Stargate: Immortal

by Seraphin2011

Book III: The Ori gone, Aschen imprisoned, Wraith changed and pacified, yet the Alliance is threatened once more. The Vargas are coming and no one knows how they are going to survive an enemy that spans throughout the known universe and had done so for billions of years. By closing the anomalies, they have postponed the invasion by more than two years, but will that be enough?

19. New Frontiers - Part III

Author's note: I took quite some time to write the next chapter. When I left that cliffhanger in the previous one, I thought I would need maybe a month at most to write the continuation. But, here we are after more than half a year later. Ah well, what can you do? Maybe one day I won't have to work for a living, and then I'll be able to devote more time to writing. Although, by that time, I hope the story will already be completed.

For those who haven't read the last few chapters, maybe it would be a good idea to refresh your memory by skimming over them. I know I had to do it before writing this chapter.

Well, no point in waiting any longer.

Thanks to my beta, and hope you'll like this chapter too.

---

"I hope you bring good tidings, Nava," Severna said while briskly walking down the vast hall made of stones in her modest castle.

"None able to qualm your concerns, my lady," Nava, her servant, responded while walking toward her.

"That is unfortunate indeed. Have these people give a reason for such disrespectful conduct?" Severna asked.

"Regrettably, they haven't, my lady. Peaceful explorers interested in seeing different cultures on new worlds they visit - that is what they claim to be. When asked to leave, they confirm they will, always. Yet, more are present now than ever before. Normalcy is being disrupted by their constant meddling and questioning of our people," Nava replied, concerned.

"That settles it then. If force is all they understand, we shall give it to them," Severna stated angrily. It wasn't the way of her people, but there were limits to what she could tolerate. Or should.

"I wouldn't recommend taking such a rush action, Lady Severna," he said while seated at a large table placed slightly closer to a side of the hall, a table meant for at least twelve people, yet he was sitting alone. He was slowly sipping some wine, which, he had to admit, was better than the one produced in his world.

Severna looked at him pensively. "Emperor Arkhan, I am not interested in games at this particular moment. If you have true counsel to give, I am willing to hear it. If not, silence is expected."

She was a feisty one, which made him like her even more. "I do have counsel to give - good counsel that may well save your realm an uninvited future. Interested in nearing it?"

"Speak then!" she asked sharply, meanwhile motioning to Nava to leave them alone.

"Very well. The unwanted people that are infesting your streets want you to use force," he said, taking another sip of wine.

"What purpose could they possibly have to promote conflict where there is no need for it?"

"The answer lies in the very question you asked, yet you failed to notice. The Galarans want conflict - one that you started."

"They are the transgressors disinclined to leave! Not us!"

"That would not matter. In the eyes of their people, we attacked one of their own, one not holding a weapon. That is how they would see it, and how they would tell it to others. If some were to be gravely injured or heavens forbid killed even, their people would be enraged, and the Galarans would have the excuse they seek to present to other worlds. Maybe even enough to invade your realm and take it as payment without anyone preventing them from doing so."

"They want to invade us, yet they need excuses in front of other worlds to do so? Why is that so?" Severna asked, anxiety starting to creep into her voice.

"They do because there is one entity that they fear more than any other, and rightly so. It is called the Peace Corps. A bunch of peace-loving do-gooders that, if the Galarans were to invade your world without provocation, would descend upon them and annoy the Galarans to death."

"I do not understand. You speak of nonsense to me. Why would the Galarans fear peace loving people?" Severna accused.

"Because the brutes in the Terran Space Navy and Army, who are capable of wielding many planet-shattering weapons, are supporting them. If even one of those peace-loving people were to be killed, they would come like locusts, destroying all those that have wrong them as if the wrath of God himself descended upon them."

"Surely, you jest," Severna asked, snickering. "It seems Emperor Arkhan likes to make a mountain out of a molehill."

"Ask the Goa'uld, Ori, Wraith, Leptinians, or Aschen! Oh, that's right. You cannot!"

Her eyes went wide. "I never heard of these Wraith or Leptinians you speak, but I know about the other races mentioned and of their terrible fate. If the stories told around are true, those races fell by the hand of a truly ruthless oponent, unyielding and capable of bringing untold devastation on a whim. Their destruction was complete and uncompromising. The Tau'ri seem as saviors to some, yet demons to others, but all are in full accord to never provoke them, as not to end on their less amicable side," she paused for a moment. "No matter. The intricacies of galactic politics do not help me in chasing these invaders from my world. If I cannot use force, then what other recourse do I have?"

"I did not say you cannot use force."

"I do not understand. Again, I shall add!" There was a hint of desperation in her voice. "I was certain you did say exactly so."

"You can use force, but there must be a plausible reason for it. Let us say that one of the visitors did something unforgivable. Would it not then, in the eyes of the galaxy, your action of forcefully chase them away be excused?"

"What kind of plausible reason?"

"It should be a reason most in the galaxy frown upon, and deeply so. Something even the Galarans themselves would look upon with disgust and even shame. We all know that temptations are many and that the flesh is weak. I'm certain there is at least one Galaran on the planet young and inexperienced enough to fall for such lures."

"You have a very disturbing mind, Emperor. Useful, I admit, but disturbing, nonetheless. However, even a masterfully executed subterfuge would not convince the Galarans that one of their own did so without coercion of one kind or another. They would certainly know-"

"You are preoccupying yourself with needless concerns. I do not care, the galaxy does not care, and you should not care either what the Galarans think or do not. To us, it is enough if they cannot disprove their guilt. Races in the galaxy are not stupid. No doubt they would realize what has transpired and most would be glad that you tricked them, I assure you."

"If they knew, then why allow the Galarans to invade in the first place?" Severna asked. There was a trace of exasperation present in her voice.

"The same reason why the Galarans cannot invade if you used force while through legitimate reasons. If it seemed the Galarans had a legitimate reason to invade, and the Terrans reacted by attacking the Galarans, then to the rest of the galaxy, it would seem as if the Terrans were the invaders who used the Galaran invasion of your world merely as a ruse for invading them in turn. Instead of saviors and bringers of peace, the Terrans would appear as the despots and brutes of the galaxy. In the long run, that would have a harmful effect, and the entire galaxy would suffer for it."

"This all seems very complicated and confusing," Severna said, vexed.

"That is because it is complicated… and often very confusing as well," Maybourne stated, wholeheartedly agreeing with her. He sometimes missed his retirement days.

Severna was pensive. The idea he had given her must have spurred some hope and a will to act, but she was now glaring at him with wary eyes. He could guess why too. Her next sentence confirmed it. "Would I be correct in assuming that this help you are giving me does not come for free? What do you seek in return, Emperor?"

"Only to further our relationship. I take it as payment enough," Maybourne said, smiling benevolently.

"You're not pressing the issue of our people joining under your rule?" Severna asked.

"I am not," Maybourne answered dispassionately, then changed his demeanor, now looking bothered. "I also told you it would be our rule and not mine."

Severna measured him. She wasn't the kind of woman who'd outright believe a person, he knew she wasn't that gullible, but she wasn't stubborn or unyielding with her preconceptions either. "I am having trouble believing you. In both of your statements, in fact."

"In that case, I can ease your worried mind regarding my sincerity. At least in one of my statements," Maybourne said, smiling.

"It seems you like to make women wait. Please explain and do so with haste."

He could swear there was steam coming out of her ears.

"I am not pressing the issue of our people joining because I am now waiting for you to bring the same matter to me first," Maybourne said, putting a wicked smile. Severna wasn't saying anything, but he knew she couldn't simply dismiss his haughty declaration. "I'm afraid the Galarans are only one race among many in this galaxy with expansionist ideas, and with the Rings not working, planets without the capability to travel in ships become very isolated, very quickly. And being isolated might be very dangerous. Your knowledge in matters external to your world is certainly outdated, if not nonexistent, and if targeted, regrettably, you cannot find off-world help while the Ring is not working. You know that the way you are now, you are easy prey to those with the ability to come by ship. You also must have gathered by now that there are those in the galaxy who have no misgivings in attacking you even if it angers other races. Like pirates, for example."

Seven years ago, the head of the TIA, Klaus, came to him with a proposal. The Terrans needed an outsider to deal with matters they would prefer not to be implicated in. He understood such a need all too well. It was the basis of covert operations, those that should never trace back to the Terrans. However, what he thought they had planned for him was a mission with a much smaller scope than what turned out to be the case. They told him of their idea for King Arkhan to - through some fictitious connections - stumble upon some advanced technologies that would quickly uplift his kingdom. It wasn't difficult. He already had the reputation among his people for being someone with extensive knowledge - knowledge he had readily used to improve the lives of his people. With a few Terran volunteers as aides and by giving him a nanites based assembly line combined with enough knowledge copied on a few essential Crystals, the kingdom of Arkhan was about to change very quickly and very drastically. With the ability to construct what ninety-nine percent of human worlds in the Milky Way galaxy could not, and coupled with the Terrans setting up bogus deals for trinkets gained in return, the kingdom's coffers quickly welled with valuables of many types, including precious materials needed to start building his future Navy. Coupled with an excellent PR system created solely to spread rumors of a wealthy and generous kingdom willing to accept new subjects from any other world - even from poor ones, it didn't matter - King Arkhan quickly gained the needed workforce. Maybourne and his Terran cohorts had built an idiot-proof infrastructure mostly ran by semi-smart AIs, a lot of people who needed to do some additional menial work, and them on top as coordinators.

It took around four years for Arkhan to become a world with a decent merchant Navy that could service the neighboring systems, and it had happened just before the rings went down. Suddenly, his Navy was among the few capable of transporting resources, small or large, between worlds.

Three years later and Arkhan wasn't a kingdom made up of a single world anymore. Instead, it turned into the Empire of Arkhan, spanning across four worlds. Most worlds joined because of the safety his technology assured. Orbiting satellites were placed above each of his vassal worlds while central castles, those signifying his seat of power, were built and provided with shielding technology as well as ground plasma cannons. It was another way for Maybourne to centralize his power. People would grow their medieval towns and villages, keeping close to the castles since these strongholds were the only defenses capable of protecting against invaders. Of course, this would last until they manage to uplift the people in those worlds, which, admittedly, was going to take some doing and it will take quite some time.

He liked the idea of creating an Empire. In some way, it was like sticking it to Jack once more. Even better than rubbing it into his nose that he now had multiple wives. Still, what he wanted even more than that was time. It took eight years to build everything he now had and these eight years when you are in your sixties isn't something that leaves you with a sense of ease. First, he asked for nanites that restored part of his health and vitality, prevented diseases from taking him to an early grave, and even worked as a safeguard against an accidental poisoning from the local deadly mushrooms somehow finding their way into his soup. Then, the defeat of the Aschen brought medicine that could easily double your lifespan. The only thing he needed to do was safeguard his potential progeny before taking the drug that made you sterile even before doing anything positive to your body. The combination of Aschen medicine and nanites gave him close to another hundred years before the grim reaper would visit him. He guessed it would be more than enough time to get his hands on some decent cloning technology and to transfer his consciousness into the much younger body.

He wasn't fooling himself into thinking that he wasn't doing it all to further his own needs and ambitions because he genuinely was. After all, he was a selfish man. However, since his demands had been satisfied, there was no reason not to make his subjects' lives better. The only thing still on the table was the chance of going through Genesis, which was out of reach, unfortunately. To go through it, he needed to be a Terran citizen. Not only would this hamper TIA's efforts in setting him up as an emperor. It would also force him to abdicate, as no Terran could be the ruler of a world outside of the Terran Federation.

And he'd rather be an emperor in his own small yet thriving empire than being an ordinary citizen in the Terran Federation. Genesis or no Genesis issue aside.

Severna spent those few minutes mulling over what he had told her. About how sooner or later somebody would come knocking and how she wouldn't have the necessary stick to chase them away. And, he knew, she was smart enough to heed his warning, instead of dismissing it by believing in rainbows and unicorns or by thinking in fairytales that spoke of happy endings always awaiting at the end of the yellow brick filled road. She knew better, and that was the reason why he knew she would, one day, inevitably, come to him.

"You said you could quell the unease I feel regarding the other statement you made as well. You spoke of not your rule alone, but ours instead. How do you intend to do so?" Severna spoke silently.

"Marriage," Maybourne said simply and saw no disagreement on Severna's face. She was a beautiful young woman who could have any one of the many suitors readily pestering her daily. She was the only survivor of the royal family after a terrible disease struck her planet and took too many lives prematurely. Maybourne knew he wasn't going to be invited to pose for the cover of Playgirl anytime soon. Even with the nanites and the Aschen medicine, he still looked twice her age and worse than most of her other suitors. It might mean that Severna wouldn't mind being the woman behind the power, or she found his shrewd nature as a bonus. He didn't know why she wasn't refusing his proposal on the spot, but for some reason, that seemed to be the case here.

It was making him curious about her even more.

If he could somehow sweeten the deal a bit more, she might even agree. "Also, my place is on Arkhan, and yours is here."

"Are you insinuating I would be left to rule over this world? Alone?" Severna asked, eagerly awaiting the answer.

"Of course. It is your world, and these people are your loyal subjects. Who better than you to guide them? That is as long as the decisions you make are not harmful to the rest of the Empire. Laws that apply to citizens on other worlds would also apply to yours. Both privileges and obligations must be equal among all my subjects, no matter to which world they belong to. Arkhan is a very fair empire," he explained. He would set up a communication system like the one the Terrans had been using with their allies. They could be in touch with a delay of merely a few hours. "I would also provide this world with advisors and the needed technology to build defenses capable of fending off ills as strong as the Galarans, or those as pitiful yet ruthless as pirates that I know are circling this system. In time, this world would grow, and its people would fully join the rest of the Empire as nothing short of equals in every aspect. By joining the empire, your people would suffer fewer maladies, and they would be taught the truths of the universe — no more believing in magic and superstitions. Knowledge only available to the most advanced races in the galaxy would freely be shared. The likes of the Galarans would not attack you, not just because I have the means to defend us, but also because they would eventually learn to think of your people as their peers instead of uneducated boors only good to be exploited, as they are thinking of you now."

"It all seems like a great offer, Emperor Arkhan," Severna said, as she slowly sat on the other side of the table. She smiled before continuing. "But, please indulge my curiosity in one more matter. Regarding a rumor I have heard in passing."

"If it is in my power, I will answer, of course."

"How many wives do you already have? Three I believe the rumors declare," she asked playfully.

"Oh, crap!"

"That, it seems, answers my concern. Three wives already and you travel to other worlds seeking more? Do you plan to have a wife for each world you make yours?"

Maybourne sighed. "Well, I only mentioned marriage to ease your worries. A bond that would strengthen your station if your world were to become part of the empire. However, I am not in the habit of forcing marriage onto others. I am certain we can find another way for us to work together."

"No, the part about us marrying I'm fine with. The less agreeable part is you going back on Arkhan to spend nights with your other wives, while I spend mine alone in my bed. Did you not mention how your empire is a fair one? Isn't its Emperor likewise a fair man?"

He didn't expect that. "Well, I'm sure we can... come to an agreement. I do not see any issue here, and I do like to travel and visit all parts of my Empire often enough."

'Four wives? Jack is going to get a stroke.' He smiled, fully content.

---

Jack dropped into his comfy armchair, feeling exhausted. Closing his eyes, he began reminiscing on how this had been yet another tiring day he had to go through. It should be over now, but, somehow, he wasn't very optimistic. Lately, when he thought that all work was done and that he could finally go home and relax on his veranda while slowly sipping a cold beer, Walter, Sam, or someone else would always rush into his office with something important that needed to be done asap. Something that couldn't be postponed no matter what. So, he was expecting that today wouldn't be any different.

The last few days had been among the worst he had in a very long time. Not only had he been forced again to spend some time chasing after the ever-elusive Shrike in the distant past, but today, when he finally came back exhausted, he found the people around him lacking in any sympathy towards him. Of course, they listened to his story; he wouldn't allow them to leave until he told it in its entirety. It was a story about him having to go back into the past, fully knowing that once again it would accomplish nothing and that he would have to do it several more times. It had been proven that the Shrike was first sighted in the 18th century, which meant that only after he reached at least that period, he could hope to stop him. Since both were traveling backward in time in discrete hops several years apart, if he were able to stop him in the 19th century – where he went this time – he would create a temporal paradox.

That would probably be bad.

He said to Sam that he thought of this whole time-traveling thingy as impossible and above all paradoxical from its very inception, meaning the harm had already been done a long time ago. So, if that was the case, why wouldn't he be able to beat the Shrike earlier, before the first occurrence of the Shrike being sighted? Who cared if it created another paradox? He certainly didn't! He hated the whole Shrike business and even more the fact that he was the only one capable of stopping it. This was his train of thought that he had presented to Sam, which turned out to have been a big mistake. Afterword, he had to spend the next thirty minutes listening to her lecture about temporal mechanics, various theories, ideas, and blatant guesswork that his brain, with his eidetic memory, absorbed like a sponge to never be forgotten no matter how much he tried. He had, at one time, entered his imaginary world as a sort of escape from the lecture. In that world he imagined that he was standing on his porch while sipping his favorite beer, chilled to the right temperature and with no worries on his mind whatsoever. However, Sam would quickly understand what he was doing and would yell – Hey! Are you even listening while I'm explaining? At that point, answering truthfully, that he wasn't listening at all, would only have served to irritate her, and yet, the sermon would undoubtedly continue. So, why bother, right?

He had to endure it. There was just no other way.

Salvation did not come even when her lecture ended since Walter stormed in immediately afterward, bringing piled up work he hadn't done in the past several days. He clearly wasn't understanding of the fact that he had to spend the last few days in the past trying to catch a monster that, if not stopped, would cause the end of the universe. At one point, Walter did seem concerned because of his time-traveling, but the reason for his concern, of course, wasn't his explanation on how tired he was but instead the possibility of paperwork piling up too much while he was 'gallivanting through time' as to how Daniel had named it. He, as well, was an annoying being, saying that people would be prepared to pay a fortune to be able to visit the past as he did and because of it, that he shouldn't complain. Why did Daniel think of his time-traveling ventures as vacations like that was beyond his understanding? Why would anyone want to chase a monster in some godforsaken little place like Casper, Wyoming? The fact that it was the end of the 19th century the time in which he had traveled only meant that the Casper he had visited had a population of fewer than a thousand souls living in it, instead of the fifty thousand it had today. Again, like in the situation with Sam, discussing these negative connotations of time travel with Daniel – to make him understand that time travel the way he was forced to do it wasn't as glamorous as he was making it sound - was a pure exercise in futility. Both of his best friends and most trusted confidants weren't showing any sympathy toward his tribulations.

He felt a deep sense of betrayal.

He sighed, thinking how today was the same as all those other times. He'd already had to deal with the ton of work Walter had dumped on him even before he could take a shower. He was confident that, now that he was done with the paperwork, if he didn't leave soon, someone would storm inside his office wanting something that would take at least an hour to solve. This was the moment he understood. Instead of continuing to lean back in his chair, he abruptly stood up. Quickly, he began putting whatever was on the desk back in their proper places. It was a job that could be done in five minutes tops, yet he soon realized that it would last too long. His Alteran Spidey sense detected someone walking outside the office. Focusing on the approaching aura, he understood that the individual in question was none other than Daniel, who just passed his own office, on his way here. Since there was no other office further down the corridor than his own, it also meant there was no destination other than here Daniel could be going. He knew there was no escape.

With trepidation, he awaited the moment when the man entered his office.

"Oh, Jack. Why are you standing in the middle of your office?" Daniel asked the moment he stepped inside.

"I was in the middle of leaving, but then sensed you in the corridor. What do you want, Daniel?" he asked tersely.

"Nothing much, except maybe to talk about various things that are going on and to get your opinion on a few things," Daniel replied.

Daniel had a lot to deal with; he knew that. There were always various diplomatic fires that need to be put out. Because of it, he often came to him to discuss things. It was a process that helped Daniel come to terms with the problem at hand and to find the best possible course of action. Usually, he didn't mind spending some time with Daniel while discussing crucial events that happened in the galaxy and even give him a few solicited bits of advice. Afterward, he would have to come to his own decision on how to go ahead.

This was all well and good, but today had been a very exhausting day. "If you want to talk, we are going to my place where I can put my slippers first, grab a couple of cold beers second, get comfortable on my porch third, and only then start talking."

"I don't mind. Although it will take us-"

His sentence was interrupted by the sound of the beaming system enveloping them. The destination was Jack's house, just in front of his slippers.

"-some time to reach your house," Daniel kept talking, but then realized the change of scenery. "Jack, I don't think that the beaming system on the Starbase above us was built to be used for personal reasons like getting home from their office. If everybody started using it indiscriminately, we would receive quite the electric bill at the end of the month, and you know how Paul gets when it comes to unneeded cost, don't you?"

"I'm tired, Daniel. I think that using the system this one time isn't as bad as you're making it sound," he replied, a little annoyed.

"That's what the Alterrans thought too, but you know how that turned out, right?"

It was true. In the distant past, millions of years ago, the Alterrans had developed a similar system like the one the Asgard developed. It was established before the ring system. Strangely, it could be said that the ring system was created because of this earlier failure. The problem was that the Alterran liked it a lot. So much so that there were even those that woke up in the morning and used the system to teleport to the bathroom, not even five meters apart. The Alterran were very good at controlling their technology with their thoughts, so it was easy to invoke the teleportation system whenever they wanted. It sounded silly to use it for such a short distance and, in truth, if this were the only problem, they wouldn't have ended up banning the system. The bigger issue was that people used it everywhere and at any time of the day. Suddenly, a person would appear in the middle of the meeting by teleporting, or on the streets by popping up here and there at random. While other people would be working at their workplace, they would sporadically have the teleportation of some of their colleagues in and out, continually disrupting their work. It quickly became too chaotic to be used without constant disruption. It was because of that chaos that the Alterran adopted the ring system as an alternative that forced order, even though it wasn't as quick or convenient as a system that allowed teleportation to any point on a whole planet. People had to reach teleportation rings first and could only teleport to specific locations. It also wasn't activated directly with the mind but through normal controls placed at a touching distance, which further decreased the chaos a teleportation system without such constraints caused.

"That's true," he distractedly replied while speeding toward the fridge.

With a six-pack in hand, he moved towards the porch. Opening the door, he hastily zeroed on his usual chair that was already facing toward the lake. Sitting on it, he quickly went ahead and opened a beer. He gave it to Daniel, who sat on another chair before opening another one. The time has finally come. He took a long sip before leaning back. His body instinctively began relaxing.

He was finally home.

"You were quite tired, weren't you?" Daniel spoke.

"My incessant pleas for mercy ever since I came back haven't phased you or Sam one bit, so what's this now?" Jack said accusingly.

"Well, you always grumble for one reason or another. But this is my first seeing you this tired," Daniel replied calmly.

"Well, if you see that I'm this tired, then let's get to business. I plan to be in bed in one hour tops."

"First, let's talk about the Galarans."

"Refresh my memory. What's wrong with the Galarans?"

"Recently, the TIA has discovered some strange behavior. First, it was the Galarans trying to buy a Goa'uld mind-controlling drug, a prototype based on the Nish'ta drug. Not only is it capable of turning people into obedient slaves, but it also causes damage to the brain and nervous system. It's most probably because it is a half-finished product," Daniel explained.

"Okay, they are going after some dangerous stuff. What more?"

"We've also discovered that they are trying to create a sort of confederation with as many worlds in the Milky Way as they can, but only with less developed worlds than theirs, which would put them at the very top in the confederation of theirs. They've also been smart about it. Those worlds can easily be coaxed into joining by giving gifts to a few influential people in their respective worlds. Once they have those people in their pockets, it is difficult for said world to keep their distance. Even if the populace rebels against the idea, those influential people can call the Galarans for help in quelling any dissent."

"Yes, that's nothing new. We had similar problems with the Jaffa who tried something similar. Thankfully, we had Grai'ac's faction to stop them."

"That problem wasn't solved, though," Daniel responded. "Not completely anyway."

"What?"

"It isn't anything big, but there are still indications that Grai'ac's faction is still selling advanced technologies to other, less advanced, planets. We have confirmation of a sale of weapons, Naquadah generators, as well as of everything that can be attached to them."

That was a problem. Most people would think that selling a generator wasn't a big deal, but they would be wrong. Not if the seller gave the knowledge necessary to build them, operate them, and how to refuel them, but that wasn't something that Grai'ac would do. By selling them the generators and other products the other races couldn't make, they would become reliant on them. From management to replenishing the spent fuel, once they were hooked, there was nothing they could do except reverting to the stone age. Even if the Jaffa afterward raised the prices. "They are still doing that?"

"They are. And it is unlikely that the Galarans will ever stop, except in case we decide to threaten the Galarans with sanctions."

"Yeah, we are not going to do that. If the Terrans start openly opposing the Jaffa, even if it is only Grai'ac's faction, other Jaffa would resent us and could be swayed to change sides. It would cause a lot of trouble to Teal'c and Bra'tac and to what they are trying to build."

"We have to leave this to Teal'c. He's adamant in getting to the bottom of this. Although, we predict that it will hasten the breaking of the JFN. The moment the war with the Vargas is over and the Milky Way is at peace the Jaffa will break in two, I guarantee it."

"It's the same old story. The Jaffa don't know what to do with themselves when there's no one to shoot at. Anyway, we were talking about the Galarans, so let's get back to that. Have there been other developments? Something that shows what they are up to?"

"There were a few planets that were attacked by the Galarans," Daniel continued.

"What? When did this happen?" Jack asked. It is not like things like that happen overnight.

"While you were gallivanting through time," Daniel responded with a smirk.

Here it was that phrase again. "I'm not gallivanting anywhere. Besides, I have just been away for three days! How can entire worlds get attacked in such a short time? Also, why haven't I seen any report on this matter in that pile of paperwork that Walter gave me today?"

"There was no report because Klaus and I are taking care of it. I didn't want to pile up more work on you the same day you came back," Daniel replied. He was clearly considerate of him. "All planets were attacked at the same time. It was a pretty coordinated attack. We were able to get wind of one attack on a planet just in time. We were able to help them by sending Maybourne."

"Maybourne? How did he help? And why are we letting the Galarans attack other worlds without any reply?" Jack felt confused. There was no way the Terrans wouldn't do anything if the Galarans went around the galaxy targeting planets.

"As said before, the Galarans are doing it by getting the collaboration of a few influential people inside the governments of those worlds and then they arrive with the excuse of being called to help in squashing rebels to the current regime. Another way is by causing an incident in a way that it seems the other side is guilty. They tried to do the same on the planet where Maybourne went. The ruler on the planet almost fell for it. When they refused to leave, she almost ordered her soldiers to attack the Galarans and to remove them by force. It would have caused an incident strong enough to give the Galarans an excuse to send troops. Of course, once they landed on the planet, they would fabricate even more incidents, giving them enough cause to take control."

It wasn't anything new. The Germans did something similar by staging attacks committed by Polish troops. The next day Germany invaded Poland. A standard false flag operation. In this incident with the Galarans, the idea was similar. The point was the same, which was to give the Galarans an excuse to retaliate, be it because a few of their people were killed, injured, or just imprisoned, it did not matter. "So Maybourne stopped it."

"He did. He warned their ruler in time and even managed to persuade her to join his growing empire."

"With the resources at his disposal and the current situation in that region, it would be strange if he wasn't able to convince her."

"Well, yeah, that's true. Maybourne did have a lot to offer," Daniel replied, but there was something strange in the way he said it.

"What's going on? What are you not telling me?" Jack asked with narrowed eyes.

"It's just that… to strengthen the connection between the empire and this new world… it's just."

"Say it already! What could he have offered to them?" Jack asked. The Terrans had given Maybourne many technologies so that he could quickly expand his empire. However, many of those technologies were not to fall into other hands.

"I wouldn't say that he offered something. It's just that… it appears that they have decided to deepen their bond by joining in marriage."

He trembled while unconsciously squeezing the almost empty beer in his hand. "What?!"

"Maybourne is getting a fourth wife."

"I should have shot him when I had the chance!" Even while he talked, his body wouldn't stop from trembling. "I-I don't care if he has four wives! Why would I care about that? I-I…"

"Yeah, I can see exactly how much you don't care," Daniel responded, sarcasm dripping with each word spoken.

"Daniel! You're not helping!" he retorted while angrily grabbing and opening another beer. 'Would a six pack even be enough tonight?' He wasn't sure.

"Anyway, that's what we discovered while you were away."

Jack leaned back in his chair, no more thinking about Maybourne. It was true that recent actions taken by the Galarans were of concern, but there weren't many options on what to do. "What about a nice diplomatic response saying something like 'we know what you did, and we don't like it'?"

"That's a given. In a few days I'm going to meet with my counterpart in the Galaran government and, among other things, this will be what I'm going to tell them."

Jack thought for a moment and then understood. "Oh, so you're asking me about what's coming afterward."

Daniel nodded. "The Galarans must know that we would eventually find out. Nevertheless, they still went with their bad plan. Such behavior is telling me that they won't stop even after we warn them. Also, warning them, but then doing nothing when they keep going with their plan of dominating over other worlds, isn't a choice. We would look weak or at the very least indecisive."

"I'm still not sure why they are doing it, or why they think that they'll gain something in the end."

"I think two factors have influenced their decision to do this. First, we told the galaxy at large that we are going a step back from galactic affairs. It is the right step for us since we have so much knowledge now that we've received from the four great races that it will take us decades to assimilate just the basics. We also went through Genesis, which changed what we are on a genetic level. We now need some time to understand who we are and our role in the universe before we go around the galaxy telling others how to behave. Lastly, the Terran Federation is still in its infancy. We still have problems setting up the boundary between the federal government and the local planetary governments. We are also planning for the Langarans and Tollans to join our federation, which keeps our hands full," Daniel kept rambling.

"I get it. I get it. No need to tell me the reason in so many details. Rather, what's the second reason?"

"Sorry, I lost myself there for a moment," Daniel replied apologetically. He must have a lot on his plate. "Second, the war with the Vargas began."

"The war you say."

"Yes. With the war raging in the Milky Way, the Terrans and the Jaffa are busy dealing with it and unable to do much else. We are stretched thin, especially since we are now going on the offensive with most of our assets detached in distant galaxies."

"Bastards! It would be nice if we could threaten them by saying that if they don't cease with what they're doing, we could be late when the Vargas come invading their homeworld?" Jack responded.

"They would know it is merely a bluff. No matter what a few people in the Galaran government decided, we can't let their population pay the price by letting those monsters the Vargas are employing eat them. And the Galarans know that."

"You're right, I know, but I still don't like it, dammit! We also can't be too forceful. We don't want for anti-Terran sentiment to start spreading across the Milky Way," Jack responded. The situation wasn't as easy as it seemed. It would be easy if the solution were to respond with force, but if they did that-

"If we did that, we would turn out to be the bullies of this galaxy. The story would somehow spin in that direction. I'm sure of it."

"I'm sure of it too," Jack replied, taking for a moment to collect his thoughts. It didn't help that he was tired. However, with another sip of beer, an idea came to him. "If they keep at it, we publicly endorse Arkhan Empire."

"What?"

"I don't like the thought of giving Maybourne more power than what he already has, but since his Empire and the Galarans are near each other, we can threaten the Galarans to publicly support the Arkhan Empire if they don't quit with their current mischiefs."

Daniel also became pensive. "That's not a bad idea. The Arkhan Empire already got a planet on its side that the Galarans were targeting. In the end, they were the ones who pushed the planet to join the Arkhan Empire. They must be pissed about that. If we threaten to give support to their competition, they might decide to fold. Ah, but there's the Lucian Republic to think about."

Jack again stopped for a moment to think about what Daniel meant by that. The Lucian republic was a world where the leader of the defunct Lucian Alliance has set up a legit government. He was doing a pretty decent job, and there was no pirate act or other questionable behavior the Terrans may frown upon. It was all by the book. Odai Ventrell must have learned his lesson. "They too are expanding on that side of the galaxy by annexing worlds, aren't they? The Arkhan Empire might get stuck between two strong powers."

"Yes, one of the jobs of the Arkhan Empire is to provide as a counterweight to the Lucian Republic and to stop their expansion in that sector."

Odai Ventrell was currently the Permanent President of the Lucian Republic, and as far as ex-bad-guy goes, he had reformed enough for the Terrans not to step in. He was now a legit leader, one with whom the Terrans even have an amicable relationship. However, that would eventually end. Although he was a permanent president, which meant that he could not be removed from office by anyone, he remained a mortal. If he expanded the Lucian Republic's dominion by too much and then some dictator takes his place after his death, there's no way to know what might happen to the worlds in that sector. That was why the TIA wanted to hamper their expansion, and the Arkhan Empire was the perfect candidate to do it. "Maybourne can take it."

Daniel stopped for a moment. "You're not punishing Maybourne for getting married again, are you?"

"Of course not!" Jack responded, resenting the accusation.

"Sure, sure. Just keep in mind that we won't have many assets in this galaxy for as long as the Vargas are here. If Maybourne gets cornered from both sides, we won't be in a position to help."

"That won't happen. That guy is building a decent fleet. He should be able to deal with both without too much trouble. We are providing him with most of the resources he needs on the cheap anyway."

"True, but a good portion of what he is building are merchant ships. Those ships have shields and some armament, but you can't call them warships. He also needs to keep appearances. If warships start popping out like candy without spending any money on them, other races will quickly put two and two together and realize that someone powerful is backing him up, which will point them to us. That's something we don't want to happen."

"Okay, then let's help him make some money, both to cover up our involvement and to further speed up his development."

"How?"

"Well, Klaus told me there could be a good market for the Corvettes his people built, and now even the Navy likes. As a small multipurpose ship, even the downgraded version is much better than a Tel'tak. We give Maybourne the blueprints for the downgraded version and let him sell it to whoever is interested. Klaus said that there would be benefits from doing it for us too. Our agents would have a better excuse where they got the ship because they can point to the Arkhan Empire as the source. Also, this could limit the sells Grai'ac is doing," Jack explained his idea. They could also put trackers in those ships they sell. Klaus would be grateful for that.

"This sounds good, except…" Daniel began speaking, but then stopped for some reason.

Jack thought about it for a moment, but he couldn't find any fault in the idea. "What's the problem?"

"It's just that we are trying to stop the Galarans with their nefarious tactics from spreading, and we are doing the same with the Lucian Republic because we fear what would happen after Odai's death. But, at the same time, we are making the Arkhan Empire grow bigger than we ever planned."

That was true. What was the point of stopping some from expanding while helping another do the same? The answer was easy. "The devil you know."

"Huh?"

"Maybourne is the devil we know. And with the nanites and the serum taken from the Aschen that guy will live for another century at the very least. I bet he'll ask for cloning tech as a reward for dumping too much work on him."

"I get it. Since Maybourne's our guy and we know he'll stay in power for at least another century, we don't have to worry for at least that long. After that, hopefully, the war with the Vargas will remain a distant bad memory, and we will have time to deal with whatever resulted from today's decisions," Daniel concluded, nodding in approval.

"I see you like the idea," Jack responded while smirking. His second beer was empty, so he took another one. "Daniel, drink your beer. You're making me feel bad."

"Sorry," Daniel responded absentmindedly, but, nonetheless he obediently gulped down the rest of his first beer. Jack tossed him another, which he awkwardly caught.

He was on his third beer, which meant that he should soon go to bed. Still, he had the feeling there was more Daniel wanted to discuss. Probably things unrelated to the Galarans or the Lucian Republic. "Is there some other topic you want to discuss?"

"Do you think it's a viable plan what our thinkers have come up with to bring Liam home?" Daniel asked. He was not very fond of the plan.

"I was making progress in dissuading them from doing something so stupid but then was sent to the distant past where I spent the past three days," Jack responded. He didn't like the idea one bit, the same as Daniel didn't. He believed the whole plan was more for the scientists who were working on it to prove that they can do it, than their heartfelt wish to have Liam back.

"I think that using a star as the power source to power the Stargate to create a stable wormhole at such ridiculous distances is reckless at best, insane more likely. Sam agrees with me, but Rodney and the Asgard scientist working on the problem are saying that they can predict any instability in the connection or any fluctuations in the energy flow. I don't know. They can maybe do it, but I think this is just wishful thinking on their part and that it will all come down to luck."

"Agreed. Even though I'm not a scientist, I'm smart enough to know that no one can predict every variable when dealing with the reactions inside a star. Even worse, since they said that the ideal star to try it was a blue star. The Destiny was never meant to come close to such a hot star. The ship is a few million years too old to attempt such crap, for crying out loud!" Jack almost shouted the last few words. Only now he understood how frustrated he was about the whole thing. He wanted Liam back but not if it meant risking others' lives.

"The silliest thing about this whole thing is that the person with the greatest chance of succeeding is Liam," Daniel responded while feeling dejected.

"Yeah. That is if Liam's memories were intact," Jack said. He too was feeling sad.

There was no sign that Liam was getting his memories back - any of them. He was still the same as the day they found him, which was with no memories of who he was. His current state was the main reason why they were rushing the whole thing. They wanted to bring him back to provide him with the best care available. However, risking sending the man to an early grave, in his opinion, wasn't the right way to go.

"Don't you have a meeting with Aenea to see if she can put a stop to it?"

"I did have a meeting scheduled, for yesterday. Unfortunately, I was more than a century apart at the time - talking about bad luck. It's not like I'm traveling every day. And yet, when you have important business, then I get tossed back in time without warning. I went wearing only my underwear. Again!"

"I thought you learned your lesson," Daniel asked.

"Daniel, I'm asleep when it happens, and I don't know when it will happen. So, what do you want me to do?"

"Start sleeping in a T-shirt and long pants every night until this time traveling ordeal is over," Daniel deadpanned.

Why didn't he think of that? "I-I might try doing that."

"So, are you going to meet with her or not?"

"I am, I am. I already scheduled a meeting for tomorrow. I'll propose a better plan when we see each other."

"What plan?"

"I think that if we redirect the Sphere by just a little, we can make it come 700 million light-years from the Destiny. That's a distance the gate can take without risks," he explained.

"True. That would minimize the risk, but there's still the problem of using a star as the power source."

"That problem is also solvable. Since it will take some time for the Sphere to get in range, they will have plenty of time to reach a black hole. During that time, the sphere will also build whatever is necessary for them to tap into that black hole safely. Once they are in range, the Sphere is first to initiate the connection and send the freshly built components. After that, there's no risk in sending Liam to the Sphere through a stable and tested connection. From there, Liam will hop through supergates until he's finally home."

"It does sound like a safer solution. How long will it take for the Sphere to get in range?"

"Unfortunately, we are talking about months. There will also have to be some changes in the plans we made for our offensive against the Vargas because of that. The sphere will pass much farther from a potential ally. Consequently, it will take that much more time to meet them."

"That's something nobody will like hearing."

"I agree, but I think that getting Liam safely home is more important than keeping with our schedule, don't you agree?"

"I do. Liam could shed some light on what he went through in the past two and a half years and what we can expect. The restoration of his ship database isn't going great anyway, so we can't expect more data to come from there."

"That's assuming he gets his memories back," Daniel warned.

"I'm sure he will," Jack replied with confidence. "You got your memories back too."

"What makes you think that what happened to Liam is the same as what happened to me? The reason why my memories were temporarily lost was that I broke the rules and Oma had to erase them before tossing me back into the mortal realm."

"I'm not saying that what happened to Liam is the same as in your case, but there's no doubt in my mind that ascended beings are involved."

Daniel thought about it for a moment. "Yeah, planets don't simply disappear."

Daniel hit the bullseye. The planet where they had found Liam disappeared, probably immediately after they left it. That is something that mortals cannot do. It was something that only ascended beings could do, and from what he knew it couldn't have been just one but many ascended working on it. Even for them, it must not have been easy to make a suitable planet appear out of nowhere. The planet wasn't even close in appearance or composition to the rest of the habitable planets in the galaxy where the Destiny was. Liam had a haven to spend time on until we could find him. That was the whole purpose of the planet to have existed. "This is probably the reason why the ascended told us to board the Destiny."

"I still find it strange to think that the Destiny just passed through a galaxy where Liam was."

"You are looking at it from the wrong angle. The ascended were the ones who took Liam in that galaxy. After that, they contacted us and told us to send people on board the Destiny," Jack explained how he saw this whole situation.

"Yeah, that makes more sense. But that means that the ascended scooped Liam up from where he was more than six months ago. At least that is if Liam's testimony on how long he had been on that planet is to be trusted."

Right now, Liam only knew how to speak Alterran, and when asked how long he'd been on the planet, he replied 150 revolutions of the planet, which would closely equate to six months. Still, it might have been some time before Liam started counting or he missed a few days. Doctors on the Destiny were saying that Liam was pretty out of it when they brought him aboard. Even now the situation wasn't much better. "It is such a loss to lose that planet. It would have been a perfect sanctuary for our people."

"The planet where those Sloths are living isn't so bad. At least that's what I got from the reports."

"You meant to say that it is survivable, but compared to the description Eli and the others gave about the planet where Liam was found it is a far cry," Jack pointed out.

"Hey, now that you mention it, isn't it now time for everybody on that mission to return? I mean, we found Liam, and that was the reason why the ascended sent us there. Why not let everybody come back home when we fetch Liam?"

"They don't want to come back," Jack replied.

"Why?"

Since there were no ruins of lost civilizations to be found in that galaxy, Daniel wasn't interested. Therefore, he found it strange for others wanting to stay. Though, Jack had to admit. He too didn't see the appeal in that galaxy. "Daniel, how should I know? They are a bunch of scientists."

"Got it."

"Besides, there is a chance we can use the Reapers present there to our advantage. If our people can board an old model mothership than what we have here, they might succeed in getting us the data we need and failed to get here in the Milky Way," Jack added, thinking how this might help them get rid of the reapers forever.

"Let's hope so. The reapers are multiplying at a frightening pace. Even the weapon Sam developed is only slowing them down."

"The weapon has had great results in protecting star systems from the reapers, but it does nothing in helping us find where they are growing their numbers. The galaxy is too big to search," Jack said, but then he remembered something. There should have been a report on Weir's next encounter. "By the way, how's Weir's mission going?"

"It went well. Weir made first contact with some glowing aliens that live in space. Energy makes 98% of their body, which is weird. Our people are guessing that matter that makes the remaining 2% is to keep the energy from dissipating. They are also capable of entering hyperspace where they can feed on the exotic particles present in that dimension."

"Oh, so their food is found in hyperspace. That's a very peculiar race."

"They still need to absorb matter from normal space and absorb energy from stars. They are a nomadic race, so they were able to survive the Vargas incursion into their home galaxy, but they also suffered terrible losses. It seems that their offspring can only be born inside nebulas with a precise composition. That's their Achilles heel the Vargas exploited. However, fights against the grownup aliens aren't easy, even for the Vargas. Can you imagine fighting an alien made mostly of energy and the size of a battleship? Those aliens can create a powerful energy discharge capable of damaging or destroying even the Vargas ships. Because if it, the Vargas decided to leave that galaxy alone."

"Bastards! Going after their children. I haven't seen any other race as ruthless as the Vargas."

"I think of them more as machines than as living organism, so I'm not posing myself such questions - like their morality or if they are ruthless or whatever. They think like programmed machines. They are maybe more advanced than the reapers, but I think of them as the same disease that we need to remove from the universe."

While he spoke, Daniel seemed so pissed at them that it made him shiver. Thank god he thought of them as just machines! "Anyway, are these aliens joining the fight?"

"They are. The aliens said the same to Liam, and they repeated it to Weir this time around as well. They think the Vargas will sooner or later come back. So, if there are other races ready to fight them, they are also prepared to help."

"That's good news. Next, we have to wait and see how Sheppard's mission goes," Jack said. In a few days, Sheppard would meet another race. One that Liam had flagged as very important. The damage to Liam's ship caused the loss of most of the data. However, the information saying that getting this race's collaboration was paramount was intact. It seemed that, for some reason, Liam valued these aliens even more than the Aklarians, which was strange if you compared their sizes. "This race has inhabited only a few star systems in a single galaxy. And yet, Liam wanted us to befriend them at all cost. I wonder why that is."

"Well, if you think how, even though they are not as numerous as the Vargas, they still managed to chase away an enemy as powerful as them. There must be something special about them, right?"

"Agreed. I hope everything goes well. Getting another powerful ally before Shepard's next mission would be great."

"Next mission? Ah, the IC 1101 galaxy, is it?" Daniel must have remembered what the next destination for Shepard's task force was.

The IC 1101 was the most massive known galaxy in the observable universe. The one billion light years distant behemoth was four million light years across, and it contained one hundred trillion stars. It was difficult to believe that it took less time to travel to the Pegasus galaxy than to traverse the IC 1101 galaxy from end to end.

The IC 1101 galaxy was also a Vargas and Vargas minions infested beehive.

"Yes, the infamous IC 1101 galaxy. I liked it better before we got Liam's report detailing what's in it. A dozen races under the Vargas control. Some races coerced, but most have joined the Vargas willingly. There're two dozen hubs filled with anomalies connecting distant galaxies, some even twenty billion light years away. It is the most extensive Vargas' hub known to us. If we knock that beehive down, even by a notch or two, it could create massive logistical problems for them."

"I heard. Some are saying that if we manage to take control of IC 1101, the Milky Way will become safe from further Vargas incursions."

Daniel was right. All roads that led here passed through IC 1101. The only problem was how to take control of it. Even with the support of allies and even with years at their disposal, the success was far from guaranteed. They also couldn't expect to win if they waged a symmetrical type of warfare. They did not have the assets to sweep through a galaxy millions of light-years across, directly engaging the enemy, without leaving dangerous vulnerabilities.

Task forces like the one commanded by Admiral Shepard would take the central stage performing hit and run tactics meant to destroy those races that joined the Vargas willingly and to free those coerced in doing the same. Also, if they manage to plug a few holes and stop the Vargas from bringing reinforcements from other galaxies, there could be hope of even winning this war. Or at least that was the first step they must succeed in before going any deeper into Vargas territory.

"Ah, but it won't be easy. The scale of this war is just ridiculous," Jack said while leaning back in his chair.

"That's why we need to proceed step by step. Let's not think of the finish line. First, we need to close the Vargas largest known hub which is in the IC 1101 galaxy to prevent any more Vargas fleets from coming here. We both know the strength of their fleets will only increase; it is to be expected."

"True. What came here is probably just a taste of what the Vargas can send our way. It was what they were able to scrape in a short time."

"Which means that we need to plug that hole. Without it, even the Vargas won't be prepared to send their fleets for a billion or more light years long trek. Their engines would break before reaching us. Or even if they manage to reach us, it would be in a decade or two from now at the earliest."

"And only after we do that, we start thinking of our next step. It makes sense," Jack said while yawning.

Daniel must have noticed. "You're too tired, and to me, two beers is enough. A little walk from here to my house is just what I need right now to clear my thoughts."

"You're right. Tired as I am and with three beers in my stomach, the only thing left for me to do right now is to take a shower and then go to sleep," Jack said while slowly getting up. "Good night, Daniel. See you tomorrow in another exhilarating day filled with mountains of paperwork."

"Good night, Jack," Daniel replied, he too leaving the porch at the same time.

---

Inside Respite's Combat Information Center (CIC) located in the rear section of the bridge, Admiral John Sheppard intently watched the holographic projection above the large central table showing an enormous amount of data. As the commanding officer of taskforce TF-007, his job had turned into that of a fleet commander instead of the more administrative nature his earlier post had, the one he had while still back in the Pegasus galaxy. It meant that he was now the one who had to make difficult decisions with people's lives on the line. He was the one that needed to shoulder the highest burden in the whole task force, as opposed to people like Caldwell, who was Respite's current captain, who only had responsibilities to follow his orders and to make sure his ship was running smoothly. Caldwell was the same as a god on board the Respite and Shepard had no say in how he ran the day to day routine. In a way, he envied Caldwell who turned down the promotion to become an admiral. Sheppard too wanted to oversee only a single ship, but Jack had tricked him by whispering sweet words into his ear, and now there was no going back. He had to deal with his new job as the admiral in charge of an entire task force and perform his duties to the best of his abilities.

Since Sheppard came from the air force, he had a lot on his plate in learning how best to utilize the ships at his disposal and to hone everybody's skills to perfection before any real combat occurred. Therefore, drills had become a daily routine for the various crews inside TF-007, all to create a higher level of cooperation between the different ships. No matter how advanced their technology was, how powerful their shields were, or how destructive their beam weapons may be if the task force wasn't working like a well-oiled unit, it would perform subpar. As they were traveling to the rendezvous point where they were scheduled to meet a potential ally, there was no reason not to spend that time by doing combat simulations. Flying through space was tedious most often than not, and no one was against a good simulation where they would fight against a randomly generated opponent the onboard AI created. Therefore, they had played through three simulations in a row this very morning, and Sheppard was now analyzing the results.

There was a massive difference in the capabilities of the various ship types present inside the task force. The fifteen Defiants were fast, highly maneuverable and above all were peerless when it came to teamwork. That was possible in good part due to the developed neural immersion system utilized solely by the crews of the Defiants. It allowed the crewmembers to connect to the ship through a neural interface while placed inside individual pods that among other things were keeping a person safe, even in case of ridiculously high accelerations. The crew's reaction time, their ability to communicate their thoughts to others instantly, and the pods safeguarding their bodies through dangerous accelerations were allowing the Defiants to perform above expectations. However, because of it, the little ships also needed a high level of autonomy because constant instructions would disrupt their coordination, which limited what they could do inside a fleet that had other ships classes. To make things worse, the crew could spend only thirty minutes inside the pods before people would start suffering side effects, and after that, the crew was out of action for at least ten minutes. It meant the crew couldn't use the system continuously. It was also best if not all Defiants used the immersion system together, as it would be dangerous when the thirty minutes period passed. Of course, that was the case only if a battle lasted longer than half an hour, which all simulated fighting did.

The five heavy cruisers were a different story. Since they were capital ships with a much larger crew, it was impossible to use the same immersion system as the one used onboard the Defiants. It wasn't so bad for such a class of ships since capital ships relied on their shields more than on their ability to dodge incoming fire. Also, once a heavy cruiser set its sight on a target, it usually faced it head on without extensively relying on evasion, as the Defiants did. This allowed the heavy cruisers to display great results even without employing tactics that necessitated a shorter reaction time. The heavy cruisers also had the highest firepower per tonnage ratio, which meant they needed to be used differently than the Defiants. However, with such distinctive capabilities, it was difficult to make them work together. This made Sheppard think that he should give them separated duties during the incoming simulations.

In the first simulation, they had the assault carriers and the heavy builder ship in tow. The mission was to defeat the enemy while protecting the more vulnerable vessels in the task force. The simulation was set as an ambush the task force had fallen into, so he didn't have much time to decide. Sheppard took three of the five heavy cruisers and put them in the rear to protect the more vulnerable ships. It seemed logical to him to do so, but it turned out to be a mistake. It wasn't a critical one, on the level of a blunder, but it still lowered his overall score by a significant margin. He made two wrong assumptions. The first was thinking too little of the massive builder ship and the two assault carriers. They were not a good match for fighting capital ships, that was a fact that everybody knew, but they were far from defenseless vessels that needed to be carefully babysat. In truth, the best strategy was to leave as few as six Defiants to guard them maybe even luring the enemy into thinking they were not protected adequately and ending up overextending their forces. They would quickly realize that those ships had very powerful shields installed, shields capable of keeping them safe for quite some time. No matter if they'd fell for it or not, the task force would have been able to hit the enemy much harder than what his strategy allowed.

The Respite's AI was merciless and had given him a thirty points lower score because of this decision alone. His second mistake was that he used the Respite as the task force's spear. It was because he was on it and because he liked to be the one who charged first, ahead of the others. This was true ever since his days as an SGA team leader when he always tried to lead from the front.

This was very bad. The score dropped by another twenty points because of it. In truth, the Respite needed to keep a more centralized position and react to the situation by moving wherever the enemy had the most potent offensive power. Instead of using the flagship to spearhead the attack, he needed to use the Respite to absorb as much of the incoming fire as possible. The Respite was the only one with the Aegis shielding system installed, which gave the ship three protective layers, while its offensive power, though greater, wasn't overwhelmingly so when compared to that of a heavy cruiser. Now that he knew the results of the analysis, it all made sense and promised to think next time before acting recklessly.

He got fifty demerit points because of his stupid decisions, which were making his teeth cringe in frustration.

'Am I even fit to be an admiral who leads a task force with thousands of souls in it?' Sheppard thought frustrated.

Together with the other mistakes that the various captains and crews made in the first simulation, the AI mercilessly summed it up to a whopping 127 demerit points, of which fifty were his. This was bad, and the worst part was that it was just a simulation. Under the pressure of real battle, they would fare even worse, he knew it. He sighed. The first simulation ended in victory, so it wasn't a failure, but they could have done much better.

The other two simulations ended with similarly disappointing results. Sheppard still tended to rush with the ship he was on the moment something unexpected happened. The AI was very good at surprises, and it put forth situations in which the crews would make the most mistakes, he included. From this, he also learned that changing strategies in the middle of a fight should happen rarely. Changing a plan abruptly could cause more harm than good. Lastly, the last simulation was finally with the aid of the AI's feature of giving suggestions on the best strategies and tactics to use. Even here there were problems. The AI first considered his decision-making process as being too slow. In short, it took him too long to choose between the AI's proposed suggestions. The AI put a few ideas that were too bold and eventually turned wrong because of something unforeseen happening. He had followed the suggestion too blindly, not even realizing how exposed his fleet elements had become if suddenly reinforcement rushed in. The AI gave two ideas, both would result in victory. The first suggestion was bolder, and it had a better score. And indeed, it would have been the best choice if more Vargas ships didn't show at the most critical moment. It ended with the loss of two heavy cruisers and six Defiants before they succeeded in destroying the enemy fleet. On the other hand, if he took the more conservative approach that the AI had also suggested, they would have lost only two Defiants and would have suffered moderate or substantial damage to two heavy cruisers instead of outright losing them. It was the difference between a victory with thirty or so people dying and a win with six hundred people in his task force dying.

"This AI is merciless," Sheppard spoke after quite some time.

"It needs to be," Ryan, his XO, replied. "It was instructed to put scenarios that would be especially difficult for us and to hammer it into us until we learn to make the proper decisions."

That was a good remark. They needed to learn how to make proper decisions. Not the best, but the proper one. Overextending, thinking that the fight will be easy, following blindly the AI's suggestions, or bravados in which he used the Respite at the fleet's spear for no good reason other than because he was onboard and liked to charge head first were mistakes an admiral needed to learn not to make. Before the Vargas, commanding officers stationed aboard ships had it easy. The Wraith were not big on devising complex strategies, and their fleets were made up of fewer warships. This led to fewer plans available, usually ending in a frontal assault or, if the enemy had a stronger force, disengaging and leaving to fight another day. The Ori had very little in terms of ships in the Milky Way galaxy, which forced them to evade a direct confrontation with the ever-growing Terran fleet. The Goa'uld had been finished even before the Terrans had a proper space navy, and the Leptinians were too weird to compare them to anything or to use them as a teaching material when explaining various strategies. But the Vargas was a different beast that needed to be tackled seriously.

"I miss the days of managing the military in the Pegasus galaxy," Sheppard lamented.

"That's an administrative job, sir. I don't think it suits you. Once you've spent more time gaining experience as the commander of this task force, I believe you will realize that this job fits you better," Ryan responded.

Was this lip service? He wasn't sure. What he did know though was that he had to improve as Ryan had said. He needed to reach the place where he wouldn't make stupid mistakes. And he needed to do it before they arrived at the IC 1101 galaxy in one month. They were to continue their voyage at best speed the moment negotiations with this potential ally were over. In this month it will take them to get there, he planned to hone both his and the crew's skills to an acceptable degree.

"Hopefully, we'll be ready for whatever awaits us there," he muttered, not addressing anyone in particular.

His task force wouldn't take the central stage, nor would other task forces part of the Second Great Alliance. Instead, the Aklarians would. Since they had the largest fleet of all members in their alliance, it was logical that they would have the most significant role in a galaxy as large as IC 1101. Still, the top brass was planning a lot of things, and it all sounded reasonable and very logical, but everybody in the military knew that no plan survived first contact with the enemy. Therefore, they would have to rethink a lot of what had been planned at a later time.

"So, who's the winner in the last simulation?" Sheppard asked.

"For captains, it's Caldwell again," Ryan responded.

Caldwell again had the best score among all the captain. "Maybe he should be in this chair instead of me."

"He refused to become an admiral, saying that he's much better at being a captain."

"Who isn't?" Sheppard snorted. "Still, he may not have that choice for much longer."

"I believe that he's the best candidate to replace you as commander of this task force after you're promoted to a two-star admiral and are given a more important command post," Ryan said. "Of course, after you submit Caldwell for promotion as the next commander of this task force, he will hate your guts from that day onward."

"Yeah, I know. That's why I'll send you to inform the man of his forced promotion," Sheppard responded with a mischievous grin. "Just hope he's the type of guy who doesn't shoot the messenger."

Hearing his remark, Ryan's face crumpled. "Sir, it is the tradition for a superior officer to give such good news to those under their command. They must do it in person, sir."

"It might be tradition, but the Terran Space Navy is new, and you know that both Jack O'Neill and I are not people who'll follow every set tradition," Sheppard replied while smirking.

"Understood, sir," Ryan replied reluctantly. He apparently didn't like it.

"Good! So, who's next?" he asked.

"This time it was the pilot of Defiant 004 who scored the highest," Ryan reported.

"The pilot from Defiant 004 and the one from Defiant 012 are always the ones with the top scores. This time it was the pilot of 004 to snatch the victory. Are they competing or something?"

"They are half-brothers, sir."

"Oh, boy. That explains it. We'll watch and see how far they can go. Let's hope their rivalry doesn't go too far," he surmised his thoughts on the matter. "Did Respite's tactical officer win first place this time too?"

"He did. Once again he displayed amazing control over the weapon systems."

"I see. The man really has a knack for it," he said while watching the relevant data floating above the table.

"It's more than just that, sir."

Sheppard looked at him puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"I've noticed it some time ago, sir. Those three and a few others are showing abilities that go beyond simple good judgment, quick thinking, or fast reflexes. Both brothers were able to react to the sudden changes in the simulation faster than what should have been humanly possible."

"Explain it a little more. I'm still not getting it."

"Until recently, the fastest reaction time was achieved by a competitive game player who had a reaction time of 120 milliseconds. After Genesis, though, there were people – again, game players – who could react in 100 milliseconds. This is well within the predictions of the scientists who are studying the benefits of the Genesis Project. However, the two brothers showed reaction times below 50 milliseconds and at one time even a reaction time of minus 10 milliseconds."

"Minus ten?" What does that mean?

"It means that they reacted before the event happened, sir. They simply knew ahead of time and reacted."

Now he understood. They were part of a small number of people who were special. His XO didn't know this, but all admirals had been ordered to look for such people under their command. A study was being conducted meant to improve those people with special abilities so that they could one day use them better than how they could now. Unfortunately, presently they did not know how to activate their skills - it would happen for no reason or cause, except maybe stress - and using such abilities would exhaust them quickly. In short, the way it was now, it was too unreliable to be used and relied upon by the military. The last information he had received was that they were working on an amplifier capable of bringing those abilities forth in a more stable form. Even if it couldn't be used for a prolonged period, it would still be great if people like the two pilots could use their ability when it mattered the most, even if the amplifier allowed them to use them for mere minutes.

"Understood. It seems there's something else going on here. I think that it would be great to have pilots who can predict events before they happen," Sheppard responded.

"Unfortunately, they do not always display those abilities," Ryan responded. He was about to speak more but was interrupted.

"Admiral Sheppard, we are nearing our rendezvous point," Caldwell's voice was heard over the comm system.

Sheppard got up from his chair, "We'll continue after the meeting is over. Let's get to the bridge for now."

As he approached them, the doors that connected to the bridge parted ways. He briskly walked on the deck, moving to sit on the empty chair next to Caldwell while Ryan stopped slightly behind him and on his left. "ETA?"

"Just about to exit hyperspace, Admiral," Caldwell answered promptly.

Sheppard didn't really like Caldwell calling him an admiral, as there was a time when Caldwell was the one with a higher authority, especially when aboard the man's ship. However, it was protocol to call him as such.

Before he could say more, the Respite exited hyperspace. The change on the frontal display was evident, now displaying regular space and the few ships in the task force that exited hyperspace ahead of the Respite.

"Do we have anything on sensors?" Caldwell asked.

"I'm just receiving initial telemetry, sir," the crewmember sitting in front of the sensor stations replied. "Contact! Bearing, 65 degrees! Inclination, minus 5 degrees! Distance, 20 thousand kilometers! Detecting twelve ships of unknown configuration! Sizes ranging from cruiser to supercarrier class."

It was easy to understand how big those ships were since it was practice comparing unknown vessels with their own ship's classes. Even though a dreadnaught and a supercarrier were in a similar size category, the officer specifying that it was a supercarrier was relevant, as their configuration and capabilities differed significantly. Also, what kind of threat they could pose was different. Sheppard saw Caldwell looking at him expectantly. Sometimes he forgot that he was the man in charge who'd have to decide what the entire task force needed to do. A sensation that maybe this wasn't the right job for him was growing again. He sighed. "Let's not spook them by making a micro jump in front of them. Keep formation as is, set condition Two just in case, and lets slowly get closer."

"Tactical, set condition Two," Caldwell said.

"Aye, setting condition Two," the tactical officer replied.

"Helm plot a zero-zero intercept course. Acceleration 500 gravities," Caldwell ordered again.

"Aye, Captain. Plotting a zero-zero intercept course, with an acceleration of 4900 meters per second squared (mps2)," the crewmember at the helm responded.

"Comm, share those orders with the rest of the task force through the Battlenet," Caldwell ordered again.

"Relaying orders, aye, sir."

Things had changed from the easy-going atmosphere present onboard their ships when they had barely started. Now, every order had to be reported back to the commanding officer as not to make any mistakes. It made sense to check that a crewmember didn't understand the given orders wrongly. But it was boring as hell listening to them saying the same things over and over. Still, deep down he knew the adoption of the practice drilled in the Navy to exhaustion was a thing they had to do. They were going to face the Vargas. There shouldn't be any mistakes because the Vargas would not miss such opportunities.

"Sir, all ships are reporting their readiness," the comm. Officer replied.

"Engage," Caldwell replied simply.

"Aye, sir, we are on our way," helm reported. "ETA, 17 minutes and 20 seconds."

"Space is truly vast," Sheppard muttered.

"We could have pushed harder, but…" Caldwell began replying.

"No, let's not look threatening or too eager. We are trying to make friends here," Sheppard interjected.

The trek began, and as stated by the comm officer it lasted for a little over 17 minutes. During that time, they had broadcasted one message saying who they were and received a simple response with only the word 'acknowledged' in it. He had thought that they could have started to talk to each other while traveling, but that seemed not to be a possibility. Maybe these people were strict on protocol.

Anyway, the ships were ready for anything, with the shields charged and raised and the ability to activate all their weapons at a moment's notice. The aliens had more ships here, but he was confident in their ability to at the very least escape if it turned out that they were not good people. He also wished for this mission to go smoothly. It was his first diplomatic mission, and he didn't want to mess it up.

"We have stopped one hundred kilometers in front of the unknown ships as ordered, sir," the helm reported.

"Good, let's call them and start this meeting," Caldwell said, apparently eager to begin. He too must like doing simulations more than talking to unknown aliens.

"Sir, we are receiving a message from the largest alien ship," the comm officer replied.

"It seems they are faster than we are," Sheppard said.

"What does it say, Lieutenant?" Caldwell asked while looking at the crewmember at the comm station.

"It is addressed to Admiral Sheppard and Captain Caldwell. Start of the quote, 'We the Ikliri look forward to creating a long-lasting relationship with the Terrans and other members of the Second Great Alliance. We will bring our main fleet at the coordinates of your supergate in three of your Earth days.' End of quote, sir," the comm officer said. He too looked baffled.

"Sir, all unknown vessels have entered hyperspace! They are gone, sir!" the sensor officer reported.

"What?" Sheppard said in puzzlement.

"What?" Caldwell said it at the same time.

"Why?" Sheppard added, now questioning why they left so abruptly.

"How do they know our names?" Caldwell asked.

"Don't know," Shepard answered. "For that matter, how do they know how long a day on Earth lasts?"

"I don't get it. Crap! We didn't give them the coordinates where the supergate is!" Shepard shouted. Was his first mission a complete bust? Did he even do anything?

"Sir, the message also contained the exact coordinates where our supergate is."

"How do they know that?!" Caldwell was the one to shout this time. There was a trace of exasperation present in his voice.

"Sir, I have been detecting some residual emissions for the last minute," the tactical officer reported. "They are decaying quickly."

"What kind of emissions?" Caldwell asked.

"Tachyons, sir. The ship's computer is still analyzing to see if there is a known pattern to these emissions."

At first, Shepard thought the officer had said tacos because of too many people talking or whispering around him. However, thinking about it a little more, Tachyons made more sense. "Tachyons? What are those?"

"Particles capable of traveling faster than the speed of light when observed from an outsider's frame of reference. The phenomenon is caused by the distortion of the 4th dimension inside the spacetime curvature."

"I deeply regret asking," Sheppard responded while shrugging his shoulders. He was now even more confused, and this whole mission didn't go as he thought it would. "Anyway, what does that mean? It must mean something since you've said it, right?"

"Uhm, yes sir!" the tactical officer replied. There was uncertainty in his voice, and he was constantly glancing at his display. He must be waiting for the computer to finish the analysis and tell him something smart.

"Still waiting here," Shepard added. The officer might soon start sweating bullets if the computer didn't give him something. At least this part was fun. However, it didn't last long.

"I have something," the same officer spoke. "It seems a similar pattern was recorded once before when SG1 found an Alterran device on a planet that created a time loop."

"Okay, that's something," Shepard said, although he didn't know what that something might be. "So, we are dealing with a time loop here, right?"

'Not necessarily, sir. The emissions are similar, but that's not conclusive evidence that the same thing happened here."

"Ugh," Shepard groaned in frustration. He thought they had something, but it could turn out to be nothing. "You know what! Why don't we leave this discussion for some other time? It is only speculation at this point. We won't know for sure no matter how many wacky theories we come up with right now. Let's instead go back – since there's nothing to do here anyway, right? And then in three days from now when they come, we ask these Ikliri guys to explain what the hell is going on. Does that sound good?"

"It does," Caldwell said while still looking pensive. "The problem is that I don't think I'll be able to sleep soundly tonight without knowing what happened.

"Not a problem, Captain!" Shepard cried ardently. "We are going to have so many simulations today that tonight the Ikliri won't be on your mind. Not even close! At best, you'll have nightmares related to fighting the Vargas!"

Caldwell's face crumpled suddenly, the same as everybody else's faces except for Ryan who remained standing unflinching and without betraying any emotion he might have on the subject. Shepard assumed the man had predicted what his suggestion would have been. He wasn't his right-hand man for nothing. "All right! Let's get to business people!"

Shepard stormed back toward the CIC full of vigor. It was time to work some more and show better results than what they had done thus far.

The Ikliri and their wacky ways of doing things will have to wait.

---

Thanks for reading. Leave a review if you feel like it. They are always appreciated.