I am suggesting a co-op between the Asgard, Tok'Ra, Jaffa and the Tau'ri." At this statement, Jack started writing on his tablet.
"This will not be the same as our alliance before." Jack crossed off the first line of his questions. "The idea is to move the necessary people and equipment to these new planets and activate the TDF. We would have as many years as we need to fulfill several objectives. Ours obviously would be planetary defense, the Asgard can work on their cloning problem as well as a more permanent solution to the replicators, although that one really does affect us all. The Tok'Ra can finally have time without attacks or missions to find a way to continue their race and the creation of a queen and the Jaffa need a long-term solution to tretinoin, since the original way of producing it is not a viable option. Our one common goal is the survival of all our civilizations, and we are going to need each other to make that happen." Jack continued to write as she talked.
"Now, we are all aware of the protected planets treaty with the Asgard and that has been the reason in the past that they were unable to help in situations regarding the Goa'uld. After meeting with the High Council Thor assures me, this is no longer an issue given Anubis's attack on not only protected planets, but the Asgard themselves. They are fully on board with this plan and look forward to seeing our results." She smiled to herself as she watched Jack cross off another question from his list, set his pen down and pull off the top sheet of the pad and crumple it up.
"What I am proposing is a massive operation. We would essentially be cut off from Earth for the duration. That would mean worldwide corporation that is as of now unprecedented." Sam flipped forward a few slides until she got to the one she was looking for.
"The first planet closest to the sun is uninhabitable which is expected given the location. The Second planet has harsh conditions, like Death Valley in the summer, but it is survivable. The planet from what we can tell is rich in minerals that we all will need from Naquadah and Trinium to Neutronium. Mining will not be easy, and I have a suggestion for that, but that can come later. The Third planet has a longer path around the sun, almost oblong. It is a moderate climate, with no snowfall and would work for agricultural. Farms can be maintained to ensure a reliable food source since this will need to be a fully self-sustained system." Sam stopped for a second and grabbed a glass of water and took a drink. "The forth planet would be for science and research. We are talking about anything relating to STEM, science, technology, engineering, and math. This is where most of the population with be situated initially and eventually allowed to branch out as we add more people to the project. Finally, the last planet will be the shipyard. Most of the minerals that are mined will be moved here to be refined and used to create what we need not only for planetary defense, but eventually to take our place in the galaxy as the Fifth Race." Sam sat at the end of the conference table and waited for everyone to start bombarding her. It didn't take long and surprisingly it was Daniel who spoke up first.
"What your proposing, would mean that we go public with the Stargate and everything that we have done over that last seven years. Are we ready for that?"
"We may not need to right away, we can work in the dark to recruit scientist, doctors, farmers and whatever else we need. The reality is that we could send the Army Core of Engineers to get started on infrastructure now, but they are going to need food, which means farms, materials to build with, so logging companies and miners. It is pretty circular; we can't do one thing without several others set up at the same time."
"Why can't we set the field around the earth. It would be fewer moving parts and the people are already here. If this time dilation field works the way you say, we can spend the next thousand years advancing our technology and when Anubis arrives, he would be in for one hell of a surprise."
"Sir even if we could get all parties to agree to that, which they wouldn't, we don't have the resources. Not only that, but it is unlikely we would survive long enough for Anubis to destroy us. We would eventually do that ourselves."
"I would like to think I have more faith in the human race than that."
"Sir, with respect, we are a planet divided by politics and religion not to mention a thousand other things that could cause us to go to war at the drop of a hat, and unlike our allies, only a hand full of people know about what we do here because we think it would cause irreparable damage to go public."
"Isn't that exactly what you are asking us to do? Make the program public knowledge."
"I am, but on our terms. We get to control the narrative, it's not something that got leaked in pieces turning us into the bad guys. We can go on to show that we are not using the technology that we have acquired to force our will on other countries, and some of the advancements that have been made in medicine and science have come from technology acquired off world even if no one knows its origins. A case could be made that we have had this alien technology for years and not once have we used it to dominate the planet. Hell sir, we have Prometheus in orbit right now that no other country would have a defense against, we can use that to our advantage, but we don't."
"How would we do it? Just go on the six o'clock news and make the announcement?" The President wanted to know.
"That would not be the best way to do it sir. We start with world leaders when it comes to releasing information. We set up a neutral location and Thor beams them in. Once the TDF is active we offer full disclosure and explain the dire circumstances and the measures we want to take to defend ourselves. I would suggest starting with the Allies that already know about the stargate and branch out from there."
"You don't think that would start a panic if people just started disappearing, especially world leaders?"
"You could try the diplomatic way Sir." Daniel started "Have State send out invitations for a specific date and time."
"If we are going to do this, the reality is the faster we get this going the better sir. We really don't know how much time we have."
"What about temporarily setting up the field around earth?" Jack wanted to know.
"It's something that we would need to discuss. If we do that, it would have to be around the entire solar system. Just placing it around earth would have devastating consequences for the planet." Sam glanced at Thor.
"We could easily replicate additional TDF's and have our ship get them in place while your leaders come to an agreement."
"Sir, this will not be easy. But we have attempted to find a means off world that would allow us to protect the planet. While we have made friends, none of them will share technology with us. If we have not been able to find a defense in the past seven years, there is nothing that we could throw at them that would stop from destroying us."
"Thor, is there nothing that you can do to help?" The President wanted to know.
"We are helping. Due to our fight with the Replicators, we do not have enough available ships to come to earths defense in the face of such an overwhelming onslaught. We have at our disposal two repositories of knowledge from the ancients. One we have been attempting to gain information from them for over a thousand years, the other was retrieved from O'Neill's mind."
"So you are saying this is going to take way more time than what we have." General Hammond inquired.
With a nod of his head. "With Dr. Jackson's help sifting through the information will go a lot faster."
"My Help? You all have been going through the information for over a thousand years and you expect me to make a difference?" He looked around the room. "I'm good, but not that good."
"Not you alone Daniel. You will need to put together a team. Make your selections from the world's population and as many as you can find. You would be one of the first groups to start since you will need to teach everyone how to read not only Ancient, but the Asgard and Tok'Ra languages as well." She looked at the President. "Assuming that we will get approval."
"Well Major, I will head back to the White House and do like Dr. Jackson suggested and send out invites to a meeting. Once I have a date and time, I will need you to come and lay out the plan to the first group. After that, assuming they agree, we will move forward with additional leaders that are currently unaware of the program."
"What do you think the likelihood of this happening is sir?" Jack wanted to know.
"Well, given the alternative, I guess that we need to be very convincing. But if the alternative is certain death, I would say get ready to go public. Dr. Jackson, start making a list of linguists that we need to contact and Major Carter, you will need to make a much more detailed plan than what you have here. I would suggest laying it all out in phases. Dr. Fraiser I will need you to start getting your team together."
"My team Mr. President?"
"Yes, you have the most experience. Only makes sense that you lead the medical team."
"I don't…Thank you Sir."
"So it would appear that we all have a lot to do in a very short period of time. Good luck everyone and lets get started."